Individual assignment

design a mold around the process you'll be using, produce it with a smooth surface finish that does not show the production process toolpath, and use it to cast parts

Summary

During molding and casting week,i designed and created a small chess king using molding and casting techniques. The model was made in SolidWorks, the mold was 3D printed, and silicone was used as the casting material

Design part

I used SolidWorks to design the chess king. I created the model by using the Revolve feature around a central axis. This helped me make a smooth and symmetric shape, which is important for a chess king design

Next, I’ll sketch a rectangle to make a mold, then add positioning holes and tightening slots to one part of it

to create a mold

I used the Combine feature in SolidWorks to create the negative mold within a part file by subtracting the chess king model from the rectangular block

After the design was finalized in SolidWorks, I exported both parts as STL files in preparation for 3D printing

Next, I imported the STL files into Creality Slicer for slicing

II used Creality Print to slice the mold files and optimize the printing parameters improved surface quality, including increasing the wall thickness

Next, I printed the parts on a 3D printer; this was the final step of the process

Next, I combined the printed parts by carefully aligning them and assembling them together to form the complete mold

next, i use this silicone

This is a two part silicone rubber (Part A and Part B) that you mix in a 1:1 ratio, which then chemically cures into a soft, flexible rubber (20A hardness), making it well suited for creating detailed molds, casting objects, and reproducing shapes with smooth, precise surfaces, especially in projects like 3D-printed mold making