Finishing and Post Processing
- Sanded, primed, and ready for you to finish
- Clear coated, dyed, or painted
- Vaccuum Plating, Electroplating, and Electromagnetic (EMI) Shielding
Laser Sintering Finishing and Post Processing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Laser Sintering. To find out more about Laser Sintering or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Excess powder removed and lightly bead blasted
Standard finish. Parts have visible layer lines and sandstone texture.
2
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and sealed to lessen porosity
Sealed finish. Parts have visible layer lines, sandstone texture, and a slight gloss. Parts have a watertight finish.
2 +
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 180 grit
Functional finish, removes some layer lines. Parts have a light texture from sanding.
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and smoothed using PostPro3D
PostPro3D equipment is used to perform physiochemical smoothing. Smoothed parts have an air-tight, injection molded like finish
3
Sealed, primed, or smoothed with PostPro3D and sanded to 320 grit
Near show quality finish, removes layer lines. Parts may have very fine scratches from sanding. Parts are prime and paint ready.
Multi Jet Fusion Finishing and Post Processing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Multi Jet Fusion. To find out more about Multi Jet Fusion or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Excess powder removed and lightly bead blasted
Standard finish. Parts have visible layer lines and sandstone texture.
2
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and sealed to lessen porosity
Sealed finish. Parts have visible layer lines, sandstone texture, and a slight gloss. Parts have a watertight finish.
2 +
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 180 grit
Functional finish, removes some layer lines. Parts have a light texture from sanding.
Excess powder removed, lightly bead blasted, and smoothed using PostPro3D
PostPro3D equipment is used to perform physiochemical smoothing. Smoothed parts have an air-tight, injection molded like finish
3
Sealed, primed, or smoothed with PostPro3D and sanded to 320 grit
Near show quality finish, removes layer lines. Parts may have very fine scratches from sanding. Parts are prime and paint ready.
Stereolithography Finishing and Post Processing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Stereolithography. To find out more about Stereolithography or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Supports removed and support faces lightly sanded
Standard finish, supported surfaces appearing dull and non-supported surfaces appearing glossy. Parts will have visible layer lines.
2
Supports removed, support faces lightly sanded, and entire part bead blasted
Even surface finish, gloss removed from non-supported surfaces to create a more consistent finish. Parts will have visible layer lines.
2 +
Supports removed, support faces lightly sanded, cosmetic surfaces sanded to 180 grit, and entire part bead blasted
Functional finish, removes some layer lines. Parts have a light texture from sanding.
3
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, cosmetic surfaces sanded to 320 grit, and entire part bead blasted
Show quality finish, removes layer lines from cosmetic surfaces. This finish is recommended for priming, painting, and urethane mold masters.
4
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, cosmetic surfaces wet sanded to 600 grit
Highest quality finish, recommended only for plating and optically clear parts.
Digital Light Processing Finishing and Post Processing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Digital Light Processing. To find out more about Digital Light Processing or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Supports removed and support surfaces lightly sanded
Standard finish, supported surfaces appearing dull. Parts will have visible lines.
2*
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, and entire part bead blasted
Even surface finish, more consistent matte finish. Parts will have visible layer lines.
2 +*
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 180 grit and bead blasted
Functional finish, removes some layer lines. Parts have a light texture from sanding.
3*
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 320 grit
Show quality finish, removes most visible lines. Parts are prime and paint ready.
4*
Supports removed, support surfaces lightly sanded, and wet sanded to 600 grit
High gloss finish, recommended only for plating.
* Elastomeric materials can only be finished to Level 1. For a higher quality finish, these materials may be coated in soft touch.
Fused Filament Fabrication Finishing and Post Processing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Fused Filament Fabrication. To find out more about Fused Filament Fabrication or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Supports removed
Standard finish. Parts will have prominent layer lines.
2
Supports removed and part sealed
Sealed finish. Parts have prominent layer lines.
2 +
Supports removed and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 180 grit
Functional finish, removes some layer lines. Parts have a light texture from sanding.
Supports removed and part smoothed using PostPro3D
PostPro3D equipment is used to perform physiochemical smoothing. Smoothed parts have an airtight, injection-molded like finish.
