Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online  

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I"ve not used a ton of brands yet but for affordable PLA I've had the best results with Hatchbox. For higher end I"ve /really/ liked Protopasta but unfortunately I can't afford to use it exclusively. Other than amazon Printed Solid has a good selection as does Makergeeks (I've had some issues with getting a couple orders filled since the holiday rush, full disclosure) and if you just want to try new stuff out or keep a roll on the shelf at all times the Maker box subscription and 3D Geekbox subscription respectively are pretty solid from all the reviews I can find.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Randy, why do you call it a subscription? Do you have to purchase a certain amount per year? I'm new to 3D printing in the US also and have been looking for a good brand.
I'm hearing MakerGeeks is good, but from time to time there are shipping issues. Just search for filament brands and you'll see others. One comment I hear a lot is eSun is not worth the effort, but I haven't tried anything yet.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Subscriptions refer to something similar to a book club. For a fee some companies will send a number of samples to you for try out. Most are just 10m or so but MakerGeeks is two 1k rolls per month. I think overseas they send it every other month but you get both months at one time. Beyond choosing your diameter what you get is chosen by the company sending it to you. Usually companies also include goodies like stickers, small tool, and the like.

Hope that Helps,

Neal

Edit: I should add that the other companies do send multiple samples. RigidInk sends 3 and MatterHackers sends 4 if memory serves. I have 3 subscriptions myself. RigidInk, MatterHackers, and MakerGeeks. So every month I can expect 2k from de Geeks, 4 x 10m samples from Hackers, and 3x 10m samples from RigidInk. It does make for a backlog of filament but it is usually a pretty good variety.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I've also had good luck with Hatchbox and eSun from Amazon, recently I purchased four rolls of PLA+ from Monoprice and I've been pretty happy with it and it's quite affordable.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I like eSun PLA+ a lot, it's my go-to now for general purpose printing. I also recently bought their PETG and it's nice as well, I think I'll be starting to use that regularly as well.

I'm pretty mixed on makergeeks. The service is spotty and the filament is hit or miss. Their PLA is fine and I like their PETG pretty well, but I've had a lot of issues with their ABS and I couldn't recommend their Raptor PLA for anything - at temps that actually result in decent layer adhesion it becomes hard to tell stringing from intended printing. A while back I gently complained about some trouble I had with their ABS and even though it was past the return date they issued a full refund. But now I ordered some PETG during their new year's sale and it hasn't shipped yet and no response to my email inquiry on ETA. So basically there are just as many good points as bad in my personal experience. That, coupled with horror stories of others and a recent Better Business Bureau warning https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.news-leader.com/amp/912915001 is making me think I should look elsewhere. Hopefully they'll get it sorted out though because I like to support local business and some materials are nice and a great price.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I have stopped getting Makergeeks a couple months ago now! I know someone who operates a 3Dhub site and prints their own Cosplay props and they use Esun PLA+ from Amazon and have had almost no issues in the years they have been doing this.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Thanks to all for the tips. Sounds like there are some good Amazon sold brands which I'll be honest would be my preference. I can't imagine not having a Prime account and they are pretty reliable about shipping turn around.

That said another thought occurred to me after I posted is in regards to colors. FFF/FDM are, believe it or not, less familiar than say SLA, SLS, LOM. The latest stuff I've had printed was this FFF/FDM method. I recall the person doing the printing for me said they were having problems with a batch of the color red. Is the color a factor in print success or is that more likely a batch of filament that was a problem?

New question is whether colors affect print issues and or function?

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Randy, why do you call it a subscription? Do you have to purchase a certain amount per year? I'm new to 3D printing in the US also and have been looking for a good brand.
I'm hearing MakerGeeks is good, but from time to time there are shipping issues. Just search for filament brands and you'll see others. One comment I hear a lot is eSun is not worth the effort, but I haven't tried anything yet.

As Neal discribed their are some companies out their that will send you a box of filament for a monthly fee. Full disclosure I've not used either personally but the two that I've done the most research on are Makerbox and 3d Geek Box.

Makerbox sends out samples of filament for you to try and they tend to come with a discount code for a full roll if you decide you like it. You pick the size you want (1.75 mm or 3mm) to fit your machine but you get a random selection of color and type. So you might get carbon fill pla, abs, petg, htpla one month and all pla but from different manufacturers the next. http://makerbox.me/

3D Geek Box sends at least 2 full spools of filament a month (if you look up videos on youtube some times more). You pick the size as with the Makerbox but they are random type and color along with a project to be printed and put together which is pretty cool. It is a great deal if you are using a lot of filament and don't need to worry about color. https://www.makergeeks.com/products/3d-geek-box-monthly-filament-3d-geek-box

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Probably referring to a batch of red. With any filament you can get bad batches. Too brittle, uneven diameter, and a number of other things. And color can make a difference even amongst the same companies filament. Simply put they are all slightly different chemical make ups just because of the coloring agent. Not wildly different but it is not uncommon for Company X Super Duper PLA Extreme Snot Green to need a slightly higher nozzle temp than their Super Duper PLA Extreme Livid Lesion Pus Yellow. Just remember that the information on bed/ nozzle temp is only a guide and can usually vary +/ - 5 to 15 degrees.

