PA12 Nylon
WORKHORSEThe default SLS material and the best all-round engineering plastic we print. Tough, chemically resistant, dimensionally stable, and good for live hinges and thin walls.
48–50 MPaLive hingesChemical resistant
SERVICE · SLS NYLON
SLS Nylon Printing — Functional Parts With No Supports to Remove
Selective laser sintering fuses nylon powder with a laser inside a heated bed. The surrounding powder holds the part up, so there are no support structures, no support marks and no geometry that is "too difficult". This is the workhorse process for parts that actually have to work.
100 µmTypical layer height
±0.3 mmTypical tolerance
0Supports required
3–5 daysTypical lead time
OVERVIEW
What SLS actually does
A thin layer of nylon powder is spread across the build bed by a roller and heated to just below its melting point. A laser then traces the cross-section of your part, fusing those powder particles together. The bed drops, a new layer of powder is spread, and the process repeats.
The key difference from SLA and SLM is that un-sintered powder surrounds the part and supports it. There is nothing to cut away, no support marks, and no limitation on overhangs or internal cavities — nested parts, interlocking chains and hollow shells all come out of the same build without special planning.
The result is a tough, slightly flexible engineering plastic part. It is not as fine as SLA and the surface has a soft granular texture, but it survives being dropped, bolted, flexed and used. For most functional prototypes and low-volume end-use parts, this is the process that gives the best combination of price, strength and design freedom.
CAPABILITIES
Capability & Tolerance Window
These are the numbers we hold on a calibrated industrial line. Tighter values are often possible on specific features — ask our engineers before you design to a hard limit.
Build envelopeUp to 340 × 340 × 600 mm
Layer height60 – 120 µm (100 µm is standard; 60 µm for finer detail)
Dimensional tolerance±0.3 mm as standard, or ±0.3 % of the nominal dimension, whichever is greater; ±0.15 mm on selected features, quoted per part
Minimum feature size0.4 mm
Minimum wall thickness0.8 mm (1.0 mm recommended)
Surface finishMatte with a fine granular texture, Ra ≈ 10 µm. Bead blasting is included as standard.
Minimum internal channel1.0 mm — powder can be cleared out below this, but it becomes slow and risky
MaterialsPA12, PA12 glass-filled, PA11, TPU (shore-dependent)
Density (PA12)1.01 g/cm³
Tensile strength (PA12)48 – 50 MPa
Lead time3 – 5 business days after file approval
MATERIALS
Materials for SLS nylon printing
Every material below is stocked and qualified on our lines.
PA12 Glass-Filled
STIFFRigid and dimensionally stable under load — for brackets, mounts and structural parts where plain nylon flexes too much. Slightly more abrasive surface.
High stiffnessStructuralLow creep
PA11 Nylon
TOUGHBio-based nylon with better impact resistance and elongation than PA12. Preferred for parts that get knocked around and for repeated snap-fit cycles.
Impact resistantHigh elongation
TPU / Flexible
ELASTICPowder-based elastomer for gaskets, grips, shock absorbers and living parts that need to bend and return. Shore hardness options available.
FlexibleGasketsGrips
Need a material that is not listed? Titanium, stainless steel, aluminium, copper and nylon powders are also supplied in bulk for your own production — .
FINISHING
Post-Processing & Finishing
How a part leaves the machine is not how it arrives with you. Choose the finish your application actually needs.
Depowdering & bead blasting
Loose powder is blasted out of every cavity and the surface is cleaned to a uniform matte finish. Standard on every SLS order.
Vapour smoothing
A controlled solvent vapour melts the surface micro-texture, giving a sealed, near-glossy skin and better water resistance. Watch for slight dimensional loss on fine features.
Dyeing
Parts dyed black or a custom colour. Grey and white are the natural states; dyeing is what gives a uniform end-use appearance.
Sealing & impregnation
SLS parts are porous. A sealant or resin impregnation makes them watertight and paint-ready.
Tapping & threading
Threads are usually cut rather than printed — we tap the printed boss or install a metal insert.
Insert installation
Heat-set brass inserts for machine screws and repeated assembly cycles.
