
Traditional jewelry design is a meticulous and incremental process. Because labor and materials are a large investment for both the jeweler and the customer, confidence is the baseline requirement for both sides of a commission. Traditional design begins with an artist’s sketch for the customer to inspect. Once the sketch is approved, it is carved out of wax and re-inspected before casting. If the wax mold is not close enough to the original sketch or fails to meet the customer’s expectations in any other way, it must be redone, or else the customer loses confidence and the jeweler loses business. Either way, a large amount of time is put into this process, which typically spans anywhere from two to three weeks.
Uptown Diamond and Jewelry in Houston, Texas, has found a way to ensure not only that their customers’ expectations are repeatedly met, but that owner Rick Antona’s confidence in his business’s abilities is sturdily reinforced. Uptown Diamond’s not-so-secret secret? The ProJet® 3510 CPX professional wax 3D printer by 3D Systems (formerly the ProJet 3500 CPX).
The ProJet 3510 CPX produces micro-detail wax patterns with outstanding surface quality and extremely fine features, ideal for intricate direct investment casting applications, such as jewelry. Compatible with VisiJet® Hi-Cast Material, the ProJet 3510 CPX produces precise, mirror standard wax casts within a 11.75 x 7.3 x 8 inch build platform for increased productivity.
Uptown Diamond decided to incorporate 3D printing into its workflow because the company wanted to both speed up its manufacturing process and ensure a quality product. Cost cutting was also a large consideration. Although championship rings are a great inlet for jewelry business, the metal molds traditionally used to cast them can cost anywhere from $4,000 - $7,000. For general wax casting, Uptown Diamond was familiar with CNC machines, but the time involved was still considerable, requiring four to five hours per machining.