Posted: 3/30/2026 1:13:08 PM EDT
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I keep getting ads for TheVirtualFoundry.Com so I took a look, very interesting. Apparently there is now metal: Inconel, tungsten, and a few others, plus glass, and ceramic available. It's not cheap, you need a kiln and other supplies, plus shrinkage needs controlled by the temp, but the Y axis shrinks more due to gravity. It seems interesting but I don't feel the technology is quite there yet. But the possibilities are endless, 3d print a lower, silencer, rapid prototype that needs to withstand heat, shock etc... Anyone try it? |
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There have been plenty of things like that in the past if it's what I'm thinking of. Some aren't even that expensive. You can print something on your FDM printer, send it off and it is processed (debinding and sintering) and it's metal. I'd have to go back and look at it, it was a couple years ago when I last looked into it. ETA yep same thing. I can't find the company that I stumbled across last time. May have been the same company, may not. I see there are a few that offer this same thing. The company I had found before included the processing in the cost of the filament so the processing was "free" once you bought the filament. |
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I've been wanting to try it but haven't spent the time to research it in depth. We have a couple heat treat ovens at work so the sintering part should be doable provided it doesn't need an inert environment. Like I said I haven't looked into it so I don't know. Id imagine the shrinkage is crazy and unpredictable and anything that needs to be even remotely close would need to machined after. We do have this machine but it hasn't ran in years. Attached File Attached File |
| I've tried it when it first came out several years ago. Needed a special heater tube that you run between the spool and the extruder. The filament was super brittle otherwise. Larger diameter tip is also needed. Maybe they have changed the formulation since. It was a bunch of screwing around just to get some layers put down, and once my nozzle clogged I said fuck it, and haven't touched my printer since. |
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I read it a bit, I believe they offer kiln service, the FAQ seemed like you can control shrinkage through baking times, also how dense the final product will be. .6 hardened nozzle, yes the filament is brittle but other than a straight feed path, nothing else said was needed. I'm just wondering how close a finished part could get without any machining, maybe I'll YT that. Making a Butterfly knife for the kids right now using Orcaslicer. @ Obsessed, I keep getting that I am not using the most current version that everyone else is using, if I update do I lose all settings? I also have to get it to connect through Wifi, workign on that as well. |