3d printing crew figures

[highlanderburial]

Greetings all,

While I am pretty sure posting anything made from a 3d printer is probably bad form here I wanted to share a side project I worked on over the weekend. I personally love seeing crew figures on model boat/ships but always have a hard time finding them in the scales or poses I want. This weekend I digitally drew out 4 "age of sail" style crew in 4 poses in my 3d aoftware. I then printed them in 1/48 ish scale. The awesome part about having these designs is I can size them up to 40mm or down to 3mm tall.   I think they would look at home on a pirate ship or navy vessel depending on how they get painted. In the second photo I have compared my prints to an Amati figure (right) and a 1/48 scale figure on the left. The figure with the saber was literally transposed from a Captain Morgan rum ad! The UV light is used to cure the resin.

 

Has anyone else done this?

 

[mtaylor]

Your figures came out very well.   Use of a 3D printer shouldn't get you any flack.   I used the search feature at the top of page (make sure to change the setting to "this forum" and used "figures".   Quite a few hits actually and I'm pretty sure there's more in other sub-forums.

[MEDDO]

Those look really nice especially if you were able to whip em up over the weekend.  Properly scaled figures always add life to a static model and really help with visualizing the scale of the project

[HSM]

I recently bought the same printer you have and have used it to make davits and lifeboats for a cruise liner I am making. It produces amazing results doesn't it? Being a newcomer to 3-D modeling I am impressed with your figures. Can you briefly tell how you made the computer models?

[highlanderburial]

At first I spent about 6 hours in the free blender program but then just used Hero Forge miniature maker (super fun!) and spent about 20 bucks for the files!

[Nirvana]

22 hours ago, highlanderburial said:

At first I spent about 6 hours in the free blender program but then just used Hero Forge miniature maker (super fun!) and spent about 20 bucks for the files!

That's an amazing website. Here's a link to their website.

[Matle]

I don’t see why that would be bad form, thanks for posting. 3D printing is here to stay,  for finished products and for making masters for moulding. That you only needed a few hours to whip that up is enough proof of concept.

 

One question from someone who only has space for small models - down to what scale do you think your equipment would be able to produce sharp results? I guess 1/64 should work if 1/48 looks that good, but what about 1/100 and 1/200ish? I’m curious what hobby-modellers as us would be able to do - I’m sure there is expensive industrial machines which can do it but that is another topic really.

[highlanderburial]

The biggest factor for 3d printing figures is the starting digital model (high res or low res) and how fine the printer can print per line. My printer can do lines down to .01 microns (1/10th a human hair roughly) so it can make them pretty fine. To succinctly answer your scale question there are presently 1/350th scale sailors for sail as a low res digital file. For that size it is probably more than adequate for a viewer to see guys with covers arms and legs in various poses that look the part. My biggest concern would be getting something this small off the print bed which usually involves a small flat head screw driver. I am learning to print with supports that make this process less damaging but it is still a learning curve. I would easily think a figure designed for 1/48 could be scaled down to 1/100 with a pretty fair amount of details retained. In the picture is one of my print failures (due to file corruption on the leg). In the picture I printed a female Archer at 1/24th scale, 1/35, 1/52, 1/48. Not pictured was the Archer in 1/87 and 1/96.  These were all done using the same file and at the same time. At 1/96 the bow was VERY thin but most of the details translated well. Keep in mind I got this printer with resin for around 275 dollars American. It is NOT the too if the line but will easily do what I need it to. I hope this helps!

[Gabek]

Oh wow!  I just purchased an Elegoo Mars resin printer to do exactly what you are doing!  So glad that I found your post.  I'm having a blast testing out my printer and can't wait to create some crew, fabricate parts and make ornamentation for my models.  

Great job!

- Gabe

 

[Moxis]

This is exactly what I would like to do too. The quality of prints made with resin printers is way better than ones produced with machines using filaments. Also the cost of these printers begins to be acceptable.

But what is still prohibiting me to step on this path is the problem to learn to use a 3D design software so brilliantly that I could be able to produce something that I could be happy with.

I have a hobbyist's free version of Fusion 360 software which I have tried to learn, but still after a few month's practize I am still far from being able to design parts for ship models I would like to print.

So my question is, which software you guys are using to design your parts or crew members, and how have you learned to use it properly so that the quality of prints is acceptable?

[Ryland Craze]

9 hours ago, Gabek said:

Can't wait to create some crew, fabricate parts and make ornamentation for my models. 

