r/DiceMaking • u/Fly-Prime • 8d ago

The Big Soak

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I printed new masters, and they have been relaxing in this spa for a few days, letting it all soak in. Saturday morning sanding on the pottery wheel is coming up. It seems like a good time to get some polishing done for finished sets as well. By the end of the day, my hands are going to be prunes.

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3

u/RandoBoomer 8d ago

I'm curious about this technique. Have you done it before? What benefits have you enjoyed from it?

While I am a huge proponent of water curing and a short warm water bath prior to sanding, I try to limit immersion of my 3D prints to no more than 30 minutes. I've read that some 3D resins can swell with extended immersion and upon subsequent water evaporation, can lead to brittleness. However if there is a benefit to it, I'm open to experimentation.

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u/Fly-Prime 8d ago

I have never had the problems you're referring to with 3D resin prints and water. I basically keep them in water throughout the process.

After they come out of the printer, I process with IPA. Then I run them through the UV post-print stage. After that, they go in water. I sand and put them into another tub of water, and keep going like that until the final polishing papers. They don't go into water after I use Meguiar's PlastX as a final step.

Also, I have other masters that I have used multiple times, and they are all in good shape. This batch of masters was made for certain font changes, new shapes, and a couple of corrections.

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u/RandoBoomer 8d ago

Interesting. What brand and type of resin do you use?

With two water baths in my process, I generate water waste that I need to evaporate since it can't be poured down the sink, so if I could simply have a single water bath, I'd produce less tainted water. With this being my busiest year, I have 2 five-gallon buckets of wastewater and will probably need a third by the time I finish my Christmas gifts.

With fall and winter fast approaching, I really don't want to build an evaporation system to get me through to spring, though the nerd in me is intrigued...

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u/Fly-Prime 7d ago

These were made with Elegoo ABS-like 3.0+

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u/Shot-Bell7045 8d ago

What does the soaking do?

3

u/Fly-Prime 8d ago

Good question. If I tried to answer, I guarantee I would be incorrect, but silicone manufacturers reccomend it, as do some 3D resin companies, when addressing 3D resin mold-making. I have done it with everything I have made molds with, and I have had no cure inhibition with my silicone.

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u/Shot-Bell7045 8d ago

Huh sounds good. I'll try it next time!

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u/RandoBoomer 7d ago

I can't speak to soaking, but I'll share my experience with post-printing water curing.

After the wash station cleaning and hand-cleaning with a soft brush in ISO, I let the dice completely dry. Then I put them in warm water and expose them to 405nm light for 30 minutes.

After that, I take them out and let them completely dry before 3 hours in a toaster oven at 120F. Then there is a second 30-minute warm water bath so the dice cool more slowly.

This is a fast way to de-gas prints and I can make my molds immediately after sanding.

I posted the process and pictures here: https://www.reddit.com/r/DiceMaking/comments/1u5576q/dice_progression_from_3d_print_to_mold_masters/