Elite / Frontier Game models made real

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
Hi guys, thought I might tip you off to this one.

http://www.shapeways.com

This is one of several sites that allow people to upload or order models and they will be 3D printed in your choice of material. This particular site was recommended to me by a mate on a 3D animation forum, so I gave it a try. I made a Trek ship for a friend and had a little version printed for myself as well. I've also designed my own knobs for my guitars (they go to 11) and opened a little shop site there as well. If someone orders one of my models, I get a little cut of the money. I've made about 3 cents so far, so dont get excited.

I post this so that you guys who know how to model can get in on the action. I'm just made myself a Cobra MkIII for printing and uploaded it, and made a smaller version on a stand that could be used for a gaming piece. Anyone here could make the ship they particularly love, and then have the real model sitting on their mantelpiece a week later. How cool is that?

Dont get carried away though, it's hideously expensive for large models and there's a minimum order of $20 or so. You have to learn to export models in a certain way, and if you make them as hollow and lightweight as you can to save cash as they charge by volume. I'm going to order my ship and a couple of guitar knobs, so I'll post the results here later on. Here's a link to my 'shop', which shows the Cobra I just uploaded. I may do a few more as they're very easy compared to Trek and Star Wars models.

http://www.shapeways.com/shops/kennyscrap
 

Sir.Tj

The Moderator who shall not be Blamed....
Volunteer Moderator
Sir.Tj
The level of detail on them is amazing :eek:,

Would love to have one of those for myself. :cool:
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
Ian has a couple of test videos of the models on Youtube, just search for Cobra MkIII and they should be there. He was commisioned to make the smaller version after they saw the large one he built himself. I'm not a fan of the panels and some of the details he's chosen, but he's clearly very good at what he does.

I cant scratch build models like he can, but since I can make 3D models places like Shapeways at least gives me the chance to get my hands on a 'real' version of anything I design. I need to look into converting into VRML objects, so that I could get a full colour one printed with the image maps on it.
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
Nice stuff, the medallion idea in particular is a good one that might actually sell a few pieces. I dont think anyone except shapeways is going to make a living from selling these, but it just cheers me up no end knowing we can get our models made real so quickly. I've just ordered a little cobra MkIII and my guitar knobs in the new red colour, it'll be interesting to see what they turn out like. So far all I've used is Alumide and the detail wasn't good, I'm hoping this stuff is better.
 

steve tyler

S
the alumide is awful, just horrible look and texture. i'm not sure what it would be good for, it sounded like a nice idea.

WSF is not a bad choice of material, but white detail is pretty awesome, if you're printing miniature spaceships then white detail is your material. And no you're not going to make a living from there alone its still mostly a novelties marketplace but it has lots of interesting potential.
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
I would have ordered in white detail but I need some strength and flexibility in the guitar knobs to make sure they fit. I want a larger detail model of the Cobra, maybe about 20cm across, so I'll be using the white detail for that job.

The alumide was a real blow, not in any way metal looking as they would have you believe. It's like rough primer shot through with glitter.
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
Actually you can build yourself one for about $350 if you get the plans. It's called a rep-rap or something like that, and is a basic 3D printer designed to be built by amateurs. It cant go as detailed as the pro machines, but then it's waaaay cheaper as well.
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
...and they've arrived! I ordered the prints a couple of weeks ago, and they finally went into production a few days ago. Delivery from the continent to Scotland took all of a day and a half, they're very quick once they're made. Here's a link to a quick set of photos I've just taken...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/axeman3d/sets/72157624284027744/

This is the little Cobra MkIII model I made with a swoopy stand built in, volume and tone knobs for a guitar that I wanted to test, and the USS Kilimanjaro model I made a while back for the guy who designed it.

