A Major Advance in 3D Printing

by Joseph Flaherty on December 3, 2008

Stratasys, one of the leading 3D printing companies, has released a new product, the Smoothing Station, and claims that it can give parts made with their Fuse Deposition Modeling (FDM) technology a surface finish equal to injection molding (the process used to make most of the consumer electronics you use).

If true, this will solve one of the major problems with 3D printing which is the low level of resolution. Depending on what kind of printer used you typically get a “sandy” finish on your model or a distinct “wood grain” look.

From a distance, this 3D printout of a lawnmower looks fine:

But closer inspection highlights how rough the surface really is:

When 3D printers are able to approximate the colorful, and shiny surface finish of injection molding the move from “Rapid Prototyping” to “Rapid Manufacturing” will be able to begin in earnest.