Verbatim launched a new flexible material today: PRIMALLOY BLACK. And it’s not just the color that changed.
Previously, the company had produced “regular” PRIMALLOY, which was (and is) a very good white color flexible material. We tested PRIMALLOY two years ago and found it easy to print with and providing excellent quality flexible objects.
Now the new PRIMALLOY BLACK changes things a bit. The material is obviously black, hence its name, but there are more differences.
Most flexible thermoplastics used in 3D printing applications are thermoplastic polyurethane, or “TPU” as it is known. PRIMALLOY BLACK is a completely different material: thermoplastic ester elastomer, or “TPEE”. Verbatim describes its functional characteristics:
It provides high-performance characteristics in terms of mechanical strength and resistance to oil, base, solvents, chemicals, flex fatigue and heat, in addition to offering excellent low temperature properties and a high level of hardness stability across a wide temperature range, making PRIMALLOY particular suited for outdoor applications.
Why the black color? Aside from distinguishing it from their white PRIMALLOY, they believe the majority of use of this TPEE material will be for grips and handles, which tend to be black in most designs.
This is yet another example of a unique material being released from the vast chemical repository of Verbatim’s owner, Mitsubishi. All Verbatim materials we’ve tested thus far have been quite good, although they tend to carry a slight premium on pricing.
There’s no word yet on pricing, but it is likely to be similar to that of the regular Primalloy, or greater, which currently goes for around USD$62 on Amazon.
Via Verbatim
