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3D printing minimum thickness
Recommended Wall Thickness for 3D Printing
Time to read: 4 min
One of the most important considerations when designing parts for 3D printing in 2022 is the 3D printing wall thickness, sometimes referred to as the wall thickness. While 3D printing makes prototyping easier than ever—not only in terms of cost and speed, but also in regards to DFM (design for manufacturing), you can’t disregard DFM completely.
A design might be (barely) producible by 3D printing, but what happens when you move to the next iteration or the next stage in manufacturing? Ensuring that you have at least the minimum wall thickness for 3D printing is a good first step and a key 3D printing design rule. Finding the best thickness for 3d printing is an excellent skill to have for cost reduction purposes and structural integrity of your 3d printed parts.
Fictiv, your ultimate 3D printing manufacturing ecosystem partner, is here to help all our customers be successful in their 3D printing endeavors. To that end, here are our best 3D printing wall thickness design guidelines to ensure your print is printable and structurally sound, so you can design prototypes that can be produced in quantities of 1 and then ultimately 100, or 10,000+.
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3D Printing Wall Thickness Recommendations
There’s a limit to the minimum 3D print thickness a part feature can be designed for 3D printing.
Below is a table of our recommended minimum 3D print thickness for each material, as well as the absolute minimum thickness, for those of you who like to live dangerously.
NOTE: At Fictiv, we have had success printing parts as thin as our absolute minimum, but we can only guarantee a successful print at or above our recommended minimum. Under our recommended minimum, the thinner the part, the higher the chance something goes wrong in printing. Anything below our absolute minimum is unprintable in practice.
Why There are Limitations
There are a variety of limiting factors to consider, both during and after printing.
Limitations During 3D Printing
3D printers build parts in a single layer at a time. As a result, if a feature is too thin, there’s a risk of the resin deforming or detaching as it is extruded or cools, which means there isn’t sufficient material contact to connect it with the remaining body.
Additionally, you need a strong base to build a stable structure. If a part is being printed and the wall is too thin, that feature would likely bend before the resin can dry or cure. As a result, the thin wall would buckle, causing warping in the part.
Limitations Post Printing
Even if a thin-walled part prints successfully, the fragile part still has to survive cleaning and removal of support material. In addition, a thin-walled part may be damaged during removal
Cleaning methods include water jet, sanding, chemical support material removal, and picking away the residue. These cleaning techniques may cause thin walls to inadvertently break.
Additionally, in order to print such a thin wall, you often need extra support material or support walls.
With the support material gone after cleaning, the component is even more fragile.
Minimum Wall Thickness vs Resolution
We often see some confusion around the difference between minimum wall thickness and resolution. Sometimes we’re asked, “If the resolution of a material is so high, why can’t the wall be that thin?”
Resolution comes into play in how detailed and precise a design can be, so long as there is enough thickness to provide structural support. Think of resolution as a factor of how well the details or surface finish of the part turns out to be.
Think of resolution as how accurate the part can be designed for printing, very similar to dimensional tolerance. Take a hollow sphere, for example. Minimum wall thickness determines how thin the shell can be so it’s printable and doesn’t collapse under its own weight.
Resolution determines how smooth the curvature is: low resolution will show visible “stepping” and roughness, while high resolution will hide these aspects.
Exceptions
Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule! Some parts can be printed with features below our recommended minimum wall thickness. Ribbing, cross supports, flat and supported components (as opposed to curved features) sometimes allow parts to be thinner.
While we aim to provide guidelines and recommendations around what we are 100% certain is printable, there are so many variables and design factors that make one thin part printable and the next one not. Because of this, we can only fully guarantee successful prints of designs above our recommended minimum wall thickness.
Main Takeaways
Though you might want to push the limits of your design, we don’t recommend going thinner than our suggested thicknesses. Even if your print is successful, that design choice will likely run you into complications around manufacturability down the road.
