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12 minutes ago, Dave Roof said:

 

I don't need to see the link....I have an 8k and a 4k here and have seen the results in person. For what I print, there is no significant visible difference (to the naked eye) between the two printers. 

No I know, thats exactly why I said what I said.
I dont think modelling aircraft parts would press the printers to the same level as printing a wargaming miniature does, which is why I would say a printer like the Mars 4k printer would be more than useable. The same goes for the Mini 4k.

 

I have actually been saying that from the start.

 

However having said that that isnt to say there isnt a difference between the 4kk and 8k in print quality.
If you watch the video you can clearly see there is a difference, but then you would never see that because of what you print.

Edited by ElectroSoldier
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2 hours ago, ElectroSoldier said:

No I know, thats exactly why I said what I said.
I dont think modelling aircraft parts would press the printers to the same level as printing a wargaming miniature does, which is why I would say a printer like the Mars 4k printer would be more than useable. The same goes for the Mini 4k.

 

I have actually been saying that from the start.

 

However having said that that isnt to say there isnt a difference between the 4kk and 8k in print quality.
If you watch the video you can clearly see there is a difference, but then you would never see that because of what you print.


One of the values of 8k vs 4k is keeping identical resolution in a larger build volume. For guys like Dave Roof doing this for a business, that can mean roughly 4x the amount of product produced in the same period of time. For a pure hobbyist, it can mean priming larger items…although size comes with its own unique challenges. 

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5 hours ago, ESzczesniak said:


One of the values of 8k vs 4k is keeping identical resolution in a larger build volume. For guys like Dave Roof doing this for a business, that can mean roughly 4x the amount of product produced in the same period of time. For a pure hobbyist, it can mean priming larger items…although size comes with its own unique challenges. 

 

To be honest, I don't like using the larger Saturn 2 for production. Yes, a lot more can be printed at once, but it is also a challenge to clean the parts. I have a series of steel tubs filled with alcohol that I wash the whole build plate in (first, second, third and final wash). I then shake off the excess and hit it with a hair dryer to evaporate any remaining alcohol. Pop off the parts, wipe the plate, put it back on the printer and start again. This whole process takes all of 2 minutes, if that. 

 

While the same thing can be done with the S2, the plate is much heavier and barely fits in the tubs. That's why I primarily use it for the 18th scale stuff.

 

Besides, the way I have most of my stuff set up, I can get 24 full sets of any one product on either two Mars 3 printers at once, or one printer twice. As an example, here is how I have FL48-8049 set up. At .05 layer height, it's a 2.5 hour print. 

 

Bigger isn't always better

 

Screenshot-106.png 

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I never really thought about it in terms of the same quality in a larger area. For me its more a higher quality in the same area.

But then Im not a production company. I dont really care how long the prints take as long as I get what Im hoping to get at the end of it.
I just set the printer to go and it finishes when it finishes.

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On 2/5/2023 at 5:59 PM, ElectroSoldier said:

 

 

However one of the videos that sold me was this.
(1) DO NOT BUY - Phrozen Sonic Mini 8k Review for Miniatures, Warhammer & More - YouTube

 

Ive watched this guy for a while, he normally goes with Elegoo printers but then a while after Luke did his video this came out and I was sold on it as it gives me exactly what I wanted, which was to be able to print my own GW quality level minis. Which it does and it is the only one that does RIGHT NOW!

The Elegoo printers seem to the 100% capable of printing out model aircraft conversions and such items, but wargaming minis are different.

It really depends what you want as to what one to look at as the price is £200 vs £800 and the quality jump isnt that big if you are not printing things like minis.

Electro, Dave,

I'm looking to design and print aviation items, wheels, seats, ordanance. The reason I plan to design is because I cant find any ready to go files on the internet. Perhaps I'm not searching well but no joy so far.

