Now I think the basic design looks pretty decent, however the print resolution is just not good enough for these. While I could probably improve it with some fine wet and dry sandpaper there are some areas which I just will not be able to get to (the ends of the lower canister are recessed) and I will probably end up losing some details.
As the print is hard to see due to the material I gave it a quick coat of spray. I manipulate the pictures slightly to show the surface texture better - keep in mind though that some of the roughness in the pic looks worse because of this.
I glued it to the back of a Cadian torso to see how it looked in position. Size wise it looks fine and the fit seems decent. I may change the mounting plate which is in contact with the torso so it is a bit taller and has mnore contact with the torso.
KEEP IN MIND that the torso is not finished and I am not going to use the pipe shown. The pipe just looks too thick and it is impossible to position so it looks right. Much better than guitar wire but still not user friendly. Going to have to use something else instead.
Above is a comparison shot with a FW militia torso who form the bulk of my infantry force.
There is an opportunity of me being able to get the backpack printed at a higher resolution, I am going to do a couple of refinements to the backpack and then cross my fingers that I can get a better print done.
In the meantime I will use this print as a prototype to play around with different pipe options.
Very cool. I've seen someone use a melta bomb for the canister on their homemade backpacks as well.
ReplyDeleteRon, From the Warp
Cheers. That's not a bad idea actually. Not thought of a Melta bomb but it has the shape spot on.
DeleteI think your fastest, easiest fix is going to be to scratch build two of those packs out of tube stock and wooden craft balls. (Cut the tube length for the top one, whack a ball in half, glue it to the ends, do second tube, use a hobby saw for the indents, sand lightly to de-fuzz, and add a half mil plasticard strip for the bracing).
ReplyDeleteFailing that, if you want to have them reprinted, I'd go with this: http://www.zoomrp.com/polyjet-printer.aspx
I love SLA and SLS, but for this most machines (except the highest end ones) won't be fine enough for what you're doing.
I've gone with the site I've linked before, and found it was cheaper to fill up a sizeable chunk of your allotted work area with duplicates and/orother parts than it was to simply have 1-2 run off, since the setup fee is the majority of your bill and that doesn't change for 1 tiny part or a dozen larger ones, as long as it fits into the given work area (and you minimize your vertical axis).
I'm in no rush and I really want to experiment with the process so i'll leave scratchbuilding a backpack to the last resort.
ReplyDeleteCheers for the link, that looks good. I'm hoping the opportunity I have been offered will see the backpack printed at a high resolution and may lead to other commercial opportunities.
The polyjet blue does look very good, I can see myself trying something with them pretty soon.
I like the work so far needs a little tweak for sure, but you are getting there and it's promising.
ReplyDeleteThis might help don't know if you have seen them but I have some and they are pretty good worth a look. http://www.shapeways.com/model/291877/traitor_guard_backpacks__x40_mixed_.html?gid=sg78958
Still waiting to see these heads any time soon I hope.
Those backpacks are no good as quality of the print will be no better than the ones I got printed (also from Shapeways). Also I don't want a mix of designs.
ReplyDeleteThe pictures above use one of the heads.
Sorry for not getting back sooner, I thought it might be the head looks pretty cool but would look better with some paint "hint hint"
DeleteI know what you mean about the detail but the packs I got were pretty good, however since have had a couple of other bits and the prints have been as rough as sandpaper …. Don't know if there machining is getting worse or what, are you going to try another 3D printing service or leaving these completely ?
As mentioned I have someone looking ar printing some backpacks at a much better resolution. Can't say much more than that at the moment but hopefully I will be able to show more sometime soon.
Delete