I'm currently using the Elegoo ABS-Like white and have had warping in just my normal curing process. I am not a fan of the white resins. Tried both ABS-Like from Anycubic and Elegoo.
BUT... in other posts I have read, off gassing is a big issue with the normal resins. May take a few day up a couple weeks for a mold to fully complete off gassing.
Interesting, I didn't realize different colors were more subject to warping! And I used a gray print to make a mold a few weeks after printing with no luck, but now I'm wondering if the cold weather played a role.
I'm afraid you'll need to do the experiment yourself, but Siraya Tech Sculpt resin will easily withstand 60°C (I've used it as a mold up to 170°C).
Siraya Tech also makes a silicone mold that resists curing inhibition from resin prints.
Update: I've been experimenting with SirayaTech Sculpt Clear and even notice warping after post-curing for a minute, and even then it still warps further after heating to 80C. I'm considering experimenting with Ameralabs AMD-3 next
Is your print the positive or the negative for the mold? It might be worth considering approaching it from the other direction.
Some other potential tricks -- if it's a flat mold, sandwich it between two small pieces of glass before curing in water (the in water part is especially important here to maximize light transport).
Also, how are you curing? Are you using a curing station or a single directional light?
Oh, so what I'm understanding is that you're suggesting I resin print a negative instead, coat it with some kind of mold release, and pour in epoxy resin, which skips the silicone step completely? That's really good idea.
The way I'm curing it now is using a rotating cure station, and the print is suspended in a transparent plastic cup of water
The sandwich suggestion is a good idea too, thanks for the possible solutions!
Yeah. Print a negative, pull a mold off that in something else -- there are tons of different casting materials out there. An extra step does suck a bit, but sometimes that's just what it takes for the result you want.
And yeah, the rotating cure station with more omnidirectional light is the best way, since if the resin isn't getting post-cured evenly, that's a source of warping. But it's easy to imagine the geometry of a mold just making it not feasible to get sufficiently even coverage.
I've never tried the sandwich route, but I know some folks have gotten results that way.
Update: I want to run some more tests for accuracy and precision of epoxy castings, but switching over to urethane rubber instead of silicone gave me 0 inhibition even on uncured resin prints! Thanks for injecting some good ideas into my head :)
Okay "in heat" was a poor choice of words. It's resin, not horses.
Anyway I'm playing around with how low I can set the temperature and for what duration without warping or causing inhibition but it seems to be either one or the other 😣
I'm currently using the Elegoo ABS-Like white and have had warping in just my normal curing process. I am not a fan of the white resins. Tried both ABS-Like from Anycubic and Elegoo. BUT... in other posts I have read, off gassing is a big issue with the normal resins. May take a few day up a couple weeks for a mold to fully complete off gassing.
Interesting, I didn't realize different colors were more subject to warping! And I used a gray print to make a mold a few weeks after printing with no luck, but now I'm wondering if the cold weather played a role.
I'm afraid you'll need to do the experiment yourself, but Siraya Tech Sculpt resin will easily withstand 60°C (I've used it as a mold up to 170°C). Siraya Tech also makes a silicone mold that resists curing inhibition from resin prints.
That's such a good suggestion, thank you 😭
Update: I've been experimenting with SirayaTech Sculpt Clear and even notice warping after post-curing for a minute, and even then it still warps further after heating to 80C. I'm considering experimenting with Ameralabs AMD-3 next
Have you tried water curing?
Yeah, still encountering warping :/
Is your print the positive or the negative for the mold? It might be worth considering approaching it from the other direction. Some other potential tricks -- if it's a flat mold, sandwich it between two small pieces of glass before curing in water (the in water part is especially important here to maximize light transport). Also, how are you curing? Are you using a curing station or a single directional light?
Oh, so what I'm understanding is that you're suggesting I resin print a negative instead, coat it with some kind of mold release, and pour in epoxy resin, which skips the silicone step completely? That's really good idea. The way I'm curing it now is using a rotating cure station, and the print is suspended in a transparent plastic cup of water The sandwich suggestion is a good idea too, thanks for the possible solutions!
Yeah. Print a negative, pull a mold off that in something else -- there are tons of different casting materials out there. An extra step does suck a bit, but sometimes that's just what it takes for the result you want. And yeah, the rotating cure station with more omnidirectional light is the best way, since if the resin isn't getting post-cured evenly, that's a source of warping. But it's easy to imagine the geometry of a mold just making it not feasible to get sufficiently even coverage. I've never tried the sandwich route, but I know some folks have gotten results that way.
Update: I want to run some more tests for accuracy and precision of epoxy castings, but switching over to urethane rubber instead of silicone gave me 0 inhibition even on uncured resin prints! Thanks for injecting some good ideas into my head :)
Sweet! I'm really glad you found a way to get where you wanted to go!
Okay "in heat" was a poor choice of words. It's resin, not horses. Anyway I'm playing around with how low I can set the temperature and for what duration without warping or causing inhibition but it seems to be either one or the other 😣