Thing is what do people base their design on? - scans, photo's, blueprints, best guess? I have no idea what companies are basing their design on - some acheive remarkablely excellent results (Dave for one, Reskit, Aires (except for the fit)) but how? If I design based on photo's I don't expect it to be anywhere close to accurate.

 

Marc.

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5 minutes ago, serendip said:

Electro, Dave,

I'm looking to design and print aviation items, wheels, seats, ordanance. The reason I plan to design is because I cant find any ready to go files on the internet. Perhaps I'm not searching well but no joy so far.

Thing is what do people base their design on? - scans, photo's, blueprints, best guess? I have no idea what companies are basing their design on - some acheive remarkablely excellent results (Dave for one, Reskit, Aires (except for the fit)) but how? If I design based on photo's I don't expect it to be anywhere close to accurate.

 

Marc.

 

Everything in my product line is based on technical drawings, measurements and personal photos taken of the real items. My MOS in the Marine Corps was Aviation Ordnance, so all of my reference material was gathered over the course of my career. I've also received stuff that I was missing from other Marines, and a couple of modeling friends that are also very knowledgeable on Ordnance. Regarding the aircraft specific stuff in my line, those were also designed using my personal photos and measurements. I also have most NATOPS and technical publications for the aircraft covered.  

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On 2/5/2023 at 9:59 AM, Dave Roof said:

Okay, things are still a bit crazy, but I can piece meal this together over the next few days. 

 

For starters, I would highly recommend the Elegoo Mars 3. It is a 4K printer that gives outstanding results and is currently the best bang for the buck. I currently have 7 of them and will be getting 3 more once we move into a new house and everything settles down. At the current price of $208, you really can't go wrong. Easy to level, easy to clean, easy to use and extra parts (LCD screen, build plates, vats) are readily available. 95% of the parts in my line are produced on this printer. 

 

There is a user group on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/groups/343429203114378 and there are dozens of videos on YouTube. I'll post more in a day or so.

 

https://www.amazon.com/ELEGOO-Monochrome-Ultra-high-143×89×175mm-5-62×3-5×6-8in/dp/B095K3JWP3/ref=sr_1_3?crid=18NA0BEP3KQEO&keywords=elegoo+mars+3&qid=1675612196&sprefix=elegoo+mars+3%2Caps%2C117&sr=8-3

 

71YQFRcTqBL._AC_SX679_.jpg 

Hey Dave, I have an Anycubic Mono X and am thinking of getting a smaller printer to handle smaller items. Have you ever had a chance to compare working with Elogoo vs Anycubic? It's all I've ever known so am leery going outside my comfort. BUT if the quality is there, it's there. 

 

Bill

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39 minutes ago, niart17 said:

Hey Dave, I have an Anycubic Mono X and am thinking of getting a smaller printer to handle smaller items. Have you ever had a chance to compare working with Elogoo vs Anycubic? It's all I've ever known so am leery going outside my comfort. BUT if the quality is there, it's there. 

 

Bill

 
I’m obviously not Dave, but I have an Anycubic M3 Plus and a Mars 3 Pro. As pertaining to model parts, I see very little difference. 
 

The Anycubic is a bit less flashy, not having an air filter and the optional camera and WiFi have never worked. But never had much issue printing. 
 

The Elegoo is a bit more polished package, but OOB prints failed until I tightened the FEP…not an issue to a seasoned resin printer person, but could have been hard to figure out what is going on to a newbie. 
 

The prints appear ever so slightly better on the Mars 3, but of no relevant difference on any model part I’ve printed. 

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1 hour ago, niart17 said:

Hey Dave, I have an Anycubic Mono X and am thinking of getting a smaller printer to handle smaller items. Have you ever had a chance to compare working with Elogoo vs Anycubic? It's all I've ever known so am leery going outside my comfort. BUT if the quality is there, it's there. 

 

Bill

 

46 minutes ago, ESzczesniak said:

 
I’m obviously not Dave, but I have an Anycubic M3 Plus and a Mars 3 Pro. As pertaining to model parts, I see very little difference. 
 

