Advise on how what and with

So, I'm new to the whole thing but have a general concept of the process. What I want to do is scam an item, be able to manipulate the dimensions in the software to create different sizes of the same thing basically and then create molds from that (manually inject soft/hard plastic).
So whats the best way to accomplish that, such as what is a good scanner, software to use and printer of course. I was looking at using simulated ABS as the material to make the molds with to withstand the heat.
TIA :)

couple of things:
what is simulated abs ? ie: what did you actually mean, there are a few predictive text substitutions in your post, that one is unclear :-)

Also abs isn't really that great for making moulds with. Ideally you'd want something with a higher glass point if you were thinking of injecting molten plastic into it.
So a printer witn an all metal hotend that would run at 300c or higher would be a good idea.

Also scanning an object isn't necessarily the best way to digitise it. It's often quicker to measure it with digital calipers and design it from scratch in a cad program.
Particularly if it has a lot of small or complex details, or needs internal structure

Were you to go the scan route then the only reasonably priced desktop scanner that actually works is the einscan system.
Take a look at the einscan section for details and smaple scans people have done.
http://3dprintboard.com/forumdisplay...n-S-3D-scanner

Realistically you're probably looking at somewhere around $3000 with a decent printer and einscan setup.
There are a lot of cheaper scanners out there, none of them work. Well they work, just not accurately enough to be of much use.

I read on a different site about materials and it listed "simulated ABS" as a product along with several others so I dunno :) Why I'm asking! I want to scan some custom fishing lures that we've created. Basically I need to scan your goldfish lol :)

Realistically, you're not going to be able to inject thermoplastics into molds made from thermoplastics like ABS. As Aardvark points out, their melting points are too similar. If you want to make injection molds, aluminum is a much better material. It is possible to print in aluminum, but it's a lot less expensive to machine it instead. You might look at some of the small CNC mills I sell on my site for that.

A scanner capable of capturing the sort of detail you want (the scales on a goldfish) is going to cost some money, but we can provide those too. A more cost-effective route, if you don't have a lot of these to do, would be to send out the model (or a plaster cast of it) for scanning.

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

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Originally Posted by awerby

Realistically, you're not going to be able to inject thermoplastics into molds made from thermoplastics like ABS. As Aardvark points out, their melting points are too similar. If you want to make injection molds, aluminum is a much better material. It is possible to print in aluminum, but it's a lot less expensive to machine it instead. You might look at some of the small CNC mills I sell on my site for that.

A scanner capable of capturing the sort of detail you want (the scales on a goldfish) is going to cost some money, but we can provide those too. A more cost-effective route, if you don't have a lot of these to do, would be to send out the model (or a plaster cast of it) for scanning.

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

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I need to make several for production purposes and just the molds themselves as a product.

As for the scanning I wanted to be able to scan then in the software create different sizes of the same thing and be able to manipulate the shape to create variations.

With all the different types of plastic there isnt one that has a higher melting point like a resin? Liquid plastisol is whats commonly used to make soft lures. It only takes a few minutes to start cooling and set, I would think that a hard plastic would not start melting before the plastisol cools and sets. Soft silicone can handle it.

what temperature are you injecting the plastisol at ?

Quote:

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Plastisol is a suspension of PVC particles in a liquid plasticizer; it flows as a liquid and can be poured into a heated mold. When heated to around 177 degrees Celsius, the plastic and plasticizer mutually dissolve each other. On cooling the mold below 60 degrees C, a flexible, permanently plasticized solid product results

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You're going to struggle. possibly peek will take 177, not sure much else will.
So you would definitely need a high end, all metal hotend and extruder.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by curious aardvark

what temperature are you injecting the plastisol at ?



You're going to struggle. possibly peek will take 177, not sure much else will.
So you would definitely need a high end, all metal hotend and extruder.

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thats about the temp, the question I think is how long can it handle the temp before its a problem. It starts to cool and set as soon as you inject and can be removed in a few minutes.

abs won't handle that temp. What would happen is the mould surface would melt and mingle with the rubber and fuse into one mass.

even with some types of PEEK you would struggle:

Quote:

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PEEK is a semicrystalline thermoplastic with excellent mechanical and chemical resistance properties that are retained to high temperatures. The processing conditions used to mold PEEK can influence the crystallinity, and hence the mechanical properties. The Young's modulus is 3.6 GPa and its tensile strength 90 to 100 MPa.^[4] PEEK has a glass transition temperature of around 143 °C (289 °F) and melts around 343 °C (662 °F). Some grades have a useful operating temperature of up to 250 °C (482 °F) .

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Might be easier to 3d print the lure and use clay to make a mould from the printed part.

I'm not sure about this clay molding technique, but there are silicone rubber compounds that would have no problem with 177C.