CNC. Casting. Molding. Printing. Process-friendly.
Material selection by manufacturing process. Each process favors specific materials. CNC: anything machinable. Casting: castable. Molding: thermoplastic. 3D print: per machine.
Material selection by process
Yes — each process has narrow material range. Choose process first based on geometry/volume; material follows.
Key principles.
Bar and plate stock
Any machinable metal/plastic. Aluminum, steel, stainless, brass, plastics.
Rolled sheet
Rolled steel, aluminum, stainless. Thin (0.5-6 mm) for forming.
Casting alloys
Stainless casting alloys, aluminum 356/A356, bronze.
Cast iron, brass
Lower precision casting alloys. Cast iron, leaded brass.
Aluminum, zinc
High-volume aluminum 380, zinc ZA-8.
Thermoplastic
PP, ABS, PC, nylon, PEEK. Thermoplastic injection.
Thermoset
Phenolic, BMC, SMC for thermoset.
Photopolymer
UV-curable resin. Lower mechanical properties.
Nylon powder
PA12 nylon standard. Production-grade properties.
FAQ
Yes — each process has narrow material range. Choose process first based on geometry/volume; material follows.
Casting alloys, injection-grade thermoplastics, sheet metal grades. Each process optimized for production volume.
Carefully. Different processes yield different material properties for "same" alloy. Cast aluminum ≠ wrought aluminum.
Aluminum injection mold tooling for low-volume injection. Urethane casting for plastic prototype to short production. RIM for plastic enclosures.
Each process has DFM constraints. Casting: draft, fillets, no thin walls < 3mm. Injection: uniform walls. Etc.
Yes. CNC ±0.025 mm. Investment casting ±0.1 mm. Sand casting ±0.5 mm. Injection ±0.1 mm. Each process has practical limit.
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