3D printed road vehicles

[grahame]

On 19/08/2019 at 08:55, BernardTPM said:

Interesting that the '1990s' cars are all designs going back to the 1980s or earlier.

 

Yep, rather similar, although perhaps not quite as bad, as the Oxford DC '1970s' model set which doesn't appear to feature any new cars from that decade.

 

https://www.oxforddiecast.co.uk/collections/1-148/products/carflat-pack-1970s-cars-or148cpk002

 

I'm not very good at recognising and knowing dates of cars but most in that '1970s set' look the same as those in the '1960s' pack and appears to include a VW Beetle (designed in the 1930s), a Morris Minor (introduced 1948), Ford Anglia 105E (1959 - 1968), Austin Mini (introduced in 1959), Austin Princess (from the 1950s) and a Citroen 2CV (introduced in the 1940s) as well other oldies? I can't see any cars I recognise that were actually introduced and launched as brand new models in the 1970s.

 

G

Edited September 1, 2019 by grahame

[BernardTPM]

I think the 'Austin Princess' is actually the Daimler DS420, so is reasonably appropriate being ointroduced in 1968 and made into the 1990s, though not an ordinary everyday car. The Land Rover is a series 1, odd given they do more appropriate versions - same could apply to the Mini, using their (1968-80) Clubman model. So four out of those ten ceased production in the 1960s and even the Minor Traveller only just scrapes in, discontinued in 1971. The two Bay Window VWs are OK and the Bettle and 2CV had a long life. My suggested 10 models from their 00 range would be Land Rover s.II, Mini Clubman, VW Bay window, Triumph 2000 Mk.II, Ford Cortina Mk.3, Morris Marina, Jaguar XJS, Rover SD1, VW Golf Mk.1, Ford Fiesta, (trying to avoid more recent introductions and to spread across manufacturers). There are others to choose from that are proper '70s jobs as well.

[grahame]

Including cars from the fag end of production that just sneaked in to the start of the 70s, especially when they were designed a generation earlier and first introduced several decades before is not really playing the game (of labelling them as 1970s cars). And especially as the 70s range (10 vehicles) appears to be replicated in their 60s range (of 12 vehicles). As they randomly select four (from the ten) you could end up with a set of veteran cars from a different generation. 

 

The best selling cars of the 70s (in order) were the Ford Cortina Mk3, Ford Escort Mk2, Mini, Morris Marina, Vauxhall Viva, Austin/Morris 1100/1300, Austin Allegro, Ford Capri Mk1, Hillman Avenger and Austin Maxi, so were presumably the most common on the roads. It would be a good start and common sense for ODC to consider them.

 

G

[Mike Harvey]

On 01/09/2019 at 15:43, grahame said:

 

The best selling cars of the 70s (in order) were the Ford Cortina Mk3, Ford Escort Mk2, Mini, Morris Marina, Vauxhall Viva, Austin/Morris 1100/1300, Austin Allegro, Ford Capri Mk1, Hillman Avenger and Austin Maxi, so were presumably the most common on the roads. It would be a good start and common sense for ODC to consider them.

 

G

 

On the positive side Oxford have 8 out of the 10 in the 1/76 range, plus the HB Viva which was replaced at the beginning of the decade. Only the Hillman Avenger is totally missing. A similar performance for all post war decades in 1/76 would be a major achievement. Seeing them in 1/148 scale would be a longshot in my opinion. 

[grahame]

I picked up an N gauge scale 3D printed Leyland Titan (B15) by N-Train at TINGS yesterday. It's printed in that white rough 'dentine' acrylic which is going to need a lot of work to smooth and finish:

 

 

And consequently the detail is very ill defined and sparse - so that is going to need to be added. There's a lack of panel lines and grilles. And it's not quite right with the roof looking too flat with insufficiently rounded corners. Plus the rear window opening square looks too small. In fact it doesn't seen as accurate as the Leyland Fleetline I tried bashing and had to scratch-built a complete lower rear end. However size is pretty much spot on for 1:148. It's going to be a long haul re-building/bashing modelling project to get it as I want.