How will your thin walled 3D printed part be produced during the next phase, perhaps via RTV or Fictiv’s world class Injection Molding? Those thin walls will likely make your part impossible to manufacture at scale with 3D printing alone.
So, pay attention to the wall thickness of your parts, and if you choose to design a part thinner than our recommendations, be sure to carefully consider whether or not it will be manufacturable later on.
- For a start on determining a good wall thickness for 3D printing, visit our table “MATERIAL 3D PRINTING THICKNESS RECOMMENDATIONS” above.
- A good minimum wall thickness for 3D printing PLA is 1.5 mm.
- At Fictiv, the absolute minimum wall thickness a 3D printer can print is 0.6 mm. We cannot guarantee quality at this thickness though and it is not recommended.
Minimum Wall Thickness for 3D Printing
Choosing the right wall thickness is perhaps one of the most important decisions when designing parts for 3D printing. If the walls of your parts are too thick, your part will cost more to produce, take longer to print, and may even wind up cracking. If your walls are too thin, the part may not be functional, may warp during printing, or, once again, cost more to produce because you’ll have to go back and rework the design.
Understanding the minimum wall thickness for 3D printing will set you up for design success and lower your production costs.
Before we dive into the specifics of calculating minimum wall thickness, it’s helpful to clarify some important terminology.
Minimum wall thickness is the smallest possible thickness a structure can have while maintaining functionality. This minimum is impacted by several factors, including the type of 3D printing process you are using to print, constant physical forces (such as gravity), and how much pressure the structure you’re creating will be under during use.
Think of a graphite pencil. The thinner the point and the farther the shaft extends, the less pressure the graphite can withstand. The precise breaking point varies with each user as the precise pressure is unique to the person wielding the pencil. This is also the case for 3D printed structures.
An unsupported wall is one that connects with a second wall on only one side (or edge).
A supported wall is one that connects with two or more walls (on two or more sides).
Wires are round as opposed to walls, which are flat surfaces. Due to their different physical shape, their minimum thickness is expressed as a minimum wire diameter. For a pillar or vertical wire, you’ll need to calculate the minimum vertical wire diameter (or thickness at the widest point in your circle).
When it comes to calculating the minimum and maximum thickness for intricate details, it’s important to understand the difference between embossing and engraving. Embossed details are those that protrude outward from a design, and engraved details are those that recede inward, or are concave.
In order to choose the perfect wall thickness for your design, you’ll need to consider three things: the purpose of your design, your aesthetic goals, and the physical 3D printing process.
Minimum wall thickness varies based on the type of 3D printer. You can use these design guidelines below as a starting point for choosing the right wall thickness for your model based on the 3D printing process you’re planning to use:
| Stereolithography (SLA) | Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) | Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supported Wall | Minimum Thickness | 0. 2 mm | 1 mm | 0.6 mm vertical & 0.3 mm horizontal |
| Unsupported Wall | Minimum Thickness | 0.2 mm | 1 mm | 0.6 mm vertical & 0.3 mm horizontal |
| Vertical Wire Diameter | Minimum Diameter | 0.2 mm | 3 mm | 0.8 mm |
| Engraved Detail | Minimum Recession | 0.15 mm | 0.6 mm wide & 2 mm deep | 0.1 mm - 0.35 mm |
| Embossed Detail | Minimum Protrusion | 0.1 mm | 0.6 mm wide & 2 mm high | 0.1 mm - 0.4 mm |
In many cases, the manufacturer of the 3D printer or the 3D printing service provider offers a design guide with wall thickness recommendations based on testing performed on the specific printer model.
In general, SLA 3D printers can create the thinnest walls of all 3D printing technologies, but there are differences from machine to machine.
For example, Formlabs’ own Form 3+ SLA printer offers more design freedom than its predecessor, the Form 2, because it uses a flexible resin tank to significantly reduce peel forces during printing.