The Anycubic is a bit less flashy, not having an air filter and the optional camera and WiFi have never worked. But never had much issue printing. 
 

The Elegoo is a bit more polished package, but OOB prints failed until I tightened the FEP…not an issue to a seasoned resin printer person, but could have been hard to figure out what is going on to a newbie. 
 

The prints appear ever so slightly better on the Mars 3, but of no relevant difference on any model part I’ve printed. 

 

What Spaznek said! 😄 The only printer I've owned other than the Elegoo has been the Phrozen Sonic Mini 4K and I hated it. My failure rate using the Elegoo printers has been about 5% going back two + years. My failure rate on the Phrozen was about 50% no matter what I changed. Finally dumped it for a quarter what I paid for it. 

 

I honestly don't think I'll ever get anything other than Elegoo printers moving forward. 

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Jesus, I would never be able to own one of those 3D-printers. Not only is the learning curve to master the skills in order to use any CAD software, but also it is the settings for each part to be printed, the orientation on the printer build plate and how it's sliced and supported, etc... :doh:

Then it's also not poisoning your whole family while using/curing and disposing of resin.

Too much for me, but how I'd love to create my own detail parts.

Cheers,

 

Gwen  

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19 hours ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

Jesus, I would never be able to own one of those 3D-printers. Not only is the learning curve to master the skills in order to use any CAD software, but also it is the settings for each part to be printed, the orientation on the printer build plate and how it's sliced and supported, etc... :doh:

Then it's also not poisoning your whole family while using/curing and disposing of resin.

Too much for me, but how I'd love to create my own detail parts.

Cheers,

 

Gwen  

Thats pretty much how I saw it too, but its not as steep a learning curve as you might think now.
 

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19 hours ago, Dave Roof said:

 

 

What Spaznek said! 😄 The only printer I've owned other than the Elegoo has been the Phrozen Sonic Mini 4K and I hated it. My failure rate using the Elegoo printers has been about 5% going back two + years. My failure rate on the Phrozen was about 50% no matter what I changed. Finally dumped it for a quarter what I paid for it. 

 

I honestly don't think I'll ever get anything other than Elegoo printers moving forward. 

Yeah the one thing Ive noticed is the tricks you learn work with one make of printer dont really carry over to another.
 

The one reason I went with the Phrozen printer is lack of print failures...
But thats exactly why you dont like it.
Strange world 🙂 

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23 hours ago, Dave Roof said:

 

Everything in my product line is based on technical drawings, measurements and personal photos taken of the real items. My MOS in the Marine Corps was Aviation Ordnance, so all of my reference material was gathered over the course of my career. I've also received stuff that I was missing from other Marines, and a couple of modeling friends that are also very knowledgeable on Ordnance. Regarding the aircraft specific stuff in my line, those were also designed using my personal photos and measurements. I also have most NATOPS and technical publications for the aircraft covered.  

Dave, so you have inside knowledge which make your products absolute top of the line.

Any idea however where us mere mortals who don't have the access you do, can find files or information to model their own parts?

 

Thanks,

Marc.

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23 hours ago, ESzczesniak said:

 
I’m obviously not Dave, but I have an Anycubic M3 Plus and a Mars 3 Pro. As pertaining to model parts, I see very little difference. 
 

The Anycubic is a bit less flashy, not having an air filter and the optional camera and WiFi have never worked. But never had much issue printing. 
 

The Elegoo is a bit more polished package, but OOB prints failed until I tightened the FEP…not an issue to a seasoned resin printer person, but could have been hard to figure out what is going on to a newbie. 
 

The prints appear ever so slightly better on the Mars 3, but of no relevant difference on any model part I’ve printed. 

