3D printer for silicone

[theeko]

Hi everyone,
I am looking for a 3D printer that can print directly in silicone (or any soft material with a density close to 1,00). So far, I did not find any printer that can do that. Do you have any idea?
Thanks,
Sylvain

[ronnytedeski]

I think it's going to be tough to find exactly what you are looking for.

There are filaments that are similar to Silicon though. Ninja Flex and FilaFlex both make a very flexible printer filament, which could feel pretty close to silicon. These can be printed in almost any fdm printer I believe.

Otherwise there are Silicon 3D printers out there but I have no clue how reliable they are. Here are a couple from china
http://www.alibaba.com/product-detai...558426400.html


And this one
http://www.alibaba.com/product-detai...719798739.html
But this one is only for making bags.

Ron

[kanningphish]

I'm pretty sure that Alibaba printer above isn't a 3D printer. I'm not sure what it does, but if you look at it, it looks as though it is just a bunch of syringes that come down and drop some sort of liquid out of it.

The description reads:

LX-E02 semi automatic bidirectional liquid pvc production machine can be applied to various kinds of pvc product making according to the size of product,like pvc label, pvc brand,pvc keychain,pvc accessories,mouse pad photo frame,anti-slip mat, car mat, and more.

Your best bet would be to find a material that is like Silicon. I don't think there are any printers out there right not that print in Silicon.

[Hall_of_Famer]

May I ask you why you want to print in Silicon?

[jimc]

funny, i have an experimental silicone filament here i am printing with. made a few things. its super soft compared to other flexible filaments.

[LambdaFF]

I think the Xfab from DWSlab has a silicon-like material.

[Davo]

We've printed in RTV Silicone on the Hyrel 3D Printers. Also Clay, Plasticine, Plah-Doh, Sugru... stuff like that.

Here is a video of us printing in Sugru; at the end are links to the Plah-Doh and Clay videos.

[awerby]

I don't see how silicone rubber filament could possibly work. One of its salient characteristics is its resistance to heat - unlike a thermoplastic filament, it won't melt when heated. I could understand how a paste extruder could dispense pre-catalyzed silicone (at least until it set up), but filament in a hot end -no way.

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

[jimc]

i thought the same thing when i was told about it but the filament i have here is some type of hot melt silicone. granted its not the traditional silicone we think of but after its printed it does feel like some type of silicone. i have been sworn to secrecy about it but other than printing with it i really dont know anything anyway other than its really cool stuff and different than the other flexible filaments i have used.

[3DPBuser]

Links to the hot-melt silicone?