2.3 The Textured PEI plate, and glue
Module 2 · Lesson 3 of 10 · about 4 min
Module 1 covered the Cool Plate SuperTack on the upper row. Every other printer, meaning the lower-row X2Ds and both H2Ss, uses Textured PEI.
Textured PEI
A printed cube lying on a Textured PEI plate, turned so the face that was printed against the plate shows: it has the same matte, lightly bumpy texture as the plate
This is a steel plate with a rough, textured coating (PEI). Two things to know about it:
It works with far more materials than SuperTack. PLA, PETG, ABS and ASA all print well on it. PLA prints excellently here too. SuperTack just suits PLA even better. It holds PLA harder, so corners are less likely to lift. It does that at a lower bed temperature, and with less heat radiating from the bed, fine details near the plate set better and come out a little cleaner.
Its texture shows on your part. The whole underside comes out matte and slightly bumpy. That is not a defect.
It still needs careful handling. Skin oil stops prints sticking just as much here, and on a textured surface you can't see it. Hold it by the edges.
Clean it like every plate: warm water and plain dish soap, never hand soap or acetone. IPA (alcohol) is allowed on Textured PEI, but dish soap works better: it lifts oil and grease off the surface, while IPA mostly dissolves them and spreads them thinner.
Removing a print is also the same: let it cool, flex the plate, plastic blades only.
What glue is actually for
You might expect glue to make prints stick better. In this room, that is mostly not why we use it.
Bambu Lab Liquid Glue's main job here is to stop a print from sticking too well. PETG sticks to Textured PEI so hard that getting the print off can tear the plate's coating. With a thin layer of glue, the print sticks to the glue instead of the plate, and both come away together. Glue's other job is the one people expect: extra grip for a material that warps, or for a part that barely touches the plate.
Material on Textured PEI | Glue? | Why |
|---|---|---|
PLA | Usually not | Comes off by itself once the plate cools |
PETG | Always | A release layer, so removal doesn't damage the plate |
ABS, ASA, or a part with a very small footprint | Sometimes | Here it really is for extra grip |
Yes, PETG is the exception. Textured PEI is known as the plate that doesn't need glue, and for PLA that is true. PETG gets glue anyway, to protect the plate.
✅ Hard rule. On Textured PEI, PETG always gets a thin layer of Bambu Lab Liquid Glue.
⛔ Hard rule. Never use any glue except Bambu Lab Liquid Glue, and never use it on anything but Textured PEI. That rules out glue sticks, hairspray and similar products on every plate, and any glue at all on a SuperTack plate.
Other glues can damage the plates. The makerspace pays for the Bambu Lab Liquid Glue in the room, so you never need to bring your own. It stands in holders on the pegboard. Put the bottle back there when you are done.
Three bottles of Bambu Lab Liquid Glue in white 3D-printed holders on the pegboard
Bambu Lab Liquid Glue being applied to a Textured PEI plate. The blob in front is too much glue: it should be an even, thin, barely visible layer. Thinner is better, as long as it covers the surface
Applying it. Wash and dry the plate first. Spread a thin, even layer. You don't need to wait for it to dry, because heating the bed dries it. After your print, put the plate back in the rack with the glue still on it. As in Module 1, you don't wash it afterwards: whoever prints on it next washes it first (1.8 Build plates), and warm water and dish soap remove the glue.
Glue does not replace cleaning. It doesn't remove oil or dust. It seals them in underneath. Always wash first.
The slicer warns but does not stop you. When you pick a plate and material that don't belong together, Bambu Studio sometimes sets the bed temperature to 0 °C as a warning. If you type in a temperature, the warning goes away and the slicer carries on. The room rules still apply either way. Don't rely on the software to catch a wrong combination.
Image sources: print on Textured PEI, from Bambu Lab's store page for the Textured PEI Plate.