ABS Smartfil

ABS is a widely-used plastic renowned for its versatility in everyday items like plastic boxes, toys, and electronic device casings. Available in both 1.75 mm and 2.85 mm variants and in spools of 750 g or 3.3 kg, ABS Smartfil from Smart Materials offers exceptional functionality and adaptability to various projects, also thanks to its wide range of available colors, including black, white, red, yellow, blue, green, grey, and natural.

Image 1: The ABS Smartfil filament in Sapphire. Source: Smart Materials.

Unlike PLA, ABS Smartfil isn't biodegradable, and its vulnerability to UV radiation has spurred the development of ASA material as a UV-resistant alternative, highlighting the ongoing evolution within the realm of ABS-based materials. Furthermore, ABS has a high propensity for water absorption. When considering applications involving water containment, alternative materials may be more suitable. 

Image 2: The properties of the ABS Smartfil filament. Source: Smart Materials.

ABS is a polymer composed of three building blocks, acrylonitrile, butadiene and styrene, which is why it is called a terpolymer. Each of the three building blocks provides different characteristics. Acrylonitrile provides rigidity, resistance to chemical attack, hardness and high temperature stability. Butadiene, especially low temperature toughness and impact strength; and styrene, mechanical strength, stiffness, gloss, hardness, toughness, and impact resistance.

Video 1: Smoothing ABS Smartfil parts with acetone. Source: Smart Materials.

Parts 3D printed with the ABS Smartfil filament can be machined, polished, sanded, drilled, drilled, painted and glued with extreme ease, maintaining a really good finish. If you want to obtain extraordinary surface finishes, we recommend the use of the XTC-3D coating specifically designed for 3D printing. ABS is also soluble in acetone, so many 3D printing users use acetone vapour baths to obtain smooth and shiny surface finishes.