United StatesPearl Blue PLA filament 1kg
Is it for me?
PLA is the most commonly used filament. It’s easy to print, and a very strong material. The perfect choice for printing large objects thanks to its low thermal expansion (little to no warping) and for printing tiny parts because of its low melting temperature. Only this material is proven for 50 microns layer height.
PLA has a relatively low melting temperature of about 175 degrees Celsius. Unlike so-called thermoset materials, PLA can be heated past its melting point multiple times with very little degradation. It’s also very hard material, but that also means it’s somewhat brittle, and once it breaks, it likes to shatter.
However, PLA is not a perfect material and, just like every other plastic, has some disadvantages. The low melting temperature also means low-temperature resistance. Parts start to lose mechanical strength at temperatures over 60 °C.
The combination of having low-temperature resistance and low UV-resistance means that it’s not ideal for outdoor use. Also, PLA is only soluble in chemicals like chloroform or hot benzene. So when connecting multiple pieces, you’re better off using just glue.
Even though PLA is on its own food safe, we do not suggest to repeatedly drink or eat from your 3D prints. Because of the small fractures on the print surface, bacteria can build up in there over time. You can prevent this by applying a food-safe coating. When post-processing PLA, it’s better to use wet sanding. Without water you'll quickly start heating the plastic by friction, it will melt locally and make it hard to keep sanding.
Printing Setup
| Nozzle | 215 °C |
| Heatbed | 50-60 °C |
Basic Attributes
| Easy to print | Brittle | ||
| Can print tiny parts | Low temperature resistance | ||
| Can print huge objects | Difficult post-processing | ||
| Hard and tough | |||
| Low warping |
Notes
This PLA is proudly made in the Czech Republic.
1.75 mm filament is manufactured with precision of +- 0.05 mm
We reserve the right to ship weights +/- 5% due to packaging variations.
Before printing, make sure the surface of heatbed is clean as described in 3D Printing Handbook.
Reviews
Unfortunately, my experience with this filament has not lived up to expectation. It came packaged perfectly, cardboard box with a re-usable bag held in vacuum with the spool and a bag of desiccant. Specs for this filament were decent, lower tolerance than Prusament but also lower cost. The colour is much duller than the photograph (on a calibrated monitor) even when illuminated with daylight white LEDs, but it has an interesting pearly undertone with very small sparkly particles. It looks alright, but not as nice as the photo, much duller shade of blue. Loaded it into my machine, tried my Generic PLA profile which runs with 1.5mm retraction and Linear Advance. This profile works for everything from silks to translucent PLAs well - not flawlessly - but is my base profile so where I always start. Well, the benchy was unusably stringy. Alright, retune linear advance, increase retractions. At double the retraction (3mm) it was still stringy, not as bad but definitely too much for this much retraction. Lowered temp a little bit, increased retraction, and found a usable spot at 4mm retraction (over double my typical) and at the minimum spec temp for this filament. Support were very helpful in trying to figure this one out but in the end returned this and the Red Pearl for store credit. This filament is a white-label Filament PM product and in theory should be of high quality.
The color is superb but a real pain to print : repeated nozzle clogging, under extrusion... ! I tried different temperatures, the default settings of prusa (I use prusa slicer), .... Nothing to do. It's a pity when other filaments are perfect.
Love this filament! The color is great, unlike any deep blue I have seen at it prints great at a great price too.
Downloads
- Safety Data Sheet207 kB
- Technical Data Sheet20 kB