 

22 hours ago, Dave Roof said:

 

 

What Spaznek said! 😄 The only printer I've owned other than the Elegoo has been the Phrozen Sonic Mini 4K and I hated it. My failure rate using the Elegoo printers has been about 5% going back two + years. My failure rate on the Phrozen was about 50% no matter what I changed. Finally dumped it for a quarter what I paid for it. 

 

I honestly don't think I'll ever get anything other than Elegoo printers moving forward. 

Thanks guys.

 

I'm really looking forward to seeing where the newer DLP technology goes. I like the ides of not having to replace an LCD screen and it's a little less of a consumable. Hopefully the sizes and prices of those printers will start to come down.

 

Bill

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4 hours ago, ElectroSoldier said:

Thats pretty much how I saw it too, but its not as steep a learning curve as you might think now.

 

Hi ElectroSoldier,

Isn't it? If you were as noob as I am, how would you suggest I start from? Learning the ropes of Fusion 360 or any other CAD software first?

3D-printing is the way of the future. 

 

 

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9 hours ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

 

Hi ElectroSoldier,

Isn't it? If you were as noob as I am, how would you suggest I start from? Learning the ropes of Fusion 360 or any other CAD software first?

3D-printing is the way of the future. 

 

 

Blender seems to be a name that comes up very often when talking about design. As does TinkerCAD.
I havent looked into it much as Im more interested in wargaming miniatures which I aint going to learn in 6-12 months.

 

They all seem to offer the same abilities, its only the look of the application that changes for the most part.
Having said that however all the slicers offer similar abilities but not all of them work well with my printer, so there must be more to the CAD IDEs too.

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10 hours ago, niart17 said:

 

Thanks guys.

 

I'm really looking forward to seeing where the newer DLP technology goes. I like the ides of not having to replace an LCD screen and it's a little less of a consumable. Hopefully the sizes and prices of those printers will start to come down.

 

Bill

Thats the kind of thing I mean.
The quality level is what it is now, I dont think it will get better than being able to print something that is equal to a Games Workshop Space Marine without any discernible difference between the print and the original. However technologies like DLP might change how it gets those results...
 

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On 1/28/2023 at 11:28 PM, serendip said:

I thinking of getting myself a 3D printer for making mostly smallish 1/48 aircraft parts - bang seats, undercarriage, bombs, missles, atennae - that kind of thing.

 

In the longer run also to print bigger stuff in the same scale (1/48 Vulcan, Hustler - who knows?)

 

All advice on best printer and printer type to buy, where to find available files, how to design your own stuff, all would be much appreciated.

 

From the questions you're asking and your other comments throughout the thread, I'd suggest that you probably want to wait before buying a printer.

 

There are very few files out there for the scale modeller.  There will be some of the more generic items like bombs (though no vouching for quality.  the designer may or may not care about accuracy - even if the file looks nice - so you'll have to vet everything yourself), but if there's something that you want to add to your model, expect that you'll have to design it yourself.  If you want things that are 'pop culture' related (sci-fi, video games, comics, wargaming, etc), that's doable as there is definitely a market for that (some free, far more that's paid), but 'real' stuff is few and far between. I'm also not convinced that there will ever be much of a market for scale model print files; scale modelling is a small market and piracy is real.

 

So my first suggestion would be to at least try designing some simple items first to see if you enjoy that before thinking about buying a printer.  Blender and Fusion 360 are the two main, free software options out there, and you'll find a ton of tutorial videos/blogs with a quick search, so you can get a feel for what it entails.  It's not particularly hard, but it does take time and is kind of like another hobby - you can easily spend as much time or more at the computer, preparing stuff as you will at the bench, building.  As far as how... aside from knowing how to use the software, it's basically the same as scratchbuilding: gather the best references you can, and have a decent eye for breaking down and reproducing shapes.  There's no magic button that turns an idea into a physical object.

 

It's also worth noting, running a 3D printer is itself pretty much another hobby.  They're a lot easier to use now, but there's still a learning curve and it is ultimately a tool, not an appliance.  You will need to spend time learning how to use and troubleshoot the machine.  (also: getting started, a printer is probably about half your budget; the other half will be for tools, protective equipment and the assorted other gear you'll need to run it)

 

To answer your questions more specifically...