If you are printing with an FDM 3D printer, recommended wall thickness can also change based on the size of the nozzle you are using. For example, if you are using a 0.4 mm nozzle, your minimum wall thickness should be divisible by 0.4, so instead of the 1 mm recommended minimum thickness in the table, you’ll likely get better results with 1.2 mm thick walls or by switching to a thinner nozzle.
Minimum wall thickness for SLS 3D printers is between the SLA and FDM, but offer some unique benefits, as selective laser sintering does not require support structures because unsintered powder surrounds the parts during printing. SLS printing can produce previously impossible complex geometries, such as interlocking or moving parts, parts with interior components or channels, and other highly complex designs.
The purpose of your printed part should inform not only the proper wall thickness but also the 3D printing material you choose. If you’re designing a pliable part for printing, for example with Flexible 80A Resin, your walls will need to be thick enough to allow for compression of your piece but thin enough so as not to restrict movement.
The impact resistance and tensile strength of the 3D printing material you are using will impact the ideal wall thickness as well. For example, Rigid 10K Resin for Formlabs SLA 3D printers is reinforced with glass to offer very high stiffness, making it highly resistant to deformation over time and is great for printing thin walls.
If you’re printing manufacturing components, such as thermoforming molds or manufacturing aids that will need to withstand repetitive force or pressure, you’ll want to stick within solid parts or thicker walls. Very thin walls won’t be durable enough to withstand multiple cycles.
Color, finish, and detailing are important, particularly if you’re printing a looks-like prototype, a figurine, or an art installation.
The good news is, if you consider recommended thickness early enough, you can design your piece to work within the limitations of 3D printing.
Let’s say you’re designing a figure with a button-up shirt, and those buttons are going to be embossed details. You can use some quick calculations to make the buttons thick enough to show clearly in your printed figure and make sure they are spaced out an appropriate distance.
There are a few common concerns every designer needs to be aware of when preparing a model for 3D printing. Understanding these limitations will help you avoid having to reprint your models.
Wall thickness issues are often the result of a disconnect between the modeling and printing processes. Models may appear to be structurally sound within your CAD design software but simply do not work in the real world. For example, architectural details, such as awnings, are likely to become impossibly thin if you scale a building down to a small tabletop model.
If your walls are too thin, you run the risk of your printed part warping or cracking either during or after printing.
During printing, each layer of your printed design needs to have a certain amount of contact with the previously printed layer. If this isn’t the case, you may wind up with sagging, bowing, or completely disconnected parts.
After your design has printed, it needs to be able to stand up to cleaning and long term usage. Even if you are designing a figurine that is simply going to sit on a shelf, thin walls are more likely to creep and crack once they’re detached from the support structures.
In 3D printing processes that melt or sinter raw material, such as FDM or SLS, corners are particularly prone to curling. Depending on the shape, contour, and wall thickness of your design, certain areas will cool faster than others. This can result in areas, such as corners of a wall, curling as they go through the drastic temperature change.
Most 3D modeling software tools offer various features available to help you check and adjust the wall thickness of your design before printing.
Here as examples with some popular CAD tools:
In MeshMixer, use Analysis → Thickness to verify if the wall thickness of the model is within acceptable limits for the given 3D printing technology. In case you need to add thickness to a mesh, you can use the Extrude command. Select the area that needs thickening using Brush mode, which allows selecting (and deselecting by holding Ctrl) individual triangles. It is possible to smooth the selection by choosing Modify → Smooth Boundary from the popup menu. Increasing the Smoothness and Iterations parameters will result in a more clean selection. Now, choose Edit → Extrude (D) with Normal as the Direction setting.
You can add thickness to a model using the Brush mode in MeshMixer.
Read our MeshMixer tutorial for 15 pro tips to learn how to optimize a triangle mesh, resculpt entire sections, stylize the model, or add useful features to it.
In Fusion 360, you can use the Thicken feature to adjust the thickness of individual walls.
In Rhino, you can use the Extrude Surface feature to create thicker walls or planes.
