One disadvantage of FDM parts are that they are usually weaker than injection molded ones because of how the extruded lines have to fuse together rather than just being moulded in one piece.
Sure its good for “rapid” prototyping but the cost and time advantage dont scale. If I need exactly 1 of something FDM will almost always cost less and take less time. If I need 100-1000-10,000 of something FDM will cost far more upfront for printers than the cost of molds and doing a large injection run.
So it really comes down to what you need and want. For testing, and developing something FDM is fantastic, but once you need to scale, traditional manufacturing will win every single time by a mile!
Wow, there are some really in depth and great replies thank you everyone.
Right now for my use cases some of the advantages I see are:
- Rapid Prototyping
- Using FDM where injection molding would struggle, examples include articulating toys.
- Low volume production runs
Does anyone have a multi-filament printer? I am not quite sure how this would compare with injection molding, but I am able to get relatively fine color changes on a single part. See picture of an earring that I am prototyping.
3D prints are great for those one off things. In the past I’ve printed replacement parts for a swimming pool, a g-clamp I needed for a one off task, I’ve fixed a rotary clothes line…
My most recent print was an AirTag holder for my wallet. Aviator who make the wallet wanted €35 for their one. Mine cost me probably 5p in plastic 😂
Yea, the versatility of 3D printing is a perk. You don’t need to buy a mold just download/create what you need and viola a few hours later its there.
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