Real vs. Simulant: A Guide to Rapid Prototyping Materials
Views: 1 Author: Allen Xiao Publish Time: 2025-12-17 Origin: Site
You are about to perform a critical drop test on your new product's prototype. You need to know if your design is strong enough. But a more important question comes first: Is the material you are testing even real?
This is the most critical and often misunderstood aspect of choosing Rapid prototyping materials. The data you get from your tests is only as trustworthy as the material you are testing.
The world of prototyping is split into two great camps: simulant materials and real materials. Understanding the difference is the key to making smart decisions and getting data you can actually build a business on.
The divide is simple. Simulant materials are a product of 3D printing. Real materials are the domain of CNC machining and injection molding.
A "simulant" is a photopolymer resin or a powder that is engineered to mimic the properties of a production plastic. You will see names like "ABS-like" or "Polycarbonate-like." They are designed to look and feel similar to the real thing.
A "real" material is the exact same plastic or metal that will be used in mass production. It comes in a solid block or as pellets. We use a subtractive (CNC) or formative (molding) process to shape it. It is not "like" ABS. It IS ABS. This is the most important distinction in all of Rapid Prototyping.
The World of Simulants: The Masters of Form
So, are simulant materials bad? Not at all. They are incredibly powerful, but only if you use them for the right job.
Simulants are the masters of form. Because they are used in 3D printing processes like SLA, they can be used to create parts with breathtaking geometric complexity. Shapes that are completely impossible to machine or mold.
Their purpose is to answer questions about your design's shape, size, and feel. Does this handle feel good in the hand? Do these two complex parts fit together? Does this new design look as good in real life as it does on the screen? For this kind of early-stage, "looks-like" validation, simulant materials are the fastest and most effective tool.
But they are not designed for functional testing. An "ABS-like" resin is almost always more brittle than real ABS. A part made from it will fail a drop test that a real ABS part would easily survive.
The Power of Reality: The Champions of Function
When you need to know if your product will actually work, you must use real materials. This is the world of CNC machining and rapid tooling.
When we CNC machine a prototype for you from a solid block of Polycarbonate, the resulting part has the true, certified impact strength of PC. When you perform a drop test on it, the data you get is real. It is trustworthy. You can confidently base a multi-million dollar tooling decision on that data.
If your part needs to be tested for heat resistance, chemical compatibility, or long-term fatigue, you must use a prototype made from the real material. A simulant can only give you a guess. A real material gives you a fact.
For any "works-like" functional prototype, a real material is the only professional choice.
Making the Strategic Choice
So, which path is right for you? It is a strategic choice based on what question you are trying to answer.
In the early stages of design, when you are iterating on the shape and feel, use 3D printing with simulant materials. It is fast and cost-effective for creating "looks-like" models.
Once your design is stable and you need to perform real-world validation, you must graduate to real materials. This means using CNC machining or rapid tooling for your "works-like" functional prototypes.
A good manufacturing partner understands this distinction. At JUCHENG, we offer both paths. We can provide you with fast SLA models for your initial form studies. And then, when you are ready for real testing, we have the CNC and tooling capabilities to provide you with parts made from certified, real-world rapid prototyping materials. This is how we support your entire development journey with the right tool, for the right job, at the right time.
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