Rolled threads on 3D-printed parts

In aerospace engineering, where every gram matters and failure is not an option, threaded connections play a critical role. As metal 3D printing is adopted for ever more complex geometries — especially in Cobalt-Chromium-Molybdenum (CoCrMo) alloys — designs once thought impossible are being realized. But one problem has persisted: threads on 3D-printed parts are often left with geometric imperfections and rough surface finishes that traditional methods cannot post-process.

That is, until now. With Silbertool’s post-rolling method, high-performance components can be finished with unmatched precision — even in materials like CoCrMo, which are notoriously difficult to rework.

The challenge of threading in 3D-printed aerospace components

Threads printed directly into metal parts — especially those with internal geometries or functional cavities — have long carried real manufacturing limits. Conventional machining is often impossible or too destructive, surface integrity is compromised, and CoCrMo alloys in particular resist post-cutting or thread chasing because of their hardness and work-hardening behavior.

For aerospace engineers, that has meant accepting one of two compromises:

• Threads are machined separately and assembled later — adding cost and extra failure points, or
• Compromised thread performance is simply tolerated, despite the risks.

A new standard in thread optimization

Silbertool takes a different route. Through a non-cutting, cold-forming process, printed threads are enhanced after printing without removing any material. The thread flanks and root geometries are cold-formed into a rolled-thread-like finish, improving both:

• Geometric precision, and
• Fatigue resistance.

Even aerospace-grade CoCrMo parts — prized for their strength and wear resistance — can now be thread-perfectionized. No cutting. No thermal stress. No material loss.

Applications: from prototypes to flight-ready parts

Wherever load-bearing threaded connections appear — turbine housings, satellite structures, aerospace brackets, hydraulic blocks — post-rolled threads open new possibilities. Design freedom is preserved, mechanical integrity is ensured, and parts once considered “unmachinable” can now be fully functionalized with aerospace-grade threads.

Proven, patented, and production-ready

The method has been tested successfully on a range of 3D-printed parts, including those made from superalloys, titanium, and CoCrMo. Results have been documented by leading technical universities and aerospace R&D partners, and the process is portable, scalable, and compatible with both powder-bed fusion and DMLS technologies.

Thread quality meets additive freedom

With Silbertool, aerospace design engineers no longer have to choose between innovative geometry and mechanical performance. Even the most challenging materials — CoCrMo included — can be post-processed for threads that rival, or surpass, traditional rolling methods. When performance has to be trusted and rework is not an option, post-rolled threads redefine what is possible.