Specialist 3D Printing Filaments

ProtoPasta is a new American brand leading the way in Special Materials and Filament for 3D Printing

They specialise in high quality, market leading materials such as stainless steel, carbon fibre, magnetic and conductive materials
Some of these filaments are abrasive (as marked) - we have tried many different brands before settling on ProtoPasta and found them all to be the same in terms of abrasion. We strongly suggest using a nozzle with a long-life coating or stainless steel - regular brass nozzles wear very quickly with these filaments. We have a range of coated nozzles available, please see the bottom of the page

NEW! Matte Fibre - Properties close to Carbon Fiber without the wear. Has the same matte finish, but in a range of colours!

• Stainless Steel is a blend of PLA and Stainless Steel powder. This results in a filament you would with normal PLA
• Carbon Fiber PLA is a mix of carbon fibers and PLA
• Magnetic Iron PLA responds well to magnets. Our magnets stick on strongly even through the packet!
• Conductive PLA is slightly conductive
• PLA v2 a new formulation of PLA which can be annealed (heat soaked) after printing to raise the temperature at which it softens and warps
• Matt Fiber a new formulation of PLA v2 plus Cellulose Fibers
• PC-ABS Alloy is a mix of ABS and PolyCarbonate, so it is compatible with the UP series of printers, and when printed at a higher temperature (260+) than normal, gives a better print finish

Matte Fiber High Temperature PLA

More on the
Proto-Pasta Website If Carbon Fiber and Wood Filament got together, Black Matte Fiber HTPLA would be the result. Great for both artistic and technical parts with no special hardware required!

Printed parts have a low luster, textured surface which creates a highly desirable contrast between light and shadow. Texture, color, and sheen can be somewhat manipulated by printer settings as well as post-processing. Printed parts can also be smoothed or weathered with paint for alternate aesthetics.

Based on Proto-pasta's HTPLA resin, Matte Fiber HTPLA can be heat treated for higher temperature performance. The addition of plant-based fibers, reduces dimensional change during the heat treating process compared to standard HTPLA. Matte Fiber HTPLA can also be smoothed by carving or shaving with a sharp edge as well as glued, sealed, and painted more easily than most plastic thanks to it's more wood-like characteristics.

No abrasive fillers so expect normal wear with standard nozzles.
Use standard PLA parameters with standard build surface preparation (blue tape, glue stick, or BuildTak). No heated bed required.
Non-Abrasive

High Temperature PLA or PLA v2

More on the
Proto-Pasta Website Proto-Pasta PLA version 2 OR HTPLA - a new formulation of PLA which can be annealed (heat soaked) after printing to raise the temperature at which it softens and warps

This new formulation is higher performing, more obviously heat treatable, and lower cost. This tough PLA prints with ease but has a potential Heat Deflection Temperature (HDT) of as much as 140C (285F) depending on post-processing. This means parts retain more stiffness and form at higher temperatures (no warping on your sunny car dashboard).
For maximum performance, your prints should be heat treated (i.e. crystallized) in an oven until you see a change from translucent to opaque. There is an obvious visual change indicating the improved performance! We had good luck in a lab oven at 110C (230F) for an hour or less. We recommend leaving the supports on your parts, placing them on a non-radiating surface (like glass, ceramic, or composite), and letting them cool in the oven to minimize distortion. Parts can be baked at a lower temperature (though must be above 60C for any change to occur) for a longer time with less risk of unwanted deformation.

No abrasive fillers so expect normal wear with standard nozzles.
Use standard PLA parameters with standard build surface preparation (blue tape, glue stick, or BuildTak). No heated bed required. Some shrinkage may occur in the annealing process, so dimension critical parts may need to be scaled as much as 2.5% to compensate.
Non-Abrasive

Stainless Steel

Proto-pasta Stainless Steel PLA is a dense material that prints as easily as standard PLA but results in heavy prints that can be finished post-print to achieve amazing results. Perfect for jewelry, costumes, props, figurines, crafting, robots, and more!

Proto-pasta Stainless Steel PLA is a compound of Natureworks 4043D PLA and finely ground, powdered stainless steel. In filament form, it is rather brittle, and should be handled with care to avoid breakage.
We only had it break when we were heavy handed during filament loading, though if we had tried this on a Bowden Tube style of extruder (those based on the Ultimaker design) we may have had problems.
Print with standard PLA settings. We found it stuck to the print bed stronger than standard PLA to BuildTak and needed to lower the bed slightly
Can be polished with wire bursh, rock polisher or wheel polishing with cut and polish compound for best results.

Abrasive

Carbon Fiber PLA

Prints made with ProtoPasta Carbon Fiber PLA are demonstrably more rigid, providing excellent structural strength and layer adhesion with very low warpage. It has a beautiful matte black finish with a slight sheen due to the embedded carbon.
Proto-pasta Carbon Fiber PLA is made from NatureWorks 4043D PLA Resin compounded with 15% (by weight) chopped Carbon Fibers. It is more brittle than standard PLA in its filament form, so handle it carefully to prevent breakage.
We found it easier to use on standard PLA settings than the ColorFabb equivalent. Recommended Temperature between 195 and 220 degreesC
Abrasive

Magnetic Iron PLA

Proto-pasta Magnetic Iron PLA - as its name implies - responds to magnets and behaves similarly to pure iron, even to the point of rusting! Magnetism opens up a new world of practical applications and fun creations, and is an especially great choice for costume pieces and props!

Proto-pasta Magnetic Iron PLA is a compound of Natureworks 4043D PLA and finely ground iron powder.
In filament form, it is rather brittle, and should be handled with care to avoid breakage.
It is recommended to drop the temperature by 10 degrees from what you would use for standard PLA
To age the Iron, sand the surface to expose more iron particles and soak for 2-3 days in salty water
Abrasive

Conductive PLA

More on the
Proto-Pasta Website Have you ever wanted to create something with your 3D printer that includes electronics? Maybe an LED, touch sensor, or some other genius invention to solve the world’s problems? Then Proto-pasta Conductive PLA is the perfect material for you.

The resistance of a 10cm length of 1.75mm filament: 1.8Kohm
The Volume resistivity of 3D printed parts along the layers is 30 ohm-cm
A higher printing temperature of 215-230 is recommended to improve layer adhesion and thus conductivity
It is very low shrinkage/warping and works in dual material prints with PLA, allowing more uses!
Non-Abrasive

PC-ABS Alloy

A fan favorite, our Polycarbonate-ABS (PC-ABS) Alloy is an incredibly tough material designed for strong, resilient parts. This unique material provides vast improvements (over standard ABS) in heat deflection, impact resistance, rigidity, and flexibility.

PC-ABS is a high performance material that produces excellent prints, but it is a finicky material prone to warping during the printing process if temperatures are not consistent. A heated bed (120° is optimal) and 260°+ hot-end are required, an enclosure to is highly recommended.

Non-Abrasive

Nozzles

Our nozzles are coating with a Wear Resistant High Lubricity TwinClad XT Coating for longer life - this is most important with the abrasive filaments listed above, or your brass 0.4 nozzle soon becomes 0.8mm!