PLA Sparkle
Polylactic Acid - Sparkle
4 products from 4 makers. Bambu Lab sells its own filament of this material for the H2C.
- Tensile modulus (XY)
- 1.94GPa
- one product
- Tensile strength (XY)
- 49MPa
- 2 products · 39–59
- Tensile strength (Z)
- 32MPa
- one product
- Notched Charpy impact
- 23.2kJ/m²
- one product
- HDT at 0.45 MPa
- 53°C
- 2 products · 51–55
- Price
- 32CAD/kg
- one product
PLA Sparkle is polylactic acid with glitter or metal particles. Makers sell it for toys and for prints with a sparkling look. It is amorphous as printed, so it softens at its glass transition: its HDT at 0.45 MPa is 50.8–55 °C. On the H2C it prints at 200–230 °C, and a maker advises against a very small nozzle because it may clog.
Partly documented Tensile modulus (XY), tensile strength (Z), notched Charpy impact and price rest on 1 product each and tensile strength (XY) and HDT at 0.45 MPa on 2 products each. Each figure is the median of the products that publish it comparably, and beside it the middle half of them; a value on a test bar no document describes as printed, or with no stated test load, is set apart, except a heat deflection of a plastic that cannot crystallise, which its glass transition sets, unless its document points to a moulded or resin bar.
On the H2C
Printing in full- Nozzle
- 200–230 °C
- most products that give one
- Bed
- 45 °C
- most products that give one
- Heated chamber
- none needed
- 2 of 4 products
- Drying
- 45–55 °C, 4–8 h
- 2 of 4 products call for it; 1 more gives it as optional
- Nozzle type
- standard
- 1 says a standard nozzle is enough; the rest are silent
No product's setting is beyond the H2C's limits: nozzle 350 °C, bed 120 °C, heated chamber 65 °C.
Among the materials
Against PLA-CF, PLA Sparkle is 16 % stronger flat. Against PETG, PLA Sparkle's HDT at 0.45 MPa is 17 °C lower. Among the materials, PLA Sparkle has a high notched Charpy impact and a low HDT at 0.45 MPa and price: each is in the top or bottom quarter of the materials that publish it. The rest of its key properties sit in the middle half.
Against its alternatives, PLA Sparkle has the highest tensile strength (Z) and notched Charpy impact
How does it compare with what an engineer would buy instead?
- PLA Sparkle: its products' median and middle half
- an alternative
- lowest to highest
- each material's median (top row)
- set apart: test bar not described as printed, or no stated load
- beyond the scale
Each row is a material, each column a property: the bar is the middle half of a material's products, the tick their median, the hairline their lowest to highest; the ticks above the rows are every material's median.
The figure as a table
| Material | Modulus (XY) (GPa) | Strength (XY) (MPa) | Strength (Z) (MPa) | Notched Charpy (kJ/m²) | HDT 0.45 MPa (°C) | Price (CAD/kg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLA Sparkle (this material) | 1.94 · 1 | 49 · 2 | 32 · 1 | 23.2 · 1 | 53 · 2 | 32 · 1 |
| PLA-CF | 2.8 (2.26–3.65) · 7 | 42.3 (39.3–47) · 10 | 25.3 (24.1–26) · 5 | 6.08 · 2 | 55 (55–57) · 6 | 40 · 2 |
| PLA-GF | — | 46 · 1 | — | — | — | 41 · 0 |
| PETG | 1.69 (1.42–1.95) · 24 | 47 (40.3–50.6) · 34 | 30.2 (28–36.5) · 16 | 6 (4.76–8) · 10 | 70 (69–71) · 32 | 26 (25–32) · 11 |
| PP | 1.2–1.4 as published (2) | 19 · 1 | — | 65 as published (1) | 59 · 1 | 77 · 2 |
| ABS | 2.2 (2.02–2.25) · 13 | 34.5 (33–35.6) · 18 | 27.3 (24.6–28.3) · 12 | 20 (18–21.5) · 7 | 95 (89–99) · 18 | 40 (31–52) · 9 |
Each cell is the median of the products ranked, its middle half in brackets, and how many.