Machining & facing
Mating faces, bores and seating surfaces machined flat where the printed tolerance is not enough.
Colour matching
Parts dyed or finished to a client colour reference for customer-facing units.
These are the finishing routes we run for SLS nylon printing. See the full post-processing service — every finish we offer across SLA, SLS and SLM, and which of them your material will actually take.
BEST-FIT APPLICATIONS
Where SLS nylon printing Fits Best
SLS is what we recommend when a part has to function, has complicated geometry, or is needed in a quantity that does not justify tooling.
Strengths
- No supports and no support marks — complex geometry costs nothing extra
- Genuinely tough, functional parts that take load and impact
- Live hinges, snap-fits and thin flexible walls work
- Multiple parts can be nested in one build, so per-part cost drops
- No tooling, so low volumes and one-offs are economical
- Bead-blasted surface is easy to paint, dye or seal
- Long shelf life — no UV post-cure to worry about
Limits to know
- Surface is matte and granular, not glossy — SLS is not a cosmetic process
- Natural colour options are limited to grey, white and black
- Parts are porous by default and need sealing to hold water or air
- Fine detail is coarser than SLA: 0.4 mm features are the practical limit
- Thin features can warp slightly, since the part cools inside the powder bed
- Not food-safe or implant-grade without a specific certified material
Functional prototypes
A part you can bolt onto the real assembly and test — not a display model. This is the single most common reason clients use SLS.
Enclosures and electronics housings
Bosses, vents, snap-fit lids and internal ribs in one printed piece, with heat-set inserts for repeatable assembly.
Ducting and air routing
Smooth internal paths with no support material to dig out. Vapour smoothing or sealing makes the part airtight.
Gears, cams and living hinges
Tough nylon with natural lubricity, and thin sections that flex millions of cycles without cracking.
Jigs, fixtures and end-effectors
Lightweight custom tooling and robot grippers, produced in days instead of weeks and easily modified for the next revision.
Drone and robot frames
Complex, weight-optimised structural parts with integrated cable routing, in a material that survives crashes.
Low-volume end-use production
When you need 20 to 500 units and injection tooling is not yet justified, SLS is the bridge.
Historic and replacement parts
Obsolete brackets and one-off components, printed from a scan or reverse-engineered model.
PROCESS COMPARISON
How SLS nylon printing Compares
Choosing a process is a trade-off between detail, strength and cost. Here is the honest version.
| Process | Detail | Strength | Supports | Best used when |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SLA resin | Highest | Low | Required | Surface and detail matter more than load |
| SLS nylon | Medium | High | None | The part has to work and the geometry is complex |
| SLM metal | Medium–high | Very high | Required | You need real metal or internal cooling channels |
Not sure which one you need? — we will tell you when a cheaper process will do the job.
FAQ
SLS nylon printing — Common Questions
Does SLS really need no supports?
Correct — the un-sintered powder bed supports the part on all sides. That is why overhangs, internal cavities and nested assemblies come out clean with no marks to sand away.
How strong is an SLS nylon part?
PA12 comes out around 48–50 MPa tensile with useful elongation, so it behaves like a tough engineering plastic rather than a brittle one. Glass-filled grades trade some elongation for stiffness.
Why does my SLS part look grainy?
That is the process signature — the laser fuses powder particles, and the surface keeps the texture of the un-melted powder around it. Bead blasting is included and evens it out; vapour smoothing makes it glossy if you need a cosmetic finish.
Can I get a colour other than grey?
Yes. Grey and white are the natural states, black is the most common dye, and we can match a custom colour on request. Deep saturation is harder than on injection-moulded parts, so send us a reference.
Is SLS cheaper than SLA?
For a small detailed part, usually not. For a large or geometrically complex part, and for anything above a handful of units, SLS is almost always cheaper, because parts nest in the build and complexity is free.
Are SLS parts waterproof?
Not out of the machine — they are slightly porous. We seal or impregnate them when watertightness matters, or vapour-smooth the surface to close it.
SELECTED WORK
Parts We Print With This Process
A sample of the part types we run on this process.
Robot Frames
Wearable Armour
Custom Orthoses
More part examples are being published. See the full parts gallery.
Related reading
GET STARTED
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