 

Here's the back end compared with the unfinished conversion effort and the real thing:

 

 

 

[acg5324]

Mmm looks like you’ll have your work cut out Grahame. I’ve just managed to acquire a second Cars Workshop DMS, and have a couple of BT Atlanteans to convert to another Metrobus. Shame as the 3D printed Titan would have useful.

[grahame]

1 hour ago, acg5324 said:

Mmm looks like you’ll have your work cut out Grahame. I’ve just managed to acquire a second Cars Workshop DMS, and have a couple of BT Atlanteans to convert to another Metrobus. Shame as the 3D printed Titan would have useful.

 

Yep, plenty to do for the Titan and the more I look at the 3D print the more I see needs doing or correcting.

 

I'm okay for CW Fleetlines. They're a Hong Kong based company and I arranged for my sister to go to the model shops and buy the ones they had left for me when she was in Hong Kong for work. I've got at least a dozen DMSs, over half a dozen Pointers and plenty of others.

[grahame]

The type of acrylic resin the Titan is printed in is horrible stuff (I've made a mental note to avoid in future). It's very resistant to filing (but will cut with a sharp blade). As it will cut I've opened out the rear window opening and the rear upper deck window/escape door (both were far too small) and cut a slope on the bodyside bottom edge behind the rear wheels (I might need to increase that). I've also undertaken several rounds of filing, priming and re-filing including trying to round the roof corners. But it's still not satisfactory and looks like it has been cast from concrete. It's going to take a lot more effort to get it smooth, acceptable and ready to add some details:

 

 

 

And the more I look the more I'm less happy with it. The designer has made it very boxy which is fair enough as the bus is very cuboid in shape apart from the upper windows slope in at an angle. But they've made everything flat and square: the windows don't seem to have curved corners, the roof is flat with no slight doming and profile details and the edge of the roof is sharply right angled with the sides/ends; there is no curvature across the front driving end (it's just flat); and even the bottom edge is straight without the angled rise behind the rear wheels.

 

 

 

[njee20]

It’s a shame N-Train use that awful material. I’ve been tempted by a few of their EMU kits, but you have the choice of obliterating all detail, or having it look like it’s made from sandstone!

[grahame]

3 hours ago, njee20 said:

It’s a shame N-Train use that awful material. I’ve been tempted by a few of their EMU kits, but you have the choice of obliterating all detail, or having it look like it’s made from sandstone!

 

Yep, I talked to Bob about it but his reasoning it that it is strong and demonstrated that by throwing one of his 3D prints on the floor. I appreciate the finer detail materials are more fragile and will break if dropped, but when he did that I just thought "I tend not to deliberately do that with my models".

Edited September 16, 2019 by grahame

[Mike Harvey]

About the only use I have found for Shapeways Versatile Plastic is the chassis adaptor for my motorised Oxford Diecast New Routemasters where the resilience of the material allows it to snap into place without damage. I think this is what NTrain use. Probably not a big issue if the body is being treated to a vinyl overlay like some of the EMUs, but less useful for a bus body where the final livery is going to be painted. I think the Titan B15 is going to be a challenge to complete with a good finish.

[grahame]

7 hours ago, Mike Harvey said:

 I think the Titan B15 is going to be a challenge to complete with a good finish.

 

Yep, definitely. And not just finish but shape as well as the 3D print is very square and flat and missing the necessary subtle curves to the front end and roof, as well as various details like fuel filler, grilles and side turn indicator lights.

 

Here's a pic comparing it (right) with a 4mm/OO EFE Titan (left) and an unfinished one that I had stared to bash from a CW Fleetline (middle):

 

[grahame]

Not happy with the flat front (which was featureless after the very poor details were sanded off to get a reasonably smooth finish), I've grafted the front from my aborted bashed conversion effort on to the 3D print. It's not a bad fit considering it was 1:150 scale and the 3D print is 1:148. There's some cleaning and tidying up to do and the pic below is a very cruel close-up, but I'm quite happy that now the front end is starting to look like a Titan B15 and has the necessary slight front curve. Next is to add some of the missing body side details and consider how to improve the roof:

 

 

 

[BernardTPM]

23 minutes ago, grahame said:

Next is to add some of the missing body side details and consider how to improve the roof:

A narrow strip of styrene down the middle and then filler to build up the curve?

