Kupros Cu29 V2 Lets You Print Real Circuits on a Regular FDM Printer

Conductive Filament, Not Conductive Paint

Most desktop 3D printing conductive filaments are basically slightly-better-than-nothing. They carry a small voltage, they work for simple LED projects, and they fall apart if you push them. Kupros, based in Indiana, built Cu29 differently. It is an all-metal tin-copper composite filament with no polymer binder. Resistivity sits at 1.226 x 10^-5 ohm-cm, which the company says is over 48,000 percent more conductive than polymer-based alternatives. The first version proved it could work. Cu29 V2, launched this month, is about making that workflow actually usable for engineers.

The initial 90 kg batch of Cu29 V2 sold out almost immediately. Kupros CEO Ian Ramsdell, a former Navy officer, says the second generation came from a year of real-world feedback: printing, breaking things, rebuilding, and understanding where the process slowed users down. The result is a more consistent extrusion experience at the recommended 232C to 260C nozzle temperature.

From Traces to Embedded Electronics

The bigger announcement is a patent-pending workflow that goes beyond printing conductive traces. Kupros is developing a process for embedding electronics directly into standard FDM prints: conformal antennas, sensors, and other components that previously required separate assembly steps. The idea is that the printer becomes an electronics manufacturing platform, not just a mechanical parts machine.

Cu29-enabled sensor test articles are now at Oak Ridge National Laboratory for evaluation. That connection is not accidental. The Army's DEVCOM Armaments Center demonstrated remote 3D printed electronics repair alongside Sciperio, the sister company of nScrypt, at the recent Valiant Shield exercise. The demand signal for low-cost, on-site electronics manufacturing in the military is clearly heating up.

Who Is This For?

Cu29 V2 works on machines ranging from sub-$400 FDM printers to industrial systems. It prints traces as fine as 0.12 mm and supports voltages up to 12,500V at 5 amps. Practical use cases include EMI shielding, custom RF antennas, embedded sensors in plastic enclosures, and rapid prototyping of electronic circuits without a PCB fab. The filament does not require post-processing: no sintering, plating, curing, or chemical cleanup.

The catch is that printing with Cu29 still demands a machine you trust. High-temperature metal filaments are unforgiving if your hotend temperature fluctuates or your retraction settings are off. Users comfortable tuning their slicer profiles will find a genuinely useful new tool here. Anyone expecting plug-and-play electronics printing is in for a rough introduction.