Work out a shrinkage scale factor from a test cube

Calculate a scale factor that compensates one-axis print shrinkage from a measured calibration part.

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ToolShrinkage Compensator
Input
Output
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Preview

How it works

Shrinkage percentage is (nominal minus measured) divided by nominal. The compensation factor is nominal divided by measured, so multiplying the model dimension by it targets the nominal size.

  • Compensation is calculated independently per axis.
  • A measured coupon is used instead of a generic material percentage.

Worked example

A 100mm PETG cube that came out 99.4mm
Input
											Axis: x
Nominal size mm: 100
Measured size mm: 99.4
Output
												Axis: x
Shrinkage percent: 0.6
Compensation scale factor: 1.006
Adjusted model size mm: 100.6

When to use this

Calibration cubes, resin cure compensation, and press-fit enclosure tuning use axis measurements.

Edge cases

  • A measured size larger than nominal produces negative shrinkage.
  • Zero measured size makes the factor undefined.
  • One-axis scaling cannot correct warping or nonuniform shrinkage across a part.