ericg Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 (edited) Well, I just purchased a 3D printer the other day and decided that I would `print' a V-1 flying bomb, in 32nd scale to work out how to use it. I have never used a 3D printer before this, let alone CAD, so the learning curve has been somewhat steep. In fact I have taken a week off work just to concentrate on learning this wonderful piece of technology. Basically, I have used the Monogram V-1 book and some german blueprints to design this to specification. My first incarnation of the fuselage ended up in the bin as it was made of 3 solid parts, and as this V-1 will be straight into resin under my E-Resin brand once it is finished, I need it to be hollow. The parts that you see here are the result. At first I was quite surprised at how big this is in 32nd scale. I did a double check of the measurements and it is a big weapon. I have posed it next to my Eduard BF-109 so that you can compare it. I have found that the parts need to be cleaned up with course sandpaper and then primed, and rubbed back in order to smooth the lines that result from the printing process. As my CAD experience grows I am able to design progressivley more complicated parts. Once I have the main parts printed, the detailing will be done with the traditional scratchbuilding methods and I will put the finished product on the market in resin. Comments welcome. Wing and wingtip. Two wings Nose cone, printed as a hollow piece. Progress so far. Assembled The printer, you can see why this has to be done as sub assemblies. Edited September 2, 2015 by ericg sandokan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richdlc Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 wow, that's awesome...imagine what else you can do! You are aware that Bronco do a 1/35 V1? You can pick it up easily for £10...just a heads up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave J Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 (edited) Nice! How much do you think they will go for? Maybe one could be added to a He111 build! Yea they are quite large... Been lucky to see one first hand! Edited May 5, 2012 by moeggo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougN Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 (edited) wow, that's awesome...imagine what else you can do! You are aware that Bronco do a 1/35 V1? You can pick it up easily for £10...just a heads up Great kit, goes together very easily. Based on their kit, you may need to rework your engine shape a bit if you go forward with it: Doug Edited May 5, 2012 by DougN sandokan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericg Posted May 5, 2012 Author Share Posted May 5, 2012 Hi Rich, I have seen the Bronco one, but 1/35 aint 1/32! Doug, the Bronco engine looks like it has been pulled from the Monogram plans, and it has been a source of contention for me so far. I grabbed the measurements from mine from here http://www.zenza.se/vw/v1_engine.html the blueprints have the measurements in mm if you look really closely and it is from those that I inputted them into the CAD program. I have also ran the numbers on the monogram 3 view diagrams and some parts of the drawings dont quite add up to the published specs.. I guess it will be a fine line between what I can find on the net and what may look good laid over a 3 view. Eric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 I'm not interested in the Bronco kit just on the basis of scale alone. As Eric said, 1/35 ain't 1/32. But this? You bet! Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanook Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Wow, that is really cool! It's amazing what can be done now. Keep up the nice work! Later, Lee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattlow Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Looking good. Did you have prior CAD experience? I've dabbled and it isn't easy software to get to grips with! I've got the Bronco one and it is a nice kit, especially the Reichenberg piloted version (they also do the two seat trainer which features in the Monogram Close-Up. If you do this as a kit please do a better job than anyone else has on the intake. I assume you've got references enough, so take a look at how the intake subtly changes from circular at the very front to square when it meets the intake valve matrix setup (the matrix is square). The upper photo on Page 15 of the Monogram book shows what I'm talking about. Your 3D printer would make very short work of that feature. Look forward to seeing more. matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek B Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Great stuff Eric, I love it! (the V-1 is one of my favourite weapons) - this is going to be one very accurate rendition. Good luck. Derek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Learstang Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 (edited) Great work! I agree that 1/35th is not 1/32nd scale - 1/35th is the b*****d offspring of Tamiya armour. In my opinion it should never be used for aircraft, including helicopters (I'll never buy any armour in that scale either as it should have been done in 1/32nd/54mm to begin with, but that's another matter). This 3D printing technology is amazing - hopefully with it we'll see more weird and wonderful aeroplanes (anyone for a 1/32nd scale Boeing Monomail?). Best Regards, Jason Edited May 5, 2012 by Learstang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cunumdrum61 Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Eric, congrats on learning CAD. What brand of software are you using? You have done a great job for someone sarting out in CAD and yes it is difficult to master but the more you use it the better you will become. The parts turned out really nice for 3D printing. It's a lot easier starting with these than building from scratch. It will be a very usefull tool for your business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamj Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Great kit, goes together very easily. Based on their kit, you may need to rework your engine shape a bit if you go forward with it: Doug Whoever built this got the wings on upside down, left to right... sandokan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougN Posted May 6, 2012 Share Posted May 6, 2012 (edited) Whoever built this got the wings on upside down, left to right... Well, since the kit parts are keyed so they can only go on one way, I'd have to disagree with you The top of the wings looks flatter than they really are in the photo if that is what you're on about... Regarding the 1/35 vs 1/32, for me, it's not a big issue for things like these weapons. I have a shelf in my display case with some 135 armor, and the V1 is sitting on that shelf as well. Above it and below that shelf are 1/32 aircraft. I have figures (painted grey) on each shelf to give an idea of scale for the casual viewer (who are really the only ones who even see the display case). With the 14" between shelves, the difference in scale is negligible to my eye. I'll also be adding the Dragon 1/35 V2 to the shelf soon. Now if someone did a 1/32 V1 for around the same price as the existing, excellent Bronco kit, then I might buy one. But, FWIW, I will admit that the very minor difference in scale is not enough to convince me to pay 3 or 4 times more for a 1/32 V1. Also, before one can stick any V1under the wing of an He111, you will need a good conversion to a later H model (or wait until Revell release one). That being said, I do think what Eric is doing with 3D printing here is pretty cool indeed! Doug Edited May 6, 2012 by DougN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzdavidh Posted May 6, 2012 Share Posted May 6, 2012 (edited) Promising start Eric. There are some great specialist CAD drawing/3D modelling sites on the web. I'll see if I can track down the link, there's one in particular where the forum participants provide a lot of good technical feedback particularly about capturing shapes - I wonder if any one would go for an Erakanoplan in 1/32 Edited May 6, 2012 by nzdavidh HerculesPA_2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Learstang Posted May 6, 2012 Share Posted May 6, 2012 Promising start Eric. There are some great specialist CAD drawing/3D modelling sites on the web. I'll see if I can track down the link, there's one in particular where the forum participants provide a lot of good technical feedback particularly about capturing shapes - I wonder if any one would go for an Erakanoplan in 1/32 I would. I'd have to live in the b****y thing, though! Regards, Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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