 

You want to get an MSLA or DLP (resin) 3D printer.  The details are much finer and the prints smoother than any of the alternatives.  MSLA and DLP irinters are comparable, but function differently - MSLA uses an LCD screen to Mask an array of light; DLP uses a projector to project an image.  DLP printers are rarer and more expensive, but a little more geometrically precise.  MSLA printers are technologically simpler, cheaper, and far more common.  Filament printers are okay for more practical stuff, but if your main concern is cosmetic, resin printers are the best.

  

I would stick to one of the more mainstream brands.  They'll have better support for spares, better communities for troubleshooting and a broader base for figuring out settings.  They will also *generally* be better built - 3D printers are pretty much using commodity components at this point, so it's really easy for someone in Shenzhen to spin up a company, throw together a few components and release a printer, but that doesn't mean they have any idea what they're actually doing.  This is particularly true with filament 3D printers, where there are countless poorly engineered clones of a few popular printers, but it also happens with resin printers.

 

I tend to view Anycubic as sort of the 'default' brand.  They're kind of middle of the road - not the best, not the cheapest, not super innovative, but just sort of a solid baseline, workable printer.

 

Phrozen are a step up in price, but are typically a little better engineered and a little better thought out.  The biggest 'issue' with Phrozen are that they're based in Taiwan, so they don't benefit from the cheap, subsidized shipping costs of the Chinese manufacturers.

 

Elegoo is typically a small step down in price from Anycubic.  IMO, their engineering isn't as good (or rather, they tend to sacrifice engineering for cost), but the printers are fine, and the lower cost means they have probably the largest user base.

 

Peopoly have a solid reputation, but they're also significantly more expensive, because they tend to innovate and do their own thing.  Prusa occupy an odd place, where they're sort of just an expensive (but very nice) version of the Chinese printers.  Epax used to have a very solid reputation but they've sort of stagnated as they focus on professional/dental printers.  Creality and Voxellab also produce acceptable printers, but IMO you'd be better off sticking to Anycubic/Elegoo/Phrozen due to the larger install base.

 

In terms of which specific printer... that depends.  Larger printers print larger stuff, but they also magnify any problems you might have.  They cost more to run, cost more to repair, and are generally more of a hassle.  I'd probably suggest starting smaller if you can (unless you NEED a larger printer to produce the things you want to make).  There isn't really any benefit to having extra capacity that you will never use.  Something in the 6" screen class is going to be fine for most detail parts; an 8" printer will let you do some larger parts, should you desire.  If you want to print detail parts now, and maybe a large kit later, I would buy a smaller printer now, and then invest in a larger printer when you're ready/willing to print larger parts.

 

Resolution does matter, but not in the way 3D printer companies market it.  Ignore the 2K/4K/5K/6K/7K/8K thing; it's okay for comparing printers with the same screen size, but meaningless when the screens are different sizes.  What you care about is pixel size, or X/Y resolution.  The smaller the pixel, the smaller each dot on the screen, and the smoother your print will be.  All things being equal, you want the smallest pixel size you can get, though it's not the be-all end-all, and a micron or two isn't going to make a ton of difference.  Prints with 50um/50 micron resolution will be fine, particularly with optimized settings.  You probably don't want to go lower than this, though.  Prints with 30um resolution will look injection molded with optimized settings.  There's probably not much need to go higher than this.

 

As for finding files.  There are a bunch of sites hosting 3D printing files.  Thingiverse is the largest.  Printables, Cults3D and MyMiniFactory are also fairly large, and there is also Pinshape and Youmagine.  STLFinder is a search engine for printing files, and you can always just try searching Google for whatever you want + STL.

