As in the title, got my first Bambu, a P1S. I hear that the printer works best with the branded presets, and with Bambu filament. However, they seem to have very limited choices for colors. What is the best alternative brand that works well with this printer?
Congrats on getting your new printer. However, if you heard that the printer works best using Bambu filaments on default. Hang around here longer and you will find that is categorically NOT the case. Unless you have the AMS option which provides for RF tag identification and the spools fit perfectly in the feeder, there are no other advantages to Bambu filament but many disadvantages.
Another community member has posted here with the exact same out of stock challenge. Here is that thread, you may want to peruse it. Get Refills and Spools separately, or jump ship to Other Brands - #7 by Olias
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That’s great news, since they really have nothing I use. Thank you very for the heads up and the link!
If you’re talking about filament brands, I’d highly recommend eSun, Duramic 3D, and Eryone. I’ve tried other brands like Elegoo, Overture and CC3D and was highly unimpressed, despite all the hype behind the names and the cheap prices. I’m not here to say this-one-is-better-than-that-one, but in my experience with my P1S, and being a new-user to it myself (~5 months) these are what I’ve found work best, in my limited use. I also highly recommend a filament dryer. Many people will say you don’t need it for PLA because PLA doesn’t absorb much moisture, but they’re silly little duck, and I’ve seen what moist filament does. If you’re spending $1k on a printer, spend the extra $50-150 and get a filament dryer. (I have an Eibos Polyphemus, and like it a lot.) Also, super glue… - Get super glue. You’ll need it. Sometimes multi-hour 3D prints crack on the slightest flexing. Get freezer bags (1.5-2 gallon) for filament storage, if you want to do it without hanging the spools or doing a rigid box/container setup. Lastly, and most importantly, upgrade from the cheap hex tools they sent you with the printer and get some WERA ball-end hex tools. Usually found cheaper on eBay than the retail sites.
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Congrats on the new P1S, with the AMS, the main advantage of Bambu Filament is the RF Tag that allows the Printer to know type of filament and about how full the spool is. If you’re not using the AMS then this it isn’t an advantage because you do get the RF tag read on the real spool holder.
Now I do try to make sure I am using spools that are on plastic spools with the AMS due to some concerns brought up with cardboard spools especially if doing multi-colored prints. While I have only had one cardboard spool mess up, I try to stick with brands I have had success with. Ones like Creality and Sunlu (1kg spools not the 250 spools they are too small and don’t work will in AMS.
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Ty for the reply…Yes those are good, my go-to are Duramic, Eryone, in addition to Overture, Hatchbox, and Priline. The reason I asked is because although I’ve been doing it 3+ years, this is my first Bambu (or core xy for that matter). I read somewhere that the presets were spot on for Bambu Filament. I had no issues for the first day, but started changing settings to what I’ve always used with bed slingers. The small spool that came with it, printed beautifully, but I was just curious. Thanks greatly for the reply!
Unfortunately that is not always true. They apparently changed manufacturer on some colors of PLA but did not update the parameters and people were getting bad results. See also the thread about tape being used to hold the filament end to the spool hub and that tape getting pulled into the AMS feed motors. Bambu filament isn’t always the best for Bambu printers.
As I discover more rolls of bad filament hiding in my inventory that I bought with my printer or soon after, this is really starting to chap my hind quarters. RFID and AMS is a powerful combination when the need to have things optimized is respected. But Bambu did not invent the technology. They licensed it. And apparently there isn’t a good understanding about the issues at play here or why quality, well-stocked, filament with the correct parameters encoded is key to the system being an advantage instead of a hinderance to be worked around.
As it is now, I’m marking and saving my RFID tags to use with other manufacturers filament. Hatchbox PLA has been working well for me using the Bambu PLA presets.
Added - I want to clarify that I want Bambu to do filament right with high quality etc. The AMS is so handy in concept it needs to be respected.
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I really wish they’d let us re-encode the RFID chips with new information. I hate that they’re locked out.
I ordered a 2-pack of Overture PLA+ on Amazon when they were having a sale… They had a beautiful blue and black combo… When I tried it I just was not impressed with it… and it seemed like it was just fighting me so much, no matter what changes I made or what parameters I worked within, it would just pull a 180… Not worth the high price they want.
For whatever reason, every time it was printing it basically rolled the corners on the edge of the print… Can’t explain it… No idea why it was doing it… No other filament had ever done that… It also had a lot of bed adhesion issues, even on a PEI plate.
It also did a weird 2-tone effect… Top layers would be a shaded color different than the rest of the print…
Hi @C_G_Creations,
I agree with others that third-party filaments, especially if typical materials (e.g. PLA, PTEG) have high quality and perform pretty well in BL machines at a lower cost.
Yet, I noticed some differences in BL filaments:
- The most noticeable is printing speed. BL PLA has a high MFR, which is hard to compete with. Currently, many third-party brands entail high-speed filament in their product range, but it is not every product.
- If you have an AMS, I can tell you that I never had a stop or tangle on filament loading/unloading or change with BL spools. Not that I had many with others, but it happened. You can, of course, replace the spool.
Since I am not into 3D printing racing, I am pretty happy with other brand filaments. But if I need specialised materials or BL is at a discount, I always take a look as I believe in their quality.
I advise acquiring a couple of spools from BL and trying, especially if you can get them at a discount.
@nikkolaus utterly different experience. I have been using Overture, mostly PETG, but also PLA+, and I am surprised by their quality.
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