Shapeways - 3D Printing Service and Marketplace

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.

Material Data Sheet (PDF)

Material Safety Data Sheet (PDF)

Professional Plastic

Ships in 10-15 business days

Good Detail

High Strength

Watertight

APPLICATIONS

Figurines

Fixtures

Tech Accessories

TECHNOLOGY

Multi-jet Fusion

Sandstone

Ships in 6 business days

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

BOUNDING BOX

Maximum

284 × 184 × 203 mm (Smooth)
50 × 50 × 200 mm (Smoothest)

Minimum

X + Y + Z ≥ 12 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

±0.1- 0.2 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.

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Fine Detail Plastic