going to try my hand at some 3D printed shells

[trainworm]

while still begging every manufacturer i can to build a SW1001, I decided to try and make a couple more.  I got these shells on shapeways after i talked the guy into making one with a 4 window cab.  they look pretty decent so far and are going to take a crapload of parts to finish. 

two more Galveston Wharves units will be on the rails soon. 











now I just need front grills from an atlas MP15, top grills and other parts from an athearn SW, a drive from a P2K SW, canon steps and tread and some handrails and stanchions.  should be done in a few years.

[12bridge]

Much finer of the old Island Model Works one, but I am still leery of 3D printing on this scale. How much print line is visible?

[edwardsutorik]

It don't mean nothin' until you've sprayed it with primer.

Do so, and get back to us.


Ed

Apologies for being "insulting". Or whatever. But I've seen quite a few 3-D ghost-models. That's not how they're really going to look. As you know.

[trainworm]

Ive been wanting to hit it with primer and see how bad it is. There are printing lines on the roof and the top of the hood. The ones on the roof sanded off easily, but the ones on the hood are going to be harder to get rid of without messing up the panel lines.

I've bought 3D printed truck trailers in the past and they were horrible. Extremely rough looking. These are better, but still not perfect.

[fr8kar]

Jan 4, 2017 22:23:47 GMT -8 trainworm said:

Ive been wanting to hit it with primer and see how bad it is. There are printing lines on the roof and the top of the hood. The ones on the roof sanded off easily, but the ones on the hood are going to be harder to get rid of without messing up the panel lines.

I've bought 3D printed truck trailers in the past and they were horrible. Extremely rough looking. These are better, but still not perfect.

I've had good luck with Tamiya primer in the rattle can. It comes out pretty quick so be sure you move across the model with quick strokes.

The printers perform differently in the vertical axis than the horizontal axes and the resolution isn't the same between the three axes. Any overhanging parts will leave artifacts underneath (relative to whatever was the model "top" during printing). This is why I design everything as a flat kit. As bad as it is to have to assemble the parts into a model, at least the printing is consistent and artifacts are minimized.

[markfj]

For comparison, here is the link to an SW1001 project on the Reading Modeler.

Sw1001 from a 3D shell

No updates on the thread since before the holidays, but photos of the shell are included.

Thanks, Mark

[alcoc430]

I picked the CR version of these from shapeways(with radiator openings instead of the printed radiators), of course it was just before I received a holiday discount code, . My concern is that it seems that top radiator hood opening was not design to match the athearn sw1000 etching. I only compared the screen length with a blue box version so maybe the new version with the actual etching can be made to work without messing with the panel lines in the top of the hood.

Splicing on the atlas mp15 radiator on to the front of shell should not be a problem since it does not have any panel lines.

Window glass will have to be hand cut similar to what has to be done for the cannon sw cabs.

This thing has been designed for the Proto chassis, but you still have to mill the chassis to fit the width of the shapeways hood.

The surface texture seems pretty smooth to me, its definitely not printed on a "consumer version" 3d printer.

[dharris]

How much does it cost to have these printed?
Thanks for sharing.

[alcoc430]

It varies from $63 to $65 depending on which shell version and the distinctive fuel tank is $15.

[trainworm]

I am going to try to fit mine to the newer Athearn chassis so they'll get along better with my other switchers.

[oldmuley]

I'll be curious to see where this thread goes. While 3D printing has made huge advances, I'm still a little leery about it being ready for prime time in the model railroad market. When objects can be produced with the same level of fidelity you get from injection molding I'll be impressed.

[valenciajim]

This is the future of model railroading. The technology is not where it needs to be today, but give it some time. The photos of the model look terrific.

[tony]

Shapeways has HP's new 3D printers so I'm curious if they got that in production yet and if that improves the resolution and quality. If anyone has contacts there please ask about that.

[roadkill]

Interesting. My biggest concern is durability. A friend bought a BQ23-7 cab from Shapeways and it's about as brittle as an eggshell.

[areibel]

The FUD and FXD materials are brittle, but I just got a shell in their black fine detail acrylic and it turned out really nice. The FUD always had layers, but it was a crap shoot if you'd get one that would cover with a coat of primer or if you would need to sand it, and sanding was a pain because some of the details were fine enough and close together they'd be gone if you slipped a bit. I'm hoping the new stuff is better overall, some model makers haven't offered it yet but existing designs can just be switched over if you contact the designer- and it's a little cheaper too!

[12bridge]

Here is a J. Wright photo, from the HO Traction Modelers group, showing a shell in the new material.   By far, does not have those print lines.   I have yet to try it with some of my designs yet.  

[areibel]

That looks great! The only thing I haven't figured out is what mystery coating is on the new black stuff. On the FUD shells you could soak them in a little water and Dawn dish soap to remove the goop. The new one looks like it has oil on it, I gave it a quick dunk (about 5 minutes) but it still has some on it- it looks shiny like oil, and it's only in spots. I'll have to give it a longer soak and see if that does it.
Al

[riogrande]

There is someone over at MRH forums working on a 3D model of a woodchip gon here which looks promising:

model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/28801

[12bridge]

The go-to cleaner for Frosted Ultra was Bestine Rubber Cement thinner, but that stuff is no longer made. I have been doing the Acetone soak, which seems to work decent.

[areibel]

I wonder if acetone would dissolve it though? FUD is some sort of nylon and acetone won't affect it, but I'd hate to dissolve anything!

[Deleted]

Jan 10, 2017 13:51:10 GMT -8 riogrande said:

There is someone over at MRH forums working on a 3D model of a woodchip gon here which looks promising:

model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/28801

Those are digital models, 3D drawings. Only photographs of physical models should be considered when thumbs-up or thumbs-downing a 3D project. The finished chip car may come out great, but until then it's only electrons and instructions. This brings back an earlier thread on the definition of "model"- physical, non-physical, models of processes, systems, etc...

That black 3D trolley shell (a physical model) looks good enuf for N Scale. As good as or better than some injection molded or resin castings.

Digital model of an offshore drilling rig.

[keiffer47]

There is a bunch of 3D printed cars available here at this link.

I have ordered a few of the bulkhead cars. They are sitting in a project box awaiting their turn at the work bench.

They are pricey, but it was a specific car I needed so the cost was justifiable for me.

www.shapeways.com/shops/kitbasher

[riogrande]

Jan 10, 2017 17:58:03 GMT -8 @sppepfe said:

Jan 10, 2017 13:51:10 GMT -8 riogrande said:

There is someone over at MRH forums working on a 3D model of a woodchip gon here which looks promising:

model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/28801

Those are digital models, 3D drawings. Only photographs of physical models should be considered when thumbs-up or thumbs-downing a 3D project. The finished chip car may come out great, but until then it's only electrons and instructions.

I understand the difference, thanks.

[scl1234]

Jan 10, 2017 14:10:18 GMT -8 12bridge said:

The go-to cleaner for Frosted Ultra was Bestine Rubber Cement thinner, but that stuff is no longer made. I have been doing the Acetone soak, which seems to work decent.

If the FU / FUD are thermoset resins (as most 3D printed objects are), lacquer thinner should work as well as any rubber cement thinner. It'd be prudent to test any "new" solvent on an inconspicuous location on the shell though.