🧵 About Our 3D Printing Filament – RS3D

A Complete, Easy-to-Understand Guide for Our Customers

Welcome to RS3D’s comprehensive filament guide. Whether you’re new to 3D printing or just curious about the materials behind our products, this page explains the differences between common filament types, specialty materials, recycled options, and how we choose the safest and most reliable options for your prints.

Our goal: Help you understand what your RS3D prints are made of — and why we choose the materials we do.

From toys to collectibles, décor to functional parts, we print with materials that are biodegradable, durable, flexible, safe for home use, and environmentally responsible.

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🧪 What Is 3D Printer Filament?

FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) 3D printers — like the ones we use at RS3D — build objects layer by layer using melted thermoplastic filament.

• Filament comes on spools

• Standard size: 1.75mm

• It’s fed through the extruder

• Melted in the hotend

• Then deposited through a heated nozzle

• Repeated hundreds or thousands of times to create the final object

Each filament type has different properties like flexibility, strength, heat resistance, and print settings. Choosing the right one depends on what the item is meant to do.

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🔍 Filament Types Used by RS3D

We primarily use the “Six Basics” of 3D printing, plus select specialty materials. These cover 99% of real-world printing needs.

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✅ The Six Basics

🌱 PLA (Polylactic Acid) — Eco-Friendly, Easy, and Beautiful

Source: Corn starch, sugarcane, and other renewable resources
Strength: Medium
Flexibility: Low
Durability: Medium
Print Difficulty: Very easy
Bed Requirement: None or low temp
Temperature: 180–230°C

PLA is the #1 most-used filament in the world — around half of the entire filament market.
Why we use it:

• Great for toys, miniatures, and décor

• Minimal warping

• Wide color variety (silks, rainbows, matte, glitter)

• Low odor

• Plant-based and biodegradable under industrial composting

Why we don’t use PLA for everything:
It becomes soft at ~60°C and can deform if left in hot cars, direct sunlight, or outdoors long-term.

Best for:
✅ Toys
✅ Figures
✅ Cosplay pieces
✅ Signs
✅ Night lights
✅ Keychains

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💪 ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) — Tough, Impact-Resistant

Strength: High
Flexibility: Medium
Durability: High
Temp Resistance: Excellent
Print Difficulty: Medium–hard (fumes, warping)

We rarely use ABS at RS3D because:

• It requires very high heat

• Produces strong fumes

• Warps without a fully enclosed chamber

But ABS is excellent for:

• Heavy-wear toys

• Vehicle parts

• Durable functional items

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💎 PETG (Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol) — Strong, Clean, Recyclable

Strength: High
Flexibility: Medium
Durability: High
Print Difficulty: Medium
Temp: 220–250°C

PETG is like the best traits of PLA and ABS combined:

✅ Strong
✅ UV-resistant
✅ Moisture-resistant
✅ Food-safe variants exist
✅ Recyclable as #1 plastic

We use PETG for:

• Durable décor

• Vases

• Parts that may be handled frequently

• Items that must resist sun, moisture, or stress

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🧼 TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane) — Flexible & Shock-Absorbent

Strength: High
Flexibility: Very high
Durability: Very high
Use Difficulty: Medium (requires tuned settings)

TPU is rubber-like and perfect for:
✅ Fidget toys
✅ Phone cases
✅ Grips & gaskets
✅ Wheels
✅ Bumpers
✅ Kids’ toys that need extra flexibility

We use TPU when a product needs bend, stretch, and impact absorption.

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🧵 Nylon (Polyamide) — Industrial Strength

Strength: Very High
Flexibility: High
Durability: Very High

We rarely use Nylon for shop products because it requires special high-temperature equipment, but it’s excellent for:

• Gears

• Hinges

• Mechanical parts

• Wear-resistant components

Nylon is hygroscopic (absorbs water fast), so it must be kept very dry.

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🔥 PC (Polycarbonate) — Incredibly Strong & Heat Resistant

Strength: Very High
Durability: Very High
Temp: 260–310°C

PC is one of the strongest materials that can be FDM-printed.
Not used for most toys or décor, but ideal for:

• High-strength brackets

• Automotive parts

• Light housings

• Engineering components

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🎨 Specialty Filaments We Use

We use specialty filaments when a project calls for a unique look or effect:

✅ Silk PLA

Ultra-glossy, smooth finish. Perfect for high-shine toys and décor.

✅ Glow-in-the-Dark PLA

Contains phosphorescent particles — the thicker the walls, the brighter the glow.

✅ Wood-Filled PLA

30% real wood fibers for a natural look; can be sanded and stained.

✅ Metal/Carbon Fiber Filled PLA

Ultra-strong, light, stiff.
(Note: More brittle; requires hardened nozzles.)

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🧲 Support Materials

Used mostly in engineering or dual-extruder systems:

✅ HIPS — Dissolvable in limonene

Commonly used as support for ABS.

✅ PVA & BVOH — Dissolves in water

Great for printing complex overhangs with PLA or PETG.

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⚙️ Engineering-Grade Filaments (Not Typically Used in RS3D Products)

Included for customer knowledge:

PP (Polypropylene) — Food containers & living hinges

Fiber-Filled — Carbon, Glass, Kevlar blends

PMMA (Acrylic) — Transparent parts

PEI / Ultem — Aerospace-grade

PEKK & PEEK — High-performance industrial materials

These materials require specialized, high-temp printers.

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♻️ Recycling & Environmental Responsibility

We choose materials that balance performance with sustainability.

Is 3D Printer Filament Recyclable?

RS3D Recycling Practices

• We sort failed prints by material

• We reuse packaging when clean

• We include misprints as freebies (reducing waste)

• We are exploring solar, regrind systems, and more eco-friendly filaments

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🌿 RS3D Sustainability Practices

✅ Use biodegradable PLA & recycled PETG when possible
✅ Low-waste packaging & spool return efforts
✅ Optimized slicer profiles to reduce failed prints
✅ Misprints included in some orders as freebies
✅ Reuse shipping materials when possible
✅ Batch prints to reduce power usage
✅ Researching solar solutions and in-house material recycling

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💡 Tips for Eco-Friendly 3D Printing at Home

• Use tree supports to reduce waste

• Keep filaments dry (especially TPU, Nylon, PETG)

• Separate PLA and PETG scraps

• Recycle empty spools

• Donate unwanted prints to teachers or STEM clubs

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⚠️ Important Reminder About 3D Prints

3D-printed items — no matter what filament is used — can be fragile in their smallest or thinnest details.

At RS3D, we strengthen every print by using:
✅ Extra walls
✅ Proper infill
✅ Correct flow & speed settings
✅ Clean, tuned printers

But if something breaks:
Super glue works wonders.

If you believe your item broke due to a print defect, contact us with:
📸 Clear photos
🎥 A short video showing the break

We can usually tell exactly how and why it broke from those alone.

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🧵 Final Thoughts

At RS3D, we are committed to using safe, reliable, sustainable, and high-quality filament for every product we make.

You can trust that each print is made with materials chosen for:

✅ Safety
✅ Durability
✅ Eco-friendliness
✅ Beauty and finish
✅ Best performance for the product’s purpose

Thank you for supporting our family business and helping us build a more sustainable future — one print at a time.