The MakerBot LABS Experimental Extruder can print rigid 316L stainless steel, polymers and composite parts.

MakerBot announced that the MakerBot LABS Experimental Extruder for the MakerBot METHOD 3D printers is now qualified to use the BASF Ultrafuse 316L Stainless Steel material by Forward AM. This addition expands the company’s portfolio of advanced engineering-grade materials available to the open materials platform. It also makes METHOD the only industrial desktop 3D printer in its price class with a heated chamber that can print polymer, composite and metal materials.
“Our customers have expressed interest in exploring metal 3D printing but have been deterred by the high costs and extensive processes of traditional metal 3D printing solutions. By supporting a metal filament as part of the MakerBot LABS program, customers now have an easier and more affordable way to experiment with 3D printing metal before investing in a full printing, debinding and sintering solution,” said Johan-Till Broer, vice president of product development at MakerBot.
Ultrafuse 316L Stainless Steel material, which offers high strength, rigidity and durability, is appropriate for producing a variety of functional prototypes and manufacturing tools. It offers a cost-effective metal 3D printing option without the need for a dedicated metal 3D printer.
The metal filament has a metal content in the high 90 percent range, and the metal is evenly distributed within the binder matrix. These properties reduce the risk of defects and improve printing quality. METHOD’s heated chamber can also slow the cooling of parts as they print, which helps to reduce the risk of delamination.
Parts printed with BASF Forward AM Ultrafuse 316L can also be sent to specialized manufacturing facilities for debinding and sintering to turn parts printed with composite materials into solid stainless steel. This allows for the printing of parts with up to 96 percent of the density of pure 316L metal without investing in expensive debinding and sintering equipment. This feature is particularly useful when creating hollow metal parts that are difficult to produce using other methods.
Each spool of BASF Forward AM Ultrafuse 316L from MatterHackers comes with one processing ticket for debinding and sintering. MatterHackers is a leader in the 3D printing supply industry and an authorized reseller of Ultrafuse 316L. The company works with experts from DSH to have the parts debound and sintered quickly and with minimal effort. It also sells additional processing tickets if more processed parts are required.
“Ultrafuse Metal Filaments removed the barriers between metal 3D printing and users to make the technology more accessible to a larger audience. We are very excited to have our Ultrafuse 316L part of the MakerBot LABS program. We aim to add our recently launched Ultrafuse 17-4 PH filament, with the Ultrafuse 316L to make our entire portfolio accessible to MakerBot users,” said Firat Hizal, head of the Metal Systems Group at BASF 3D Printing Solutions.
The announcement of rigid metal 3D printing adds to the already diverse list of third-party materials available for the METHOD platform. Users can print engineering-grade parts for a variety of applications. Ultrafuse 316L, for instance, is ideal for custom parts that need to withstand high temperatures, are wear resistant, and require high strength. MakerBot continually adds to the materials available for its METHOD platform, so this will likely not be its last innovative product.