From the course: Additive Manufacturing: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques

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Choosing a material for a surface quality

Choosing a material for a surface quality

From the course: Additive Manufacturing: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques

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Choosing a material for a surface quality

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- [Female Instructor] Five years ago, you would have thought of a 3D print as primary colored object with very visible layer lines. Materials and printers have progressed since then. In many ways, materials are now leading the capability of 3D printers. In this movie, we're going to talk about how to select a filament material to get a particular surface appearance for your 3D print. - [Male Instructor] PLA is workhorse material that's been around for a long time. New additives to it, however, have been creating specialty filaments to give different effects. For example, so-called silk PLA has lignin mixed in. Lignin is plant fiber that's a little flexible, and the fibers tend to align during printing. This gives the print a sheen that can hide layer lines and make surfaces look smoother. The filament can be a bit stringy though, and it takes some tweaking to work well. It works best for prints that don't require a lot…

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