A surface roughness model based on the measured surface profiles of Fused Deposition Modeled part is used as a key to adaptively slice a tessellated (STL) CAD geometry. It is ensured while slicing that at any location of the part the surface roughness does not exceed the specified value. Hot cutter machining is used to machine the build edges (staircase) of ABS material based on the previous work. Experimental study is carried out by hot cutter machining of build edges of a freeform FDM part to enhance its surface finish. A virtual simulation of surface roughness before and after hot cutter machining along with adaptive slicing (using limited Ra value as a criterion) is implemented to understand the enhancement of part surface quality. © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group.