Where PLA Sparkle sits among the 128 rigid materials on file
Where is it in the landscape: stiffness against strength, heat resistance against price?
- PLA Sparkle: median, middle half as a cross
- a PLA Sparkle product
- an alternative
- another material
- beyond the scale
Tensile strength (XY) against tensile modulus (XY)
MPa, log scale
Tensile modulus (XY), GPa, log scale
HDT at 0.45 MPa against price
°C
Price, CAD/kg, log scale
Grey points are every other rigid material's medians; the alternatives are named.
The figure as a table
| Material | Tensile modulus (XY) | Tensile strength (XY) | Price | HDT at 0.45 MPa |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLA Sparkle (this material) | 1.94 GPa · 1 | 49 MPa · 2 | 32 CAD/kg · 1 | 53 °C · 2 |
| PLA-CF | 2.8 GPa · 7 | 42.3 MPa · 10 | 40 CAD/kg · 2 | 55 °C · 6 |
| PLA-GF | — | 46 MPa · 1 | 41 CAD/kg · 0 | — |
| PETG | 1.69 GPa · 24 | 47 MPa · 34 | 26 CAD/kg · 11 | 70 °C · 32 |
| PP | 1.2–1.4 GPa as published | 19 MPa · 1 | 77 CAD/kg · 2 | 59 °C · 1 |
| ABS | 2.2 GPa · 13 | 34.5 MPa · 18 | 40 CAD/kg · 9 | 95 °C · 18 |
Mechanical properties
Printed flat (XY), PLA Sparkle typically reaches a tensile strength of 49 MPa at a modulus of 1.94 GPa, and breaks at 12 % elongation. In bending, its flexural strength is typically 86 MPa at a flexural modulus of 2.73 GPa.
| As each sheet publishes it | Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Spectrum PLA Glitter | SUNLU PLA Twinkling | eSUN Twinkling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tensile strength (XY) | 39 MPa | not published | 59 MPa | not published |
| Tensile modulus (XY) | 1.94 GPa | not published | not published | not published |
| Tensile strength (Z) | 32 MPa | not published | not published | not published |
| Elongation at break (XY) | 12 % | not published | 13 % | not published |
| Notched Charpy impact | 23.2 kJ/m² | not published | not published | not published |
| Notched Izod impact | not published | not published | 3.1 kJ/m² | not published |
Across the layers (Z), PLA Sparkle keeps 82 % of its flat strength and 86 % of its flat stiffness
What does a printed part lose across the layers (Z) against flat (XY), and is that usual?
- a product
- equal share: 100, 75, 50 and 25 %
- PLA Sparkle's median share
- an alternative
Tensile strength
Z keeps 82 % of XY, median of 1 product
flat (XY), MPa
Share kept: PLA Sparkle 82 % · ABS 73 % · PETG 69 % · PLA-CF 58 %
Tensile modulus
Z keeps 86 % of XY, median of 1 product
flat (XY), GPa
Share kept: ABS 89 % · PETG 88 % · PLA Sparkle 86 % · PLA-CF 77 %
Elongation at break
Z keeps 58 % of XY, median of 1 product
flat (XY), %
Share kept: PETG 59 % · PLA Sparkle 58 % · PLA-CF 43 % · ABS 38 %
Each point is a product that publishes both from one sheet: below the 100 % ray it keeps less across the layers than flat. Under each plot, the median share its alternatives' products keep.