Recommended wall thickness for 3D printing
3DPrintStory 3D printing process Recommended wall thickness for 3D printing
One of the most important factors in designing models for 3D printing is wall thickness. While 3D printing makes prototyping easier than ever - not only in terms of cost and speed, but also in terms of DFM (Design for Manufacturing) - DFM cannot be completely ignored.
A model can be 3D printed, but what happens when you move on to the next iteration or next production step?
And this is where, basically, the wall thickness of your 3D model comes into play! In this article, we will consider recommendations for obtaining really high-quality 3D models that can be used in the future as full-fledged product prototypes.
3D model wall thickness recommendations
There is a limit to how thin a part can be for 3D printing.
Below is a table with the recommended minimum thickness for each material, as well as the absolute minimum thickness for those who like to walk on the edge of acceptable possibilities :) Successful 3D printing can only be guaranteed using the recommended thickness - the first line of the table.
Actually, the thinner the walls of the part, the higher the likelihood that something will go wrong when 3D printed. Anything below this absolute minimum is not practical for 3D printing.
Why are there restrictions on the wall thickness of the model during 3D printing?
There are many limiting factors to consider both during and after 3D printing.
During 3D printing
3D printers print parts one layer at a time. As a result, if the element is too thin, there is a risk of deformation or delamination of the polymer, which means insufficient contact of the material to connect it to the rest of the body.
Also, just as you need a strong base to create a stable structure, if a part is being printed and the wall is too thin, the part is likely to bend before the material has a chance to dry or cure. As a result, the thin wall will buckle, causing warping of the part.
After 3D printing is completed
Even if a thin-walled part prints successfully, the fragile part must still survive cleaning and removal of the base material.
Cleaning may include high pressure water jetting to remove residue, so many delicate components break at this stage. In addition, thin wall 3D printing often requires additional support material. Since the calipers are removed after cleaning, the part becomes even more fragile.
Minimum 3D model wall thickness depending on 3D print resolution
Many 3D printer users get confused between the minimum 3D model wall thickness and resolution. Often you will come across questions like: "If the resolution is so high, why can't the wall be so thin?"
Resolution refers to how detailed and accurate the finished 3D model will be if the wall thickness is sufficient to provide structural support.
Think of resolution as how accurate the manufactured part will be. This is a characteristic similar to dimensional tolerance. And the wall thickness of a 3D model is somewhat different. Take, for example, a hollow sphere. The minimum wall thickness determines how thin the shell can be so that it can be printed on and the model does not collapse under its own weight.
The resolution of a 3D print determines how smooth the curvature will be: low resolution will show visible "steps" and roughness, while high resolution will hide these aspects.
Exceptions
Of course, there are always exceptions to the rules! Some parts may be printed below our recommended minimum wall thickness. Ribs, cross supports, planar and supported components (as opposed to curved elements) can sometimes be printed with thinner wall thicknesses.
The recommendations above are indeed suitable for most cases, but it should be understood that there are many other additional factors that can affect the required wall thickness of the 3D model.
For this reason, exceptionally successful 3D printing with a given minimum wall thickness cannot be guaranteed.
Main conclusions
We do not recommend using a thickness less than suggested. Even if your 3D model is successfully printed, too thin walls of the finished product will almost certainly cause problems in further post-processing. It is worth immediately thinking about how your part, which you managed to print on a 3D printer, will be processed at the next stage. Perhaps with RTV or injection molding? And in this case, thin walls will definitely lead to marriage.
Therefore, pay attention to the wall thickness of your parts, and if you do decide to design a model with thinner walls than recommended, be sure to take into account the post-processing process.
We hope that this material was useful to you and good luck in the world of 3D printing!
10 rules for preparing a model for 3D printing / Habr
Download the model, print it, use it - what could be easier!? But, if we talk about FDM 3D printers, then not every model can be printed, and almost every model (not prepared for 3D printing) has to be prepared, and for this it is necessary to imagine how this 3D printing goes.