3
Supports removed and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 320 grit
Near show quality finish, removes layer lines. Parts may have very fine scratches from sanding. Parts are prime and paint ready.
Material Jetting Finishing and Post Procesing Levels
The following are standard finishing and post-processing levels for Material Jetting. To find out more about Material Jetting or to discuss which level is the best solution for your project, email one of our Solution Managers.
Level
Process
Description
1
Supports removed
Standard finish, supported surfaces appearing matte and non-supported surfaces appearing glossy. Parts will have slight layer lines.
2
Part built using matte build settings and supports removed
Standard finish, parts built surrounded in support. All surfaces appear matte. Parts will have slight layer lines.
3*
Supports removed and cosmetic surfaces sanded to 320 grit
Show quality finish, removes layer lines. Parts are prime and paint ready.
4*
Supports removed and cosmetic surfaces wet sanded to 600 grit
High gloss finish, recommended only for plating and optically clear parts (note that clear-coat and light bleaching is necessary for optimal clarity).
* Elastomeric materials can only be finished to Level 1 and Level 2. For a higher quality finish, these materials may be coated in soft touch.
Additional Finishing and Post Processing
We have a lot of customers who have the capability to finish parts in-house. However, if you don’t, here are a few advanced finishing techniques at Midwest Prototyping. If your project needs special finishing considerations, please let us know when you fill out the form for a quote or contact one of our Solutions Managers via email to see if we can accommodate your project’s desired finishing.
Finish
Applicable Technologies
Description
Primer
All technologies
Prepares parts for application of paint or other coatings.
Paint
All technologies
Color matching can be performed upon request.
Soft Touch
All technologies
Soft, rubberlike part coating.
Clear Coat
All technologies
Gloss and matte finish available.
Light Bleaching
MJ
UV treatment used to enhance the clarity of Vero Clear material.
Dyeing
LS, MJF*
We offer the following colors:
- Black
- Blue
- Brown
- Burgundy
- Green
- Orange
- Purple
- Red
- True Blue
- Yellow
Vacuum Plating
SL, other AM technologies upon consultation
Aluminum
Electroplating
SL, other AM technologies upon consultation
Copper and nickel are available.
Electromagnetic (EMI) Shielding
All technologies
Conductive paint coating is applied to the part.
Are you ready to get a quote?
Automated Post-Processing
PostPro3D
Additive Manufacturing Technologies (AMT) has developed the next step in the digital manufacturing world, an automated finishing solution. The Postpro3D not only offers an ultra-smooth finish it boosts no loss to tensile strength, increased elongation at break, and less porosity. Midwest Prototyping has found this technology so handy we have a whole fleet ready to speed up your post-processing and finishing needs. We’ve found our clients are extremely happy with the results and the automation helps us build and finish more quality parts in a shorter timeframe.
Process
AMT developed the BLAST (Boundary Layer Automated Smoothing Technology) process to smooth various thermoplastic polymers using a physio-chemical treatment. Using condensation of chemicals onto the part’s surface, the polymer reacts to reflow, and irregularities and sealing occur. During the curing phase, the substances evaporate, causing the surface to solidify.
Surface Quality
The BLAST process has been used on everything from glasses frames to medical applications and can be used for industries from automotive to aerospace. The Postpro3D can create a surface finish with a Ra of less than 1 micron.
PostproDP Pro
Additive Manufacturing Technologies (AMT) has bridged the gap between completed LS and MJF parts and their vapor smoothing PostPro3D with the PostproDP Pro. This machine speeds up the de-powdering process by up to 60%, tremendously cutting down the cost and human error by automation. We can process hundreds, even thousands of parts, with consistency.
What is a "recipe," and how does that help ensure more consistency?
A “recipe” is one or a combination of standard abrasives such as corundum, glass beads, ceramics, nutshells, plastic, and fine grain sizes of stainless steel and steel that can be used to de-powder your part. We can save the recipe and use them repeatedly to effectively create consistency between batches and serial runs, allowing us to move toward larger production runs.
