Sagging
Sagging
Features drooping down after thermal curing (baking).
Sagging can be diagnosed as follows:
- Thin walls, overhangs, and large surfaces look fine after printing but are sagging down, relative to their baking orientation, after thermal curing.
If any of these conditions apply to your print, take the corrective action and reprint to see if the problem is resolved.
Change the baking method to provide support to sagging features.
Reorient
Change the baking orientation to place delicate features and overhangs overhangs on their side.
Pack Parts in Salt
Salt provides support to thin and delicate features.
With compatible resins, salt is effective to temporarily fixture the part during thermal curing.
Reference Salt Baking for more information.
Leave Supports
The supports used during printing can be baked with the part if
- Supports are accessible to remove with a cutting tool.
- The material is soft enough to cut with a hand tool after baking. ie an elastomer
Baking Fixture
Create a baking fixture to hold features in place during baking.
You can design and print a baking fixture in a material that can withstand the high temperatures of baking, such as Loctite IND147.
The following solutions will address print or part-related causes of the defects. Choose among the suggested actions below and select the best approach for your application. Usually only one type of adjustment is needed.
Increase Thickness
Increase thickness of and/or shorten overhangs.
Add Structure
Add fillets, bevels, or chamfers to increase strength at features too weak to support their weight.
If problems persist, please reach out to Carbon Support.
Unsupported thin walls, overhangs, and large surfaces sag under their own weight.
- During thermal curing, parts temporarily soften as their polymer structure reforms into their final mechanical state.
- Thin, unsupported features sag in this softened state and remain in that position when final material properties are reached.
Root Issue | Problem | Why Defect Presents |
|---|---|---|
Weak Features | Features not supported | Thin features with overhangs too long to support their own weight will sag when in a temporarily softened state during baking. |
How the part is oriented, supported, or designed is causing the defect.
Root Issue | Problem | Why Defect Presents |
|---|---|---|
Weak Features | Thin and fragile features | Thin features with overhangs too long to support their own weight will sag when in a temporarily softened state during baking. |