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On 2/14/2023 at 8:57 PM, MoFo said:

 

From the questions you're asking and your other comments throughout the thread, I'd suggest that you probably want to wait before buying a printer.

 

There are very few files out there for the scale modeller.  There will be some of the more generic items like bombs (though no vouching for quality.  the designer may or may not care about accuracy - even if the file looks nice - so you'll have to vet everything yourself), but if there's something that you want to add to your model, expect that you'll have to design it yourself.  If you want things that are 'pop culture' related (sci-fi, video games, comics, wargaming, etc), that's doable as there is definitely a market for that (some free, far more that's paid), but 'real' stuff is few and far between. I'm also not convinced that there will ever be much of a market for scale model print files; scale modelling is a small market and piracy is real.

 

So my first suggestion would be to at least try designing some simple items first to see if you enjoy that before thinking about buying a printer.  Blender and Fusion 360 are the two main, free software options out there, and you'll find a ton of tutorial videos/blogs with a quick search, so you can get a feel for what it entails.  It's not particularly hard, but it does take time and is kind of like another hobby - you can easily spend as much time or more at the computer, preparing stuff as you will at the bench, building.  As far as how... aside from knowing how to use the software, it's basically the same as scratchbuilding: gather the best references you can, and have a decent eye for breaking down and reproducing shapes.  There's no magic button that turns an idea into a physical object.

 

It's also worth noting, running a 3D printer is itself pretty much another hobby.  They're a lot easier to use now, but there's still a learning curve and it is ultimately a tool, not an appliance.  You will need to spend time learning how to use and troubleshoot the machine.  (also: getting started, a printer is probably about half your budget; the other half will be for tools, protective equipment and the assorted other gear you'll need to run it)

 

To answer your questions more specifically...

 

You want to get an MSLA or DLP (resin) 3D printer.  The details are much finer and the prints smoother than any of the alternatives.  MSLA and DLP irinters are comparable, but function differently - MSLA uses an LCD screen to Mask an array of light; DLP uses a projector to project an image.  DLP printers are rarer and more expensive, but a little more geometrically precise.  MSLA printers are technologically simpler, cheaper, and far more common.  Filament printers are okay for more practical stuff, but if your main concern is cosmetic, resin printers are the best.

  

I would stick to one of the more mainstream brands.  They'll have better support for spares, better communities for troubleshooting and a broader base for figuring out settings.  They will also *generally* be better built - 3D printers are pretty much using commodity components at this point, so it's really easy for someone in Shenzhen to spin up a company, throw together a few components and release a printer, but that doesn't mean they have any idea what they're actually doing.  This is particularly true with filament 3D printers, where there are countless poorly engineered clones of a few popular printers, but it also happens with resin printers.

 

I tend to view Anycubic as sort of the 'default' brand.  They're kind of middle of the road - not the best, not the cheapest, not super innovative, but just sort of a solid baseline, workable printer.

 

Phrozen are a step up in price, but are typically a little better engineered and a little better thought out.  The biggest 'issue' with Phrozen are that they're based in Taiwan, so they don't benefit from the cheap, subsidized shipping costs of the Chinese manufacturers.

 

Elegoo is typically a small step down in price from Anycubic.  IMO, their engineering isn't as good (or rather, they tend to sacrifice engineering for cost), but the printers are fine, and the lower cost means they have probably the largest user base.

 

Peopoly have a solid reputation, but they're also significantly more expensive, because they tend to innovate and do their own thing.  Prusa occupy an odd place, where they're sort of just an expensive (but very nice) version of the Chinese printers.  Epax used to have a very solid reputation but they've sort of stagnated as they focus on professional/dental printers.  Creality and Voxellab also produce acceptable printers, but IMO you'd be better off sticking to Anycubic/Elegoo/Phrozen due to the larger install base.

