Best PLA - Colorfabb, Formfutura, 3DOM, Polymaker or ...?

[ralphzoontjens]

Hi,

I have a very simple question.

After 2 years of experimentation and work, I chose to use Colorfabb filament because it brings the best results regarding layer bonding, stiffness, bed adhesion and finish.
The 3DOM Biome3D filament is great as well, and a bit more flexible which is nice though works less well for small details.
Formfutura filament outperforms most other filaments as well but I have been having print failures due to less layer adhesion. Faberdashery filaments are great for their colors but a bit too pricey.
Now I am wondering how Polymaker PLA compares to the other main brands, or if you have any other recommendations.

Thanks,
Ralph

[3dex ltd]

As a filament supplier it is hard not to be biased. However, it seems that most people simply keep trying filaments until they find one that works well with their printer and then stick to that make. (Im pleased to report many people have decided to stick with our filament). I would recommend that you give the Polymaker filament you mention a try and see if you like it. Also there are so many different types of filament available each with their own slight variations and characteristics. I think its the beauty of the filament market - so much choice! I hope this helps.

[iDig3Dprinting]

As @3Dex ltd said, you will just have to try it. What you get out does depend too a large extent on how well dialled in your printer is to that filament. There is a lot of variation in diameter, for example despite what is claimed so this can greatly effect the results. Also not all filaments have the same properties, even amongst standard PLAs. The Biome 3D you speak of has a very nice finish to it so we like it a lot because of that and colorfabb are of course colorfabb and is really a go to for consistent high quality and easy printing. How polymaker will compare you will just have to see.

[curious aardvark]

I like polymaker filaments.
I'm not entirely gone on their pla, but then that's probably because I haven't spent enough time dialling it in.
I do like the fact that it has a slightly roughened surface for extra grip in the extruder. I suspect this would let you print it a high temp and very fast speed.
Got a reel of orange that i used to make some telescopic legs for a garden trough.

But I'd have polyflex's babies if such a thing were possible. fantastic stuff and a joy to work with.
I've still got a sample of polywood that I haven't tried yet.
That's a filament that's supposed to look like wood while having no wood content.

My current favourite white filament is sun-lu. Clean crisp, fast prints at 215c and a really nice feel to the objects. Not as brittle as most white filament. And at £12 kg delivered, what's not to like :-)

My go to filament has been reprapper tech for the last 2 years.
Doesn't seem to matter what colour you get, it's just great stuff and at the mid-point of the price scale..

Colorfabb wise I've only used their exotics.
Light blue colorfabb xt coploymer is hands down the best filament I've ever used.
The stupidly tiny gears I made recently just wouldn't have worked with anything else. It's tough, stiff, a joy to print with and amazingly strong, also certified for food contact. And slightly cheaper than I first thought. so soon as idig3dprinting digs it out of his warehouse, I'm buying a reel.
Got Lots of little widgets in mind where abs and pla just aren't strong enough or print detailed enough and polyflex is too flexible.
Plus it'll print the smallest detail your machine can handle.

Haven't tried their pla/pha yet, but am well impressed with the woodfill, so might get a few samples and have a play.

I do have samples of biome3d, not got round to trying it yet.
The samples I've seen on idig3d's website do look particularly smooth and shiny. So probably worth a try :-)

As fas as layer adhesion and pla goes - never ever had an issue with it.
You must be printing at too low a temp.

[Ama-fessional Molder]

For what it's worth, I have some "Cutequeen" PLA from Amazon, and it's definitely not quality stuff. If you need a good finish, stay away from it. With my own prints it is hit and miss, but that's a result of not fully understanding the process. With the default test print the result was much worse than the sample filament that came with the printer, and in fact it wasn't able to complete one of the 4 test files (a swan).

It could be just the white though, so I have a roll of black coming. I know that in injection molding, white colorant seems to often have an adverse affect on the plastic properties. I have never gotten a clear answer as to why, but we have gone through the testing process with a few different whites and all of them show a distinct variation that isn't present with other colors.

That said, it is dirt cheap and works fine for certain things. Paid $13.99 for a kg of it. I'll be using that for all my misc. printing that isn't critical. I will have to order a spool of something good in the near future.

[ralphzoontjens]

Thanks,
I will try the Polymaker, polyflex and polywood filaments. Polywood looks like a good replacement of Woodfill which has repeatedly ruined my nozzles.
I am planning to order the Colorfabb Copolymer as well.
Biome3D has given me the smoothest results so far, and prints most consistently. It has a lower viscosity when printing so layer bonding is better and overhangs print smoother, though small details like text tend to become a bit mushed.
I just ordered some Sun-Lu filament from Gearbest, together with a $60 laser engraver by the way. I will post some results as soon as I have them.
I sometimes have layer adhesion issues due to several factors, either the print bed not being 100% calibrated, the flow rate too high or low so the previous layer is too thick or thin causing inconsistencies in subsequent layers - then what can happen is that the filament only partially 'grips' the previous layer creating a very weak spot in the print, or the extruder not pushing the filament properly.

[ralphzoontjens]

Does anyone have experience with any of these filaments?

Excelvan
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...d_bhz_bw_c_x_1
Seems to fall in the category dirt-cheap and poor quality.

Hatchbox
https://www.amazon.com/HATCHBOX-3D-P...ct_top?ie=UTF8
Seems promising given the good reviews.

JET
https://www.amazon.com/JET-3mm-PLA-F...dp/B00N5STJXS/
Seems promising for its price.

3D Prima
https://www.amazon.co.uk/3D-Prima/b/...e-bin=3D+Prima
Seems OK

[curious aardvark]

Nope, not tried any of those - but be careful when ordering sun-lu on amazon.

I bought a roll of red from 'other suppliers'. was less than £10 delivered.
But it is NOT sun-lu. Not in the sun-lu box, not on a sun-lu reel and doesn't have the sun-lu sticker.
Haven't tried it yet, so no idea if it's any good or not. But it's definitely not what it claimed to be.

The sun-lu white is great stuff. Very slightly translucent, so doesn't seem to suffer from the brittleness of most white pla. Think they've dialled back on the colourant slightly.
But it's lovely stuff to print with. run it at 215-220

And ama - yes colourant makes a tremendous difference.
For example Green filaflex and ninjaflex, works really well in my creator. ANY other colour of either filament just won't even load, let a lone print.

@ralph, the woodfill and laser engraver is a good combination. You have to engrave at a slower speed (higher number). For example I engrave leather at 40 on the slider. But woodfill I've been engraving at 100. Take s a lot longer, but gives really great results.

I've had no issues with woodfill - but I do have the Fine version. Very very small wood particles.

[ralphzoontjens]

Good idea on engraving woodfill - is the fine version a new upgraded version of the filament? I can only find one woodfill on the Colorfabb website.
How about engraving regular PLA, does it give good detail?

[curious aardvark]

haven't tried normal pla yet. Just doing a woodfill coaster insert, I'll try some white pla after :-)
Running this one at 80 - looking pretty good. I'll stick a pic up when it's done.

** Update
it won't touch white pla. Not a mark on it.

No idea if it's a new woodfill or not - you'd have to ask idig3dprinting, I won it in his competition :-)
I just know he said it's the 'fine' version: https://www.idig3dprinting.co.uk/sho...fine-filament/