{"id":31728,"date":"2017-06-15T10:47:15","date_gmt":"2017-06-15T14:47:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shapeways.com\/blog\/?p=31728"},"modified":"2017-06-28T12:15:27","modified_gmt":"2017-06-28T16:15:27","slug":"materials-explainer-3d-printing-in-strong-flexible-plastics-sxf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shapeways.com\/blog\/materials-explainer-3d-printing-in-strong-flexible-plastics-sxf","title":{"rendered":"Materials Explainer: 3D Printing in Strong & Flexible Plastics"},"content":{"rendered":"

We recently announced that new finishes are available on our Strong & Flexible plastics<\/a>\u00a0(also known as XSF). But what is this material<\/a>, versatile enough to use to make anything from iPhone cases<\/a> to parts for remote controlled quadcopters<\/a> to bikini bottoms<\/a>?\u00a0The rare material with which thicker areas provide structural strength yet you can also make parts thin enough to bend without breaking, like a hinge or a spring?<\/p>\n

Strong & Flexible plastic models are printed on EOS P110, P395, and P760 printers using a technique called selective laser sintering (SLS). The laser sinters, or fuses together, nylon powder, layer by layer. As you can see in the video below, products emerge from the 3D printer in a block of nylon that is then carefully taken apart, and the finished parts are removed, cleaned, and, depending upon your instructions, polished and dyed.<\/p>\n