Hi!

I'm in a bit of a pickle at the moment. I've been working on designing some spaceships and would like to print a prototype. My first option was to go for Shapeways, they seem to offer a more of less decent price for what I'm after. However, when I see the result of their Frosted Ultra Detail, I'm not happy.

Then there are other services such as Timo Laumann or Maxmini who seem to do better quality stuff, but the price really goes up.

I'm curious what your experiences with 3d printing are, I know some of you have been working on quite some interesting projects. What I'm looking for is a company that can print fine detail, but also maintain smooth surfaces for a more or less reasonable price.

So yeah, what are your experiences with 3d printing?

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Bits Blitz - The place to be for all your bits needs!

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

Yeah, that damn layering... I never knew MaxMini did 3D printing. Judging by the resolution, I'm going to guess they are doing a wax process, like a jeweler, rather than an additive 3D like Shapeways machines. What are MaxMini's prices like?

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Adeptus Monk-anicus
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Malika talk to deadmeat on resin addict, im going with him next.

They do, the guy behind Khorosho Production (also Statuesque Miniatures) had some bad experiences with them though. You can read about it here, it includes an interesting comparison between MaxMini3d and Timo Laumann. The quality of the latter is amazing, but the prices are pretty high.

However, what I really like of MaxMini is that they offer a resin copy of the model as well, which could function as a master.


I've spoken with him already, will hopefully be able to have a deeper discussion with him to see the possibilities. His stuff is also pretty high quality. He did warn me that Shapeway's rates aren't the norm, which kind of worries me. I expected to pay $90 for a printed prototype, which I already find quite expensive. However, I think that for the quality I'm looking for I shouldn't be surprised to end up paying $200 or even $300 for the printing of a prototype.

I guess it's the fact of a decent income that is freaking me out. However, on the Troll Forged Miniatures forum we've been discussing potentially running Member Project Kickstarters. I know this normally meant for sculpted miniatures that need to be cast, but perhaps in case of a 3d printed model, we could include the printing costs in the set goal...

Either way, it will take at least a couple of months until my financial situation will allow me to do these kinda things. Which is a bit sad, but it does enable me to take the time to look around and perfect the designs. Which is also kinda the reason why I started this thread.

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Bits Blitz - The place to be for all your bits needs!

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

You could also send a shout to the community to see who wants what, and use the initial purchase to fund to the production of the miniature through sales. You wouldnt make any profit but you could get a production mold out of the first sales.

Basically a mini Kickstarter, it's crowdfunding. That's not a bad idea either. But without any company backing me at this it might be a bit difficult to pull off. This means I would need to already have a printing company and caster who are able/willing to collaborate. When it comes to this I'd want to do it with people I can trust, and/or have everything very clearly on paper. I've seen plenty of projects going bad because one of the involved parties couldn't live up to their part of the deal. That would be a real shame since it not only ruins all trust those who invested had, it can permanently ruin the reputations of all parties involved.

I mean, look at the whole Defiance Games debacle for example. They're now trying to do a Kickstarter, and whilst they did bring in quite some money, many people won't trust them anymore after their last mess.

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Bits Blitz - The place to be for all your bits needs!

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

I'm not even talkking about a kickstarter, i'm just saying get a little community backing. it shouldnt be that much to get to a production mold, part of the cost you can do yourself.

I think printing all the components would cost me around $500. I'm not sure what the casting costs are, but I would imagine that would be another $500. But I don't know how many casts that would be. Lets say it would be enough casts to build 4-5 ships for each contributor, then we would need 50 people to each donate $20.

It sounds doable... There are still some risks and administration etc. Which is why many use a platform like Kickstarter to take care of those things.

But ok, this is still an option worth considering....

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Bits Blitz - The place to be for all your bits needs!

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

Hmmmm, first of all how big is the item your trying to print? And your trying to cast them in resin correct? If it was too cost you 500 to do the casts I would use the money to buy a home kit and do it myself. my casting set up cost about $250 bucks. compressor, pressure pot, and conversion pieces. And trust me you don't need a vaccuum i get pretty awesome results without vaccuming at all, just paint the first layer of silicone on and your good to poor ontop then apply pressure. My PU resin costs about 45 bucks for a half gallon, i can make a bunch of stuff with that much. 4 pound kit of silicone is 115 with hardener, or you could do the 1 pound kit that is enough for making 1 mold.

http://www.tapplastics.com/product/mold ... ik_cast/74

Then ontop of buying it you are saving the labor costs as your doing the work. And once you spend that money you have your setup until it wears out, which it can last considerably as long as you take care of your stuff.

Just some food for though, I'd be willing to help and give advice but as you know the place i learned my trade is resin addict.

Blind-

Very interesting topic, thanks.

Hi,
Not sure what country you are in but its worth giving these guys a look at: https://www.facebook.com/clockwork3dprinting?fref=ts

They're UK based and provide a good service and have done a large range of miniatures from a lot of the current kickstarters to some lines for the bigger manufacturers, including some 6mm figures. There's examples on their FB page. Mainly commercial stuff so they might be a bit pricey for a one off but you are guaranteed a professional quality print compared to Shapeways. Worth enquiring.

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Warterrier.co.uk