How to Choose Your First Filament

Getting started with first filament is easier than the forums make it sound. In this beginner-friendly walkthrough we cover the exact steps we recommend to every new FlexiMania customer, plus the mistakes to skip past on day one.

Everything below has been tested on Bambu Lab, Prusa and generic Ender-class printers with a stock 0.4 mm nozzle. If you want the entire FlexiMania library in one place, we publish new print-in-place models every week on FlexiMania Patreon — one flat $10/month unlocks all 60+ STL & 3MF files.

What first filament actually is

Let's start with the fundamentals. First filament is the layer between "I bought a printer" and "I'm printing consistent, high-quality prints". Get it right and everything else gets easier.

Step-by-step walkthrough

Follow these steps in order the first time.

1. Read the manufacturer quickstart in full — 15 minutes now saves a week of frustration
2. Download the manufacturer's recommended slicer profile (Bambu Studio for Bambu, PrusaSlicer for Prusa, OrcaSlicer for community printers)
3. Load a known-good test print (a FlexiMania Cute Dragon works perfectly) and slice with defaults
4. Verify first-layer adhesion — clean the bed with IPA if the first layer isn't glossy
5. Only start tweaking settings after five successful prints

Slicer settings that make these models sing

You can print any of the models below on any half-decent FDM printer, but you'll get noticeably crisper joints — and higher first-time success — if you dial in the settings below rather than trusting your slicer's defaults.

Beginner questions we get every week

Answers to the questions we hear from new FlexiMania members most often.

• Which printer should I start with? A Bambu Lab A1 is the easiest, a Prusa MK4S the most durable, an Ender 3 V3 SE the cheapest.
• Do I need dry-boxes? Only for PETG, TPU and nylon. PLA is fine open for months.
• Should I upgrade before printing? No — print 20 successful models first, then decide.

Common mistakes to avoid

Nine out of ten failed print-in-place prints trace back to the same short list of mistakes. Skim it before you slice.

• Turning supports on — print-in-place models never need them, always disable them
• Slicing at 0.28 mm layer height on small joints — drop to 0.20 mm for crisp hinges
• Running cooling below 100% — flexi joints need maximum cooling to release cleanly
• Chasing 300 mm/s print speeds — keep it under 150 mm/s until the model comes off perfectly
• Skipping bed cleaning — a quick IPA wipe fixes 90% of first-layer issues

Ready to print? Grab individual FlexiMania models on our Cults profile, or unlock the entire 60+ library — plus three brand-new drops every week — for a single $10 monthly membership on FlexiMania Patreon. Related reading: beginner's guide to 3D printing STL models, best STL files for beginners.