Startup company Filapack has launched a new service the enables inexpensive testing of popular 3D printer filaments.
The problem they’re solving is one that certainly annoys any busy 3D printer operator. Here’s the scenario:
- You’re doing a lot of 3D printing, and consequently use many spools of 3D printer material
- You’re always searching for a better filament, or one that’s less expensive. Even better, both!
- You run many types and brands of material through your 3D printer and find that some work well, while others suck
- For those that suck, you also find that you just purchase an entire 1kg spool of material that you’ll never use – that money is now wasted
This is obviously frustrating – and wasteful.
But now, Filapack has a solution: monthly filament samples!
Here’s how it works: you subscribe to their service, and each month you’ll receive a four 50g samples of popular specialty filaments from notable providers. You can test these at low cost and eventually determine the best filaments that work in your 3D printer.
Launch pricing is dependent on the length of your subscription. For a one-month subscription, you’ll pay USD$20, but for a one-year subscription, the per month price drops to only USD$14. And, best of all, shipping is included.
If you’re like me, your arithmetic processor is humming about now, and you’ve also computed that you’re buying 200g of filament per month for USD$14. That’s a bit steep when you consider that 1kg generic filament can be had for around USD$20.
However, you must remember two things here:
This is not just generic filament – it is “Specialty” filament, which is usually priced much higher
You’re getting FOUR different types to test for one price
Think about it: if you intended to test four 1kg speciality filaments, you might be spending over USD$200! And then wasting any portions you cannot use.
And if you actually like a particular filament, Filapack will accept orders directly for larger sized spools. I think this is a very interesting idea for filament reselling: try before you buy.
One question that doesn’t seem to have an answer, however, is whether you have a choice in which sample filaments you will receive each month. If it’s random, then you might have to wait for a specific filament to arrive, and that would not be nearly as useful. If you can choose, then I quite like this idea.
If you do too, then head over to their Kickstarter page.
Via Indiegogo
