2026-01-12 – Weekly Dental Technician News : Zirconia remakes cut in half

Last week, our community engaged in valuable discussions around optimizing zirconia remake processes and improving margin accuracy with Exocad and MillBox integration. There was a strong focus on effective continuing education to reduce remakes, highlighting the importance of ongoing learning in our field. Members also shared practical tips for maintaining handpiece precision to preserve margins and debated the merits of direct-printed aligners versus traditional PETG.


This Week’s Hot Topics

Which step halved our zirconia remakes
A conversation around a specific process adjustment that significantly reduced zirconia remakes. It’s a must-read for anyone looking to improve efficiency.

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Exocad + MillBox: margin accuracy tips
Members discuss how to enhance margin accuracy with Exocad and MillBox, offering practical insights for techs working with these tools.

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Best CE for reducing remakes
Exploring continuing education options that directly impact the rate of remakes, this thread is full of useful recommendations.

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Handpiece runout killing my margins
If handpiece precision is causing headaches, this discussion covers how runout affects your work and ways to tackle the issue.

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Looking for validated calibration STL sets
A practical thread for those seeking reliable STL sets to ensure accurate calibrations, crucial for quality output.

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Best tools for intaglio pressure checks
This topic explores the tools best suited for checking intaglio pressure, a key step in ensuring proper fit and comfort.

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Direct-printed aligners vs PETG
A comparative discussion on the advantages and potential drawbacks of direct-printed aligners compared to PETG.

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Tightening our case intake to cut remakes
Strategies for refining case intake processes to minimize remakes, offering actionable advice for labs of all sizes.

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Full-arch accuracy: IOS QC and CBCT merge
Insights on merging IOS QC with CBCT for enhanced full-arch accuracy, a technical yet rewarding read.

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My 2M2 became 1M1 at 4 p.m
An intriguing case discussion that delves into the challenges of color matching over time.

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I hope you find these discussions insightful and helpful as you navigate your work this week. Let’s continue to support each other and share knowledge within our community.

We cut zirconia remakes by setting Exocad’s cement gap to 35 µm with a 0 µm seal in the last 0.5 mm to the margin and running the anatomic–prep distance map, then in MillBox adding a 0.6 mm finish pass with margin protect and nesting so the margin isn’t at bur entry. Small caveat: on short or tapered preps I bump the gap to 50 µm and rescan the die — otherwise the bur can ‘kiss’ the edge, @MillingMike.

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Swapped spindle collets monthly ($25) and blew out chucks daily — runout under “0.01 mm,” fewer remakes; dial indicator helps, @Guide.

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