3DQF has started their new Pearl range of filaments, fresh out of the extruder. They wanted a set of unique colours that are different, almost with a metallic effect. As a result, after a long time testing, they decided to settle with four new colours. Therefore, these range from Pearl Black, Pearl Blue, Pearl Purple, and Pearl Plum. Available in 1.75mm with a weight of 1KG. 3DQF recommends using a print temperature of 180-220°C and a bed temperature of 40-50°C, or you can use an unheated bed. In addition, for best results use Elmer’s purple glue stick to help with adhesion.
Therefore in today’s review, I am going to talk about 3DQF Pearl Plum filament. Let us start at the begging with the appearance of the packaging and the spool.
Packaging/Spool
Firstly, it’s just a plain cardboard box with the 3DQF sticker that includes the colour and material type (PLA). Secondly, upon opening the box, you are greeted with sample filament and a sweetie, not many manufacturers give out small gifts with their filament. Now underneath the small gifts is the beautiful 3DQF Pearl Plum that comes within an airtight bag with desiccant. The spool itself is made up of card and steel construction.
3DQF Pearl Plum Printability
From start to finish, the 3DQF Pearl Plum prints all went very well with no hassle. As a result, this meant no clogs or jams. I printed using the recommended temperature from 3DQF, and all models were 3D printed on the Tevo Nereus.
Spider-Man (FREE) – MyMiniFactory
It was digitally sculpted in ZBrush as usual, using no fancy brushes or anything, 95% Dam Standard and Clay Buildup, and a lot of smoothing.
As you can tell around the shoulders this Spider man is inspired by the design in the game Marvel’s Spider-Man, but not an exact copy. I kept the eyes more low-tech- and the web pattern is a bit different. I did struggle a lot with the spider logo on his chest, and I’m still not happy with it 100%.
The base. It’s more advanced than I usually make them, but I wanted to give detailing it a bit more a try this time around. I normally dislike bases that are too detailed and complicated because I think it detracts from the main subject. It was fun, though, and I hope you guys like it.
Floating Cup Sculpture (FREE) – Thingiverse
This is a recreation of a sculpture by ‘Bobby Duke Arts’ on YouTube. The print might be a little difficult to balance, so I would suggest either printing the lower piece with a higher infill percentage to give it more weight or fixing it down to a base.
Skull ($2.50) – MyMiniFactory
I could not find any information on the designer or the model.
Thoughts on the Colour
I felt that the “Pearl” should have been more noticeable. It is very subtle. For example, when trying to take a picture to show, it is impossible as you can only see purple. When moving it slightly, there is a hint of pearl, but not much, I don’t think I would go out my way to buy it, however, I was hoping for something different, and to me, it felt like a standard colour of filament. I was hyped about it at first, but I must admit the overall tone is beautiful. Above you can see the picture of the models some vary in different colour due to where the sunlight hits, from a “purple” to a “plum purple”.
3DQF Pearl Plum Conclusion
In conclusion, as stated above, I would like more of a pearl showing through so, it needs to be pooping for me to give it 100%. However, overall Pearl Plum is a very lovely filament, and 3DQF did an excellent job of achieving what they liked. To clarify, this is my opinion on the Pearl Plum filament. however, everyone else may love the subtleness. At the time of this article getting published the filament is priced at £14.99 on 3DQF Website.
