Don,
At my first job, when we got Autocad, I did a TOS USS Enterprise in 3-D to practice using the program. The saucer and warp engines were very easy to do, but this was the early days of CAD, so I kept crashing the computer due to file size!
3-D printing, like CAD, is here to stay and will only improve over time.
Here is a 1/300 3-D printer trainable triple 21” torpedo mount from Shapeways that I received in the mail today. Absolutely gorgeous detail far superior to the kit part.
Maybe, or maybe not this could be pulled off in resin as a single piece casting. But it certainly was in 3-D printing.
I can see the delicate details indeed. I felt the same way when I first saw the 3” deck gun from Shapeways.
That is a beautifully done piece stick.
Yes, I’m looking forward to getting some paint on this to see how it looks at that point.
I just primed some 3d parts I got from shapeway today and the detail just popped.
What did you use for primer?
I first washed them in dawn dish soap since they had some oily skim over them. Then primed with Tamiya grey primer. Here’s how they turned out. http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/6/t/179631.aspx
Are you using the Tamiya Rattlecan primer, or the stuff in the bottle. If bottled stuff, did you thin that stuff?
Reading on the Shapeways site says to avoid any solvent based paints that goes directly onto the plastic. Also to let the parts sit in direct sunlight for a few hours to allow the plastic to fully cure.
I did let them sit in the window for a bit before I washed them and after to dry. The primer was the rattle can, I know shapeways recommends to stay away from paint like that but from what I’ve read from other sources you need a primer that will bite into the plastic or other layers won’t want to stick to it. Mines been primed for about 7 hours now and look great. Also if you have some fine lines in the plastic from the printing process you can smooth them out with a qtip dipped into nail polish remover.
Copy all that. If anything starts going sideways here, please let us know!
In case anybody was wondering, here is the giant penny with the 3-D printed item for size reference…
Hello!
I’m learning to draw in 3D, too! I’ve already designed my first model and it’s something that you can’t get as aftermarket, which in itself is strange… A 1:72 M60 machine gun - the PIG!
Well I ordered my copy from Shapeways and it looked like this:
Then I cut one of them babies out with a razor saw:
I have cleaned it up a bit with acetone to remove any wax residue there might be. Then, without priming, I have painted the gun with Gunze Dark Iron metalizer and picked out the gandguard, the pistol grip and the stock with gray. Here’s how it turned out:
And the photo below shows how it fits my 1:72 Loach:
More info here: https://www.shapeways.com/shops/nam-models
It isn’t easy to make a good model in 1:72 when the minimum wall thickness is limited to 0,3mm, like it is here, but none the less this technology has a huge potential!
Thanks for looking and have a nice day
Paweł
That’s alot smaller than I thought stick. Pawel, that Loach is nice what kit is that?
Hello Clint!
That’s the AZ-Models OH-6A with lots of tweaking… If you’d like to see more about it, here’s a link:
http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/16/t/173369.aspx
Thanks for looking and have a nice day
Paweł
Pawel, you designed those 60s? They look great! Especially once you painted them up!
Well, Stik, thanks a lot for your kind words, and yeah, I’m glad to be able to say that it’s my design!
Have a nice day!
Paweł