PC-CF print settings
Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polycarbonate · Expert
PC-CF (Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polycarbonate) prints at 260-300°C with the bed at 100-120°C. It needs an enclosure. Dry the filament before printing.
Polycarbonate with carbon fibre: the stiffest and most heat-tolerant material most desktop printers can reach, at the cost of needing every piece of hardware at once. Chosen when a part has to stay rigid while hot.
Settings at a glance
Ranges are typical manufacturer-published figures for this material class, not measurements we took. Always start with your filament maker’s own numbers where they differ. The price is an indicative street price for a 1 kg spool, not a live quote.
Good for
- Rigid brackets that run hot
- Jigs and fixtures near machinery
- Structural drone and RC parts
- Under-bonnet mounts
Avoid for
- Brass nozzles
- Open-frame printers
- Hot ends that stop below 280C
- Parts needing impact toughness
The problem people actually hit
The carbon fibre removes much of polycarbonate's impact toughness while keeping all of its difficulty. If a part has to survive being dropped rather than stay stiff when warm, plain PC is the better choice and PA-CF better still.
Drying
Strongly hygroscopic. Dry at 80C for 6-8 hours.
Buying PC-CF
PC-CF is carried by relatively few brands, so sourcing is a real part of the job rather than an afterthought. Reliable options exist from selected manufacturers, but do not expect the choice of colours you get with PETG. Typical street price is $50-90 per 1 kg spool.
Check before you order
- Diameter 1.75mm unless your printer takes 2.85mm. Check before ordering, not after.
- Published diameter tolerance. ±0.02mm is good, ±0.05mm is loose and shows up as inconsistent extrusion.
- Vacuum-sealed with desiccant. Hygroscopic filament that shipped open has already absorbed moisture and will need drying before its first print.
- Fit a hardened nozzle first. This material is abrasive and will widen a brass nozzle within a print or two.
- Confirm you have an enclosure before buying. Without one this material will warp regardless of spool quality.
Specialist suppliers
Deep engineering-material catalogue and published spec sheets, including grades general retailers do not stock.
Specialist stockist with strong coverage of nylon and carbon-fibre filled materials.
Named because they stock this class of material and publish specifications. We have no commercial relationship with either, and these are ordinary links.
Not sure this is the right material? Compare all materials.
What you need to print PC-CF
Gear that PC-CF genuinely requires, with the specification that decides whether a given unit will actually work.
Filament dryer
Must reach at least 80C
PC-CF will not print cleanly wet, and many budget dryers stop at 55-60C. Check the maximum temperature before buying, not the marketing copy.
See filament dryer on AmazonPrinter enclosure
Fully closed, with a door
PC-CF warps when a draught cools the part unevenly. An enclosure holds chamber heat steady, which fixes lifting corners and split layers more reliably than any slicer setting.
See printer enclosure on AmazonBed adhesion
PEI sheet sized to your bed, or a PVP glue stick
PC-CF lifts at the corners before it fails anywhere else. A textured PEI surface plus a thin glue layer holds the first layer down while the chamber comes up to temperature.
See bed adhesion on AmazonHeat-set threaded inserts
Brass, M3 unless your design says otherwise
Printed threads strip. If you are making rigid brackets that run hot out of PC-CF, melting brass inserts in gives you a metal thread that survives being undone more than once.
See heat-set threaded inserts on AmazonHardened steel nozzle
Hardened steel or ruby, matching your hot end
PC-CF is abrasive and will widen a brass nozzle within a print or two. Fit the hardened nozzle before the first print - the symptom, worsening underextrusion, looks like a dozen other faults.
Creality · Hardened steel nozzles, MK8Hardened steel for abrasive filament. MK8 is a thread pattern, not a universal fitAirtight storage with desiccant
Sealed container plus rechargeable desiccant
Drying a spool once achieves nothing if it sits open afterwards. Storage is what keeps the filament usable between prints.
See airtight storage with desiccant on AmazonAs an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Links above are affiliate links, and using them costs you nothing extra.
PC-CF questions
- What temperature do you print PC-CF at?
- PC-CF prints at a nozzle temperature of 260-300C with the bed at 100-120C. Start at the lower end of the nozzle range and raise it in 5C steps until layers bond cleanly.
- Does PC-CF need an enclosure?
- Yes. PC-CF needs an enclosure. Without one the part cools unevenly, corners lift off the bed and layers split partway up the print.
- Do you need to dry PC-CF?
- Strongly hygroscopic. Dry at 80C for 6-8 hours.
- What is PC-CF good for?
- PC-CF suits rigid brackets that run hot, jigs and fixtures near machinery, structural drone and RC parts, under-bonnet mounts. Avoid it for brass nozzles, open-frame printers, hot ends that stop below 280C, parts needing impact toughness.
- How much does PC-CF cost?
- A 1 kg spool of PC-CF typically sells for $50-90. That is an indicative street price rather than a live figure, so check the retailer for today's cost.
PC-CF or PC?
PC (Polycarbonate) prints at 260-310°C with a 100-120°C bed and needs an enclosure. The strongest and most heat resistant material most desktop printers can run. Genuinely tough, genuinely difficult, and it demands a hot end that can hold 300C.
Read the PC settings guide →After the print
The workshop steps that matter most for PC-CF.