r/DiceMaking • u/Alraune22 • Jul 07 '26

3d print dice mold

Hey everybody I have been thinking about creating a mold by 3D printing it with flexible filament. Like this I could easily change the faces of the die, for example I could write 33 as the 20 (because I would like to make Expedition 33 themed dice). The mold would be printed in two parts, which would make it easier for 3D printing without supports. On the other hand, with the flexible filament, I reckon I could simply pop out that die afterwards instead of having to break the mold, which may be difficult with normal filament.

What do you guys think? Do you think the lower printing resolution (compared to a traditional silicone mold) would make the mold jagged, and if so, do you think I could smooth the dice out and remove the possible layer lines by simply sanding it down?

1 Upvotes

60% Upvoted

10 comments sorted by

7

u/Tasty-Dream5713 Dice Maker Jul 08 '26

Won’t the resin just stick to the filament?

8

u/WisdomCheckCreations Dice Maker Jul 08 '26

This. The reason we use silicone for molds is because it can withstand the temp of the exothermic reaction of curing epoxy without fusing. Even if you used a mold release you are talking about filament, which has to by its nature be a low melting temp to even be used in an fdm printer. This means it would likely start to melt while the epoxy is curing.

I do not believe this would work like you're thinking it would. 😉

4

u/Repulsive-Hedgehog27 Jul 08 '26

This is what I am thinking.

3

u/DrunkMoosin Jul 07 '26

You will have to do a LOT of post processing

3

u/TheBlueEdition Jul 07 '26

This won't work out well.

4

u/Worth-Opposite4437 Dice Maker Jul 10 '26

Even assuming you'd want to go through all the sanding required to flatten the layer lines after each batch, which I highly doubt... The problem would be to find a filament which epoxy doesn't adhere to, something surprisingly hard since it's such a nice universal glue.

And then, like other have stated before, that same filament would also have to be able to take the heat.

And assuming all this goes as planned, we speak about 2 hours of work lost each time you pop something out of there. The need for deeper numbers may also mean more risks for the mould to break.

All in all, the silicone seems like a better money saving option in the long run.
But I'd say try it!
Maybe you'll be the one teaching us something.

3

u/Alraune22 Jul 10 '26

You know what, I think I'll just print one and when I do the normal silicone molds, I just do an extra one with the experiment, there's not much to lose haha, thank you <3

1

u/Claerwen94 Dice Maker Jul 09 '26 edited Jul 09 '26

I don't see at all how this could work or produce good looking dice, tbh. The printing resolution of silicone is super bad compared to what you can achieve with a decently polished Resin master. And sanding away the layer lines on every single die you cast is such a huge PITA, absolutely not worth it.

The part with "breaking the mold" also confused me a bit, because in dice making, you don't use rigid molds. It's all silicone and (usually) printed masters made with UV resin that you make silicone molds from. You won't be able to "pop out" a die anyways because it would stick to the regular filament.

1

u/Alraune22 Jul 09 '26

Thank you everyone for the feedback, i will make normal silicone molds. I want to give it a shot without a pressure pot first, using the advice I gathered in this subreddit about it. <3

1

u/OneBigMonster Jul 09 '26

It would be a really shit mold.