Printing Onyx

Onyx® is a nylon filament filled with microscopic chopped carbon fibres, designed for additive manufacturing using the FDM process. Compared with standard 3D printing plastics such as ABS or PLA, it offers significantly higher stiffness and strength together with a very good, consistent surface finish straight off the printer.

Onyx is built up additively, layer by layer, from filament using the FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) process. The achievable mechanical properties depend, in addition to the material itself, on layer height, infill density, print orientation and any continuous fibre reinforcement applied. Being a hygroscopic nylon, the filament is stored dry to ensure consistent print quality.

Onyx is a good fit for functional prototypes, jigs, fixtures and tooling, and housings and mounts that need significantly more stiffness and strength than standard 3D printing plastics offer. For maximum strength, Onyx can additionally be combined with continuous fibre reinforcement in carbon fibre, Kevlar® or fibreglass.

Part price is mainly determined by part volume, print time, infill density, post-processing effort and batch size, plus the type and amount of continuous fibre reinforcement where used. We are happy to quote binding prices on request based on your 3D model.

Onyx is not intended for food contact. Where the highest strength close to metal replacement is needed, continuous fibre reinforcement or a machined stock material such as PA66 CF is often the better choice. For very high requirements on chemical purity or transparency, other materials are more suitable.

An honest assessment. Advantages: significantly higher stiffness and strength than standard 3D printing plastics, very good surface finish, chemically resistant, can be combined with continuous fibre reinforcement, proven in more than one million printed parts in field use. Disadvantages: hygroscopic – requires dry storage, not intended for food contact, part properties depend on print parameters, without continuous fibre reinforcement lower strength than fibre-reinforced machined stock.