A new paper (Wear and Service Life of 3-D Printed Polymeric Gears) illustrates a study of PLA, ABS, and PETG used as gears under load.
An excerpt from the paper:
3.2. Service Life of Polymeric Gears
In order to determine the service life of the polymeric gears produced by the FDM method, the gears were operated at 900 rpm and 1.5 Nm load until damage occurred. The damage times and shapes of the gears are shown in Figures 7–9.
Plastic gears are not resistant to high loads and temperature rises; it is very important to know or at least estimate their service life. In this study, low load was applied to plastic gears in life tests. The reason for this is that excessive wear was observed in the gears due to sudden temperature rises at high loads. As a result of the tests, the service life of the ABS and PLA materials were close to each other (Figures 7–9). Plastic gears produced with PETG material are more durable than other materials. PETG plastic gears are 22.3% and 37% more durable than PLA and ABS, respectively.
This is why we've opted to use PETG for our products. The slightly higher ductility of PETG gives a significant boost to overall durability. Our Cord Maker has a comparatively small load compared to the tested load of 1.5 Nm.
Our latest design is easily serviceable. The hooks now easily pass through the faceplate. So, even if the gears did degrade, they could be replaced.
Citation:
Tunalioglu, Mert Safak, and Bekir Volkan Agca. “Wear and Service Life of 3-D Printed Polymeric Gears.” Polymers vol. 14,10 2064. 18 May. 2022, doi:10.3390/polym14102064