Urethane Casting Services
Urethane casting provides end-use, rigid plastic parts or rubber parts with production-level quality. Built without expensive and time-consuming hard tooling, Zhuofei’s, one of the leading urethane casting companies, urethane casting process uses a 3D printed master pattern and silicone molds to deliver high-quality, short-run parts up to 30” long. The finished dimensions of urethane cast parts depend on the accuracy of the master model, part geometry, and casting material. In general, a shrinkage rate of + 0.15% is expected.
Cast urethane parts are frequently used when color, surface quality, and toughness are required. Urethane molding is a perfect alternative for insert molding or overmolding in low volumes with diverse material choices. Polyurethane casting can also be used for bridge-tooling between a 3D printed rapid prototype and an injection molding with a balance of quality, cost, and time. Urethane cast parts can also be clear, color-matched, painted (including EMI shielding), have installed inserts, and even custom finished.
Low Volume, Durable Parts with Production-Level Quality
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Vacuum Casting Polyurethane Resins |
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Material Simulation |
Strength Shore |
Flexion(MPA) | TC Max |
Product Color Description |
Advantage Disadvantage |
Shrinkage |
| ABS TYPE | ||||||
| ABS | 83 shD | 1790 | 85 | Amber, white and black | Good resistance | 1 |
| ABS | 81 shD | 2200 | 93 | Dark Amber | Good resistance | 1 |
| PS chocs | 74 shD | 1500 | 70 | White/Black | Ideal | 1 |
| POLYPRO TYPE | ||||||
| PP | 75-83 shD | 600-1300 | 70 | White/Black | Good resistance | 1 |
| COLORABLE ELASTOMERS | ||||||
| Elastomer | 20-90shA | / | / | Milky white/Black | Good Blend | 1 |
| Elastomer | 30-90shA | / | / | Clear | Good Blend | 1 |
| HIGH TEMPERATURE | ||||||
| PC | 85 shD | 2254 | 105 | White/Black | High T℃ 105° | 1 |
| PS/ABS | 80 shD | 2300 | 120 | Black | IdealTG 120° | 1 |
| UL-VO | ||||||
| ABS | 83 shD | 1800 | 85 | White | 94V0 flame retarding | 1 |
| Loaded ABS | 87 shD | 3300 | 100 | Off White | V 0 far 25 | 1 |
| CLEAR | ||||||
| PMMA | 87 shD | 2100 | 100 | Clear | Coloration TG100° | 0.996 |
Available Finishes for Urethane Casted Parts
Parts have a smooth, satin-like finish due to the master pattern being bead-blasted matte. Clear and translucent parts with this finish will appear frosted. Matte finishes are useful for handheld and high-touch areas as it reduces fingerprint visibility.
A finish that includes some sheen but not high reflectivity. Semi-gloss finishes are in between high-gloss and matte, resulting in a smooth, easy-to-clean surface.
A highly reflective finish is made by polishing the master pattern before making the mold. High-gloss has a high sheen and will have the highest transparency for clear parts. High-gloss is useful for cosmetic models, cleanable surfaces, and lenses.
Zhuofei can provide additional processing, including custom textures, secondary finishes, painting, and more.
Urethane Color Options
Polyurethanes can be blended with pigments to achieve a variety of colors. Naturally, a urethane may be amber to milky-white in color. Zhuofei’s clear urethane options are formulated to be colorless. Below are Zhuofei’s color options:
- Black
- Color-Match
- Natural (unpigmented)
- Clear (colorless)
Overview: What is Urethane Casting?
The Basics Of Urethane Casting
Urethane casting provides end-use, rigid, flexible, and rubber parts with production-level quality. The urethane casting process uses a 3D-printed master pattern to create a silicone mold that delivers high-quality, short-run parts as an economical alternative to low-volume injection molding.
How Urethane Casting Works
Urethane casting is similar to injection molding in that it requires a tool with a cavity in the shape of the final part. The major difference is that urethane casting uses a “soft” mold made of silicone whereas injection molding using a “hard” metal mold that has been CNC machined. The drawback to urethane casting, then, is that the mold wears out more quickly. However, it is vastly more cost-efficient for low-volume and prototype plastic parts that require production-level quality and surface finishes.
The urethane casting process has 3 major steps:
1.The Master Pattern: In step one, a master pattern of the final part is made using an additive manufacturing process. Polyjet 3D or stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing processes are most often used due to their ability to produce high-resolution and naturally smooth finish parts. The master pattern is typically hand-finished to achieve optimal surface detail before the creation of the mold tool.
2.Molding: In step two, the 3D printed master pattern is encased in liquid silicone that cures around the pattern, with the silicone encapsulating all the features of the printed parts. When the mold cures, it is cut into distinct halves and the master pattern or 3D printed part, is removed. This leaves an internal cavity perfectly shaped like the part.
3.Pouring: In the final step of the urethane casting process, liquid urethane or silicone is poured into the silicone mold, and the mold is then placed in a chamber to help remove air bubbles in the liquid material. For opaque parts, the chamber is typically pressurized. For clear parts, the chamber typically pulls a vacuum to mitigate any bubbles and increase clarity. Once cured, the silicone halves are separated and the newly formed part is removed. This process is repeated until the desired quantity is achieved.
Benefits Of Urethane Casting
Urethane casting has a low-cost and quick turnaround for high-quality plastic parts compared to injection molding or 3D printing. Where injection molding requires an expensive upfront investment for the machining of the mold, the silicone mold required for urethane casting is inexpensive and easy to produce. Additionally, while most 3D printing processes require extensive post-processing to get to a near-finished state, urethane cast parts come out of the mold ready to go. Urethane casting is an excellent choice for creating high-quality prototypes or low-volume production of rigid, flexible, clear, colored, or rubber-like plastic parts.