- Gabe

 

Please post some pictures of your work when you create them.  3-D is here to stay and we are in the infancy of this new technology.

[Gabek]

On 9/14/2020 at 10:15 AM, Ryland Craze said:

Please post some pictures of your work when you create them.  3-D is here to stay and we are in the infancy of this new technology.

Thanks for the replies.

With respect to figures - I have been investigating several online figure creators that allow you to download an .stl file for 3D printing. Most of these are geared toward fantasy and model railroad figures and kind of miss out on 18th and early 19th century maritime figures that I'm interested in.  I managed to make a "navy-like" officer in Hero Forge (heroforge.com).  The process is fairly straight forward - you  pick and choose pre-made bodies, parts, clothes, poses to assemble a figure.  You can customise the pose and, when you're ready, you pay $7.99 (US) to download the .stl file.  You can actually have them print the figure for you for $19.99.  They state it is roughly 1:48 scale. (25mm or 30mm). 

 

I bought the download (emailed to me in maybe 30 minutes) and opened it in ChituBox software (free) in order to create a file for my Elegoo Mars resin printer.  i added supports (easy) to make sure that the model prints correctly.

There are many types and colours of resins you can use for the printing. I purchased a standard grey UV-sensitive resin which must be cleaned in 100% ethanol/isopropanol and, since my workshop is next to my furnace, I quickly purchased a water-washable resin.  (Winter is coming and I don't want to wash parts in 100% alcohol outdoors when it's -25C!)  Here are the results using the two resins:

Back to the ChituBox software to scale that figure to 1/92.  I'll print that size shortly and get back to you folks.

Clear skies!

Gabe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Louie da fly]

This is so good. Having just hand-carved 48 mediaeval Byzantine oarsmen (nobody makes and sells these!) for my 1:50 scale dromon out of pear wood, I could have done with this technology. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy carving, but that was rather more than I'd been wanting to do . . .

[Gabek]

Back from the cottage and I printed off a 1/96 version of my Hero Forge figure. It took only a few minutes to rescale the original in the Chitubox software that the Elegoo printer uses.  I did increase the resolution as well.  Now it’s more in line with my "micro" HMS Triton cross-section in progress (please pardon the jig I have currently attached).  Also, when I created the figure I didn’t pay attention to my options for the base, some of which would have been much easier to cut off when the time comes. 
 

I've got a few more software tools I'm going to explore to create more poses and ratings and get back to you folks.
 

Clear skies!

- Gabe

[Old Collingwood]

On 5/25/2020 at 1:40 PM, MEDDO said:

Those look really nice especially if you were able to whip em up over the weekend.  Properly scaled figures always add life to a static model and really help with visualizing the scale of the project

I couldn't agree more,   but heck Im baised/biased even     😉

 

OC.

[Seems ok to me]

I’ve been stalking the 3D printing forums trying to justify the purchase and space allotment for and printer. Not sure if my spouse will allow the annexation of the powder room adjacent to my cave for setup.  The Mars looks pretty nice and will likely drop in price now that Saturn will/is out.  Any thoughts on the wash/cure Photon station?

[highlanderburial]

I have the Anycubic Photon. It takes up the same space as a blender. I use a tupperware pickle strainer full of isobutyl alcohol to clean the parts. After cleaning I have a UV Spotlight that shines down on a lazy susan which I can spin to move the object. The total space is maybe 3 feet by 2 feet. I HIGHLY recommend getting a 3D SLA printer to make even routine parts.

[Patrick Matthews]

The real art is in the original 3d sculpting, from a digital ball of clay, a figure that not only looks realistic but is recognizably a historical figure. I know a fellow in Spain who can do that-   here's "Papa" Hemingway in 1:12 scale.

 

.

[AntonyUK]

Hi.

I also have purchased a 3D Printer (Elegoo Mars pro. )

I have used the printer for Model making components (Not ship).

Hero Forge is by far the best Figurine shop I have seen. So many choices of kit. clothing. posture. and the list is endless.

With the Figurine's available I will be putting some on my Ships as well. And being scalable they will adapt to any model I build. 

 

Regards Antony.

[wefalck]

HeroForge indeed has a lot of choices, but they are mainly for the war-gaming community and the figures have this kind of stocky appearance that this community seems to like, though it can be modulated somewhat.

