Landships II

Looks good! If I were you, though, I wouldn't bother buying a 3D printer, from what I've seen unless you can afford a high-end machine they're just a novelty. Something of the quality you're building in Rhino should be sent to a commercial 3D printing business to get the best output.

Good idea, but if you're going to produce it commercially, I'd definitely get the masters produced by a commercial 3D printing outfit! What you've done so far in Rhino looks very good so you really should do it justice. I've seen various techniques discussed on the net about how to finish 3D printed parts (even the high-end printers still produce a certain striation or, depending on the technique, particulate surface texture) including using acetone vapour(!) to very slightly melt the surface (which strikes me as potentially bloody hazardous).

 

If you eventually want to explore the cardmodel option I can put you in touch with the designers of the cardmodels on Landships II - some of them use Rhino to

develop their models.

Just a thought - if you are looking at getting the 3D model printed commercially it might be worth spending a bit more and upgrading to a laser/powder printed model

- these don't have surface finish issues.

Regards,

Charlie

Hi,

The modelling you have done so far looks great, keep it going. From experience I know there is a lot of work there.

If you are thinking along the lines of getting a 3D model made, maybe get a sample made of what you have don so far by these people... 3D Alchemy 

You just send them an STL file and they give you a quote. Then at least you have an idea of cost and how it the model will look when finished.

Looking at their page you can even print it out with all the moulding sprue in place.

 

A card model would also be a good idea, lots of extra work, but it's a good way of getting your name and modelling skills known out there.

Helen x

Hi Stevep,

3D printing is not yet there for surface finish/detail but it does do a great job of producing complicated shapes, ready then for modelling into the final product.

The trick with printing is to work out how best to brake the objet down, some parts will be better standing, others laying flat. In your case keeping in mind that you want an object you can mould at the end of it.

So my advise is to leave off the details like nuts n bolts and rivets, add them later as the detail will be crisper than anything you can print. I tend to leave holes I can then push bolts n bits into, the holes are so the detail goes in the right places without the need to measure and drill.

Using the printer to do the main structure of the model, enables you to construct a more hollow design than the normal resin kits. It can look more like a plastic kit, as the parts the machine prints are very accurate. Take a look at places like Thingiverse and see how others have broken down their models to make it possible to print.

I must admit that to begin with it was frustrating, then as I got used to the printer's little foibles the results more than make up for all the hard work.

I've attached a few pics of parts I have printed on my brother's MakerBot.

Helen x

 

-- Edited by MK1 Nut on Friday 25th of October 2013 08:24:23 PM

-- Edited by MK1 Nut on Friday 25th of October 2013 08:25:45 PM

Hi Helen, thanks for the Info and pics,,,,,i have attached a couple of pics of the howitzer so far,....

I can only do so much at a time as It does  "my head in "......LOL

I am having trouble "visualising" the elevating and traversing gear ( left hand side of howitzer ) at the moment if any one could help with some images that would be great ,.................

stevep

-- Edited by stevep on Sunday 27th of October 2013 01:43:22 AM

 

I knew this was in preparation but Staples seem to have their first 3D printing service running now:

http://staples.myeasy3d.com/

The 3D printer is a bit different from the additive plastic layer printers - the software they use decomposes a .stl file into a series of layers (profiles), each profile is cut out of standard 80 gsm paper and the sheet glued to a stack. The deliverable is a block of paper with the 3D object inside. It looks like they also offer colour printing on the 3D objects as well. 

Regards,

Charlie

Here is a pic of the one in the IPW Museum - shows the brass bits.

Tony

Here is the progress so far..

there seems to be some difference among the various drawings I have,,still when I have finished all of the construction I will take all of the pieces apart, realine and decide on the locating lugs etc  

stevep

The manual for the 9.2 inch mark I&II can be downloaded from the State Library Victoria here:

 

9.2 inch Howitzer

 

UK and US versions available 1917-1923

 

Regards

Thanks Charlie I will look out for that,,,

stevep

Hi Mike-m, Rhino is a good program, of course there are others but you pays your money and go with it,,,

maybe try some of the free programs , like google sketch up first, and see if it meets your requirements,

getting back to Rhino there are plenty of tutorials on the web and I am constantly going back and forth to them,

I did not have any training, just trying things and going slowly, and you gradually build up your abilities with the program

As for the Howitzer I am using mostly basic options, like drawing lines and then revolve or extrude, nothing too fancy

Hope that helped,,,stevep

 

 

The Rhino 3D package comes with a fairly extensive set of tutorials - certainly enough to get you started.

Regards,

Charlie

I have been messing around with 3D printing for over a year. Its not cheap, and I use one of the web based companies to do the actual printing. Temptation is to try and do everything but look upon it as a tool, and use it alongside other tools. I was recommended to try a package called Alibre(think it has a new name now) first. Its cheaper than some, has a demo version to try out. It took time to learn even the basics. When it comes to extra detail such as rivets ,best to think how the model ill be viewed, also the finish of the 3D printing. I am happy to use the basic cheapest option, as my models are meant to be in operational condition, ie a bit worn out, not museum condition.
3D printing has enabled me to produce some of the models not produced by anyone elsein 1/35 or 1/32. Initially this as the Simplex 40hp narrow gauge locos which for me are essential to any WW1 model featuring narrow gauge railways. It was the failure of road transport than eventually persuaded the war leaders that railways worked better in the rough conditions of the time.
Anyone interested, I have a link to my 3D printing from my website. I ensure everything I list can be printed, something that I would recommend before offering products to others. It is also worth while looking at similar products produced by more conventional means, such as resin kits as they are often cheaper for bigger models. I find 3D printing has it's worth in smaller models with detail you would struggle to make yourself. It is a prototyping tool in essence, so is a good path to developing kits in resin.