'34 Ford Chopped Top Coupe by CDW - 3D Resin Printed - 1/25 Scale

[CDW]

This month, I took the plunge and bought my first 3D resin printer, the Elegoo Saturn 3. Along with it, bought the appropriately sized Elegoo Washer and UV Light Cure Station to match up with the printer. After unboxing and setting up the printer, wash station/curing station, printed out my first test print which came out rather perfect. I found a near-ready-to-print shape file/s kit for the 1934 Ford Chopped Top Coupe. The shape files include most every part needed to build the entire kit. A time-consuming chore for me as a first-time user was to set up the files for proper orientation and to add supports. I cannot over stress how important it is to watch tutorial videos on this subject if you ever decide to give 3D resin printing a try.

 

Following are photos of my first attempt at printing out my own model kit. There are a myriad of different combinations of settings and resin types that could be tried, each combination requiring its own unique series of print parameters and usefulness for the project at hand. Overall, I am satisfied with this first attempt, although there are improvements which I will incorporate in later attempts to refine the process. I am particularly pleased with the way the wire wheels printed out. This technology is amazing and open near unlimited opportunities to take my modeling to the next level with highly detailed 3D resin printed parts. These are not all the parts for this kit. I still have more to set up and print before actually building the kit.

[Old Collingwood]

That  has come out  so well   looking  forward to all  the projects you can do with it.

 

OC.

[Jack12477]

Oh oh! You really plunged down a rabbit hole ! 😊😉🙃🙂 ! Nice looking start.

[CDW]

12 minutes ago, Jack12477 said:

Oh oh! You really plunged down a rabbit hole ! 😊😉🙃🙂 ! Nice looking start.

And one rabbit hole leads to another 😄. Another is an Ai program called ChatGPT.

For instance, you can go into the ChatGPT program to ask specific questions about 3D printing, and it will provide near-instant answers.

When this latest "BBB" was created by the House, I uploaded the entire bill into ChatGPT and asked it to give me a summary on each specific part I was interested in, and it gave me a complete rundown in just seconds. It can read thousands of pages or scan hundreds of photos to give immediate feedback on whatever you want to know. Technology is changing at an exponential rate, Jack.

[CDW]

After a successful trial run in 1:25 scale, it is my intention to scale this up to 1:12 scale and add even more detail to build a street rod model I want that's unavailable in injection molded kit form.

[yvesvidal]

That's the beauty about 3D printing: scale up or scale down, at your leisure.

 

Yves

[Jack12477]

30 minutes ago, CDW said:

Technology is changing at an exponential rate, Jack.

I know ! I was on the "bleeding edge" of it as a programmer for 40 years with "Big Blue"

[Canute]

Hope you've got a good sea anchor. Some rabbit holes will get you turned about and lost for days. Better have some bread crumbs, Hansel! 😁

[gsdpic]

Oh man, that looks good and I am jealous.  I recently bought an FDM 3D printer (Anycubic Kobra 3) to get started with 3d printing but fully intend to also get a resin printer at some point as well.   Seems they each have their own niche where they are useful.  I figured an FDM printer was a better place to start since it seems like less hassle than resin, with no washing and curing needed.

 

 

[CDW]

2 hours ago, gsdpic said:

Oh man, that looks good and I am jealous.  I recently bought an FDM 3D printer (Anycubic Kobra 3) to get started with 3d printing but fully intend to also get a resin printer at some point as well.   Seems they each have their own niche where they are useful.  I figured an FDM printer was a better place to start since it seems like less hassle than resin, with no washing and curing needed.

 

 

Make sure you have an appropriate environment for your 3D resin printer to live and operate. Outside in a separate building is ideal but a well-ventilated room inside can be done. Read up on it first.

[CDW]

Richard Batman Woods. He’s a model fan but does not build. Building some models for his collection.

 

 

 

[DocRob]

The tyres and rims look very promising Craig, especially for a first try. With the body and doors, I´m not so sure. lots of visible fragments, which will be nightmare to remove  without losing detail. At least, it looks so in your pics.
It seems you can do about everything with a 3D printer right now, but I vaguely followed some discussions about resin types, software glitches, etc. and decided for myself, that I will not plunge into it. I have too many time consuming hobbies to add another, but as a hobby 3D animation producer and CAD user many years ago, I´m not sure, if I can resist forever.
To see your good work doesn´t make it easier to let the dive into "new" technology pass.