[Larry Cowden]

On 5/24/2020 at 11:54 PM, highlanderburial said:

Greetings all,

While I am pretty sure posting anything made from a 3d printer is probably bad form here I wanted to share a side project I worked on over the weekend. I personally love seeing crew figures on model boat/ships but always have a hard time finding them in the scales or poses I want. This weekend I digitally drew out 4 "age of sail" style crew in 4 poses in my 3d aoftware. I then printed them in 1/48 ish scale. The awesome part about having these designs is I can size them up to 40mm or down to 3mm tall.   I think they would look at home on a pirate ship or navy vessel depending on how they get painted. In the second photo I have compared my prints to an Amati figure (right) and a 1/48 scale figure on the left. The figure with the saber was literally transposed from a Captain Morgan rum ad! The UV light is used to cure the resin.

 

Has anyone else done this?

 

Impressive technique! I love it!

[barkeater]

I don't want to get into 3D printing but I can't find any sailor figures in 1/48 scale which is what I do. Seems to me that someone could make a nice side business in making 3D figures in the various scales we work in. I'm sure that there are plenty of builders out there who would be happy to buy some to add to their build. Checked out Hero Forge but they don't offer the kinds of figures I want for my builds.

Edited January 5, 2021 by barkeater

[kurtvd19]

We will have some news about scale 3D printed figures sometime in the next couple of months.

[Old Collingwood]

On 1/5/2021 at 5:30 PM, kurtvd19 said:

We will have some news about scale 3D printed figures sometime in the next couple of months.

"Oh Yes......you secretive devil you"😃

 

OC.

[scrubbyj427]

Hey Guys, I’m about to purchase a 3D printer I think and it seems like resin is the way to go for detail. Seems like the anycubic photon is a hot item. Can any of you experienced modelers give any advice? Also curious about sculpting software, I’m currently running rhino and considering stepping up to version 7, is there any good plug ins for producing good carvings?

Thanks for any input.

JJ 

[Bloseclan]

I have been bugging Daniel Fischer, owner/creator of Dafinismus (produced photoetch and resin parts for Heller's 1/100 HMS Victory) to somehow produce the figures he has made that are seen on his website.  He has also said to stay tuned, though that was a couple of years ago.

[wefalck]

Daniel has become already pretty good with UV-curing resin printer and I have been bugging him to re. printed blocks, but the main problem is not the printing as such, but producing the digital sculptures (as someone last autumn already noted). It is a long way from turning your manually sculpted figures into printable files. Someone has to do that. As far as I know, Daniel is not really into 3D figure sculpting.

 

Such things are always commercial questions, but it would be interesting to have a system similar to the abovementioned 'Hero Forge', where the basic animated figurines can be kitted out for different periods. There would be a range of basic poses that do not really change from century to century, but the attire will change more or less, say a group of sailors pulling at a halliard, going up the mast, furling sails, holystoning, etc. etc. If done in sufficient detail to cover say the 54 mm (=1/32) scale, they then could be printed in any smaller scale.

[Gabek]

I haven’t been working on my models much but I sure am playing with my resin printer! I went to Heroforge to create some more poses for figures and have been playing with scaling.  
 

My rendition of a bosun with a rope's end. The knife is too chunky…I may file it down.

 

Bosun, midshipman, and two seamen in 1/96. Printed in grey and white with one primed figure to show details better:

My lieutenant “Number One" in 1/48 and 1/96:

 

 

I totally agree that a figure on a model looks great.  Here's my 1/50 Swift (Artesania Latina) with 1/48 "Number One” giving orders. 
 

 

Number One and Mini Number One and my 1/96 HMS Triton cross-section in progress.

 

Lastly, I drafted up iron ballast with the broad arrow in Fusion 360 and printed them in singles and in gangs at 1/96.  Not painted yet but I had to them check out on the Triton.  Many more to be added, but I can produce them fairly quickly:

 

 

 

Clear skies and sharp tools!

- Gabe

[wefalck]

Nice modelling!

 

However, I find that these Heroforge figurines look to much like 'wargaming' figurines (which they probably are) - their proportions are too stocky built, too long extremities and too big head for the body.

 

Also the trousers look a bit strange, the crotch sits too high to be comfortable not to say that they would impede the movement up in the rig. At that time trousers were cut very high on the waste, so that the body is well-covered by the relatively short 'monkey'-jacket.

[Roger Pellett]

I enjoy painting military figures.  I am currently finishing a series of Union Civil War Cavalry figures.  I like 54 mm metal figures produced by Imrie Risley, now sadly out of business.

 

A question?  Why are War game figures misproportioned?  The only reason that I can think of is that by making them intentionally too short they are more stable.  The better proportioned 54mm figures are easily knocked over.

 

Roger