Hope That Helps,

Neal

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

The reason I was curious about the subscription comment was if it was required? When I order filament I'm only expecting what I order and not pay for a grab bag of something you might not use.
I guess my point of view comes from when I did wood working. When purchacing material I would be selective of my choices and not just take what's on top.
Maybe as I work more with my printer I'll explore different options. I just want to find a good supplier of good material. I'm wondering if inconsistant filament is something people are having trouble with.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

No the subscription is not required. There are plenty of suppliers out there. And as with so many other things we have our favorites and "avoids at all costs". While I have never used it myself a lot of folks just swear by eSun. Others wouldn't print with it if they were giving it away. You don't have to commit to a whole roll in most cases. Most companies have sample packs they sell without the subscription option. If you want to start with different filaments that is an excellent and less costly way to go. As you can order a few samples here and there. Like others you will find what best suits you. And no matter how great the filament company you end up with as your "go to" you will get bad batches now and then

To further confuse the issue there are some who will buy their PLA from one company but hate that companies ABS. You may even end up having a number of companies as your fave for only a specific type of filament.

I know its a lot to hit yourself with so soon but that's the way it is.

Just Have Fun With It,

Neal

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

for most things I use eSun on Amazon or Inland from Microcenter, I am not sure but they may be made by the same company

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Other than the fact that I have a really shi**ty (non-Prusa) printer while I’m waiting for my MK3... I’ve been really pleased with Inland (Microcenter) PLA.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I have bought filament from MakerGeeks (Wait for sales. They have had two 30% and one 25% sale in the last two months) All of their filament works great. I have bought PETG, PLA and PLA Raptor (High Temp PLA) and very happy. I have their flex on back order. 😳 for the last two months. If you don't care about color or what you get they have a grab bag that is dirt cheap when they have a 30% sale. You get to choose PLA, PETG, ABS etc but they choose the color. Great deal. They also have transitional rolls for $11.95 and with 30$ off that is $9 delivereda roll but you get anything. I got 3 nice rolls of PLA. There maybe color changes or some issue with the roll but it is mostly a good roll of filament. So far so good with my purchase of the transitional rolls.
I have also bought from HobbyKing. Never seems to be on Sale but the prices fluctuate. Wait for free shipping for orders of $50 or more. HobbyKing is Chinese filament. Seems decent but only used PLA
MicroCenter. I bought PLA. Good printing stuff. Always free shipping.

Funny thing is I asked the same thing two months ago and here is a link to my post.

https://shop.prusa3d.com/forum/original-prusa-i3-mk3-f30/where-do-you-buy-your-filament-in-the-usa--t6664.html#p46513

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

I been sticking to mostly what I can find on Amazon so far as well as going for more of the cheaper price range of materials. That being said I have not really ordered many different brands to try out the different types of materials that is my goal with the Prusa when ever it ships and I can get a ruby nozzle ordered for it.

So the brands of PLA I have used since I don't do anything in ABS is:
Hatchbox: I ordered white, blue, black from this vendor paying about $23 per spool and had great results with the blue and black the white I had a little issues with it sticking to the bed of my old printer but still had good quality prints from.

3d Solutech: This has been my go to material as of late though they are basically sold out of everything on amazon at the present moment. I bought white, red and silver from this vendor. I paid about $16-18 for this brand and I think I had about as good of results at the Hatchbox brand. The company is US based which got me buying from them in the first place though getting through to there support has been extremely unreliable. They are not good at responding to emails or there contact forum on there website. The winding is a little rough but overall the quality of the product has been worth the hassle.

XYZWorks: I bought there wood pla for $23, I know a lot of people have a rough time with wood based PLA and every ones results might vary but this stuff I printed with none of the issues I see most people talk about with wood material. I don't remember temp I printed this material as but every print I did came out flawless with just my stock non hardened nozzle.

I do plan at some point in trying some of the other brands out there as well as maybe seeing what the more expensive materials have to offer quality wise and once the MK3 gets here I really want to try the flex, glow in the dark, carbon and some of the other more exotic types of materials out there.

Re: Filament Brand Choice - USA - Online

Filamentum! It is ALL I use now. Their new "CPE" line is really nice. It is their version of PETG but prints as easy as PLA. Their US website is filamentumone.com. They have free shipping too...

Trevin