The figure as a table
| Product | Property | Flat (XY) | Across (Z) | Z as a share of XY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Tensile strength | 39 MPa | 32 MPa | 82 % |
| Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Tensile modulus | 1.94 GPa | 1.66 GPa | 86 % |
| Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Elongation at break | 12 % | 6.8 % | 58 % |
| PLA-CF (alternative) | Tensile strength | 58 % · 5 | ||
| PETG (alternative) | Tensile strength | 69 % · 13 | ||
| ABS (alternative) | Tensile strength | 73 % · 9 | ||
| PLA-CF (alternative) | Tensile modulus | 77 % · 5 | ||
| PETG (alternative) | Tensile modulus | 88 % · 10 | ||
| ABS (alternative) | Tensile modulus | 89 % · 7 | ||
| PLA-CF (alternative) | Elongation at break | 43 % · 5 | ||
| PETG (alternative) | Elongation at break | 59 % · 13 | ||
| ABS (alternative) | Elongation at break | 38 % · 9 |
Flat and across the layers, property by property
Flat and across the layers
| Property | Printed flat (XY) | Across the layers (Z) | Z as a share of XY | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median | Products | Median | Products | ||
| Tensile strength MPa | 49 | 2 | 32 | 1 | 82 %1 product |
| Tensile modulus GPa | 1.94 | 1 | 1.66 | 1 | 86 %1 product |
| Elongation at break % | 12 | 2 | 6.8 | 1 | 58 %1 product |
| Flexural strength MPa | 86 | 2 | 51 | 1 | 68 %1 product |
| Flexural modulus GPa | 2.73 | 2 | — | — | |
The middle half of the products under each median. The share is each product's Z value as a part of its XY value, from one sheet and one state, and the median of those shares. How XY and Z differ.
Thermal properties
PLA Sparkle is amorphous as printed, so it softens at its glass transition, typically 56 °C: its HDT is 50.8–55 °C under 0.45 MPa and 53 °C under 1.8 MPa. As published, Vicat softening is typically 56 °C and melting typically 160 °C.
| As each sheet publishes it | Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Spectrum PLA Glitter | SUNLU PLA Twinkling | eSUN Twinkling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HDT at 0.45 MPa | 55 °C | 55 °Cnot described as printed | 51 °C | not published |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa | 53 °C | not published | not published | not published |
| Glass transition (Tg) | 56 °C | 55 °C | 63 °C | not published |
Printing on the H2C
PLA Sparkle softens near 53 °C, below the H2C's 65 °C chamber
What does printing it on the H2C take, and how hot can a part get?
- share of the products that accept each temperature
- what most products accept
- the H2C's limit, and beyond it
- a product
- PLA Sparkle: its products' median and middle half
- as published, under each sheet's own test
Printing it on the H2C
In service
°C
One temperature axis for the settings a print needs and the temperatures a part meets. A setting's shade is how many of the products whose sheets give a window accept each degree; the H2C's limit closes its row.
The figure as a table
| Setting or property | Most products, or the median | Products | H2C limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nozzle | 200–230 °C | 4 | 350 °C |
| Bed | 45 °C | 4 | 120 °C |
| Heated chamber | 25–45 °C | 1 | 65 °C |
| Drying | 45–55 °C, 4–8 h | 3 | — |
| HDT at 0.45 MPa | 53 °C | 2 | — |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa | 53 °C | 1 | — |
| Vicat softening temperature | 54–57 °C | 2 | — |
| Glass transition (Tg) | 56 °C | 3 | — |
| Melting temperature | 156–164 °C | 2 | — |
Windows read from the Bambu Lab Filament Guide are not shaded: the guide speaks for every product that reads it.
| Setting | Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Spectrum PLA Glitter | SUNLU PLA Twinkling | eSUN Twinkling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nozzle | 190–230 °C | 185–215 °C | 200–240 °C | 200–230 °C |
| Bed | 35–45 °C | 0–45 °C | 50–60 °C | 45–60 °C |
| Heated chamber | 25–45 °C | none needed | none needed | not stated; within, by its kind |
| Drying | 55 °C for 8 h | optional: 45 °C for 4 h | 50 °C | not published |
| Nozzle type | not stated | standard | not stated | not stated |
In grey, a setting a product reads from a data sheet it shares or from the Bambu Lab Filament Guide, where its own sheet is silent, or a chamber all of them leave silent, read from what the makers of its kind of plastic state.
What makers say about printing it
Printing advice
Try to avoid any bending in feeding.
eSUN Twinkling, data sheet, p. 2
Moisture sensitivity
Dry box not necessary
Spectrum PLA Glitter, data sheet, p. 1
Nozzle wear
Ruby or hardened nozzle not necessary
Spectrum PLA Glitter, data sheet, p. 1not abrasive
Spectrum PLA Glitter, data sheet, p. 1
More from makers: supports and removal and odour and emissions
Supports and removal
Support Material Support for PLA
Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle, data sheet, p. 2Supported Material PVA
SUNLU PLA Twinkling, data sheet, p. 2
Odour and emissions
Odor Odorless
Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle, data sheet, p. 3
Products
4 products, one from each of 4 makers.
