Printing PLA wood?

I bought this stuff thinking it was just PLA just will wood like texture. But it is so hard to print. I’m using default PLA settings that came with my A1. default 0.4mm nozzle. And I keep getting clogs. Any tips to print this stuff?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DWK43VG5?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

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Those have wood fibers in them. Some wood filaments are just coloring.

You NEED to dry it well and use a 0.6mm nozzle. Those wood fibers are annoying because they are larger than carbon or glass fibers which you can get away with 0.4 most of the time, you really need 0.6 for wood.

Also, default pla profile is not close enough for this. Preferably you need to make your own profile for it.

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I’ll add to this, not only use a 0.6mm nozzle but do not use high flow.

Thank you for the tips, I was thinking about this for an up coming project, but now…

Wow. I didn’t realize it was so complicated. Welp…returning this set if I can. Thanks for participating everyone!

My first woodfill was a similar isanmate pack. 4X250g.
Great stuff with a high wood load (30%).
While it did print on my X1 with a .4 nozzle, my first print smelled incredibly strong. Furthermore, supports had fused to the model and overhang quality was suboptimal.

It all became clear when removing the second print from the plate immediately after printing:
It was literally sweating big beads of water during cool down as I had forgotten to dry it :joy:

It’s not that complicated. Just don’t use a high flow nozzle and 0.6mm if you have it otherwise 0.4mm is fine. It’s not that more complicated than PLA really.

I dont have issues using .4 for PLA Wood, but I can’t print the color swatch out of the bag without drying similar to how PETG. Now I just dry everything before printing the swatch if its a new color/filament.

Happened to print wood pla at 0.4 without any issue. Probably depends on the quality of the filament and the quantity of wood I guess.

You should print this only with an hardened steel nozzle though (and probably extruder gear too). Standard A1 hot end is not hardened. :confused:

What I would like to know, is what kind of wood are they using for their filler? Different spices have different properties… densities. Are they sheading up old Doug Fir plates and tossing them into the filament (Coast Douglas Fir 34 lbs/ft cubed at 12% moisture content)? How about iron wood (Ipe (Handroanthus spp.) 65.5 lb/ft cubed at 12% moisture content)? Or Bamboo (Guadua Bamboo from 44 to 50 lbs/ft cubed at 12% moisture content)? Or Balsa wood (Ochroma pyramidale: typically averages 9 lbs/ft cubed at 12% moisture content)?

Each of these will effect the way the filament responds and they really need to tell us that. Just saying PLA Wood is assuming we are kind of dumb.

I wounder if they are adding in the rough cut corn cobs and calling it wood fiber. Wouldn’t be the first time the “Plaid Suits” subspecies have played word games.

As far as I’m aware, most wood fiber PLA is pine dust . Probably the second most common is ironically Bamboo. The irony is that bamboo is a grass. If the wood filler isn’t specified, assume it’s pine.

I have used wood PLA for a few of my projects and still have some in the back of my cabinet. What I can tell you is that a LARGER nozzle is a must. Two things happen with that type of filament: 1) it clogs quite easily with smaller than large nozzles. 2) The filament will burn at high nozzle temps, which will add to the clog issue. What I have found is that wood filament doesn’t hold it’s shape very well. I printed some wall switch plates with it, and after about a year, they all cup outward. I thought it was just being overtightened, but additional trials proved that to be wrong. It does have a cool odor, as a wood working hobbiest it fills that bill nicely.

I’ve seen store bought flexible covers do that as well and drives me crazy. I know they crack easily but I still prefer the hard ones and don’t get me started on screws not being vertical.

Thats an OCD track that I refuse to go to!, Even as OCD as I am.

Here’s a snapshot of how I have done many of the special wall plates in the wood shop I built. This is where I wanted to make use of the wood filament - kind of special in a woodshop, don’t ya think?