Reflective PETG filaments?  

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

You can get this sort of thing:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ZIRO-Printer-Filament-Dimensional-Accuracy/dp/B01H3II7JW/ref=asc_df_B01H3II7JW?

No idea if it is any good but it is a good place to start. There are other colours as well

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

That's more of a fluorescent filament, it seems, as it requires blue or UV light to hit it to  make it fluoresce.  I am looking more for something that works like a bike reflector, as I want to print a new address plate or numbers for my mailbox so that it would be visible at night (my street has no lighting) to emergency vehicles, or just passing traffic.

RE:

If you want reflective then no you will not be able to print it. Bike reflectors work by having a mirrored and shaped surface under a coloured transparent cover. Light comes in, bounces around and is then returned (roughly) to source. Have a look at one up close and you will normally see the prism shaped indents in the reflective surface under the clear red. The ultra bright stripes on high viz work similarly but using clear spherical reflectors.

Florescent should work like a high viz jacket and should glow when hit by a cars head lamps, particularly modern vehicles with halogen, HID or LED lights

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

I would just buy something like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reflective-Stickers-Numbers-Adhesive-Wheelie/dp/B0CTQ45ZGK/

RE:

I agree with the above.  The prismatic reflective tape is so good, it's shocking.  Anything else would be so much less reflective that it would be disappointing. Plus,  its adhesive is very strong and the tape is durable.  If you want raised letters, you could simply apply the tape to the3d printed letters and then carefully trim around the edges.  I've used it on bicycle wheels for safer nighttime riding and it holds up very well.

You get what you pay for.  The 1"x50' rolls of "outdoor reflective tape" available at ULINE are $30.  That's the stuff I use on  bike wheels.

-J

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

I'd mostly want to print out a plate with reflective material (or cover it with reflective tape) then affix non-reflective printed black numbers on it.

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

Most of those retroreflective tapes are made with tiny glass spheres embedded in the tape. The tiny glass spheres are what create the retroreflective properties. I don't know of a filament that has the glass spheres. I also don't know the ideal size of the spheres, for all I know they are too large for the standard 3D printing nozzle.

RE:

Posted by: @sembazuru

Most of those retroreflective tapes are made with tiny glass spheres embedded in the tape. The tiny glass spheres are what create the retroreflective properties. I don't know of a filament that has the glass spheres. I also don't know the ideal size of the spheres, for all I know they are too large for the standard 3D printing nozzle.

I should have searched the web before responding. There is a filament that has these properties. Search for "Reflect-o-Lay" filament. It seems to have spotty availability and is very expensive (on Matterhackers store it is out of stock and has a price of $63USD for only a quarter kilo, that comes to $252USD per kilo...).

On one of the store listings I found this YT video that claims the retroreflective filament is semi-flexible, sewable, and has a 2016 patent. I haven't looked at the patent to know what part of the filament is patented, but maybe just the existence of the patent is keeping regular filament manufacturers from making their own version?

RE: Reflective PETG filaments?

I had seen that before asking.  It's PLA, not PETG, so I don't think it would hold up well long term outside.  I was also very off-put by the price.