Materials - Stratasys FDM 2000 Manual

F2/3/8000-6
In the FDM Hardware, the FDM head moves in two horizontal axes across a
foundation and deposits a layer of material for each slice. The material is
heated by the FDM head so it comes out in a semiliquid state. The successive
layers fuse together and solidify to build up an accurate, three-dimensional
model of the design. For more information on this process, see "Fused Deposition
Modeling" under Concepts in the Reference section of this manual.
Overall tolerance is ± 0.005" in the X, Y, and Z axes. Actual results depend on the
model.

Materials

The FDM 2000/3000 is capable of using a variety of inert, nontoxic materials:
ICW06 — Investment Casting Wax
l
P400 ABS — ABS Plastic
l
P500 ABSi — High Impact ABS Plastic
l
E2O — Elastomer
l
The FDM8000 is capable of using P400 ABS and P500 ABSi
It is extremely important to keep ABS, ABSi, and Elastomer completely dry.
Each material comes wound on a spool in the form of a filament approximately
0.070" in diameter, so it is both easy to load and easy to store.
Storage
The Stratasys materials may be stored at normal room temperature. Humid-
ity must be eliminated when using ABS, ABSI and Elastomer. Exposing the
filament material to temperatures outside normal office temperatures may
cause the filament to fracture. Stratasys recommends storing ABS, ABSI,
and Elastomer spools in dry boxes, like the dry box on the back of the FDM
2000/3000/8000. These materials also can be stored inside two plastic bags.
Enclose a bag of desiccant with the spool. Place the plastic bags in a closed
cabinet or vacuum sealed environment. This is to protect them from dust,
bumps, nicks, and moisture. Handle the spools of material with care. Sud-
den or abrupt impacts to material spools may cause the filament to fracture.
(See the technical note enclosed with each spool for further information.)
Investment Casting Wax
Stratasys investment casting wax allows the operator to take an STL file
from a CAD model through the Stratasys modeling process and create a
wax pattern. Forming and dewaxing a shell mold is done rapidly using
normal investment casting procedures. No special burnout is required.
Using this material streamlines the model-making process and helps you
get your products to market faster. The low ash content and low viscosity
FDM 2000/3000/8000 Manual
About The FDM —Overview
10MAY01
Procedures