Spanish 3D printing materials developer Recreus specializes in flexible TPU filaments for industrial additive manufacturing applications.
Operating out of its Elda HQ, the company entered the FDM 3D printing market in 2013 with its Filaflex TPU filament line. Over a decade later, Recreus has grown its Filaflex portfolio to incorporate a range of flexible products spanning Shore hardnesses from 60A to 95A.
In this article, we get hands-on with two flagship Filaflex materials: Filaflex 82A and Filaflex Foamy. As the name suggests, Filaflex 82A features a Shore hardness of 82A and an impressive 650% elongation at break. This elasticity allows 3D printed parts to consistently return to their original shape after being deformed. Filaflex Foamy shares the same base hardness, which can be lowered to 60A by adjusting printing parameters. It is designed to produce lightweight parts and provide up to 40% more prints per spool.
Our engineering team spent over 80 hours benchmarking and testing these filaments. We evaluated their performance across several real-world industrial applications, including automotive air intakes, soft robotic grippers, wrist supports, and 3D printed shoe insoles.
Optimized parameters must be used when 3D printing with these high-performance TPUs to ensure good results. Users can find drying instructions and 3D printing settings for Filaflex 82A and Filaflex Foamy on the official Recreus website. Following these guidelines helps prevent common issues with flexible filaments, such as under-extrusion, stringing, and poor bed adhesion. They also help ensure consistent dimensional accuracy and high-quality surface finish.
Both filaments are available for purchase on the Recreus online store. 500 g spools of the Filaflex 82A cost €27.90, while 600 g of the Filaflex Foamy is priced at €37.93.
Why choose Filaflex 82A?
Recreus Filaflex 82A TPU filament is designed for industrial 3D printing applications that demand exceptional elasticity, resilience, and durability. This 82A Shore hardness material offers a unique balance between flexibility and mechanical strength. Its ability to reliably reform after being stretched up to 650% makes it well-suited to producing flexible components like automotive seals and medical devices.
Although TPU 3D printing can be challenging, Filaflex 82A prints easily. It provides excellent bed adhesion and minimal warping, with no heated bed or extra adhesives required. This filament works with most extrusion-based FDM 3D printers and delivers the best results with direct-drive extruders.
Once 3D printed, the material exhibits impressive chemical and abrasion resistance. Parts are resistant to fuels, solvents, and general wear and tear, making Filaflex 82A well-suited to end-use production. The material is also non-toxic and skin-safe, unlocking potential for 3D printed wearables and prosthetics.
Thanks to these impressive features, the ultra-flexible 3D printing filament has seen wide adoption among professional designers, engineers, and makers. In the medical sector, Filaflex 82A is used to produce personalized insoles, prosthetics, and anatomical models for surgical planning. The material has also gained traction in the fashion industry, where it’s used to create custom footwear and wearable items. Its blend of flexibility and mechanical durability makes it equally valuable for industrial applications, including buffers, gaskets, seals, tires, and hoses.
Recreus Filaflex 82A is available in fifteen different colors as 500g and 3 kg spools of both 1.75 mm and 2.85 mm filament diameters.
Recreus Filaflex 82A filament in three colours: green, red, and nude. Photos via Recreus.
How good is Recreus Filaflex 82A filament?
Our engineering team conducted several tests to assess how well Filaflex 82A performs during 3D printing. For industrial users wanting to produce batches of identical parts, repeatability is critical. This is particularly important in functional prototyping and low-volume flexible manufacturing operations. Therefore, we first tested the TPU filament’s dimensional repeatability and process stability.
For this test, 12 identical hexagonal test parts were 3D printed under consistent printer settings and environmental conditions. Each hexagon was then measured and compared against the target dimensions to analyse the material’s consistency and ability to produce accurate, uniform parts. High-performing materials should achieve an average deviation under 0.1 mm and a standard deviation below 0.05 mm.
Repeatability hexagons 3D printed using Recreus FilaFlex 82A filament. Photos by 3D Printing Industry.
