Design & Cast your own Hotend Silicone Socks!

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I love E3Ds silicone socks but already had them ruin quite some prints of mine. In today's video I'll improve the existing design, create a 3D printed 5-part silicone mold in Autodesk Fusion 360 and then cast new socks using high temperature 2-part silicone.
DISCLAIMER: Make sure to only use suitable silicone for the temperatures and which is non-flammable!
High temperature silicone (aff): geni.us/vajeIpG
Silicone pigments (aff): geni.us/rg1jO
10ml syringes (aff): geni.us/QZa6
Precision Scale (aff): geni.us/yotc4O
E3D Silicone Socks: e3d-online.com/v6-silicone-so...
Fusion360 model: a360.co/2XC3OhE
Download the stl: www.thingiverse.com/thing:374...
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[@CNCKitchen]

Feel free to share the video on Facebook, Reddit, Twitter and other social media!

[@celulari]

Can you please share the mold for the volcano hotend?

[@CNCKitchen]

I printed and molded this one: www.thingiverse.com/thing:3015676 Closed most of the holes with tape, though.

[@fliegenmann2562]

I did some silicone molds in the past and always used a vibrating sander to help reduce the bubbles. 😬👍

[@Sven_Hein]

Which TFC silicone did you use? The link to Amazon just shows me some 200°C silicone... Greetings from Germany!

[@Uterr]

Please, make update to a video. I regularly doing silicone moldings and i must say, my silicone parts that i made flammable. Not just charring or something, it burns in flames, bright and hot. So please, don't do this silicone hotend sock, unless you know what exactly your silicone is.

[@davegrandeffo330]

You are a very talented and intelligent young man, Stephan; I'm sure glad you didn't quit after your second video bombed! It would have been a great loss to the 3D printing community!

[@ddegn]

This makes so many cool things possible. You don't need to print with flexible material to get flexible parts, you can print a mold using normal material and use this trick to make heat resistant flexible parts. I think this video just pushed me over the edge into actually ordering a 3D printer.

[@CNCKitchen]

If you know at least some CAD or are open to learn it, a 3D printer is an awesome tool!

[@KieranShort]

Not just flexible parts. I've printed a mold and used it to form a concrete mold.

[@underourrock]

@@KieranShort Not just solid or flexible parts. I've printed a mold and used it to form an air mold. (kidding aside, I really liked this video and thought your comment about making something out of concrete was cool...what was it? I just wanted to add a tongue in cheek take of molding something unusual along with the more serious question about what you made out of concrete.)

[@michaelbujaki2462]

I own the Vertex nano, don't buy it.

[@walkerjl8]

If your medium is temperature-resistant (and you only need one or two) you don't even have to build multipart molds. Just print in PLA, fill the mold, and melt it away with a heat gun.

[@CHSidChou]

using syringe to de-bubble is smart, never thought of that

[@reverse_engineered]

No kidding! At first I was thinking that he should use a vacuum chamber to degas the silicone, but the syringe makes a perfectly capable vacuum itself.

[@michieljames737]

So glad that you sticked to creating content. Your contribution towards 3D printing is of immesurable value! Thank you and keep them coming! 👌

[@Mobin92]

That was obviously a lie to manipulate you into giving a like...

[@riba2233]

​@@Mobin92 there always has to be someone like you in the comments... Useless troll

[@mspacone]

Dude! This is awesome! What an awesome video. I appreciate you going over the process and sharing!

[@gunsmoke132]

I'm glad you didn't quit and fought through it. You're one of my favorite and most informative 3D printing channels.

[@ianide2480]

A touch of vaseline jelly between the mating surfaces will reduce liquid leakage and reduce amount of flashing that's left over

[@CNCKitchen]

Great tip!

[@jimbit22]

Yes but it needs a very little amount so it doesn't spill into the mold cavity. I use botox syringes to apply it. You can dilute the vaseline with mineral spirits to get a better paste to work with.

[@markjacksmarkjacks]

Also, as you assemble it, you can wipe away any superfluous vaseline with a Q-tip.

