Material sheet · Specialty

Silk PLA Filament: Metallic Shine in 3D Printing

The glossy, silky-finish PLA that looks like metal or silk. What changes compared with regular PLA according to the datasheets and how to print it.

Nozzle 210–230 °C 5 datasheets

Bed 50–60 °C 5 datasheets

Density 1.22 g/cm³ 5 datasheets

Tg 59 °C 2 datasheets

Drying 50 °C 1 sheet

Silk PLA properties

Data taken from 5 datasheets from manufacturers in Spain, Europe, the United States and China, reviewed on October 26, 2026. The shaded bar marks the median of the declared values and each colored tick is a different datasheet. The scales are the same across the whole library, so you can compare materials at a glance.

Nozzle temperature °C · 5 datasheets

210–230 °C range 200–240

Bed temperature °C · 5 datasheets

50–60 °C range 40–70

Density g/cm³ · 5 datasheets

1.22 g/cm³ range 1.19–1.23

Glass transition (Tg) °C · 2 datasheets

59 °C range 57–61

HDT at 0.45 MPa °C · 4 datasheets

55 °C range 50–57

Vicat softening °C · 1 sheet

54 °C range 54–54

Tensile strength MPa · 5 datasheets

50 MPa range 43–59

Tensile modulus MPa · 4 datasheets

2,600 MPa range 2,300–3,173

Elongation at break % · 3 datasheets

10 % range 4–11

Flexural strength MPa · 3 datasheets

78 MPa range 72–87

Flexural modulus MPa · 2 datasheets

3,059 MPa range 2,600–3,518

Drying temperature °C · 1 sheet

50 °C range 50–50

Spain · 0 Europe · 3 US · 0 China · 2 Band: median of the declared values

Silk PLA temperature and print settings

Setting	Typical value	Range in datasheets
Nozzle	210–230 °C	200–240 °C
Bed	50–60 °C	40–70 °C
Print speed	40–110 mm/s	30–200 mm/s
Drying temperature	50 °C	50–50 °C

Difficulty Low Like PLA, a bit slower to bring out the shine.

Drying before printing 50 °C Manufacturer values for spools that have absorbed moisture.

Silk PLA vs PLA, Matte PLA, and Metallic PLA: comparison

Setting	Silk PLA	PLA	Matte PLA	Metallic PLA
Nozzle temperature °C	210–230	192–230	190–230	200–230
Bed temperature °C	50–60	40–60	40–60	50–60
Density g/cm³	1.22	1.23	1.31	1.21
Glass transition (Tg) °C	59	61	60	60
HDT at 0.45 MPa °C	55	56	58	56
Tensile strength MPa	50	50	37	45
Tensile modulus MPa	2,600	2,865	2,280	—
Elongation at break %	10	8	15	11
Drying temperature °C	50	50	50	50

Medians from each material's datasheets. Click a material to see its full range.

Meters of Silk PLA per spool

Spool weight	1.75 mm	2.85 mm
250 g	85 m	32 m
500 g	170 m	64 m
1 kg	341 m	128 m
3 kg	1,022 m	385 m

Calculated with the median density from the datasheets (1.22 g/cm³). Real spools can vary by a few meters because of diameter tolerance.

What is silk PLA filament

Silk PLA is a PLA with additives that give the surface an intense shine, often with a gold, silver or two-tone metallic effect. It is the favorite filament for vases, figurines and decoration. The 5 datasheets analyzed print it with the nozzle at 210–230 °C.

Silk PLA compared with PLA

Shine: it hides the layers a lot and gives a very eye-catching finish.
Weaker between layers: the additives that give the shine reduce layer adhesion, so it is not for functional parts.
More sensitive to speed: printing fast dulls the shine.

How to print silk PLA so it shines

Print a bit slower than regular PLA, in the middle or upper part of the temperature range, with fine layers and a single, carefully tuned outer wall. Vase mode is ideal: a continuous wall with no seams that shows off the shine to the fullest.

FAQ