Uses, limitations and chemicals
What it is sold for
Toys
eSUN Twinkling, data sheet, p. 1Meanwhile, its stiffness and strength can meet most printing needs.
Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle, data sheet, p. 1This material is based on PLA material which bring it not only with characteristic of easy to print as PLA but also with special glittering color.
eSUN Twinkling, data sheet, p. 1
What makers warn about
However, it is not recommended to use a 0.2 mm nozzle for printing as clogging may occur.
Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle, data sheet, p. 1The material is not easy to bend as the strong rigidity.
eSUN Twinkling, data sheet, p. 2
Finish and accuracy
Contains 15% glitter, giving printed models a sparkling, shimmering appearance.
SUNLU PLA Twinkling, data sheet, p. 1With metal particles included in its composition, Bambu PLA Sparkle adds a special sparkling look to your prints that sets them apart from the rest.
Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle, data sheet, p. 1
Chemicals and environment
| Exposure | What makers say |
|---|---|
| Water solubility | Insoluble, in its one statement |
| Acid resistance | Not resistant, in its one statement |
| Alkali resistance | Not resistant, in its one statement |
| Organic solvent resistance | Limited, in its one statement |
| Oil and grease resistance | Limited, in its one statement |
| Flammability | Described in words, with no rating, in its one statement |
Makers rarely give the concentration, temperature or duration: treat them as indications, not design data. Each product's statements are on its card.
Resin reference data (for plain PLA, where no maker of these products speaks): it absorbs moisture and is dried before melt processing. Fillers, pigments and printing change this, so it does not stand for these products.
Density and price
PLA Sparkle's density is typically 1,260 kg/m³, the middle half 1,250–1,300 kg/m³, across 4 products. One product has a sampled price: Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle at 32 CAD/kg. 3D Printing Canada lists Spectrum PLA Glitter, out of stock when sampled, with no regular price recorded.
| As each sheet publishes it | Bambu Lab PLA Sparkle | Spectrum PLA Glitter | SUNLU PLA Twinkling | eSUN Twinkling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 32 CAD/kg | not published | not published | not published |
Regular prices, never sale prices, from 9 Canadian shops and 10 foreign shops, sampled 10 Sep–20 Oct 2026, not live; shipping and tax are not included.
Other properties, as published
5 more properties are published, each under its own sheet's test conditions, so they are listed, not ranked.
The 5 properties, lowest to highest
| Property | Products | Lowest–highest |
|---|---|---|
| Melt mass-flow rate | 3 | 6–34.2 g/10 min |
| Decomposition temperature | 1 | 374 °C |
| Hardness | 1 | 78.5 Shore (scale not specified by source) |
| Mould shrinkage | 1 | 0.1–0.3 % |
| Water absorption | 1 | 0.44 % |
Sources
8 documents from 4 publishers (4 data sheets, 3 makers' product pages and guides and 1 printer document), read 10 Sep–19 Oct 2026. Each value on PLA Sparkle's Products page names its document and page, and links to the original.
Bambu Lab, H2C Filamant Printing Guide (the H2C's printer guide): print settings for 4 products.
Every document (8), by publisher
| Publisher | Documents | Values | Products |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum | 4 | 11 | 1 |
| Bambu Lab | 1 | 20 | 1 |
| SUNLU | 1 | 15 | 1 |
| eSUN | 1 | 6 | 1 |
- Bambu Lab, Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet - PLA Sparkle
- Bambu Lab, H2C Filamant Printing Guide | Bambu Lab Wiki
- eSUN, Twinkling Technical Data Sheet
- Spectrum, 3D Printing Filament Manufacturer PRODUCT PORTFOLIO
- Spectrum, Filament drying - Spectrum Filaments
- Spectrum, Spectrum Filaments Product Portfolio 2025 — Prografen pp28–29
- Spectrum, TECHNICAL DATA SHEET PLA Glitter
- SUNLU, TECHNICAL DATA SHEET ISO PLA Twinkling