{
  "opening": "Proto-pasta's conductive PLA page, read 27 October 2026, says a typical 10 cm length of 1.75 mm filament measures 2.0–3.5 kilo-ohms, and a 10 cm length of 2.85 mm filament measures 0.7–1.3 kilo-ohms. The page says to use it as a resistor. A printed trace is not a substitute for wire, and the same page says the resistance of a print depends on its shape and settings.",
  "question": "Is there filament that conducts electricity or resists static?",
  "slug": "conductive",
  "useCase": "heat-resistance",
  "useCaseLabel": "Heat resistance",
  "updated": "2026-10-27",
  "shortAnswer": "Proto-pasta's conductive PLA page, read 27 October 2026, says a typical 10 cm length of 1.75 mm filament measures 2.0–3.5 kilo-ohms, and a 10 cm length of 2.85 mm filament measures 0.7–1.3 kilo-ohms. The page says to use it as a resistor. A printed trace is not a substitute for wire, and the same page says the resistance of a print depends on its shape and settings.",
  "recommendedMaterials": [
    "pla",
    "petg",
    "abs"
  ],
  "printerConsiderations": [
    "Kilo-ohms over a short length of filament means the plastic fights the current. Copper wire is measured in fractions of an ohm. Do not replace a wire, a heater lead, or a power trace with this filament.",
    "Proto-pasta says measured resistance varies, and that a print's resistance depends on geometry and settings. A spool figure is not the resistance of the part.",
    "ESD in a product name means the maker is selling it for static-sensitive use. It is not, by itself, a resistivity number. [Electronics enclosures](/answers/electronics) is the case around a board. [Carbon fiber](/answers/cf) is a different filler, and those rows are not given ohms here either."
  ],
  "pros": [
    "The only resistance figures on this page are the ones Proto-pasta prints for a 10 cm length of filament.",
    "The ESD-named rows stay in the catalog list with their print temperatures, and with the resistance cell left empty."
  ],
  "cons": [
    "Addnorth ESD PETG and 3DXSTAT ESD-ABS do not have a published ohms figure in this catalog. Naming them is not a conductivity ranking.",
    "The product page says no heated bed is required. The catalog bed is 50–70 °C (122–158 °F). Use the page you are printing from, and do not average them."
  ],
  "community": "One comment says conductive filament is not a great conductor and that the project has to tolerate that. Another says you should not inhale any filament. A third points at an outside article and says some of the filament is expensive and drops the voltage a little. That comment does not publish a resistance number.",
  "related": [
    "electronics",
    "cf"
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "Is there filament that conducts electricity or resists static?",
      "a": "Proto-pasta's conductive PLA page, read 27 October 2026, says a typical 10 cm length of 1.75 mm filament measures 2.0–3.5 kilo-ohms, and a 10 cm length of 2.85 mm filament measures 0.7–1.3 kilo-ohms. The page says to use it as a resistor. A printed trace is not a substitute for wire, and the same page says the resistance of a print depends on its shape and settings."
    },
    {
      "q": "Can I print a wire?",
      "a": "No. Proto-pasta's own page says to use the filament as a resistor, and it gives thousands of ohms for 10 cm of filament. A wire of that length would be a fraction of an ohm. [Electronics enclosures](/answers/electronics) is a different job. [Carbon fiber](/answers/cf) does not turn a spool into a wire either."
    },
    {
      "q": "Why do the ESD rows have no ohms?",
      "a": "The catalog cells checked for Addnorth ESD PETG and 3DXSTAT ESD-ABS store nozzle and bed temperatures only. An ESD name is not a resistivity measurement. If the maker's data sheet on the spool you buy prints a surface resistance, use that sheet. It is not copied here."
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Proto-pasta Electrically Conductive Composite PLA",
      "url": "https://www.protopasta.com/products/conductive-pla",
      "kind": "manufacturer"
    },
    {
      "title": "Addnorth ESD PETG technical data sheet",
      "url": "https://storage.googleapis.com/addnorth-com.appspot.com/imgix/assets/production/TDS_ESD_PETG_3mpUZx.pdf",
      "kind": "datasheet"
    },
    {
      "title": "Open Filament Database record for 3DXSTAT ESD-ABS",
      "url": "https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/3dxtech/materials/ABS/filaments/3dxstat_esd/index.json",
      "kind": "other"
    },
    {
      "title": "Community source, r/3Dprinting 1e7g93f",
      "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/1e7g93f/",
      "kind": "reddit"
    },
    {
      "title": "Community source, r/3Dprinting t38l04",
      "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/t38l04/",
      "kind": "reddit"
    },
    {
      "title": "Community source, r/BambuLab 14w0spd",
      "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/BambuLab/comments/14w0spd/",
      "kind": "reddit"
    },
    {
      "title": "Community source, r/prusa3d 1n7c8w6",
      "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/prusa3d/comments/1n7c8w6/",
      "kind": "reddit"
    },
    {
      "title": "Community source, r/3Dprinting 112w1n7",
      "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/112w1n7/",
      "kind": "reddit"
    }
  ],
  "recommendations": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "note": "Product page read 27 October 2026 gives the kilo-ohm figures for a 10 cm length. The catalog, Open Filament Database verified 13 October 2026, stores a nozzle of 195–225 °C (383–437 °F) and a bed of 50–70 °C (122–158 °F). The product page also says it prints with standard PLA settings or hotter, and that no heated bed or special nozzle is required. Those two bed sentences disagree. Both stay.",
      "brand": "Protopasta",
      "product": "Conductive PLA",
      "material": "PLA",
      "url": "/brand/protopasta/conductive-pla",
      "nozzle": "195–225 °C (383–437 °F)",
      "bed": "50–70 °C (122–158 °F)",
      "pricePerKg": null,
      "datasheetUrl": null,
      "affiliateUrl": null
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "note": "Catalog nozzle 260 °C (500 °F) and bed 80 °C (176 °F), stored as single values from SpoolmanDB, verified 13 October 2026. Drying maximum is 65 °C (149 °F) and the hours cell is empty. The product name says ESD. The catalog stores no resistance or resistivity figure for this row, so none is stated.",
      "brand": "Add-North",
      "product": "ESD PETG",
      "material": "PETG",
      "url": "/brand/add-north/esd-petg",
      "nozzle": "260 °C (500 °F)",
      "bed": "80 °C (176 °F)",
      "pricePerKg": null,
      "datasheetUrl": "https://storage.googleapis.com/addnorth-com.appspot.com/imgix/assets/production/TDS_ESD_PETG_3mpUZx.pdf",
      "affiliateUrl": null
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "note": "Catalog nozzle 230–260 °C (446–500 °F) and bed 90–110 °C (194–230 °F), Open Filament Database, verified 13 October 2026. The product name says ESD. The catalog stores no resistance or resistivity figure for this row, so none is stated.",
      "brand": "3DXTech",
      "product": "ABS 3DXStat ESD",
      "material": "ABS",
      "url": "/brand/3dxtech/abs-3dxstat-esd",
      "nozzle": "230–260 °C (446–500 °F)",
      "bed": "90–110 °C (194–230 °F)",
      "pricePerKg": null,
      "datasheetUrl": null,
      "affiliateUrl": null
    }
  ]
}