SLA 3D Printing

Fine-detail resin.
Smooth surface.
Next-day capable.

SLA (stereolithography) 3D printing with photopolymer resin. Finest detail of any 3D printing process. Smooth Ra 2-5 µm surfaces, transparent and colored resins, engineering resins with mechanical properties. Visual prototypes, master patterns, dental models.

SLA Service Quote SLA vs SLS vs MJF

Ra 2-5 µm ±0.1 mm typical Clear + colored 24h rush available

01 · Resin options

SLA resin categories.

Resin choice determines mechanical properties, appearance, and application suitability. We stock common engineering and visual resins.

Standard resin

White / grey · visual

General-purpose visual prototype resin. Standard colors, smooth finish. Not durable enough for functional testing.

Clear resin

Transparent · cosmetic

Transparent resin for see-through parts. Can be polished to optical clarity. Light pipes, visual concept models.

Tough resin

ABS-like · functional

Engineering-grade tough resin with impact resistance similar to ABS. Snap-fit parts, functional prototypes.

Flexible resin

Rubbery · 50-80 Shore A

Flexible/rubbery resin for gasket prototypes, living hinges, soft-touch prototypes.

High-temp resin

HDT 240 °C

High-temperature resin for hot-air blow fixture prototypes, injection mold prototypes.

Castable resin

Burns out clean

Jewelry casting resin — burns out cleanly in kiln leaving cavity for metal casting. Investment casting patterns.

Dental resin

Biocompatible

Dental models, surgical guides, orthodontic appliances. FDA/CE certified biocompatibility.

Engineering

Specialty

Specialty resins for specific applications — ESD-safe, ceramic-filled, high-impact.

02 · SLA applications

Where SLA excels.

Visual prototypes

Design review models with smooth finish for presentation

Master patterns

Master patterns for silicone molding and urethane casting

Investment casting patterns

Burnable resin patterns for metal investment casting

Jewelry prototypes

Detailed jewelry designs for master patterns and direct casting

Dental models

Dental arch models, surgical guides, aligner production

Light pipes

Transparent light pipes and lenses for concept demonstration

Consumer product models

Cosmetic concept models with fine surface detail

Architectural models

Scale models for architectural presentations

Miniatures

Tabletop gaming miniatures with extreme fine detail

FAQ

SLA Service questions.

SLA achieves ±0.1 mm dimensional accuracy typical, ±0.05 mm for small features with careful orientation. Feature detail: 0.1 mm minimum feature size. Layer thickness 25-100 µm (25 µm for finest detail, slower). SLA is the finest-detail 3D printing process — captures features smaller than SLS/MJF can reproduce.

Standard SLA resins have limited toughness — brittle, low impact resistance. They break rather than deform. Suitable for visual/static applications. For functional testing, use tough resin grades or consider SLS/MJF nylon which has full production-grade mechanical properties. Standard resin parts work as handling models but should not be drop-tested.

Most SLA resins yellow and become brittle under UV exposure — cured photopolymer continues to degrade. Standard SLA parts have 1-3 year indoor service life. For long-service parts: use UV-stabilized resin grades, or recognize SLA as prototype-only material. For production parts requiring UV stability, consider other processes.

Every SLA part requires: (1) support structure removal (printed supports for overhanging geometry), (2) isopropanol wash (removes uncured resin from surface), (3) UV post-cure (completes polymerization). Additional optional: sanding, polishing for optical clarity on clear parts, priming and painting for cosmetic parts. Post-processing typically 1-4 hours per part.

Our SLA machines: 200 × 200 × 300 mm build envelope. Larger parts split into assemblies and bonded. Lead time: 24 hours for simple parts (single build cycle) — upload by 5 PM, ship next morning. Typical orders: 2-3 days. Large orders (20+ parts): 3-5 days for build capacity scheduling.

SLA is cost-competitive with MJF for small parts (under 50mm). Becomes expensive for large parts — SLA resin costs more per cc than MJF nylon powder. For functional testing, MJF typically better value. For visual prototypes with fine detail, SLA is unbeaten. We quote both and recommend based on your priority (detail vs function vs cost).