About cheap injection mold tooling
Mold costs for injection molding are very high and depend on many parameters and design complexity. Molds for injection molding are typically CNC machined from aluminum or tool steel, EDM machined to shape workpieces, or 3D printed. The machined or printed part is then finished to the desired standard. The finished mold includes features such as the desired surface geometry of the part, a runner system that directs the flow of injected material, and cooling channels that ensure rapid mold cooling.
It is important to note that most injection molding processes are dedicated to cooling. The faster the mold cools, the faster the injected material solidifies and the faster the production cycle repeats. Therefore, cooling channels play an important role, especially for mass production, and should be included in the design of the mold. For low-volume production using 3D printed molds, manual cooling with compressed air is an option.