I am so loving the Cobra, it's detail is lovely and sharp and just how I wanted it. Only problem is that the base of the stand is so thin that it's not a brilliant support for the model. I need to thicken that up slightly before anyone buys it. I'm now tempted to add a bit more detail and print a much larger version in the white detail material and paint it. I was never really that sure of its proportions as a model, it always seemed a little wide to me. Now that I have a 'real' version of it, it seems a lot more correctly proportioned and graceful than I'd previously thought. I can feel a set of Elite ships coming on...

The detail on the guitar knobs needs beefed up, it's too fine for this material, but I was more interested in how they fitted than how they looked. They need to be slightly taller and that's about it.

The Kilimanjaro is in Alumide, not a material that's good for fine detail. I ordered it in this material as it was a limited run at the time, and it promised to look like metal for a quarter of the price. It doesn't, it's pretty rough and all the fine detail is lost. Much better to stick to white detail and then it would be great for painting up.
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
No, it's too small and the base colour would be difficult to deal with. I might dry-brush it in silver to make it look like worn red paint on a metal body, but that's all. What I want to do is order the larger version I made (with some additional detail) and get it in the white detail material. Instead of being only 7cm across the bigger version will be about 20cm across, which is much more like it. The only problem is that the little one costs about 6 quid, but the big one will probably set me back about 25 or so.
 

Michael Brookes

Game Director
Assuming ith's the same porous type resign I have seen elsewhere for this type of model, you can always seal it up with PVA type glue and then use metal film to form a base and paint detail on top.

That can look quite nice. For something similar I also used mettalic car paint as a base, then matt paint sprayed on top (again car paint) and carefully sanded away the worn edges. Best to check a small piece of the base material before trying car paints though :)

Michael
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
You can have the whole model made from transparent plastic or glass if you like. It would be possible to make the model from one material, and a stand for it in another. A bit expensive, but possible.

I've just updated the model that I printed, I've made the stand slightly stronger and simpler and the Cobra itself is slightly more detailed with better engines. I wont detail it any more, no point when it's only 5cm across. I will detail the bigger version though, and make a removable base for it. I was thinking of putting a nameplate type thing on the base as well, similar to some Star Wars models that I've bought in the past. I could split the expense by getting the larger Cobra one month, and then next month get the stand.
 

GLJones

GLJones
Hello all,

So I've been lurking in this forum for a couple of years now and this topic has pushed me to finally sign up!

I've been looking for an affordable and smallish model of a Cobra Mk3 for years- (the stuff by Ian Lawrence is awesome but a little pricey for my meagre wages) so I jumped when I saw your models on shapeways Kenny!

I ordered a couple of the smaller ones (the V1.0) which arrived a few days ago- they are indeed absolutely fantastic! - Shapeways service was excellent too-- looking forward to painting them up.
Now my reason for posting is this-- Is there any chance you could upload an even smaller version of the Cobra to shapeways? Say about 1/2 or 2/3 the size of the small version (So it could be a bit more tabletop gaming friendly?)

I know it's really cheeky, and you have nothing to gain really, other than whatever percentage you would get from a few more sales, and the warm fuzzy feeling you would get from helping a nerd-in-need!

Apologies for the wall'o text

TL;DR: I am a massive dorkv:cool:

Regards,

G
 

Kenny 10 Bellys

K
Tiny Cobras? I spent an hour trying to make an economically larger one today! TINY!

No problem, it's easy enough to do. The new version 2.0 model is actually slightly smaller than v1, something like 5.8cm compared to 7.7cm on the original. Will about 4cm across be ok? The stand will need to be changed though, that's too small for the little rod shaped one and I'll have to change it to a round or hex shape. That's more material, so i doubt it will be much cheaper than the current one. It'll be a version 2, with the 'outy' engine housings instead of the original 'inny' ones I used on the test object.

For myself I've made a 20cm one with raised panels which I can maybe get painted up. I can't paint tiny, but I can maybe do a larger one and use decals on it. I'm definitely going to have to look into VRML so I can do full colour 3D prints and save the hassle.
 
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