Cheers Rob

[CDW]

7 hours ago, DocRob said:

The tyres and rims look very promising Craig, especially for a first try. With the body and doors, I´m not so sure. lots of visible fragments, which will be nightmare to remove  without losing detail. At least, it looks so in your pics.
It seems you can do about everything with a 3D printer right now, but I vaguely followed some discussions about resin types, software glitches, etc. and decided for myself, that I will not plunge into it. I have too many time consuming hobbies to add another, but as a hobby 3D animation producer and CAD user many years ago, I´m not sure, if I can resist forever.
To see your good work doesn´t make it easier to let the dive into "new" technology pass.

Cheers Rob

Learning where and what size supports, what orientation of the part to the build plate, what settings to use for the particular resin type, just to name a few, are all part of the learning curve for printing the parts. It will take time and practice to achieve acceptable results. No way around that trial and error process. 

[CDW]

Another way to learn your new 3D printer can be the ChatGPT Ai platform. After asking the basic questions about printing wire wheels, ChatGPT gives this detailed recommendation. Pretty cool. I have the test print going as I write this, using the ChatGPT recommendations. This helps take a lot of guesswork out of the equation.

 

"using the elegoo saturn 3 and chitubox software, what are the optimum settings and orientation to print wire wheels"

ChatGPT said:

Printing wire wheels with an Elegoo Saturn 3 using Chitubox software requires careful setup to preserve fine detail, ensure structural integrity, and prevent print failures. Here are the optimum settings and orientation recommendations, tailored for delicate parts like wire wheels (typically 1/24–1/8 scale for modeling):

---

⚙️ Printer Overview

• Printer: Elegoo Saturn 3 (12K resolution, 7” mono screen)

• Software: Chitubox (latest version recommended)

• Resin: Use a high-detail standard or ABS-like resin (e.g., Elegoo 8K/12K resin or Siraya Tech Fast Grey/Build)

---

🧭 Optimal Orientation

Goal: Balance print success with minimizing support contact on visible detail.

• Angle: Tilt the wheel at 30–45° on its vertical axis (like a coin tipped sideways), with the inner hub down and outer rim up. This allows resin to drain and minimizes suction forces.

• Do NOT print flat on the build plate; it causes layer lines across spokes and high failure risk.

• Face spokes slightly toward the build plate to reduce overhangs and preserve detail.

---

🧷 Supports

Use custom supports to protect details:

• Support type: Light and medium supports

• Density: Medium (80–120 points depending on size)

• Touchpoint size: ~0.3–0.5 mm

• Placement:

  • Focus supports under the hub and back of spokes, not on visible outer faces

  • Add a few heavier supports on the base side for structural integrity

• Raft/Base: Use a skate raft or large base to prevent warping

---

🧪 Resin Exposure Settings (Baseline for Elegoo 12K resin)

Adjust based on your specific resin’s MSDS or test prints

Setting	Value
Layer Height	0.03 mm (for finest detail)
Bottom Layer Count	6–8
Bottom Exposure	30–35 s
Normal Exposure	2.2–2.5 s (resin dependent)
Lift Distance	6 mm
Lifting Speed	60 mm/min
Retract Speed	80 mm/min
Anti-aliasing	Level 4–8
Light-off Delay	0.5–1.0 s

---

💡 Additional Tips

• Hollowing: Not needed for small wheels. For large-scale wheels (1/8 or bigger), hollow with 1.5–2 mm walls and add drain holes.

• Mesh Checks: Use Netfabb or Chitubox’s built-in repair to ensure spokes and rims are manifold and error-free.

• Test Print: Always print one wheel first, inspect for warping, loss of detail, or broken spokes before batch printing.

• Curing: Post-cure with minimal exposure to avoid brittleness. 1–2 minutes per side with proper rotation.

---

Would you like a visual diagram or STL orientation preview mock-up for your wire wheels in Chitubox? I can generate one for better reference.

