a method of treating the surface of a rough , plastic object to produce a high gloss , textured and / or coloured finish . a rapid prototype treated according to the present method assumes the appearance of an injection molded part , without the usual high costs associated with producing the injection mold . in one embodiment , first step involves of removing the pores in the porous part , at least at the outer layers of the part , followed by a smoothening process of filling the voids between the miniature steps with a hardener to give a smooth surface , on which further post - processing may be performed .