Material Information
Design
Guidelines
Fine Detail Plastic
Also known as Frosted Detail Plastic, Resin-based Acrylic Plastic, Photopolymer
Colors
About Fine Detail Plastic
Fine Detail Plastic is an acrylic material capable of extremely high detail and is a popular choice for hobbyists creating scale models, miniature sets, and other decorative products. Although the surface can be uneven in color due to the nature of the printing process, most people opt to paint their models. Due to the smooth surface, occasionally, models are used to make mold masters. This material is not recommended for functional parts due to its brittleness.
Common Applications
Scale Models, Miniatures, Jewelry Prototypes, Mold Masters
Handling and Care
Heatproof to 80C/176F
Watertight
Not Foodsafe
Poor UV Resistance
High Detail & Dimensional Accuracy
Smooth surface
Translucency for Thin Walls
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Frequently Asked Questions
What finishes are available?
Smooth: This finish offers a smooth surface and high detail
Smoothest: This finish is capable of the highest detail and smoothest surface
How is this material made?
The process used is called material jetting. Molten plastic is deposited onto an aluminum build platform in layers using several nozzles, essentially like a large print that sweeps across the build layer. As the heated material jets onto the build plate, it solidifies instantly. After each layer is deposited, it is cured, or polymerized, by a wide area UV lamp. The next layer then applied, and through this repeated process layers of thermoplastic build up into a model. When printing is finished, we remove the models from the tray and put them into an oven that melts away the wax support material. Next, we put the models into an a ultrasonic oil bath to remove any remaining wax residues, and then a ultrasonic water bath to remove any oil on the model. After drying, we inspect and ship the models.
How can I paint the material myself?
See this tutorial about how to paint this material.
What is the color and surface texture?
The color of Fine Detail Plastic ranges from clear translucent to yellow-tinted translucent. It utilizes a waxy support material that is dissolved after printing is completed. Because the support material slightly changes the texture of the product, and isn’t applied to the entire product, you will see slight variability in texture over the surface of the model. Areas where the waxy support material supported the model during printing may also appear more white than the rest of your model.
Technical Documents
More Materials
Good Detail
High Strength
Watertight
Applications
Figurines
Fixtures
Tech Accessories
Technology
Multi-jet Fusion
Multi-Color
Great Value
Great for Architecture
Applications
Architecture
Terrain
Figurine
Technology
Binder Jetting
- Wall Thickness
- Wires
- Surface Details
- Escape Holes
- Clearance
- Interlocking Parts
- Multiple Parts
- Accuracy
- Design Tips
- Pricing
BOUNDING BOX
Maximum
284 × 184 × 203 mm (Smooth)
50 × 50 × 200 mm (Smoothest)
50 × 50 × 200 mm (Smoothest)
Minimum
X + Y + Z ≥ 12 mm
At least two axes must be ≥ 2.49 mm
At least two axes must be ≥ 2.49 mm
Your model should be the minimum and maximum bounding box sizes. The maximum bounding box represents the largest model that our printers can produce. The minimum bounding box size is the smallest dimension in which we can print in this material.
WALL THICKNESS
Min Supported Wall Thickness
0.3 mm
Min Unsupported Wall Thickness
0.6 mm
A supported wall is connected on two or more sides. An unsupported wall is one connected to other walls on less than two sides. Walls in your model should be thicker than or equal to the minimum measurements suggested to ensure your model makes it through printing and cleaning. Walls that are too thin are prone to warping in the printing processing, or may break when we remove it from the printer and clean it.
Walls and wires close to or slightly above the guidelines may still be rejected based on the geometry. For example, extra long wires or walls protruding from an object may be damaged during cleaning. Our production team will communicate with you if the design is too weak with tips on how to strengthen it.
WIRES
Min Supported Wires
0.6 mm
Min Unsupported Wires
1.0 mm if bearing weight (sprue), else 0.8 mm
A geometry considered a wire when its thinner in both unconnected directions than its length. Wires that are under our suggested minimums are prone to breaking in the cleaning process.
SURFACE DETAILS
Min embossed detail
0.1 high & wide mm thick
Min engraved detail
0.1 high & wide
We recommend these minimum measurements for details like embossing or engraving, based off of printer resolution.
ESCAPE HOLES
Single Escape Hole Diameter
4.0 mm
Multiple Escape Hole Diameter
2.0 mm
Hollow parts of your product are filled in with a waxy support material, which is melted out before we ship your product. If escape holes are not large enough, this wax will remain inside the product.
A single escape hole at the end of a cavity will not allow material in the corners near the escape hole to fully escape. So we recommend multiple escape holes at both ends of the cavity.
A single escape hole at the end of a cavity will not allow material in the corners near the escape hole to fully escape. So we recommend multiple escape holes at both ends of the cavity.
CLEARANCE
0.05 mm
Clearance is the space between an two parts, e.g. space between gears or a ball and socket joint.
INTERLOCKING AND ENCLOSED PARTS ?
Yes. Fine Detail Plastic is printed in acrylic plastic cured by a UV light. This enables interlocking parts, as long as the clearance is greater than the indicated minimum.
MULTIPLE PARTS ?
Yes
ACCURACY
±0.3- 0.7 mm for every 100 mm
DESIGN TIPS
Orientation
The 3D printer places support wax to every cavity, overhang, and negative angle to support the layers of plastic that comes above it. The surface that's touching wax will be rougher and might display some whitening, where the surface that's not supported by wax is smooth and clear.
Our 3D printing engineers make do their best to orient models in a way that gives the best quality for most crucial surfaces. You can also set your own orientation at the model edit page.
The 3D printer places support wax to every cavity, overhang, and negative angle to support the layers of plastic that comes above it. The surface that's touching wax will be rougher and might display some whitening, where the surface that's not supported by wax is smooth and clear.
Our 3D printing engineers make do their best to orient models in a way that gives the best quality for most crucial surfaces. You can also set your own orientation at the model edit page.
PRICING
How will the price of my model be calculated?
- Material Volume - the amount of material needed to 3D print your product
- Machine Volume - the amount of space your product takes inside our 3D printers
- Support Volume* - the amount of support material required to 3D print your product
- Number of parts - a part is a piece of a model that can be separated from other pieces of the model
- Height - the height of the model when placed on the build plate. Taller orientations cost more than shorter ones
- Production - associated production costs including labor; quality control; machine maintenance; general utilities; and other supporting services required to 3D print your product
* Fine Detail Plastic is printed on a build plate, where the print head deposits liquid plastic layer by layer, starting at the bottom. To overcome gravity, the 3D printer surrounds the cured plastic with wax that will support the layers that come above. So every cavity, overhang, and negative angle requires support in wax. That wax gets melted away after the product emerges from the 3D printer.
What is the minimum price per part?
The minimum price per part is $7.50
