Using third party PLA

Hello, I’ve been trying to use third party PLA on my M300 but it extrudes on the platform spotty and becomes somewhat clogged in the extruder. I’ve tried two different manufacturers using their temperature settings. It seems as though the temperature should be higher, though I’m not sure about this.
Printing with Z-ABS is fine, as well the other Zortrax specific filaments for the M300.
Also, if you’re in the UK can you recommend a UK Zortax reseller that sells Zortax accessories? I’d like to purchase a couple of new hotends for my printer.
On eBay I’ve found hotends for the M200. Are these any good to use?
Thanks!

Can’t advise on the external filaments but as for spare parts, well, good luck with that I’m afraid. Filament in the UK and on Zortrax store is none existent and I think I may have bought the last hotend in the UK as I had major trouble finding one…

I’m thinking of buying a new 3D printer from Bambu Lab specifically for PLA use (any comments on this machine?). I was thinking of buying a used M200 but given that parts are hard to find from Zortrax, or from resellers, I decided to rule this out. I did manage to order two hotends directly from Zortrax but I’m concerned that finding parts for my M300 will be difficult. Maybe I can reversion engineer some parts and have a machine shop I know make them for me.
Given that Zortrax filament has become hard to find I’m going to try out third party filament, mainly ABS since I’m having great success with this.
Where I work we have an M300 Dual. I’m thinking of recommending a switch to a different 3D printer manufacturer. We’re almost out of filament and it’s going to be difficult to order more Zortrax filament.
Sadly, I’m afraid I will have to move away from Zortrax. I purchased a M200 back in 2014 and loved how it worked. I sold it so I could buy my M300, which I love using, despite some glitches on a few occasions.
So, I guess it’s time to say Bye Bye to Zortrax. You were good, but no longer.

Hello Miguel,

despite the fact that you are using third party PLA - please note that we strongly recommend having a separate hotend dedicated only for printing with PLA. Please note that PLA has a lower extrusion temperature that other filaments, hence the material residues accumulated in the hotend prevent PLA from extruding properly. Over here you will find more tips for printing with PLA.

We are sorry to hear you have encountered difficulties with obtaining Zortrax parts and materials. The current lead time is up to 60 business days, but if you would like to place an order anyway - please contact our Sales Department directly. My collegue will put requested parts on the backorder for you, so we can send the order as soon as our stock is replenished.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards
Karolina

Why is it when I’ve asked why Zortrax is having problems re-stocking filaments and when will Zortrax be fully re-stocked, I never get an answer? You’ve been out of stock of your typical Z-materials for months and months. It’s like your suppliers have either gone out of business or no longer want to supply you.
One of your resellers here in the UK has stopped selling your products (he has 3 M200 Plus printers left and has reduced their price - I assume to get rid of them) due to unreliability of supply.
I’ve offered £1,000 for one of the M200 Plus but I’m guessing the reseller will not go that low. Besides, since Zortrax has become unreliable I’m having second thoughts on the idea of purchasing the M200 Plus. I’m thinking of going ahead and purchase the Bambu Lab P1P. Sounds like a great machine for less money and has a bigger build platform.
Thanks for your reply. No need to comment on this posting.

I’ve found, so far, that I need to increase the temperature, not lower it.
Rather than swapping out hotends every time I want to print with PLA on my M300 I decided to buy a used M200 plus.
Unfortunately to purchase replacement parts for both printers I’ve had to buy from resellers outside the UK, at an extra cost. This has lowered my confidence in Zortax being around for much longer, especially after reading about Zortax financial difficulties.