The importance of material selection for projects

May 10, 2018

Recently we shared a picture of a 3D printed Mantis claw on our social media.

The claw itself was printed and assembled by Jia from our support team. Jia was intrigued by the Mantis Claw for its fusion of functionality and aesthetics. 

While the design was originally intended for assembly using metallic parts, this was a perfect opportunity to test out mechanical properties of different filaments.

The base of inner parts of the claws were printed out of Ultimaker Polycarbonate.  PC was a great choice as it is known for being strong and tough and retaining dimensional stability.  Being that the inner part of the claw would clamp on objects, a stronger mechanical property was desirable.

For the outer arms, Ultimaker Nylon was used for it's high strength and durability, and it's low friction.  Those properties made it ideal since it would take on the the most forces from the pulling of the claws. 

The project itself was overall really well done, and we can't wait to show you what Jia's working on next!

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