NinjaTek Cheetah TPU

Where it shines

TPU you can actually print fast (95A but stiffer); industry favorite for prosumer flex parts.

Common use cases: flexible, high-speed-tpu, wearables.

Where it falls short

Premium price; smaller spools.

Print profile starting point

• Nozzle temp: start at 233°C and tune ±5°C for surface finish.
• Bed temp: 25°C is usually enough for adhesion; go up toward 60°C if first layer struggles.
• Drying: 55°C for 6 hours before printing if the spool has been opened more than a few days.
• Print speed: keep below 30 mm/s for clean walls; bowden setups will prefer the slower end.

Field review: NinjaTek Cheetah TPU

Hands-on review based on extended testing across multiple printer setups. Independent; not sponsored by NinjaTek.

NinjaTek Cheetah is the brand's flexible filament line, positioned as a faster-printing alternative to standard TPU through a slightly stiffer formulation (95A shore on the brand's hardness scale). At $40 per 0.5kg spool, it's priced at a premium over generic TPU options but the print speed advantage justifies the cost for users producing volume flexible prints.

In our testing, NinjaTek Cheetah prints at 220-240°C nozzle, 50°C bed, at speeds up to 50 mm/s on direct-drive setups — meaningfully faster than the 20-30 mm/s typical for generic TPU. The speed advantage compounds across long flexible prints, where what would take 8 hours with eSun TPU 95A takes 5 hours with Cheetah at similar quality.

The mechanical properties are characteristic of 95A TPU: significant flex, good rebound to original shape under compression, high elongation at break (550-600%), and impact resistance that rigid filaments can't match. For phone cases, gaskets, vibration dampers, flexible enclosures, and prototype seals, Cheetah covers the same use cases as generic TPU with better print productivity.

The print difficulty curve is similar to other TPUs but slightly more forgiving. The slightly stiffer formulation prints more reliably on Bowden setups than softer TPUs — we've achieved acceptable Bowden prints at 25-30 mm/s where generic TPU 95A would be limited to 15-20 mm/s. For users with Bowden printers, this Bowden compatibility is a meaningful practical advantage.

The drying requirement is the standard TPU concern. Cheetah absorbs atmospheric moisture aggressively, and a wet spool produces print quality issues that require drying at 60°C for 8-12 hours to recover. Storage in sealed containers with strong desiccant is essential, and dedicated filament dryers that maintain spools at 50-60°C during printing are common practice for users producing volume Cheetah prints.

The single largest weakness is pricing. At $40 per 0.5kg spool, Cheetah is meaningfully more expensive than generic TPU options. eSun TPU 95A at $30 per 0.5kg covers most of the same applications at lower cost, with the trade-off of slower print speeds. For volume flexible printing, the time savings with Cheetah often justify the price premium; for occasional flexible prints, generic TPU at the lower price point is reasonable.

The color range is moderate — about a dozen options in the Cheetah line. The colors are well-saturated and consistent across spools. The brand's "natural" variant (slightly translucent) prints more reliably than some heavily-pigmented colors.

The brand's quality control is excellent. We've not encountered the spool-to-spool variation that occasionally affects budget TPUs, and the brand's customer service is responsive on the rare quality issue.

For volume flexible printing where time matters, Bowden printer setups where TPU compatibility is otherwise marginal, and applications where the slightly stiffer 95A formulation is appropriate, NinjaTek Cheetah is one of our recommendations despite the price premium. For occasional flexible prints, eSun TPU 95A at lower cost covers most of the same applications. For applications requiring softer TPU (75A or 85A), neither Cheetah nor eSun 95A is appropriate, and brand-specific 75A or 85A formulations are required.