# What filament is best for gears and moving parts?

These ranked rows list 240–290 °C (464–554 °F).

The gear that wore out was PETG in a meat grinder. The top comment says print nylon, and it says most machines cannot reach the nozzle temperature. The other four threads are an extruder jam, resin gears, a TPU feed path, and a PLA/PVA model.

Print a gear in nylon when the printer can hold the row's nozzle, and treat the PETG meat-grinder gear as the part that already wore out. [Nylon](/answers/nylon), [carbon fiber](/answers/cf), [strength](/answers/strength), and [PETG](/answers/petg_print) are the guides.

## The rows

[Polymide CoPA](/brand/polymaker/polymide-copa-pa6) lists 250–290 °C (482–554 °F) and a bed of 80–100 °C (176–212 °F). The temperatures come from the Open Filament Database. The row links the PolyMide CoPA data sheet. Drying hours are blank. [PA6-CF](/brand/polymaker/pa6-cf) lists the same 250–290 °C (482–554 °F) and 80–100 °C (176–212 °F), with a hardened nozzle recorded. [Prusament PETG](/brand/prusament/petg) lists 240–260 °C (464–500 °F) and 70–90 °C (158–194 °F), also from the Open Filament Database. [PA6](/material/pa6), [PA-CF](/material/pa-cf), and [PETG](/material/petg) are the hubs. [Polymaker](/brand/polymaker) and [Prusament](/brand/prusament) are the brand indexes.

## The gear that wore

[r/FixMyPrint 13dq7qm](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/13dq7qm/) is a PETG copy of a meat-grinder gear. The teeth fit. They wore quickly. The score-226 comment says a durable gear wants nylon, says most machines cannot reach the nozzle temperature, and says there are serious fire risks. It does not name a temperature. CoPA's listed nozzle starts at 250 °C (482 °F). A score-105 comment says print the mold and cast the gear. A score-3 comment says molded plastic gears are usually nylon, acetal, or PEEK, and that a dry, unlubricated printed tooth wears faster because of the layer lines.

## Threads that are not a printed gear

[r/3Dprinting skq3dn](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/skq3dn/) is spongy extrusion while the extruder gear still feeds the right length. The score-88 comment says heat creep and a Bowden tube that needs to sit against the nozzle. The printer in a score-82 comment was PLA at 205/60. That pair is the comment.

[r/3Dprinting t78bsa](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/t78bsa/) is a resin gear photo. The score-62 comment is a joke. A score-6 comment says standard resin is brittle and that the print used an engineering resin. [Resin versus FDM](/answers/resin_vs_fdm) is that choice.

[r/ender3 118cl5l](https://www.reddit.com/r/ender3/comments/118cl5l/) is TPU stuck between the extruder gears and the tube. The score-15 comment wants a direct drive. The score-5 comment caps a dedicated TPU setup under 40 mm/s. [Flexible filament](/answers/flex) is the TPU page.

[r/FixMyPrint vvclbq](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/vvclbq/) asks about a gear-shaped model in PLA and PVA. The score-12 comment says one extruder is black PLA and the other is natural PVA. The higher comments are about the photo. They do not pick a gear plastic.

Updated 2026-10-18. Sources accessed 2026-10-18. Use case: Strength.

## Ranked filaments

| Rank | Filament | Nozzle | Bed | Price per kg |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Polymaker Polymide Copa PA6 | 250–290 °C (482–554 °F) | 80–100 °C (176–212 °F) | — |
| 2 | Polymaker PA6 CF | 250–290 °C (482–554 °F) | 80–100 °C (176–212 °F) | — |
| 3 | Prusament PETG | 240–260 °C (464–500 °F) | 70–90 °C (158–194 °F) | — |

## What the community says

r/FixMyPrint 13dq7qm printed a meat-grinder gear in PETG. It fit, then the teeth wore. The score-226 comment says use nylon, says most printers cannot reach the nozzle temperature, and says nylon has serious fire risks. A score-105 comment says print a mold and cast it. r/3Dprinting skq3dn is underextrusion while the extruder gear still pushes filament. The score-88 comment says heat creep and a Bowden tube that is not seated on the nozzle. r/3Dprinting t78bsa is resin gears. The score-62 comment is a joke. A score-6 comment says standard resin is brittle. r/ender3 118cl5l is TPU jamming in the extruder gears. r/FixMyPrint vvclbq is a gear-shaped model in black PLA and PVA. The score-12 comment identifies the two materials. It does not rate them as gears.

## Sources

- [Polymaker PolyMide CoPA technical data sheet](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0548/7299/7945/files/PolyMide_CoPA_TDS_V5.4.pdf) (datasheet)
- [Open Filament Database, Polymaker PA6-CF](https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/polymaker/materials/PA6/filaments/cf_pa6/index.json) (other)
- [Open Filament Database, Prusament PETG](https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/prusament/materials/PETG/filaments/petg/index.json) (other)
- [Prusament PETG technical data sheet](https://www.prusa3d.com/file/3464616/prusament-petg-technical-data-sheet.pdf) (datasheet)
- [Community source, r/3Dprinting skq3dn](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/skq3dn/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/3Dprinting t78bsa](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/t78bsa/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint 13dq7qm](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/13dq7qm/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/ender3 118cl5l](https://www.reddit.com/r/ender3/comments/118cl5l/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint vvclbq](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/vvclbq/) (reddit)

HTML: https://filamentfacts.com/answers/gears