Hum good questions @MaddieG. I will update when I have tried these, although I wont be able to back anything that high as I dont have a good oven.
I found a couple of research papers that hint that cleaning with Oil (vegatable oil) might help remove wax and then to clean with soap and wax. Oils help soften the wax from my understanding.
Will update as I learn something
Looking forward to hearing how this works out!
May even consider a small cross-post to the Injection Molding category if you want to?
UPDATE 2018-08-31
**Today I molded with a new material, Troll Factory 35 Durometer. This had a listed 90 min cure time. I used the same mold making procedure as I did in my previous silicone casting. **
I am happy to report 100% success!!!
Further inspection of the original mold, by way of the sniff test, the mold has a much more neutral odor than when I last casted (about 2 weeks ago). I stored the molds on a desk, which was exposed to the light half the day (this was unintentional).
Next… I will try the smooth on material and see what results I can get.
(if this part degassed because the mold cured extra in the sun, then maybe there is a way to speed up this process??!!!)
Awesome! Thanks for the update.
What method do you currently use to cure the parts, is there any sort of post-cure after the print completes?
If not, using a UV-light container (cheaply, a container filled with reflective foil with a UV light on the top, and the part is placed on a rotating table) would help to overcure the part.
Finally found some answers, which I updated in the body but I also add here.
Currently, I was the parts to remove the support material and scrub with dishsoap and rinse with water afterwards.
I wonder if a UV container will do the trick (Or if a reptilian UVA and UVB light bulb would do the trick).
The cornell article talks about “degassing” which, if true, may not be solved with UV light… wont know until I try!
*Update
I found an article from Cornell Nanoscience and Technology 12 who talk about this!!! here is the relevant info… albeit, I am not sure on all the terms they use, but still, they highlight this curing inhibition issue
Can printed devices be used for casting PDMS (silicone)?
Yes, with antistiction and/or parylene coating, the devices can be used as molds. There is a tendency for vertical sidewalls to be rough and to continue to outgas during the molding process, so some post-printing treatments will be required. See the next question.
What are some common post-printing treatments for the devices?
The following procedures can be performed at the CNF. These are typically done by the user (not staff).
· High-temperature RGD 525 can be baked to make to resist low heat (75-80°C).
· Devices can be put in a vacuum for outgassing. This is useful (and sometimes necessary) for coating devices with parylene, silanes and/or preparing for cell culture.
· Devices that will be used as molds will likely require antistiction treatment. FOTS ((1H,1H,2H,2H-Perfluorooctyl) trichlorosilane) is an excellent antistiction coating and can be used as a release layer for molds.
· Some materials withstand low-temperature metal deposition such as sputtering of a seed layer followed by electroplating.
**END of update
This is some great information, do you mind if I move this topic to our Injection Molding category instead? It may be more appropriate there.
Hi Taltos,
I’ve had a bit of trouble with cure inhibition while using Smooth-on’s Platinum cure products in the past. Especially when trying to duplicate surface finishes of post-processed 3D printed parts.
Have you tried any of their Tin cure products? I’ve had great success with MoldMax 30. I particularly like to use it with Fast Cat 30 which can drastically decrease the silicone cure times.
-Joe