 

In terms of which specific printer... that depends.  Larger printers print larger stuff, but they also magnify any problems you might have.  They cost more to run, cost more to repair, and are generally more of a hassle.  I'd probably suggest starting smaller if you can (unless you NEED a larger printer to produce the things you want to make).  There isn't really any benefit to having extra capacity that you will never use.  Something in the 6" screen class is going to be fine for most detail parts; an 8" printer will let you do some larger parts, should you desire.  If you want to print detail parts now, and maybe a large kit later, I would buy a smaller printer now, and then invest in a larger printer when you're ready/willing to print larger parts.

 

Resolution does matter, but not in the way 3D printer companies market it.  Ignore the 2K/4K/5K/6K/7K/8K thing; it's okay for comparing printers with the same screen size, but meaningless when the screens are different sizes.  What you care about is pixel size, or X/Y resolution.  The smaller the pixel, the smaller each dot on the screen, and the smoother your print will be.  All things being equal, you want the smallest pixel size you can get, though it's not the be-all end-all, and a micron or two isn't going to make a ton of difference.  Prints with 50um/50 micron resolution will be fine, particularly with optimized settings.  You probably don't want to go lower than this, though.  Prints with 30um resolution will look injection molded with optimized settings.  There's probably not much need to go higher than this.

 

As for finding files.  There are a bunch of sites hosting 3D printing files.  Thingiverse is the largest.  Printables, Cults3D and MyMiniFactory are also fairly large, and there is also Pinshape and Youmagine.  STLFinder is a search engine for printing files, and you can always just try searching Google for whatever you want + STL.

Thanks MoFo for the well thought out advice. Indeed, personally, for the time being I'm just raising my awareness, talking to people, asking questions on (aircraft scale modelling) fora, that kind of thing, before I buy.

I do wonder (but doubt) how good 3D scanning is. This could potentially be an option to buying files due to the lack of those -  I.e. go down to your local museum, scan an ejection seat (as one does) and print that. I would guess we are light years from that(?)

Marc.

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FDM printers operate like glue guns on a plotter and are limited by nozzle size.   SLA printers (which use liquid resin) seem like they were invented for the scale modeler : )  I've had good prints from an Elegoo Mars Pro but lately the build plate ends up askew no matter how I try to level it.   I'm not sure if this is the reason for the layer-shifting in the middle of a build.   The build plate hangs on a ball joint (?) and there are just 2 bolts to secure it.   Lately I've been using a Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K which uses 4 bolts on its build plate which I find a joy to level.  In the beginning I used the same exposure settings as on the Elegoo and anything I print always had issues of rafts tearing from the build plate but this was resolved by increasing the exposure time of the first layers.  Prints have been turning out really nice and detailed but I've noticed a knocking sound when the build plate comes down to print the first few layers.   I've checked the rails and they seem secure so I still cringe during the first layers of a print run.   

 

img%5D

 

img%5D 

 

img%5D

 

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When I was just starting out I felt overwhelmed about the myriad of steps you have to do but you eventually develop a system the more you print.  I still don't enjoy creating supports and removing them or doing the necessary goo cleanup after every printing session but these are the things you have to put up with when using these wonderful machines. 

 

Regarding the question about scanners I'm really curious, too.   I once tried to get a couple scanning services to have the forward fuselage of my 1/48 Hasegawa A-7E scanned -- they tried but eventually gave up.  But that was three years ago maybe things have changed.   I was hoping it was something easy as there aren't really a lot of tiny details and I just wanted the basic shape that I can scale up and print.  As for 3D scanning a whole ejection seat maybe that would be possible, too, but I read the bigger work is in the cleanup of the 3D mesh and manipulating it to make it water-tight  and create something printable.  Scans might be a good basis, though, for doing the 3D from scratch if there there are measureable points.

 

I would suggest don't wait for the latest and greatest before you start.   Printers are evolving so quickly you'll always be yearning for the next new one anyway.   Resolutions are getting better every year but even with the current resolutions prints can look almost like real kit parts -- a far cry from the sugar-cube-like textures of Shapeways parts ten years ago.  Printed parts can still be a bit brittle, though, so you have to choose the right kind of resin depending on the durability you require.

