If it is white and was made by SLS it was probably Nylon 12 or possibly Nylon 11. Most service bureaus run 12 because it is easier to work with and excess can be re-used to some extent. 11 is much cheaper but cannot be re-used. This leads to some interesting economic/environmental tradeoffs.
For this application it doesn't matter much. In fact, it is hard to tell the difference in mechanical properties between the two. Each is better in some corner of the envelope, but the differences are smaller than the uncertainty in my designs.
There are other whitish SLS materials that are used sometimes. There is a styrene used to make patterns for casting metal and a rubber-like material has come out in the last couple of years. But they are unlikely to be used for this application
I have been working with SLS since around 2000. First as a customer and later getting it qualified to use on aircraft. I still get a kick out of getting a part that is exactly what I designed out of the machine with no labor on my part. Just ship the .stl over to Boris, he loads the machine with the file and powder and punches the button. Two to three days later I have a part. You should see the "toybox" I have at work with all the neat little gizmos we put in the unused corners of the builds.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EricVanWyk
The white plastic parts were rapid prototyped via SLS. I am head over heels in love with the fact that in the time it takes the board house to build my boards, the ME can design AND GROW its enclosure. Thank you Altium, Thank you SLS, Thank you Simon.
I am unsure of exactly what the material we used is. Production models will be injection molded.
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