[@jackisonline2]

Plasticine works well also

[@koolkevin2357]

Using 91/99% IPA: Put any amount, say 6-12 OZ. in a capable bottle (CLEAN soda bottle works well), put in about 1 Once or more of vaseline, shake well let rest 5 minutes and shake WELL again (maybe use a 100*F water bath) let cool to room temp. Excess will fall out of solution and collect at bottom. Pour this mold release (not the stuff that fell out of solution) into a fine mist sprayer (with new label of course) and spray away, coat all surfaces well, you can't really overspray this unless you really try... Let air dry till the IPA has evaporated completely. In 5 years making vacuum molds for signs I've never had a failure and it also takes away any moisture the mold may have absorbed and is almost completely invisible in the finished product. Hint: Don't use it thinking you can fill voids with it - just the thinest of compleat films is what you are after.

[@spikekent]

Hey Stefan, Great tutorial. I too have been using silicone socks ever since E3D first released them, as you said, they are great for keeping temps stable and the nozzles clean.

[@jacquesarsenault8367]

This is great! And yes please, I would totally be interested in more silicone or resin videos. You explain things quite well!

[@exaltdragon]

I did something similar with a 2 part PLA mold but I used an acrylic glue called Genii Quartz to smooth out the 3d print layer striations before casting.

[@terryk3118]

Great video Stefan! I learned a new process and also some more capabilities of Fusion. Thanks for staying with it.

[@vizionthing]

One of the top ten video's this year so far

[@AG-cg7lk]

Thanks very much for making your hard work available as Fusion files. I used it to make a modified version that wraps around the high flow nozzle extender I am using.

[@chuysaucedo7119]

GEEZ. wow. You make some of the best videos. THIS was perfect for something I'm looking into doing. Now, I just need to learn F360 more, and try this!! THANK YOU ! ! !

[@reverse_engineered]

This is great! My wife and I make silicone moulds for casting things in epoxy resin. We use laser cut acrylic and/or 3D printed resin to create the masters that we form the moulds around. Turning that around and using the 3D printed material as the mould and the silicone as the casting is straightforward and allows for further flexibility in the kinds of things we can produce. I look forward to casting my own silicone sock using your ideas!

[@StianIndalHaugseth]

Wow, this is an awesome idea! I have started using a tusk design on a print cooler. You gave me an idea to incorporate the tusk (tubes) partly in the sock. Either just to give the tusks more room or even help holding them in place. I could even make a silicon fan "shroud" to connect the tusks to the fan.

[@randomname4726]

Your mold making skills are excellent, very nice result.

[@zimmy1958]

I love the socks that I have used so this will make it easier for me to get new/better ones. THANKS

[@danapatelzick594]

Well done on the history based features of Fusion360. It can be very powerful as you demonstrate.

[@Flederratte]

Nice idea! I work with this silicone all the time. I use if for making moulds for casting lead, tin, wax, resin and sulphur.

[@torymblue2000]

Nice, came here because was looking to create a sock for the 360 round heater, this is quite helpful.

[@jamesb4242]

Thanks for this, I printed in ABS and put this together on an e3d titan aero with a 0.25mm nozzle and it came out amazing! Did acetone smoothing wherever I could. will be posting my make on thingiverse. Fits great and retuned the PID's on the hotend and I've never seen such a smooth line in my octoprint temperature history vs the stock e3d sock! It also inspired me to design my own molds to make spring replacements for my taz 5's heated bed

[@avejst]

Impressive mould and design Fantastic job Thanks for sharing👍😀

[@daaf3149]

Great project! I've been thinking about making custom socks for my printer because the E3D socks don't fit mine. I had a hard time finding the right silicone. Thank you for the inspiration! I will def. do a version too!

[@shophacks]

This video is a great mix of teaching and entertainment. Thanks for sharing.

[@scorfman1]

Holy crap! Awesome and thanks!

[@Taconiteable]

Wow really awesome! Thanks for putting so much work in your content.

