3D printing material question

[CPDDET]

Being new to 3D printing I'm a bit lost when it comes to choosing the proper material.

I'm about to submit a file to a 3D printing company but they all require choosing a material, of which there are dozens. 

 

The parts I'm printing are quite small. L-.489 W-.811 H-.378. But detail is important, more so than fragility. Also the parts will be painted. 

 

Any input or advice is appreciated. 

 

Dave

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Dave, list the options or the company and I'll have a look. For best detail you'll want it printed in resin and, generally speaking, for non-functional model parts you are not going to need anything exotic and their default option will probably suffice.

[CPDDET]

Company is:

Advanced Additive Innovations

didn't see a default option.

You may have to upload a file to see material options.

Thanks!

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Go for the elegoo abs-like grey. This will have a bit of flex whereas the elegoo standard will be more rigid and prone to breaking. Grey is a very good colour for seeing the detail quality.

[CPDDET]

2 hours ago, Kevin-the-lubber said:

Go for the elegoo abs-like grey. This will have a bit of flex whereas the elegoo standard will be more rigid and prone to breaking. Grey is a very good colour for seeing the detail quality.

Can this material be milled? I have some parts with voids that need to be filled in order to avoid thin walls, then milled to create some of the voids. So the material would have to meet that requirement as well. 

 

Example:  the foredeck winch has a round protruding tube where the winch handle would be inserted. The walls of the tube are too thin to be printed. But if I have that void filled it could be printed. I can then mount the winch on my mill and drill out that void creating the needed tube for detail.

 

I understand a high detail resin produces a rigid, opaque product?

 

Learning a lot here!

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Yes, this resin can be machined, but do be careful, resin has a relatively low breaking threshold. If I was you I would ask them to give me some scrap pieces if possible, to practice on, or else get an extra print done.

 

That said, you might be surprised at just how thin parts can be printed. I regularly print objects with walls that are only 0.2mm thick, including tubes. However the risk of print failure is higher on these parts, which increases costs, so commercial printers may be reluctant to take that risk.