Hello,
I tried to use the search function, but didn’t find anything relevant.
I bought recently a A1 mini, I didn’t receive the color key chain thingy to compare materials and colors.
So if somebody could tell me what PLA Bambu filament I should buy to get same color that the plastic cover of the A1 mini.
ATM I have white and black, but I want to print a few tools for my A1 mini and I’d like to be the same color.
Edit : I am ok with PETG also
Thanks in advance.
Seb
I was thinking the same thing, but from the swatches there doesn’t appear to be a match.
Thanks for your answer,
As you have the swatches thingy.
Could you check, when you have time, if best match is PETG Basic Nature ( 30104 ), from the website , it seems the best color match, even if not perfect.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Seb
This is compared against my A1. I just realized you were asking about a mini. Not sure if they are the same color.
Thanks for testing.
I think the A1 and A1 mini have same color.
Still a bit too bright but better than PLA white.
That’s a shame BambuLab which is doing filaments didn’t think about providing a filamenent of same color than their machine, as customizing 3D printer is pretty common IIRC.
Cheers .
Not sure if the colors on the mini are exact to the big A1 but matching swatches but the white/grey doesn’t match any of the Bambu swatches. But the dark grey of the Z axis is PLA Basic 10102
Thanks for your input.
I guess you have the A1, dunno if the vertical axis is same than on my mini, this part seems to be made of metal, so that’s not the color I’d like to match.
Cheers
Yea I have the A1 sorry I wasn’t sure what was the same and what wasn’t with the Mini
no worries thanks for trying to help
Hi!
On the MakerWord website, under the comment section of “A1 Adjustable Original Camera” model there are plenty of tested recommendations with photos about filaments matching the color that you are seeking.
Sorry I cant link it so you have to search for it o nthe website.
Cheers
PrimaCreator PrimaValue PLA+ light grey.
I think this is as close as it can get to the original color.
Here is a picture:
Yea, I think they should have the printer color too, but no
@SebKun, I agree. Bambu Lab should make at least one filament in a colour similar to the light grey of the A1/A1 Mini housing. If they did, it might be the first roll that every new owner buys, to customize their new printer. In fact, Bambu Lab has this link on each product selection page:
Can’t find your color? Suggest one here
I’ve suggested that they create colour HEX #C4C3C5 and call it “A1 Housing Light Grey”. Maybe if many of us make the same suggestion, they will.
How did I get that hex colour code?
In this post, @ohuf says the light grey colour of the A1/A1 Mini housing is hex code #C4C3C5.
I’ve done a little digging to create this colour comparison table of filaments against the A1/A1 Mini housing.
Filament | Hex Colour Code | Similarity to A1/A1 Mini Light Grey Housing Colour (smaller = closer) |
---|---|---|
SnoLabs Cool Grey PLA (discontinued) | #BDC0C1 | 2.52 |
Recycling Fabrik Smart Mouse (Light Gray) | #C4C8C8 | 3.20 |
Printed Solid Jessie Premium PLA Design White | #D0CDC9 | 4.03 |
Bambu Lab PLA Basic Light Grey 10104 | #D1D3D5 | 4.08 |
Devil Design PLA Light Gray | RAL 7035 per their product card, which is #D7D7D7 | 4.95 |
3DJake Light Grey EcoPLA | RAL 7035, which is #D7D7D7 | 4.95 |
Amazon Basics Light Grey PLA | #C4C7C1 | 5.31 |
Polymaker Matte PLA 007 - Muted White | #BFBCB1 | 6.90 |
Hatchbox Gray Matte PLA | Pantone 422 C, which is #9EA2A2 per this conversion tool | 9.97 |
PrimaCreator PrimaValue PLA+ Light Grey | Waiting for response from mfgr | |
Codes were obtained from mfgr or from filamentcolors.xyz. Conversion from RAL was done with this conversion tool. | Comparison (Delta E) from #C4C3C5 done using this tool. A smaller number is a smaller difference. Per the tool, a Delta E of less than 1 is not perceptible to the human eye. | |
Next, I plan to add a chart for the dark grey part colour of the A1/A1 Mini. For now, this discussion has a promising solution.
I’m guessing you just took the hex code and calculated the ΔE from those?
@krellboy, that’s right. I used the colour comparison tool URL that I mentioned in the chart.
That’s a reasonable start if you don’t have physical samples to measure. However the fact that the data is reported in RGB is somewhat concerning. RGB spaces, like sRGB, are really meant for displays or web usage, not for describing the color of physical objects. If they truly measured the filament color they likely used an inexpensive device without accounting for surface finish which can significantly affect the results.
Even professional color measurement devices across brands can disagree by a noticeable margin. Cheap instruments are worse and it’s entirely possible that the errors will be larger than the differences you’re seeing. sRGB itself doesn’t introduce huge errors for mid-gamut colors, usually less than 1 ΔE, but for highly saturated colors errors of 3 ΔE or more aren’t uncommon.
If you want better approach, check a resource like filamentcolors.xyz to see if they have measurements for the filaments you’re interested in. At least they’re using the same instrument across all their samples. That consistency usually matters more than the color space alone.
Basically the numbers you have could be off by more than the distances you’re using to judge color similarity. That doesn’t invalidate your method, but it does mean you should take those comparisons with a grain of salt.
@krellboy, thanks for adding clarity. Agreed, do take my comparisons with a grain of salt.
The additional callout to filamentcolors.xyz will be helpful to others looking for a more accurate method. I should have mentioned it. I support the mission of its creator/maintainer, but sadly, it doesn’t yet have measurements for the filaments at issue here.
Given the poor matches that I’ve seen in photos out there, I think that the table I’ve created here will suffice for most of the printer users like me that are looking for a close match in available filaments, until a more exact resource comes along.
I got a response from Hatchbox about their Gray Matte PLA. They say it is very close to Pantone 422 C, which is Hex #9EA2A2 per this conversion tool. They also say it varies just a little. The Delta E is then 9.97, making it the most dissimilar of the list.
The chart has been updated.
What are you using to calculate the Similarity factor? And is a higher value a closer approximation of the A1/A1 Mini color? So, presently, what is the best choice?
@sealyons, take a look at the bottom row of the table for answers to your questions