Prusament PLA High Speed: Up to 40% Faster Print Times for Rapid Prototyping
3D PrintingFast printers need fast filament. Prusament PLA High Speed is Prusa’s answer to the gap between kinematic speed upgrades and the material bottleneck that limits how fast you can actually push plastic through a nozzle.
What Makes High Speed PLA Different
Standard PLA becomes the bottleneck in high-speed printing not because of layer adhesion or cooling, but because of melt viscosity. At extreme flow rates, conventional PLA doesn’t thin out fast enough under shear — you get pressure buildup, clogs, and inconsistent extrusion before you hit the printer’s mechanical limits.
Prusament PLA High Speed addresses this through a higher Melt Flow Index (MFI) and improved shear-thinning behavior: viscosity drops significantly under extrusion pressure, allowing consistent flow at speeds that would stall standard filament. The result is a maximum volumetric flow of 28 mm³/s on the CORE One+, compared to 24 mm³/s for standard Prusament PLA — translating to 20–40% print time reductions depending on model geometry.
The improvements aren’t only in speed. The tensile anisotropy coefficient (r) measures how well a part performs regardless of print orientation — essentially, how much better inter-layer bonding matches in-layer bonding. At 0.60, PLA High Speed is Prusa’s second-best performer in this metric across their material lineup, compared to 0.33 for standard PLA. Parts are less likely to delaminate under stress along the Z axis.
Prototyping-Grade Surface Finish
The “rapid prototyping” framing is accurate in both directions: fast to print, and good enough to use. Surface finish is satin-to-glossy, and overhang performance exceeds standard PLA even at elevated temperatures. Functional prints — brackets, clips, enclosures — benefit from the higher toughness and dimensional stability under load.
At $29.90 USD per 1kg spool in five colorways (Prusa Orange, Galaxy Black, Pristine White, Lipstick Red, Gravity Grey), it sits at the same price tier as standard Prusament PLA. The premium is in material engineering, not the price tag.
Compatibility Caveats
Prusa tested and optimized the material for the CORE One+ with its specific extruder geometry and kinematic architecture. Performance on other hardware — including older Prusa i3-based printers — will vary based on hotend design and motion system. The recommended print temperature is 220°C.
If you’re running a CORE One+ or a similarly capable high-flow printer, this is the obvious choice for anything that doesn’t require engineering-grade strength or temperature resistance. For those use cases, Prusament PETG and ASA remain better options. PLA High Speed targets the draft prototyping workflow: get the geometry right fast, iterate, then commit to the final material for production parts.
The So What
The 28 mm³/s ceiling on PLA High Speed vs. 24 mm³/s for standard PLA sounds like a modest increment. In practice, on a CORE One+ running aggressive print profiles, that delta consistently translates to measurable print time reductions across a morning’s worth of iterations. For shops or hobbyists using rapid prototyping as a tight feedback loop — design, print, test, revise — that time savings adds up quickly. Available now at prusa3d.com.
Source: Original Prusa
Content created with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy.
Join the conversation
Stack Insiders is our free community for readers who want to go deeper — share resources, ask questions, and connect with others across every vertical we cover.
Join Stack Insiders →