It can be tough to choose the perfect 3D printing filament when buying online. There are so many brands, colors and materials to choose from! Here are a handful of factors to consider and think about when choosing your filament.
Material
Of course you have to choose a material - most hobbyists will go for PLA, it's easy to print, affordable and can be used for a wide variety of purposes. If you need more strength, flexibility, watertightness, or any other special considerations, you will need to make sure the material you choose meets your requirements. Simplify3D has a great guide that goes over all sorts of 3D printing materials and their uses, benefits and how to get the best printing results with them.
Price
Price is obviously a huge factor especially for hobbyists who want to get the most bang for their buck. However, going with the cheapest option is not always the best. Cheaper filaments are often made using recycled material in the mix - which is a great way to reduce waste, but the downside is inconsistencies between batches of filament. This means if you buy two spools of the same filament from the same manufacturer, they may not print the same!
Coex 3D filament is made only using virgin resin and colorant, with no fillers or additives. Our manufacturing processes are tightly controlled so you can rest assured that each spool will print the same as the last.
Color
Of course, color is an important factor to consider when purchasing filament. Coex 3D offers 35 colors of PLA! Color consistency is also extremely important to us, we manufacture our filament under color-correct lighting and thoroughly verify that filament is the correct color before spooling it up. This ensures that you won't get any of the last batch's color in your spool.
If you want a sampler of all our colors - we offer a PLA Color Sample Keyring! This is a great way to get an idea of the look of our various PLA offerings.
If you don't mind getting a random color, however, we also sell Mystery Filament - which is filament produced during a color change, and Câ™»EXNext, filament produced using our PLA scrap material. Both are great ways to try our filament at a lower price.
Support Availability
What if your filament has a defect like a bulge, or other inconsistency that causes issues while printing? What if you just need tips for how to print with a certain material? For some filament brands, support is lacking or even non-existent. At Coex 3D, we have a local support team that works with our filament day in, day out. We guarantee our spools will be without defects, and maintain a +-0.03mm tolerance on our 1.75mm diameter filament. If you have any issues with a spool purchased from us, or just want tips for how to make your prints better, we're here to help!
We hope this has helped clarify some of the factors to consider when purchasing 3D printing filament online. It can be daunting, and if there's any questions you may have, feel free to drop us a line at support@coex3d.com!