Got round to doing the shield. I am not completely satisfied. The details are very fine and neat, but on the back they are hardly visible. The shield is also very thin, which makes it bend very easilly.
I did a new print of the shield and this one looks better. I now understand what I did wrong the first time. I printed the shield lying flat. This means that the printer first prints the elevated parts on the back, ie the rivets, in mid-air. So I now have a tank of resin with about two dozen rivets floating in it...
This time I printed the shield standing upright. It takes a lot longer (about 1,5 hours longer), but the result is much better. I will try to thicken some parts to counter the bending before the next try.
Printed rivets could become useful! I wonder how you feel about the comparison with your high level of modelling skill, and the results from a process so very different? Would you eventually wish to print in metal? Or use the technique to make prototypes for casting?
Many years ago I produced several masters for casting, most of them are still available from Matador Models (77mm FK96 n/A, German mobile backery, 25cm sMW a/A, Peerless Arrow armoured car with 2 pdr Pompom, 21cm lange Mörser, Pz4 Kugelblitz turret and loads more, also for Convoy and BK Models), and nowadays I am not that bothered. Back then in the early nineties there were hardly any small scale WW1 kits around, and you had to scratch if you wanted to build WW1 models. I am very glad I mastered both the building from scratch and 3D printing as both techniques supplement each other nicely. Resin printing suits me fine and I doubt that printing in metal will give you the same level of detail, but I could be wrong.
Did the changes to the shield, the left is the one in the previous pictures, the right is the one where I made the shield a bit thicker and made the details stand out a bit more.
@Michael: Another advantage is, that in the olden days I started by making scale drawings, and once they were finished, I started scratch building. Nowadays I start drawing in 3D which roughly takes the same amount of time as drawing by hand, but the printing phase is much faster than scratch building. And if I want more than one, it also saves me the time of making moulds...
I have added the elevation wheel, which was a female dog to draw...
I have also added the ramps. I have drawn and printed the elevation arc, but have not attached it to the barrel, as this print of the barrel does not have the attachment point for it. Next up will be putting together al the improved parts into a complete gun, then I can harden out the resin and start painting.
Did the other barrel as well. I also printed 10 Granate 15 shells, as well as 50 empty cartridge casings. I got the measurements for the casing off Kaiser's Bunker's site (thanks for the info!) and the measurements on the shell from Notes on German Shells. Does anyone know how these shells were packaged? Was it in wicker baskets or in wooden crates? How many shells were packed together in one box or basket? Just the one, or several?
Did the wicker containers as well. Considering how relatively simple and ancient wicker is, it is surprising how difficult it is to draw in 3D..
The first picture was supposed to be 40 full and 60 empty containers, but during the printing process I lost a couple which got stuck to the bottom of the resin tank and never fully got printed. The second picture is of a couple of painted and washed containers, so you could make out the detail a bit better...
With kind regards,
-Arie.
-- Edited by Arie Dijkhuis on Friday 16th of August 2019 10:25:12 PM
I thought that the wicker in the previous prints looked a bit too sterile. For this print I twisted parts of the drawing left and right to prevent too straight lines. I think this looks much more realistic...
Oh, and this time the missing containers weren't caused by incorrect printing, but by me being clumsy..
With kind regards,
-Arie.
-- Edited by Arie Dijkhuis on Friday 16th of August 2019 10:13:26 PM
-- Edited by Arie Dijkhuis on Friday 16th of August 2019 10:16:40 PM
Thanks! The detail of a 3D resin printer is indeed amazing. I hadn't even hoped this level and I am absolutely satisfied with this maschine. I am not about to start selling copies, but I will make the print files available so you can make as many prints as you like. There are lots of on-line 3D printing services. Then again, I have heard that they ask prices of 50 euro's per print. As my maschine only costs 300 euro's, you start saving money after your 6th print... And besides, it is always more fun trying out things yourself...
That's amazing Arie. The finesse of the shield is most impressive. Happy to have the prospects of one day printing such an excellent piece of modelling, and with the wicker baskets!
Thanks. If you compare these pictures to my previous post, you will notice that I have made some changes to the gun pit. I removed a log in front and added one at the side. I also added more sand bags..
Good question! They were organised in batteries. 'Deutsche Artillerie 1914-1918 by Wolfgang Fleischer states that in October 1918 there were still 4 batteries of 4 guns each. The rate of fire is given as 10 shells per minute, so not that slow... These guns were indeed intended to fill the lack of long range artillery.