First, a couple of definitions:
Slicer is a program for converting a 3D model into a control code for a 3D printer. (There are plenty to choose from: Kisslacer, Slic3r, Skineforge, etc.). It is necessary, because the printer will not be able to immediately eat the 3D model (at least not the printer in question).
Slicing (slicing) is the process of translating a 3D model into a control code.
The model is cut (sliced) in layers. Each layer consists of a perimeter and/or fill. The model may have a different percentage of filling with a fill, and there may not be a fill (hollow model).
On each layer, movements occur along the XY axes with the application of a plastic melt. After printing one layer, it moves along the Z axis to the layer above, the next layer is printed, and so on.
1. Mesh
Intersecting faces and edges can lead to funny slicing artifacts. Therefore, if the model consists of several objects, then they must be reduced to one.
But it must be said that not all slicers are sensitive to the grid (for example, Slic3er).
And even if the grid is crooked, and it’s too lazy to fix it manually, then there is an excellent free cloud service cloud.nettfab.com that will help in most cases.
2. Flat base
Desirable, but not mandatory. A flat base will help the model stay on the printer table better. If the model peels off (this process is called delamination), then the geometry of the base of the model will be broken, and this can lead to a shift in the XY coordinates, which is even worse.
If the model does not have a flat base or the base area is small, then it is printed on a raft - a printed substrate. The raft damages the surface of the model it comes into contact with. Therefore, if possible, it is better to do without it.
3. Wall thickness
The walls must be equal to or thicker than the nozzle diameter.
Otherwise, the printer simply will not be able to print them. The wall thickness depends on how many perimeters will be printed. So with 3 perimeters and a nozzle of 0.5mm, the wall thickness should be from 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3mm, and above it can be any. That is, the wall thickness should be a multiple of the nozzle diameter if it is less than N * d, where N is the number of perimeters, d is the nozzle diameter.
4. Minimum overhang
Each overhanging element requires a supporting structure - support. The fewer overhanging elements, the less supports you need, the less material and printing time you need to spend on them, and the cheaper the print will be.
In addition, the support spoils the surface in contact with it.
It is allowed to print without wall supports, which have an inclination angle of not more than 70 degrees.
5. Precision
Accuracy along the XY axes depends on backlash, structural rigidity, belts, in general, on the mechanics of the printer.
And it is about 0.3 mm for hobby printers.
The Z-axis accuracy is determined by the layer height ( 0.1-0.4 mm). Hence, the height of the model will be a multiple of the height of the layer.
It should also be taken into account that after cooling, the material shrinks, and at the same time the geometry of the object changes.
There is also a software side of the problem - not every slicer correctly processes internal dimensions, so it is better to increase the diameter of the holes by 0.1-0.2 mm.
6. Small parts
Small details are quite difficult to reproduce on an FDM printer. They cannot be reproduced at all if they are smaller than the nozzle diameter. In addition, when processing the surface, small details will become less noticeable or disappear altogether.
7. Bottlenecks
Bottlenecks are very difficult to handle. If possible, it is necessary to avoid such places that require processing, which cannot be approached with a sandpaper or a microdrill.
Of course, you can treat the surface in a solvent bath, but then small elements will melt.
8. Large models
When modeling, it is necessary to take into account the maximum possible dimensions of the print. If the model is larger than these dimensions, then it must be cut in order to print in parts. And since these parts will stick together, it would be nice to immediately provide connections, for example, a dovetail.
9. Desktop location
How to place the model on the desktop depends on its strength.
The load should be distributed across the print layers, not lengthwise. Otherwise, the layers may disperse, because. adhesion between layers is not 100%.
To make it clear, let's look at two L-shaped models. The lines show the print layers.
The strength of the printed part depends on how the force is applied relative to the layers. In this case, a small force will be enough for the right "G" to break it.