Recreus Filaflex 82A filament performed well in this test. It achieved a 0.012 mm average deviation across all tests, comfortably within the 0.1 mm benchmark. Similarly, the standard deviation came to 0.012 mm, under the 0.05 mm threshold. These findings indicate a high level of geometric stability. This is particularly impressive given the inherent challenges of elastomeric materials, which are typically susceptible to deformation, flow inconsistencies, and thermal variation.
Our first-rate results indicate that Filaflex 82A maintains precise extrusion, strong interlayer bonding, and controlled material deposition for high-quality, mechanically stable parts. The filament can consistently create complex features across multiple print jobs, validating its value for functional prototyping and batch production of end-use parts.
Recreus Filaflex 82A repeatability results. Images by 3D Printing Industry.
To determine how valuable Recreus Filaflex 82A is for automotive applications, we next 3D printed suspension leg covers that protect the fork seals from dust, debris, and moisture. These components must maintain a secure fit while allowing for continuous compression and rebound, meaning flexibility and resilience are key.
This part was 3D printed successfully on the first try with minimal stringing, which was quickly removed in post-processing. No other defects were observed, demonstrating excellent layer adhesion, dimensional accuracy, and surface finish. The TPU’s elasticity and recovery characteristics make it an ideal candidate for protective and functional components. It offers flexibility, resilience, and vibration-damping properties ideal for automotive and bicycle suspension systems.
TPU is often used to produce industrial seals and gaskets due to its elasticity, resilience, and chemical resistance. How does Filaflex 82A handle these applications? To find out, we 3D printed a set of gasket prototypes. Given that most gasket geometries are relatively flat with minimal or no overhangs, we expected the process to be straightforward with minimal surface defects.
Recreus Filaflex 82A did not disappoint. All gaskets came out well, exhibiting consistently strong dimensional accuracy and surface finish. The only notable issue encountered was minor stringing, a common artifact in flexible filament printing.
The water pump cover gasket, with sharp internal and external edges, was 3D printed with impressive accuracy. It maintained clean transitions and well-defined profiles, showing strong control over extrusion and retraction. Given Filaflex 82A’s chemical resistance and durability, this gasket suits functional use in chemically exposed environments like automotive or industrial fluid systems.
To assess Filaflex 82A’s value for wearable applications, we 3D printed soft goggle frames. The parts exhibited excellent surface quality, dimensional accuracy, and flexibility. Filaflex 82A’s elasticity and 650% rebound capacity make it ideal for conforming to the contours of the face, ensuring a comfortable and secure fit.
Importantly, the material’s skin-safe properties make it well-suited to prolonged use, a critical requirement for wearable eye protection, sports goggles, or medical-grade face gear. These results confirm the material’s suitability for functional, end-use soft components where comfort and durability are critical.
Recreus Filaflex 82A 3D printed goggle frames. Photos by 3D Printing Industry.
Advantages of Recreus Filaflex Foamy
Recreus Filaflex Foamy is a unique TPU 3D printing filament featuring dynamic foaming technology. The material includes a novel foaming agent that activates at high temperatures. This internal micro-foam formation can reduce part weight density by up to 40% while maintaining structural integrity. Therefore, by tweaking 3D printer parameters, users can fabricate lightweight, flexible parts with a distinctive foamy texture while optimizing material efficiency.
3D printing Filaflex Foamy between 245-250°C and a 60-70% flow rate unlocks 1.4-1.6 times volume expansion. This allows users to customize physical properties and color tone variations. While the default Shore hardness is set to 82A, this can be adjusted to 60A by modifying the 3D print temperature and flow rate. What’s more, the material efficiency of Filaflex Foamy reportedly facilitates 30-40% more 3D prints per spool, making it well-suited for high-volume production.
Filaflex Foamy’s customizable properties make it ideal for lightweight, personalized products. It’s widely used in footwear, including 3D printed shoes, insoles, and soles. Other key applications include bicycle grips and seats, automotive cushions and gaskets, impact-absorbing pads, and acoustic dampers.
