I learned a lesson about filaments

About three months ago, Botfeeder 3D Filaments, offered a free roll of filament to anyone in return for an objective review. I have a small electronic design business and we use our shop built Prusa I3 rework printer to make prototype cases, front panels and other miscellaneous items needed to conduct our business. I applied for the free roll and was accepted, I ordered a roll of white 1.75 PLA from them. In four days the filament arrived, nicely packaged and on a very good reel larger than the eBay filaments we had been using. Encased with the order was a "large" dissicant package, about four times as big as the other suppliers provide. The filament measured 1.73 on our micrometer. at the beginning of the roll. We use a temperature of 190 degrees celcius on our E3d extruder with a .35 nozzle size and have a heated bed at 65 degrees celcius.
Our first print was a four hour transmitter enclosure unit with internal standoffs and a removeable lid. It has three holes in one side and a switch slot on the top. (I can't include pictures, because this is a prototype owned by my customer.) It turned out perfect. Without a doubt, the best print ever coming out of our printer. No little blobs, the registry was right on. When the bed cooled down it popped right off and to say I was impressed is an understatement. We use an Elmers Purple glue stick on the bed. Sometimes they come off easy, sometimes they don't. I measured the filament 1.73.
Compared to other people we don't use a lot of filiment, about 15-2.2kg rolls a year. We have bought expensive stuff and cheap stuff. The previous expensive rolls came on the same spools as the eBay filaments. That tells you a lot.
I just finished the roll of Botfeeder filament. We ran eight different jobs through the machine. At the end of the roll the filament measured 1.72. We had absolutely no feeding problems with our Wade extruder, no drips or pops from moisture or problems of any kind. One customer asked me, "Did you get a new printer?" I said: "No , why?" "It just looks so much better than the last model you presented," he replied. That says it all for me, I ordered another roll of "Botfeeder" filament. I admit, it's expensive. But for me, it's worth it. And for me, I learned a lesson. A good filament should be your top priority.

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T.S. Elliot said: "...between the conception and the creation falls the shadow." 3D printing is operating in this shadow world. To accurately reproduce an object, is an art form.

I second you on that, I also get a test PLA filament from them and it is perfect. I was surprised by the end quality of the part, it looked like if was made of a polished wax smooth and brilliant, I was able to print at really low temperatures and didn't have any issue with extrusion.

The only issue for me is the price, I can't charge more to my customers and because most of them use the parts as mainly proof of concept they don't care too much about the finish quality, but for art products and high quality parts it is the best filament I have ever tried.

same here. I am on the other end of the spectrum. I got their green ABS filament in the mail. I tested it out and honestly the finish quality is the highest I have ever seen. The stuff is also easy to sand and has some flexibility which is desired for the parts I am making. I compared it to inland ABS and as far as tolerance they are about even. I measured every 10cm for 5 meters on both and ran an average.

Where the two brands differ is the finish quality. The inland is fairly dull, while the botfeeder has a shine to it. It does smooth out with an acetone wipe if necesary but seems to be a bit more acetone resistant than inland ABS.

I did a video review for my sample.

[www.youtube.com]

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Modicum V1 sold on e-bay user jaguarking11

Nice video. I also viewed your video on hotends. You and I think alike, I did almost exactly what you did to my hotend but I have a wade setup and print exclusively in PLA, so I leave the teflon tube in mine. Jerry

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T.S. Elliot said: "...between the conception and the creation falls the shadow." 3D printing is operating in this shadow world. To accurately reproduce an object, is an art form.

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jmalinski
The previous expensive rolls came on the same spools as the eBay filaments. That tells you a lot.

Not really. The spool is a commodity item that could be supplied from any one of many suppliers. Aside from it's basic function of holding filament, as long as it does that it's served it's purpose and doesn't contribute to the overall quality and physical properties of filament. I'd have zero consideration for the quality of a filament based on the spool.

All that being said, thanks for the review. It's good to see reviews for products that are worth a more premium price if in the end it really is a better product.

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cdru

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jmalinski
The previous expensive rolls came on the same spools as the eBay filaments. That tells you a lot.

Not really. The spool is a commodity item that could be supplied from any one of many suppliers. Aside from it's basic function of holding filament, as long as it does that it's served it's purpose and doesn't contribute to the overall quality and physical properties of filament. I'd have zero consideration for the quality of a filament based on the spool.

All that being said, thanks for the review. It's good to see reviews for products that are worth a more premium price if in the end it really is a better product.

I am sorry but I disagree. I have seen filament shipped in a spool that had a very small center section less than 40mm, about 2/3rds way down the spool the filament was stretched and became brittle, leading to problems feeding it. It broke when it was straightened. While I think that scenario is a two part problem, 50% of the issue was the spool itself being too small to accommodate the filament at the base. The other 50% was the quality of filament.

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Modicum V1 sold on e-bay user jaguarking11

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jmalinski
Nice video. I also viewed your video on hotends. You and I think alike, I did almost exactly what you did to my hotend but I have a wade setup and print exclusively in PLA, so I leave the teflon tube in mine. Jerry

I mentioned it in the video, that if I were to print PLA I would keep the teflon in there. However I print in ABS 99% of the time and since I am gearing up to increase print speed as well as using a larger nozzle I need to be able to hit mutch higher temps. Looking to go into the 270-280c range. The teflon at those temps would break down way too quick for my taste.

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Modicum V1 sold on e-bay user jaguarking11

Quote
jaguarking11
I am sorry but I disagree. I have seen filament shipped in a spool that had a very small center section less than 40mm, about 2/3rds way down the spool the filament was stretched and became brittle, leading to problems feeding it. It broke when it was straightened. While I think that scenario is a two part problem, 50% of the issue was the spool itself being too small to accommodate the filament at the base. The other 50% was the quality of filament.

In your case the spool didn't do it's job of holding the filament properly. Obviously the spool has to be designed so that it's sturdy, usually round, and should have a minimum winding diameter so that it doesn't damage the filament when it's wound or unwound. But presuming that it does it's job of holding the filament properly, it's not going to make the filament better or worse. You can have a manufacturer of the best filament in the world and the absolute worst filament in the world and they can use the same spool and it doesn't change the quality of the filament.

Saying "That tells you a lot." that an expensive filament manufacturer uses the same spool as a ebay seller doesn't "tell you a lot" other than they might have the same supplier of a commodity item.