[grahame]

5 hours ago, BernardTPM said:

A narrow strip of styrene down the middle and then filler to build up the curve?

 

Yep, that's what I did. However, I couldn't find any roof view pictures so I kept is simple, just a gentle doming. I also got some relief details added, although they are difficult to see all now one colour which is glossy until I matt it down:

 

 

 

 

Now to tidy it up, add some detail painting and transfers and then matt it down. Then it's the interior, wheels and glazing . . . . Phew, I'm not going to do another one using the N-Train 3D print. 

[BernardTPM]

Well done for making something out of it, Grahame. As you pointed out, the print was much too blocky and simplified to resemble the real bus.

[grahame]

18 minutes ago, BernardTPM said:

Well done for making something out of it, Grahame. As you pointed out, the print was much too blocky and simplified to resemble the real bus.

 

Thanks. It's been hard graft and not yet finished. And it's far from perfect, for example the lower deck windows although big in real life are too deep on the model, but it'll have to do for now. Hopefully it'll be recognisable as a Leyland Titan B15.

[BernardTPM]

They do look a little deep, but then again so do the top ones. Perhaps is the black rubbers were painted round the glazing that would reduce the apparent size.

[grahame]

I've made a little bit of progress on the Titan (but that's not all I've done all day). It's now looking like a little toy of the actual prototype. Despite the photographs being cruel and close-up, I'm quite pleased with how far it's come from the boxy, featureless 3D printed model I started with. After all it is a small N/2mm model measuring just 2.5 inches long and 1.25 inches tall. Hopefully, the rest of the work, painting and glazing will help make it look like a little model:

 

 

 

[grahame]

I thought the 3D printed wheels, which are finer being printed in FUD unlike the body, are possibly a little large and leaving the bus riding high. But maybe it is because they are unpainted in the pic above. Nonetheless I've temporarily fitted the moulded wheels from the CW Fleetline conversion project which is now effectively destroyed. They are a little smaller and being pre-coloured they also probably look quite a bit smaller (black being a 'slimming' colour) but also have more accurate centres. The ride height doesn't appear affected but I could fit the wheels a little higher to reduce that as they look a little low with a biggish gap above to the wheel arch underside. What does the team/panel think - are they too small or appropriate?

 

[BernardTPM]

The original wheels do look too big, these are not far out, I'd say, though the Titan wheelarches aren't a simple round shape. Given the other simplifications elsewhere on the body that isn't a surprise. Here's a real one.

[grahame]

Someone has provided me with the wheel/tyre dimensions and it scales out that they should be 7mm. But typically the Cars Workshop ones are a smidge under 7mm and the N-Train 3D printed ones a smidge over.

I think I might go for the CW ones as they probably look a little on small side being pre-coloured black and a little low under the wheel arch in the above pic. But they have more accurate wheel centres. And if I fit them a little higher it will reduce the ride height a bit (it seems too high) and fill out the arch. On the other hand when painted black/dark grey the 3D ones should 'look' a little slimmer.

 

Decisions, decisions, decisions . . . . . .

[Steadfast]

I'd go with the Cars Workshop wheels Grahame, the added detail in the centres is worth it .

I've got an N Train Mercedes Axor truck, bought from Shapeways and is totally FUD. It has similar shape simplifications but is getting there. I plan to replace the wheels with some from my stash, though the wheels from N Train that I won't use in the truck will make a nice upgrade to the 3D printed road railer I also got in the same Shapeways order. The road railer has stalled as it needed a bit of work to make it more prototypical looking

 

Jo

[grahame]

Just a little work on the bus this morning but a post package has arrived with my recent order of bits from the 2mm SA so I'm now itching to crack on with the project that will use them. Consequently I'm putting the 3D printed Titan to one side and will have to get back to finishing it, including the glazing, at a later time. This is how it looks ATM:

 

 

 

[grahame]

I've been playing around with taking snaps, using two different cameras, hand held and on a tripod, various ISO/ASA settings, and using only natural light from the window to gauge their effect on sharpness, DoF, etc. As the unfinished 3D printed B15 model was used as a prop I've posted a pic below of one of the (better) results: