differences between 3D printing a part in metal and in polymer

[andradesilva]

Hi,

I need to print a part by FDM (3D printing). The problem is that, where I work, we can only do it in polymers, like PLA. What are the practical considerations that are important for polymers that are not for metals, in terms of processing conditions and the expected material properties?

I thank you in advance,
Best regards,

 

[lucky-guesser]

I hope you don't have it in your head that printing metal vs polymer are in any way similar. There is no "metal" filament that you can put in your polymer printer.

The metal 3D printer that I have personal experience with was VERY expensive, and is several orders of magnitude more costly to operate than a standard printer.

Assuming you are ok with all of these factors....polymer and metal alike, I probly wouldn't trust them for anything very structural. The parts that I have messed with seem fairly strong but I wouldn't rely on these parts, for wear or strength properties, without doing extensive testing first.

 

[IRstuff]

What are the practical considerations that are important for polymers that are not for metals, in terms of processing conditions and the expected material properties?

Plastic is generally wimpy, metal is generally not. Unless you can come up with more information, like what the part is intended to do and what performance needs to be achieved, you're not going to get actionable answers.

TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg

faq731-376 forum1529 Entire Forum list

http://www.eng-tips.com/forumlist.cfm