Can anyone recommend a good BULK 3D printing service?

[BackstreetZAFU]

Hi Everyone,

I'm in search of a good, affordable 3D printing service to mass produce action figure parts - think torsos, arms, legs, etc. - and I'm wondering if anyone on here has any recommendations.

So far, I haven't done a ton of research myself, but I figured coming and posting on the forum would be a good place to start.

In terms of price, my local library charges something like $.05 per gram of filament used. Obviously, they only have one printer, so it's not a bulk facility, but I'd be interested to know if there's any sort of company, or facility, or operation out there who can do bulk printing work at an affordable price.

Any direction that anyone can provide would be helpful, and appreciated!

Thank you all very much!

-matt

[awerby]

You might look at Sculpteo; they're a relatively large company in the 3D printing services space, and are moving towards a focus on bulk printing for industrial customers.

[EagleSeven]

I think it would be best to Mold them instead of 3D-printing, in mass production.
If you really want detailed scale figures?
3D technology is not as advanced as molding , Yet.
I suppose it depends on how detailed and accurate you want them to be ?

3D printing is a slow process compared to molding also.

You can use 3D printed figures to make Molds from though,
but will require a lot of work to get them ready, smooth and accurate condition.

[BackstreetZAFU]

Can you recommend any bulk molding places? It sounds like you know more about this than I do...

Thanks!

[BackstreetZAFU]

Hey, thanks!

I just played around on their site, and I got a quote for (?) 1 piece at $903?!? That can't be right, can it? Is there something I'm missing?

I attached a screen grab to this message, but it seems really small. Not sure how to make it bigger.

Thanks again!

Screen Shot 2015-10-01 at 4.50.37 PM.jpg

[EagleSeven]

Sorry, it's been 15 or 20 years since we did any scale-figure molding and even then it was not Mass production.
My wife was making Doll-house furniture and figures for sale.

1 piece is always more expensive, per unit, than producing large numbers would be.
But from what I can remember that sounds like very Excessive pricing !

Just click on attached pictures to get larger view.

[Bobby Lin]

Hi! Just sent you a PM about it. Hope this helps!

[LambdaFF]

Hey, thanks!

I just played around on their site, and I got a quote for (?) 1 piece at $903?!? That can't be right, can it? Is there something I'm missing?

I attached a screen grab to this message, but it seems really small. Not sure how to make it bigger.

Thanks again!

Screen Shot 2015-10-01 at 4.50.37 PM.jpg

If you intend to make a lot, you should look into injection moulding. That being said, Sculpteo is indeed a good place for bulk manufacture.

If your model is fully solid, I'm not surprised by the cost. Sculpteo offers an option to make holes to remove internal powder and make shells instead of full solid. Try it you should see a great change in cost.

Finally, for SLS, there might be a penalty for large components : perhaps try to split it into smaller ones.

[curious aardvark]

injection moulding companies are all over the place. You should be able to find a compnay local to you - BUT you will actually have to physically type the words: 'injection moulding in <insert your local area here> ' into a search engine :-)

Well you could copy and paste - just remember to insert your local area ;-)