1.75 mm and 2.85 mm filament diameters are available in five colors, and can be purchased as 600 g or 2.5 kg spools.
Filaflex Foamy 3D printing applications
Given Filaflex Foamy’s adoption in 3D printed footwear production, we produced a soft, lightweight, and flexible shoe insole. The material delivered high-quality results, featuring well-defined contours and a consistent surface texture. We performed minor post-processing, like light sanding, to remove small oozing marks, common in flexible filament printing, especially with foaming materials.
Once cleaned, the part exhibited a comfortable, cushioned feel with a uniform matte finish. This confirms the filament’s value for fabricating custom or orthopaedic insoles where comfort, impact absorption, and skin compatibility are essential. Filaflex Foamy is well-suited for functional, end-use wearable components with minimal post-processing requirements.
Recreus Filaflex Foamy 3D printed insoles. Photos by 3D Printing Industry.
Within industrial manufacturing, 3D printing is used to produce custom tooling applications. Our team used Filaflex Foamy filament to 3D print a soft robotic gripper. Although printed successfully, the part featured defects caused by material oozing during nozzle travel and retraction. This created raised blobs and filament strings that diminished surface quality.
We also faced issues with 3D printing supports, as they fused to the model and were difficult to remove without causing damage. Our gripper design also included unsupported bridges to test their performance. Despite being short, these bridges were printed poorly. This suggests that Filaflex Foamy isn’t rigid enough to form clean horizontal structures. Therefore, users should design parts specifically for additive manufacturing, ideally without supports or bridging features.
Despite these limitations, the 3D printed robot gripper functioned as intended, allowing air to pass through its internal channels. However, it was less flexible than silicone, which made it harder to compress.
Recreus Filaflex Foamy 3D printed soft robotic grippers. Photos by 3D Printing Industry.
Next, we 3D printed a flexible, functional wrist brace prototype. Orthopedic support devices require controlled compression, comfort, and the ability to conform to body contours. This design tested the material’s soft-touch feel, adjustable elasticity, and low density, key traits for long-term skin contact and wearable orthopedic applications.
Once printed, the brace exhibited excellent results, with Filaflex Foamy producing a fully functional and ergonomically conforming component. It met the key design requirements for a functional orthopedic device, offering flexibility, fit, and durability. The integrated hooks printed successfully, demonstrating strong layer adhesion and mechanical integrity, even under flexural stress.
We observed minor surface defects caused by oozing during nozzle retraction, which led to stringing. Fine-tuning retraction settings or adding coasting and wipe options could help reduce these imperfections. Light post-processing easily removed the defects, allowing the part to meet functional and aesthetic standards.
Recreus Filaflex Foamy 3D printed wrist brace. Photo by 3D Printing Industry.
Ultimately, Recreus Filaflex 82A and Filaflex Foamy TPU stand out as two great TPU options in the FDM 3D printer filament market. These materials exhibit excellent flexibility and elasticity characteristics, making them ideal for applications requiring stretch, compression, or impact absorption.
Our testing confirmed that, when used with Recreus’s suggested print parameters, they reliably produce high-quality parts ideal for industrial users. Filaflex 82A’s repeatability was impressive, achieving a score of 0.012 mm for both average and standard deviation (comfortably inside the 0.1 mm and 0.05 mm benchmarks). This showcased the filament’s impressive geometric stability and consistency, making it well-suited to prototyping and batch production of end-use parts.
Filaflex Foamy also delivered strong results, producing parts with outstanding flexibility, elasticity, comfort, and performance. Its dynamic density and adjustable Shore hardness make it easy to fine-tune softness and weight to suit specific application needs.
Recreus Filaflex 82A and Filaflex Foamy deliver industrial-grade performance at a competitive price, making them ideal for users seeking flexibility, reliability, and versatility. Their high elongation at break, excellent layer adhesion, chemical resistance, skin-safe composition, and customizability make them well-suited for advanced manufacturing and engineering applications.
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Featured image shows Recreus’ Filaflex Foamy and Filaflex 82A filaments and 3D printed parts. Photo by 3D Printing Industry.