[@mikeneron]

Excellent video! Would like to see more of this in the future. In Fusion, you can use the boundary fill to figure out the volume of something which would give you an idea of how much silicone you would need to use.

[@ThunderPantz01]

Awesome as usual Stefan!

[@HobbyHoarder]

Never thought of printing a mold for silicone, great idea.

[@agapiosagapiou]

Excellent project! It shows the real extent of 3D printing capabilitys!

[@danapatelzick594]

The instructions on silicone casting is very useful. Thanks

[@lumberjackengineering2649]

Great video! One thing that I've found that has helped out with the E3D socks is to tightly wrap a piece of Kapton tape around the sock to make sure it stays in place. The tape doesn't stick to the silicone, but if you do a couple of wraps it'll stick to itself. Since I started doing this, I've not had a single issue with even the Pro E3D socks!

[@underourrock]

I suspect some simple finishing process either sanding down the mold or applying something that could act like bondo putty for plastics might allow someone to make a 3d printed mold smoother if they desired. I started down the path of making my own silicone mold but got distracted by something else. I'm glad you persevered where I didn't. It's really neat to see someone do this. I have a different heat block, so I'm more likely to pick it back up and utilize things I learned from your design in the strength and separation aspects of your mold. That helps a lot!

[@jupiter909]

Fantastic project! Thanks for showing us!

[@kacheric]

As always, really great content. Keep up the great work it so helpful to see content like this.

[@WolfsHaven]

I've considered doing something like this for a while. It's a great idea for anything you need to make multiple copies of. It's faster than printing each and in this case any rubber you can print won't stand up to the heat.

[@MrKarriban]

I've actually had far more success using the "pro" version of e3d's sock with the tiny hole for the end of the nozzle as compared to the second, more open design. For whatever reason I ended up having material stick to the exposed nozzle and glob up pretty frequently. The more covered design completely eliminated that problem for me. Your custom sock design looks really good though. I really like the tighter fitment as compared to e3d's version. I'll be giving this a try as soon as I get the parts in :)

[@MakunaRGBIC]

I had the same issue when printing with nylon, it sticks to the nozzle until I used a sock with the smaller hole.

[@jeffkosowsky67]

I actually bought the thin hole version first and it didn't work well for me - the sock just didn't seem to fit well. The one with the larger hole fits better and lasted a lot longer...

[@JopieUTube]

I've been using high temp silicone adhesive from the hardware store for wood stoves, ovens and stuff to create my sock. Has been working fine for over a year with temps up to 240 C. Way easier to get rid of the bubbles though with liquid two component silicone, that's for sure.

[@rkatz69]

Wonderful video dude, I think i'm gonna try and make a couple for usage in our print lab :)

[@baschz]

cool to see you combining several things I like and like to work with as well. great video.

[@NicksStuff]

This channel is such a gem

[@Netherlands031]

Awesome project. Cool to see everything that came up - mold halves not fitting, bubbles in the silicone. Not one of these youtube projects where everything is easy and goes smoothly.

[@jonwebb9261]

What a great guide. To help with flashing, try modelling in angled shut off faces, this really helps.

[@karnal3]

couple of hours and i create my own silicone mold :D now print and check the results

[@peterwiegel4778]

Once again, great inventions ! You're a pro!

[@shelbyseelbach9568]

This mold is freaking fantastic. I am using Permatex Hi Temp 81160. This is such a better sock than the commercially available ones that a comparison isn't even really fair.

[@clarkso65]

You are a genius man!!! I really love this channel :)))

[@chloemcholoe3280]

I LITTERALY WAS CHECKING THE thingiverse PAGE again out of curiosity and this popped on my youtube xD perfect timing

[@tonysplace8009]

Excellent presentation and very helpful 👍

[@xionix4]

Thanks for the syringe vacuum bubble trick. :)

[@bryansiepert9222]

Great video! You could use this technique to add molded strain reliefs to cables!

[@jannikthyzen1407]

this is so nice, and exactly what i was looking for ! thank you!

