Matterhackers Pro ABS

[0110-m-p]

It's been a while since I posted up here, but since I'm going to be experimenting with some new filament I figured it was time to come back out of the woodwork.

I needed some new filament because my current stock of IC3D ABS is acting funny and really inconsistent (likely due to moisture absorption from sitting out for the past 3 months with minimal use). I've had really good luck with IC3D ABS over the past year or so (black, red, and natural). It has printed well and is very strong, but nearly every spool goes off the charts in terms of diametrical tolerance near the end of the spool which usually results in an extruder jam and failed print. IC3D's support has been amazing and they have sent me a number of free spools for the headache, so kudos to them on that.

This time, instead of buying another couple of rolls of IC3D ABS, I decided to "upgrade" to MatterHackers Pro ABS filament and see if they are true to their claims of +/- 0.05mm diametrical tolerances. At $42/kg it is a bit pricier than IC3D's $35/kg and a lot more expensive than others out there like Hatchbox and the like. I don't mind paying more for filament if the results are good, which is why I have stuck with IC3D for so long now.

Tracking says my two 1kg spools (silver and red) are on the way and should be delivered tomorrow. I will be debuting my Raspberry Pi 2 case with these two colors, so fingers crossed and results to come.

[JFettig]

I have used 2 spools of pro and 2 spools of "standard", I have a 3rd standard still.

Spool 1 of Black 'Pro': I used the first spool of "pro" as-is - very wet and snapped and popped constantly and created little inclusions on the print - I was not happy. It was the first spool I ever printed.

Spool 1 of Red "standard": printed awesome from day 1 all the way through - color isn't very red.

Spool 2 of Black 'Pro': Started off even worse, I immediately put it back into a bag and into the drawer - contacted matter hackers, asked for a replacement spool of regular black(they sent me two actually). I eventually dried it and it printed great after that, just finished this spool..

Spool 1 of black "standard": prints awesome, just started using it recently.

Spool 2 of black "standard" is still sealed up.

What I've noticed about this ABS vs Hatchbox - its softer but still strong, its true ABS, dimensionally accurate.

[0110-m-p]

Interesting, thanks for the feedback JFettig.

Did they say anything when you complained about the Pro filament?

How long ago was it that you got that 2nd spool of Pro filament?

[JFettig]

I got both spools at the same time in November when we bought the printer from them.

Yes, they said they would check on the filament they had in stock and the batch from mine, etc. They were very nice and easy to work with.

[0110-m-p]

Cool, well I guess we shall see how it performs. I do have one more roll of IC3D red ABS on the way too...that brand/color is the closest thing I have to "old faithful" as far as filament is concerned. First 90% of the spool prints amazing.

[0110-m-p]

First experience with this filament went great. Zero problems with it being wet...printed just fine.

Comments on the color...
- The red is good, but not as good as IC3D's red. Completely acceptable as a red though.
- The silver is interesting. In anything less than bright light, it just looks grey. Bright light it does get a bit of silver sheen. Biggest negative is that the color doesn't lend itself to hiding extrusion lines.

Here is an image showing my new Raspberry Pi case printed with Silver/Red Matterhackers Pro ABS next to my old case printed with Black/Red IC3D ABS.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/MmMhrre.jpg[/img]

Also here is another image of the "top" surface of each half printed with Matterhackers Pro ABS...

[img]http://i.imgur.com/h0hVDTG.jpg[/img]

[JFettig]

Quick note - I printed some parts in black "Pro" and now "standard", they are both the same part(my BBS center caps posted here somewhere). They have snap fit tabs so you just snap them into the wheels and the pro version seemed to work just fine but the standard ones are snapping off. Both printed at the same settings except for filament diameter(1.78mm standard and 1.75mm pro) The same part in Hatchbox gold is very strong, also very strong in PETG.

[0110-m-p]

Interesting.

I don't have any data to back this up with, but the thin wall calibration boxes I printed with Matterhackers Pro ABS seem less stiff and more brittle than those I have printed previously with IC3D ABS. The slight extra brittleness can also be seen bending the filament.

[0110-m-p]

Printed some more using the Matterhackers Pro ABS (about half of each color) and I haven't had any problems with it except it is a bit more stringy than other ABS I have used (easily fixed with changing retraction settings). Only reason I don't plan on buying anymore of it is because I haven't noticed any improvement in print quality over my go-to IC3D ABS which is $8/spool cheaper.