Converting Failed Prints Into Filament - 3D Printing with Zooheads

We're back with another plastic extrusion test. This time, we're using actual prints from another company. When we talk about recycling, this is true recycling as 100% of our test material was deemed unfit for sale. This is the type of material that is typically thrown away. But, no, every one of these Zooheads was saved from that fate.

What are Zooheads?

Zooheads is a line of fun showerheads. Yes, showerheads. You can swap out your current, boring one for something fun like a Tyrannosaurus. Or a unicorn. Who doesn't want to start their day showering under a unicorn? 

We were approached by Voodoo Manufacturing, a company based in Brooklyn, New York, to see if we could recycle their failed prints. After some discussion, we agreed to give it a try. 

From Gorilla to Grinding

We were fortunate in that there was no prep work to be done with these items. No tape or adhesives to remove and all of them were the same type of plastic. If only every test was this simple!

Everything ground easily, too. Uniform size and no need for any custom or secondary grinding. 

Extrusion Time

While we usually use our higher-end Filabot EX6 Extruder for testing, this time we used the Filabot EX2 Filament Extruder. If it can extrude on the simpler model, we know it will work on the more advanced EX6. The filament extruded just fine, save for one challenge - the Filameasure filament measuring device that we usually attach to our Filabot Spooler was unavailable that day... meaning we didn't test our tolerances. Do you hear some foreshadowing...?

Printing

Once we had filament it was time for testing. We printed our Filabot Test Print successfully and then went on to make a soap dish. While the prints were successful, the quality wasn't where it could have been. Yes, it was due to some tolerance issues during extrusion.

Conclusion

If you'd like to get your own free sample of Zooheads filament, for free, head on over to the store. Or, if you'd like more details about what we did, including extrusion settings, you can download our official report here.