Flexible TPU 3D printing — rubber-like parts, printed to order in the UK

TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) is a printable rubber. The 95A in the name is its shore hardness — about the feel of a skateboard wheel or a stiff phone case: it flexes and springs back, grips in the hand, and shrugs off impacts that would crack a rigid print. It’s also notably abrasion resistant, which is why wheels, feet and wear pads are classic TPU jobs.

A solid TPU part a few millimetres thick is firm with a little give; print the same part with thin walls or light infill and it becomes genuinely squashy. Wall count and infill are the tuning knobs, and the instant quote lets you set both.

The pattern in what works: parts that seal, grip, protect or absorb.

• Gaskets, seals and washers — cut-to-fit sealing for enclosures, lids and housings (not for potable water or food contact).
• Grips, handles and sleeves — over-moulded feel without the mould: tool grips, lever covers, camera hand-grips.
• Bumpers, feet and corner protectors — for machines, furniture, flight cases and drones.
• Wheels, rollers and tyres — RC cars, robots, trolleys; 95A wears well and grips hard floors.
• Protective covers and mounts — cases and cradles that hold gear snugly without scratching it.
• Vibration damping — motor mounts, camera mounts and spacers that keep buzz out of a frame.

Flexible printing has real constraints, and it’s better you hear them from us than discover them in a parcel.

• Fine detail is harder in TPU. Soft filament rounds off crisp edges and tiny features — chunky geometry prints beautifully; jewellery-level detail doesn’t.
• Support structures on TPU are awkward to remove cleanly. Big overhangs that need support may come back with rougher undersides — designs that print flat on their largest face work best.
• One shore hardness. We stock 95A — the firm end of flexible. If your part needs to be much softer (squishy-toy soft), FDM TPU at 95A is the wrong tool and we’ll say so.
• Not food-safe, like every FDM print — no bottle seals, teats or anything that touches food or drink.

TPU 95A is £0.09 per gram before the 1.4 material factor that flexible filament carries — £0.126 a gram in practice — plus machine time, with £2.50 handling per item and a £4.50 minimum item price. It is the same transparent formula as every material we run, explained line by line in our 3D printing cost guide. Most gaskets, feet and grips weigh a handful of grams, so small flexible parts usually land near the minimum. Batches discount automatically: 5% off extra copies at 5+, up to 20% at 50+.

Parts print up to 325 × 320 × 325 mm, and one-offs are welcome — there’s no minimum order quantity.