Modelling bits for 3d printing

[Malika]

I felt like doing these quick shots just to give you an idea of scale. Clicking on the pictures will take you to the Dakka gallery where you can zoom in a bit on them.


You might not notice it, but I've increased the size of the skyrays with about 50%. Whilst this does mean I'd have to revisit some of the details, the model's size does seem to make more sense to me now, especially when compared to the other models.


The hound looks a bit weird from this angle, too static almost. I need to look at some more wolf/hound models to see if those have a similar problem when taken from an angle like this.


Little by little the squidwheel (why am I thinking of giving it some cliched name like 'Dominator' or something?) is getting there. It'll still need more detailing, and I would like to also add some vents or something along those lines...


SketchUp's human scale model is a flat picture, and whilst it'll turn automatically when you turn the 'camera' around, it doesn't really do that when you're doing a top view with parallel projection. Thus the silly looking line on that 25mm round base...

[Malika]

Ok, felt like playing with the styles over at SketchUp, which allows me to make the stuff look more like artwork. Man, I need to learn Photoshop and Illustrator!

However, in the meantime I did a little bit of work on the Squidwheel:


Also, did you notice the base the human is standing on? I couldn't resist and made a bunch of 25mm and 40mm round bases!

[Islacrusez]

The squidwheel could perhaps be posed with 2-3 spikes touching the floor as it would likely use them for balance and turning?

[Malika]

That is indeed a possibility. Perhaps I should make some tentacles in more different poses, thus allowing users to create their own poses for the Squidwheel.

[Malika]

I've finished up the first batch of bases:

The top three ones are 65mm, the ten middle ones are 40mm and the bottom fourteen are 25mm. I could of course make many more variations with also more stuff sticking out and such, maybe even cavalry bases, 30mm and 50mm ones and even bigger stuff for titans, but doubt it would be that relevant. 25mm works for normal infantry, 40mm for larger models and 65mm for chunkier stuff.

[mangozac]

They look pretty good! You'll need some high-res printing if you want those mesh areas to turn out right though

[Malika]

Yeah, I figured. The lines in the mesh areas are luckily enough around 0.5mm thick, so they are rather doable. I might also have found a caster who'd be interested in producing them. Lets see where this'll go!

[Malika]

Went back to one of my old loves: Space Hulk terrain!




Wall component and floor piece:


Corner component ('front' and 'back' views):


The system allows for easy creation of corridors and rooms. The clunkiness makes sure that you won't need connectors or anything like that, at the same time it kind of adds to the whole claustrophobic vibe of the design.

The main challenge is the size of the wall and corner components. Note that each component is 40mm x 40m (length and width). This is where the clunkiness of the walls becomes a bit problematic. You can't shove a tun of them in an envelope or easy sprue. Weight might also become a problem.

A possible solution for this is to cut the walls in two, but it would mean more parts if you want something complete. Also, the corner piece can't really be cut in two.

[mangozac]

Looks great! The problem is that in the shot of the whole room the repetition becomes detracting. I think you're better off doing much longer modules for longer walls so that the detail can be more interesting and less repetitive.

[Malika]

Personally I'd like there to be some variant components as well, that way you're allowed more variation. However, the idea of making the parts longer is also rather interesting, but it does mess a bit with the whole modular character of it since you're always forced to make long corridors or rooms with wide walls.

[mangozac]

The solution there is that you're not doing long pieces instead of the shorter ones: you have both!

[Islacrusez]

I think the key is not to have the pattern repeat that often. I think the vertical pipe should repeat maybe half if not 1/3 as often as it does there.

[Malika]

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

Here's a little update:


I've managed to break the repetition of the pattern a bit by removing the middle vertical pipe. One other thing I'd like to include here is a separate part that could be added into the middle square of the wall component. That part could include different types of control panels, closets, giant fans, etc. I would perhaps make 3-5 of such different components, allowing you to customize the wall parts and make them more unique.

@Mangozac: totally forgot that! I should keep that in mind...

[RageofAchilles]

nice work!
The walls are a nice thickness, but you may have to consider making them thinner or hollow. From the look of things the amount of resin used to make even one corridor and a room would be considerable and expensive.

[mangozac]