[@Nightmare-eo4io]

These could be amazing for custom gaskets for prototyping. Needed this exact kinda thing a few months back

[@datapenguin]

Excellent job! Amazing video!

[@Haakkon]

Yeah silicone mold making is a joy! It almost gives you as much new possibilities for making things as a 3D printer does. However, doing a vacuum degassing using the syringe was pure genius! I'll have to try that. One thing you can try to reduce flashing is to apply petroleum jelly or similar on the faces that mate. Not the sides the touch silicone but just to close the gaps.

[@nathanpayne7396]

Great video! Learnt a few tips in fusion 360.

[@treyabolicum]

Love the idea dude, awesome work. Dankeschön!

[@salmanslim]

Nice work Stefan

[@bugbot42]

Great tutorial! I've solved all of my problems with the (pro) silicone sock falling off with a bent paperclip that goes around the sock. The springiness of the clip keep it squeezing the sock in place and I can simply pinch the ends of the clip to release it from the block. Super easy and effectively $0

[@kachler67]

Great video first of all! Have you also thought about printing a positive model of the sock, of which you cast a negative silicone mould? This enables the option of surface treating the positive print, which you can see lately in your finished part. Had some great result with this method, and I think this would simplify the demoulding of the sock even further.

[@JohnOCFII]

Very cool project, and nicely explained! At the point where I began to wonder why the mold looks the way it does, you began to describe the design iteration process. I too, think this is a better, tighter design. Separately, I find my silicon socks from E3D don’t last near as long when printing PETG at 250C compared to PLA at 210C.

[@MarioIArguello]

I would not cut slots for the heater element or temp resistor. Yes, this means you would have to remove the heater element and thermistor before installing the sock and re-install them after, but this way the silicon sock remains in place with less chance of slipping in use. If you design your silicon mold with a small lip or flange around the perimeter at the top of the hot end block, it will grab it more securely.To prevent flashing you can use modeling clay to seal the edges of the 3d Printed mold clean. Option for silicon sock material, I believe you can simply bypass the 2 part silicon mixing and use a professional construction true silicon tube (no latex mix) or a hot temp automotive silicon, a lot cheaper, make multiple molds and you can pour and cure all of them at basically the same time and not waste any silicon, plus you can use them after 1 day curing. I have done a lot of silicon molds in my time, using 2 part silicons to duplicate parts in various types of mold making media. This is many times a messy process, why I think using a tube of ready to use high temp silicon will work for something like a small sleeve, like these hot end socks. You don't need to degass , special equipment, just a couple holes on the mold, one to pour (in case of a construction silicon tube to force the material thru) and another to vent excess.

[@AT-ny4ct]

Super Job ! I really enjoyed your video and learned quit a bit. Thanks.

[@terryclair2914]

Wonderful work!

[@LonersGuide]

Hey thanks for yet another great video, and for sharing the .stl!

[@rcmaniac25]

Awesome. Saw the model a day or two ago and was waiting for the video. I've not had any issue with the "new" sock, though this video prompted me to double check it and I see a few tabs starting to come loose, so I pushed them back in place. On the video itself, everything was top quality as usual... except the Fusion 360 section. You came across as nervous to me. Just pointing that out. Otherwise, looking forward to what you put out next!

[@lavondaniels6672]

I actually dip my hot and in one layer of candle wax and then dip it in high temperature silicone until I get my preferred thickness and it makes a nice tight fitting sock for my hot end

[@matthewwain9958]

Really neat!! Thank you for sharing.

[@kevinwalker2529]

Great video! Thanks for the info. I will try this method.

Gonna cast suppressor wipes for my PBS-1 AK47 suppressor using this. Thank you for the inspiration!

[@vladimirshumilov7846]

Great job! Thanks a lot for video and models

[@medyk3D]

This is spectacular!

[@tompoletti5676]

Sick! I will have to try this!

[@ssnydess6787]

Great work. You can also further improve the quality of your silicone casting by putting the charged mold into your vacuum chamber and evacuating air, which in tun will pull any bubbles out of the silicone.

[@DanielJLopes]

Really cool! :) I might try making my own, as I have a really weird pritner: A Mingda MD-6C which has a really not standard design for the print head (as well as linear rails)

[@estouch]

Dude this is awesome. I’m going to sign up to askillshare so I can learn fusion360. If I can design parts and print them I’m set in my new hobby.

[@minor59er]

I have used both silicone socks for my E3D-V6 hot end, and I prefer the sock with the smaller hole in it. I found the sock with the larger hole collected more plastic on it than the smaller hole.

[@thinkdifferent99]

Again a brilliant tip and an extension to this beautiful hobby!

[@mick2d2]

Brilliant tutorial, thanks!

[@BoruffAdventures]

If you mix in a small, wide mouthed mason jar and attach a fermentation lid with a hand pump vacuum, you could probably remove the bubbles before you get to the syringe.

[@KidCe.]

3years back i didnt think id ever come back to this video because i already had a really well working silicone sock that came with the ender3. Now im experimenting with cht volcano nozzle, copper nuts and a more powerfull heater, all on the stock hotend, so i also need a new silicone sock to insulate the nozzle that sticks out soo far from all the extra part cooling air. Very helpful video! Also.. i think i saw every single of your videos but i dont remember if u ever made a fusion360 tutorial? After using f360 for 4 years on and off, i still have no consistent workflow of using components like u did in the video. I would love to see a basic workflow video and how to split up multi part projects into components :)

[@iteerrex8166]

Super! Great content with no bs. Thanks Stefan!

[@trailblazingfive]

Great video Stefan - thanks!

[@fixy98]

I've only used the e3d pro socks, never had problems with the sock moving. Your problem might be the nozzle not reaching far enough from the heat block, you can try to screw the connection screw between the cold side and the heat block more into the heat block. Nice video though, I will definitely try to make a custom heat sock!

[@MrOsmodeus]

I came up with something similar when my sock was getting a bit worn out. i used a top and bottom half with one die in the centre. i printed the bottom half with m5 threads and the top had some indents for the m5 screws to sit flush in. mine largely worked but i wasn't using the right silicone. i was using an old tube of tiling silicone that was just going bad in the cupboard. it worked but it was much too soft. i just squeezed the silicone into the two halves. stuck the die in and tightened the halves down. the excess squeezed out through the weep holes i had in the sides. mine worked but the choice of silicone was wrong. at 3 for $10 though i gave up and just bought the premade socks. my design was free and quicker than the post. but i'm not buying half a kilo of silicone to make 2-3 socks if i needed a new one every print it might be worthwhile. but these things already last forever usually only degrading if you end up with eruptions like the start of the video

[@dz1sfb]

Nicely done!

[@DavidSanx]

This is brilliant!

[@James-un6kx]

Wonderfull idea, I always wondered how they make those silicone socks.

[@Lc-wi3wk]

Great tutorial. Thanks for sharing

[@Magic-Smoke]

Excellent! Thanks for sharing!

[@bernardtarver]

Nicely done.

[@McPcholkin]

Brilliant job!

[@Andrewatnanz]

Wow, all that work. I have had alot of luck just wrapping some aluminum foil around my hot end. Works great, when it gets dirty I replace it in a matter of seconds.

[@andreyansimov5442]

This is content Im here for.

[@mleitner0]

You're the best man. Nice video.

[@TheHonestlySneakyGamer]

sweet, i have noticed my genuine v2 E3D hotend silicone sock falling off and not staying up, so definitely need to do one of these myself

[@ensoniq2k]

I found the video and all your eplanations very interresting. Alltough I never had any issue with the new E3D silicone sock that I ordered with a Nozzle X. It never came loose or anything. But maybe I will cast something else made of silicone in the future. I still have a tube of Dirko Rot in my basement which will otherwise stay unused.

[@thechriskelly12]

@CNC Kitchen nice trick for the changing the fillet size have u considered using user parameters