Why is high temperature cured silicone resin Better?

Can the Formlabs resin stand up to mold vulcanizing temperatures of 320 degrees F for 2 1/2 hours? Will it soften or deform? Anyone try this?

With competitive price and timely delivery, HumenChem sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

There are silicone rubbers available that are vulcanized at lower temps (around 200F) that should work but they are about 3x the price of organic rubber mold blanks and I’ll like to use organic rubber if I can.

Thanks

Allen
www.gcmini.com

I printed a ‘tray’ once with trenches to put solder paste in. I was trying to make a circuit. It was very low melting point solder. I put it in a toaster oven. It should have melted the solder around 360 degrees F. Before the solder paste even started working the Form1 print was exuding oil, smoking, warping, and cracking. Heat is not it’s friend.

That said, I have had great luck making silicone molds from room temperature cure silicone. I have a quart of 1 gallon MoldMax 30 if you want it. It goes for $97 plus shipping here. You can have mine for $20 plus shipping if you want 1 quart instead.

Thanks for the info Josh. … and the offer of the silicone. I have gallons of RTV silicone in my shop at all times, I’m in the miniatures business and I use it for resin casting on a daily basis. The reason for my inquiry was for centrifugal casting (spin casting) of metal (pewter) miniatures. Normally I start with a metal master but was hoping maybe the Formlabs resin might hold up to the temps of vulcanizing.

I have never done any spin casting with aluminum … I do not think my rubber molds are compatible with aluminum (higher temps I’m sure) … I think for aluminum you need to do sand casting, but I could be wrong. I cast pewter in rubber molds (vulcanized organic rubber) all the time, it’s now 99% of all gaming miniatures are made, I’ve never heard of anyone trying aluminum to make miniatures.

If you want see an example of what I do: http://gcmini.mybigcommerce.com/patriot-launcher-285met003/

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit high temperature cured silicone resin.

The mold for this was created from a metal master … what I’m trying to do is shortcut the process by going straight from a Formlabs resin print into rubber and vulcanizing … but it seems that may not be an option if the formlabs resin cannot handle the vulcanizing temperatures.

Yep, I remember your stuff from when I printed that truck for you back in the day. Great stuff. It’s really impressive.
And yea, Aluminum is double the melting temp of pewter.
I don’t see a way around the extra step. I suppose your backup plan is to use castable to make the first one using jewelry casting techniques, then make a mold from that?

Use Shapeways precious metals system in brass. The cast investment can be finished more safely to the level you require and can be used over and over again in the vulcanization process.
None of the shapeways resins will resist the compression and heat beyond the first impression.
If you have to use your Formlab master then replicate it once using 2 part silicone and cast it in polyureathane which is more durable.

Mold making and casting materials are affected by temperature in different ways and under different circumstances depending on the base chemistry.

Related FAQ: What do the terms "heat curing" and "post-curing" mean?

Urethane Rubbers, Plastics and Foams

• For best results, store and use urethane products at room temperature (72°F / 23°C).
• If material freezes, it can be used after being brought back to room temperature. Thoroughly pre-mix Parts A & B before dispensing.
• Cold – Colder environmental temperatures will increase working time (pot life) and delay cure time of urethane rubbers and plastics. If urethane rubber or urethane plastics that take overnight to cure are applied in too cold of an environment, they may not cure at all.
• Heat – Elevated temperatures will reduce the pot life and cure time of urethane rubbers and plastics.
• Humidity – Urethanes are easily affected and should be used in a low humidity environment. Humidity will react with urethanes and may cause bubbles or foaming in the material.

Silicone Rubber

• For best results, store and use silicone products at room temperature (72°F / 23°C).
• If material freezes, silicone base will become very thick. It can be used after being brought back to room temperature.
• Important: storing silicone in elevated temperatures can significantly reduce the shelf life of unused product.
• Cold (Tin-Cure Silicones) – Colder temperatures do not have as dramatic an effect as they do on other materials. Accelerated silicones can even be used to make molds over frozen models.
• Cold (Platinum-Cure Silicones) – Colder environmental temperatures will increase working time (pot life) and delay cure time of platinum silicones. If applied in too cold of an environment, they may not cure at all.
• Heat (Tin-Cure Silicones) – warmer temperatures do not have as dramatic an effect as they do on other materials. You cannot "heat cure" tin-catalyzed silicones.
• Heat (Platinum-Cure Silicones) – Elevated temperatures will reduce the pot life and cure time of platinum catalyzed silicone rubber. Many mold makers will use heat to accelerate the cure time (demold) of platinum silicone molds.
• Humidity (Tin-Cure Silicones) – Will cure faster in humid environments.
• Humidity (Platinum-Cure Silicones) – Humidity generally does not affect platinum silicones.

Latex mold making rubber, latex foam and acrylic latex polymer products (such as duoMatrix™ and Forton™ systems)

• For best results, store and use latex products at room temperature (72°F / 23°C).
• Important: if latex is allowed to freeze, it is unusable and should be discarded.
• Cold – Any material containing latex is susceptible to cold temperatures. Using latex in cold environments will prolong the evaporation process, especially if humidity is high.
• Heat – higher temperatures will accelerate the cure of latex. If making a mold with latex rubber, higher temperatures in dry conditions (low humidity) will accelerate evaporation of the rubber.
• Humidity – humid environments will slow the evaporation process thereby slowing the cure of latex rubber.

Epoxy Materials

• For best results, store and use epoxy materials at room temperature (72°F / 23°C).
• If material freezes, it can be used after being brought back to room temperature. Thoroughly pre-mix Parts A & B before dispensing.
• Cold – Colder environmental temperatures will increase working time (pot life) and delay cure time of epoxy materials. If epoxy materials that take overnight to cure are applied in too cold of an environment, they may not cure at all.
• Heat – Elevated temperatures will reduce the pot life and cure time of epoxy materials.

Other Temperature Factors to Consider

Temperature of material in containers

You may be using material in an environment that is at room temperature, but the temperature of material in the containers will dictate how the material behaves. Example, if you store urethane plastic in a hot garage and bring it inside to a 72°F (23°C) environment to use it, the pot life might be half of what you would normally expect.

Related FAQ: What are the effects of cold weather on urethanes or silicones?

Temperature of original model or mold

Mold Making – if the model to which you are applying rubber is too cold, mold rubber will take longer to cure or may not cure at all. Make sure your original model is exposed to at least room temperature several days before applying mold rubber.

What If My Model Is Frozen? There are applications calling for making a mold over a frozen model. It is best to use an accelerated silicone rubber (such as Mold Max 30 with Fast Cat curative). The model will begin to condense as soon as it is exposed to warm temperatures, and the moisture coming off of the model will not affect accelerated silicone.

The company is the world’s best Adhesives Exporter supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.