Today we bring you an extensive review from an assorted variety of filaments from the company FFFWORLD. This Alavés manufacturer has been manufacturing and developing filaments of different materials and technical characteristics since 2003 for a market that is increasingly voracious.
This time we will try the FFFworld filaments: Flexible, PETG, ABS, Metal and PLA. All of them are very different filaments from each other that will put our expertise with the printer to the test to achieve the best possible results.
Taking advantage of that recently we analyze the Legio de Leon 3D printer, we have used that equipment for this review. By incorporating a heated bed and an "allinmetal" extruder, it is the ideal option to avoid problems with any of the filaments. As printing software we have used Repetier Host.
La manufacturer's website has a clean and intuitive design and it is easy to navigate through it to find a specific filament. On the same page for each material, the manufacturer details technical characteristics such as impact resistance or maximum stretch.
In addition, the manufacturer has had the great idea of making available to its customers in a dedicated section of your website that print profiles of CURA, SLIC3R and SIMPLIFY3D of all its filaments, as well as a data sheet.
Some of the materials also have an extensive printing guide in which they are documented among other things common problems such as warping or cracking and they are different printing tips. Another positive point for the manufacturer for taking into account the difficulties that exist in the maker world for first-timers.
Unpacking the FFFworld filaments: Flexible, PETG, ABS, Metal and PLA
The manufacturer pays special attention to delivering the material to its customers. All reels they turned themselves in vacuum packed with silica desiccant sachet and also a zip bag to store filament in optimal conditions while not in use so that it does not absorb moisture. The coils are delivered inside a thick cardboard box It will absorb any impact it receives during transportation.
ABSTECH filament
The supplied ABSTECH Filament is white in color and maintains a homogeneous tone and brightness throughout printing. I know prints perfectly at 230º C, temperature within the range recommended by the manufacturer. During its use we have noticed that no unpleasant odors, which happens with ABS from other manufacturers. In none of the prints that we have made have the pieces detached due to warping problems despite the fact that we have only put the heated bed at 50º C instead of the 100 recommended by the manufacturer.
FILAMETAL filament
This is undoubtedly the filament that has given us the most war during the tests. Has a softer consistency than PLA and this can cause it to be difficult to pull towards the extruder. Also has easy to melt too much and get stuck in the nozzle despite using low temperatures, around the 190 ° C. Despite everything, we have been able to print the pieces shown in the photo without using support structures. It is worth fighting for a while with this filament, when we finally get to print we will marvel at the amazing reflections that are obtained in the printed parts with just one 10% charge of metal particles.
PLATECH filament
PLA is a filament with which we all feel comfortable printing, it almost never suffers from warping problems, it does not usually get clogged in the extruder. That is why we wanted to put it to the test by printing large flat surfaces and objects printed with a very high resolution (50 microns). Anyways the filament has performed excellently. We have not needed to use a heated bed to obtain excellent prints well adhered to the base and with the layers very well joined together. The sample sent is one color green "sour apple", a tonality that we really liked.
FLEXISMART filament
The flexible filament of this manufacturer is especially interesting. Maintains elasticity parameters similar to other flexible filaments on the market but is extremely easy to print with it. With a recommended use temperature of environment 200 ° CWe have a filament that adheres to the printing base with just enough force so as not to detach during printing, but once it is finished it is easy to remove the object from the printer. The filament is also something stiffer than other flexible filaments we have tested, with this little detail makes printing easier With which the manufacturer manages to increase the number of extruders of different construction that will be able to perform the necessary traction on it to use it without bends or jams.
Although the test material we have received uses coils with a very small central hole, we have verified on the manufacturer's website that currently the material is already delivered using coils with more standard dimensions.
PETGTECH filament
This is another of the filaments that are often difficult to print. This material is a maker's nightmare until they get the hang of it, it is prone to flow too much, takes a long time to cool down, needs very high temperatures printing (in our case 250ºC), overall it is easy for a good portion of the printed object to end up in a ball and glued to the extruder while it is moving. The FFFworld filament has seemed to us of great quality with a intense red color .
Final conclusions on FFFworld filaments: Flexible, PETG, ABS, Metal and PLA
Each of the analyzed filaments has more than met our expectations. And with all the help that the manufacturer puts at our disposal, there will be few problems that we have with our parts and we will all know how to solve them.
When I open the package and find you everything perfectly protected and even a small bag of jelly beans you realize that FFFWORLD pays great attention to taking care of all the details. You have that same feeling all the time while using their products. From the inclusion of a zip-lock bag to store the materials, the material with which the own coil y leaves no residue when rotating on the stand.
A very important detail is how well the filament is wound on the coil, it not only fulfills an aesthetic function but also ensures a unrolling of the continuous material without knots that may compromise our impression.
The manufacturer has a well-stocked catalog though we miss filament that simulates wood and other exotic filaments that we can find in other brands. We hope that the manufacturer will gradually expand its catalog so that it can satisfy absolutely all customer needs.
Did you like this analysis? Do you miss any additional evidence? Would you like us to continue analyzing the different filaments on the market? Some special brand? We will be attentive to the comments you leave us in the article.