13. Molding and Casting¶

Files¶

Overview¶

This week, I learned about the diffrent process for making a mold anc casting something in it. For my project, I designed a paw mold for the dogs to have their feet press into since I thought it would work similar to how we walk.

Group Work¶

This week me and my partners Amalia and Elle tested the diffrent types of material used for casting in my mold I made. Also we compared a wax milled mold to a 3d printed one. In my opinon the amber was the better casting material and the 3d printed mold seemed more worth while for me.

Designing¶

To make the paw print mold, I first found a stock image of a paw I could trace in fusion 360 that was then made into a 3d design.

From their, I extruded the design and added a circular base for all the parts of the paw to rest on.

From thier I went back into the time line to the begininng and made a rectangular prism at the center point which would intersect with the design I made.

Afterwards, I changed the extrudes of my sketches of the paw and puck to be cuts so that it would make the desired mold.

Finally I went back and fillet the paw and puck to give it a smooth finish

Painting¶

Because of how I made my mold, I needed to smooth out the layer lines of the print. I knew this becuase of what Mr. Torres said in the video on wensday.

To do this I used XTC-3D an epoxy coating material to smooth out my design. Heres the data sheet for it:

Data Sheet¶

To use it, I poured the 2 parts A to 1 part B into a cup and mixed virogusly. Heres what it looked like:

After I was done mixing and painting heres what my molds looked like:

Molding¶

For the material I used in molding, I decided to use Smoothsil 940 to test out my mold. What I didnt know at the time of mixing and making mold is that a fellow fabber had left the part A of it out, casuing it to clump up and making an uneven mixture. becuase of that I got a less then ideal result for my first cast which ended up looking like this:

After that mold had been completed and removed, I then decided to use a diffrent material for my second mold. This time, I used PMC™-746 Clear Amber for my second mold.

Data Sheet:¶

And heres what it looks like in the mold and out of it:

Saftey Sheets:¶

Clear Amber¶

Smooth-Sil 940¶

Task 8 Resin¶

Sorta Clear Silicone¶

Reflection¶

This week wasn’t too difficult, and I enjoyed designing and casting my part. It was fun to see the final result match what I created in Fusion. To remove air bubbles from the mold, I poured the mixture slowly and tapped the container to help the bubbles rise and pop.

Compared to milled molds, 3D printed molds are much faster to create, but milled molds offer a finer surface quality. Each method has its trade-offs depending on what’s more important—speed or finish.

Overall, this was an interesting process, and I’m considering using it in my final project.