You said:

yes

ChatGPT said:

Image created

https://sdmntprwestus3.oaiusercontent.com/files/00000000-9ad4-61fd-81b9-c69aba8b62b2/raw?se=2025-06-10T18%3A55%3A50Z&sp=r&sv=2024-08-04&sr=b&scid=49646a2b-c71c-59ad-a69f-5f4c8f88053d&skoid=9ccea605-1409-4478-82eb-9c83b25dc1b0&sktid=a48cca56-e6da-484e-a814-9c849652bcb3&skt=2025-06-09T22%3A13%3A46Z&ske=2025-06-10T22%3A13%3A46Z&sks=b&skv=2024-08-04&sig=xr0992qv7eBAYtKF7ooRcSM6yyX7t%2BtWtnZXJ1AvXys%3D

https://sdmntprsouthcentralus.oaiusercontent.com/files/00000000-7a74-61f7-964b-017654b18fd6/raw?se=2025-06-10T18%3A55%3A31Z&sp=r&sv=2024-08-04&sr=b&scid=c4de8a54-a504-50c7-97d9-65caeeabff11&skoid=9ccea605-1409-4478-82eb-9c83b25dc1b0&sktid=a48cca56-e6da-484e-a814-9c849652bcb3&skt=2025-06-10T10%3A04%3A38Z&ske=2025-06-11T10%3A04%3A38Z&sks=b&skv=2024-08-04&sig=fwmkmJ%2Bfk3vkyBdeDX2cSM2RUFbNv99eKncmhFMv6Fo%3D

[CDW]

My first test print for this dragster wire wheel was mostly okay, but there was some sagging at the bottom of the hub which in turn caused several spokes to fail.

 

 

After this first test, adjusted my second test print to include two additional supports at the bottom of the hub. This solved the sagging issue on the first print as well as the failed spokes. Not entirely perfect, but very close now to production status. The interesting thing is, it makes no difference whether you are printing one wheel or thirty wheels all at once, the print time is the same. About four hours.

 

[thibaultron]

On 6/9/2025 at 2:37 PM, CDW said:

And one rabbit hole leads to another 😄. Another is an Ai program called ChatGPT.

For instance, you can go into the ChatGPT program to ask specific questions about 3D printing, and it will provide near-instant answers.

When this latest "BBB" was created by the House, I uploaded the entire bill into ChatGPT and asked it to give me a summary on each specific part I was interested in, and it gave me a complete rundown in just seconds. It can read thousands of pages or scan hundreds of photos to give immediate feedback on whatever you want to know. Technology is changing at an exponential rate, Jack.

If using CATGPT, just be careful to verify the answers! I asked it a simple question about what size a planet with 1.3 Earth masses would be, and it started with the Earth being .9 Earth masses, and went into LA LA land after that! (Yes, I have weird questions in my head! I was watching a documentary on the formation of the moon. Mars size proto-planet sideswipes Earth sized proto-planet and leaves our Earth, the Moon, and the leftover stuff escapes orbit).

[thibaultron]

I have a thread on printing cannons in resin, that may be of help.

 

 

[CDW]

18 minutes ago, thibaultron said:

If using CATGPT, just be careful to verify the answers! I asked it a simple question about what size a planet with 1.3 Earth masses would be, and it started with the Earth being .9 Earth masses, and went into LA LA land after that! (Yes, I have weird questions in my head! I was watching a documentary on the formation of the moon. Mars size proto-planet sideswipes Earth sized proto-planet and leaves our Earth, the Moon, and the leftover stuff escapes orbit).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but mass and size are two entirely different things, are they not?

[thibaultron]

1 hour ago, CDW said:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but mass and size are two entirely different things, are they not?

Not assuming the same density. I asked how big a planet 1.3 times the mass of Earth would be. (Mars and the assumed similarly size impacting proto-planet (named Thea) being about the same size.) So the starting value would be 1 Earth mass, not .9. And then it went off into strange assumptions and calculations.

[CDW]

35 minutes ago, thibaultron said:

Not assuming the same density. I asked how big a planet 1.3 times the mass of Earth would be. (Mars and the assumed similarly size impacting proto-planet (named Thea) being about the same size.) So the starting value would be 1 Earth mass, not .9. And then it went off into strange assumptions and calculations.

I once used it to inquire about a specific canon law. It went on to tell me what experts believed about that particular law, slanted in a particular direction. When I followed up by asking if there were experts who took a different slant on the same question, it admitted that yes, there were experts who saw it in a different way. So, I agree there must be follow up questions to avoid bias, I'm not sure exactly how or why it deals with bias in the way it appears to do. We do know that humans have had a role in developing the code for it to operate, so it may be inevitable there will be bias or perhaps errors as well.