Hatchbox PLA is a solid quality PLA that many thrifty makers swear by. It contains a blend of plant-based materials and polymers alongside a superb 0.03 mm dimensional accuracy for the price to make it one of the tougher varieties of standard PLA. Prints come out sharp with good quality finish, plenty of detail, and colors that pop. As a daily-use PLA that’s reliable, Hatchbox comes highly recommended. On the other hand, if you’re looking to optimize your prints as much as possible – finding the optimal slicer settings for the filament you use is one of the best things you can do, as even different brands for the same type of filament can require distinct values for an optimal printing process. For those unfamiliar, a temperature tower is a 3D model specifically configured for the purposes of testing different printing temperature values in the same print, where the printing temperature increases (or decreases) for each section of the model to make it possible to observe the effects of different temperatures all at once and decide on the best one. To start, let’s find out how to add the Hatchbox PLA custom material preset to Cura, which will hold the filament-specific configuration for later usage:

They have a unique tri-color thermochromic filament that runs from pine to brown to yellow as the ambient temperature jumps from under 30°C to above 45°C. For those that want the best of both unique blends, there’s Amolen Glow-In-The-Dark Multicolor Change PLA – the spool changes color every 5 meters, cycling through green, blue, purple, and pink, while also being glow-in-the-dark throughout. Finally, this filament is pretty reasonably priced. Is it the cheapest PLA out there? No. But the value is right , which just makes it that much better for big prints. Alternatively, if you’re looking for perfection right off the bat and don’t mind doing some extra work for it, you can print a temperature tower instead of incrementally fine-tuning the printing temperature across a series of prints, as this method provides a quite reliable way of dialing your printing temperature value in with a single print. We touched on this briefly earlier, but filaments are such an important part of 3D printing that it’s worth a deeper dive. All filaments are thermoplastics, a type of polymer that softens at higher temperatures and then hardens when cooled again. Taking advantage of these properties lets you create useful things with your 3D printer PLA breaks pretty easily and it doesn’t stand up to heat. It’s not a great option for functional parts.Anycubic PLA is an excellent option for large prints that take a long time to complete . The filament is very sturdy and feeds smoothly into the extruder. Unlike many other PLA filaments, this one doesn't require extreme temperature and pre-heated bed. It goes smoothly even if the nozzle temperature is 356°F. It's also worth mentioning that the material has decent dimensional accuracy, resulting in fewer blobs and zits. Just make sure that you've secured the end of the filament to the special holes (there are 8 of them) after removing the roll from your printer for storage. Because of this, if supporting the local 3D printing community is important to you, eSun PLA filaments may be a better choice for you than Hatchbox products. Company Specialties Also, you might occasionally get a spool where the filament is rolled too tightly. It’s not a common thing, but it might happen.

Users note that the Gizmo Dorks filament has even better adhesion and quality than the popular Hatchbox PLA, though the price is also very reasonable. You'll get uniform, good prints from each color, yet be prepared that the tones may be slightly duller than advertised. Actually, they aren't fully solid but opaque with a slight touch of translucency. However, the cost of early 3D printing systems themselves ran in the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Most companies — and no hobbyists — could ever afford one. Open Source and the Maker Movement Modify the Nozzle Temperature, Bed Temperature, and Filament Diameter parameters accordingly. If you wish to, you can also enter values for the filament cost, density, and spool weight values to enable calculations. The Overture PLA+ Filament is an ultra-strong product that goes far beyond everyday printing needs. Although it has a similar stiffness as regular PLA, it boasts advanced fracture toughness and is actually 5x stronger than most other filaments out there. For this reason, it's widely used for projects requiring extra toughness and durability. So, if you're going to create some functional parts, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better option than the Overture PLA+. Ultimaker also offers a Tough PLA that approaches the toughness of ABS while retaining the ease of printing of PLA. Ultimaker recommends it for functional prototypes and tooling at larger sizes.Overture joins the likes of Sunlu and Hatchbox as a brand aiming to offer quality PLA at an unmissable price. Overture’s PLA is clog-free, easy to use, and has a decent 0.05 mm dimensional accuracy. Overture’s so confident in their product’s reliability that they throw in a no-questions-asked lifetime guarantee.

After creating both the custom material and the custom profile, you can select the Hatchbox PLA from the material menu dropdown and the corresponding profile from the profile dropdown in the Print Settings section, which will load all of the Hatchbox PLA settings you have configured. How to Configure Hatchbox PLA Temperatures in PrusaSlicer?PLA, or Polylactic Acid, is a biodegradable, odorless, non-toxic thermoplastic made from fermented plant-based organic sources – usually sugarcane, maize, and cornstarch.

Finally, make sure to note the temperature levels that the users used to get the product in the pictures. Filament reactions vary depending on the temperature used. Whether you decide to go with Hatchbox or eSun PLA filaments, all of the above factors will affect your final product. Storage Stringing : When the print head jumps from one section of the print to another, the melted filament can ooze out of the nozzle leaving behind spider web-like strings. Adjusting the nozzle temperature or retraction settings can stop this from happening. Another deciding factor for choosing between Hatchbox and eSun polylactic acid filaments is the smell. When you first print something using PLA, the hot filament will have a smell until the printed object cures.Soluble Filaments: PVA (polyvinyl acetate) and HIPS (high-impact polystyrene) are popular choices for support materials on dual-extruder printers. PVA dissolves readily in water while HIPS dissolves in limonene. HIPS is the better choice when using high-temperature filaments like nylon but emits toxic fumes during printing.