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Thanks, and those parts look excellent. I'm guessing you designed the parts yourself?

 

Surely there must be a reasonable number of people on Earth designing bits for 'planes. I reckon there's a merket there, if not potential for sharing, swapping.

 

Marc.

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22 hours ago, crackerjazz said:

 

When I was just starting out I felt overwhelmed about the myriad of steps you have to do but you eventually develop a system the more you print.  I still don't enjoy creating supports and removing them or doing the necessary goo cleanup after every printing session but these are the things you have to put up with when using these wonderful machines. 

 

 

 

I had a problem with supports but now I just get pre supported files and not had a problem since.
I got the Phrozen clean and cure stations. The build plate comes off the printer and into the cleaner, I use industrial methylated spirits instead of IPA which does a nice job of cleaning up the goo, so well in fact that its not a chore at all then off the plate and into the cure station and thats it.
Hot water is usually enough to remove the supports. But Im using the Phrozen 8k resin. Other resins might not work so well.

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On 2/16/2023 at 11:33 PM, serendip said:

I do wonder (but doubt) how good 3D scanning is. This could potentially be an option to buying files due to the lack of those -  I.e. go down to your local museum, scan an ejection seat (as one does) and print that. I would guess we are light years from that(?)

 

Short answer: yes, we are light years from that.  Again, there is no magic button that turns an idea into a physical object.  If you want to 3D print for scale models, you need to learn CAD, or digital sculpting.

 

12 hours ago, serendip said:

Surely there must be a reasonable number of people on Earth designing bits for 'planes. I reckon there's a merket there, if not potential for sharing, swapping.

 

There aren't.  Again, if you want to 3D print for scale models, you need to learn CAD, or digital sculpting.  And that's really unlikely to change; after all, it hasn't changed for decals or masks, even though between printers, plotters and laser cutters, you can pretty much reproduce those at home.  Because it takes time, experience and expertise to create quality product, and most people aren't willing to give that away for free.  After all, if someone asks you to build a contest-worthy model for them, you're probably not going to do it for the price of a kit and a few bottles of paint.  Because your time and skill has value.

 

You will likely see a blossoming market of cottage industry manufacturers selling their own wares, just as we saw when the ALPS printers hit, but it's not going to be free.  You're not going to be able to just download an ejection seat and print of a bajillion copies.

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22 minutes ago, MoFo said:

 

Short answer: yes, we are light years from that.  Again, there is no magic button that turns an idea into a physical object.  If you want to 3D print for scale models, you need to learn CAD, or digital sculpting.

 

 

There aren't.  Again, if you want to 3D print for scale models, you need to learn CAD, or digital sculpting.  And that's really unlikely to change; after all, it hasn't changed for decals or masks, even though between printers, plotters and laser cutters, you can pretty much reproduce those at home.  Because it takes time, experience and expertise to create quality product, and most people aren't willing to give that away for free.  After all, if someone asks you to build a contest-worthy model for them, you're probably not going to do it for the price of a kit and a few bottles of paint.  Because your time and skill has value.

 

You will likely see a blossoming market of cottage industry manufacturers selling their own wares, just as we saw when the ALPS printers hit, but it's not going to be free.  You're not going to be able to just download an ejection seat and print of a bajillion copies.

Im with you there. I dont think we will ever see any real amount of downloadable files that allow the user to print their own XXX.
That may change with some DRM but that would need to be in the printer as well as in the file you download so the manufacturer can make it so the file you download can only be printed on your printer.

 

People sharing the files they pay is a problem for manufacturers.
Its not something Ive found in the miniature wargaming scene yet but the relative exclusivity of a model is one of the things that gives it value.

By which I mean I know a fair few wargamers but very few of them have the minis that I do and I like that so I wouldnt share the STL files I have with them else I will lose that exclusivity. 

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