AlexM

All right, this is insane. I like it.
 
 
If there is too much shrinkage, you can try to enlage the sections by about 2-3 cm at the end where  the print starts, with a small recessed line all around between the actual part and the added "waste section". The shrinkage will occure at the waste ares, which, after printing, can be cut away along the recessed line.
 

All right, this is insane. I like it.
 
 
If there is too much shrinkage, you can try to enlage the sections by about 2-3 cm at the end where  the print starts, with a small recessed line all around between the actual part and the added "waste section". The shrinkage will occure at the waste ares, which, after printing, can be cut away along the recessed line.
 

Clear parts are still a hard thing to tackle. There are clear resins available for 3d printing, but my experience so far is that they very soon turn yellow, when exposed to UV light (which is necassary to cure/harden the parts after printing). And then, the 3d model has to be pretty perfect regarding shape and whall thicknes. So for me, this is currently not possible.
My approach so far in my projects (from which none of them are finished yet ) is printing a mould/plug, which is slightly smaller the the final clear part, get it as smoth and shiny as possible, and then make clear parts the old way via vacuforming.

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

In my eyes, surface detail of the Hobby Boss kit is pretty nice. The large parts also fit together pretty well. But shapewise, it's flawed. The biggest problem for me is the fuselage cross-section, especially at the canopy area, where it's very obvious. Therefore I started to think about a solution, using 3d printing, which ended up in a littel act of surgery. Here is the current status:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex
 

In my eyes, surface detail of the Hobby Boss kit is pretty nice. The large parts also fit together pretty well. But shapewise, it's flawed. The biggest problem for me is the fuselage cross-section, especially at the canopy area, where it's very obvious. Therefore I started to think about a solution, using 3d printing, which ended up in a littel act of surgery. Here is the current status:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex
 

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

All right, this is insane. I like it.
 
 
If there is too much shrinkage, you can try to enlage the sections by about 2-3 cm at the end where  the print starts, with a small recessed line all around between the actual part and the added "waste section". The shrinkage will occure at the waste ares, which, after printing, can be cut away along the recessed line.
 

Clear parts are still a hard thing to tackle. There are clear resins available for 3d printing, but my experience so far is that they very soon turn yellow, when exposed to UV light (which is necassary to cure/harden the parts after printing). And then, the 3d model has to be pretty perfect regarding shape and whall thicknes. So for me, this is currently not possible.
My approach so far in my projects (from which none of them are finished yet ) is printing a mould/plug, which is slightly smaller the the final clear part, get it as smoth and shiny as possible, and then make clear parts the old way via vacuforming.

All right, this is insane. I like it.
 
 
If there is too much shrinkage, you can try to enlage the sections by about 2-3 cm at the end where  the print starts, with a small recessed line all around between the actual part and the added "waste section". The shrinkage will occure at the waste ares, which, after printing, can be cut away along the recessed line.
 

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

In my eyes, surface detail of the Hobby Boss kit is pretty nice. The large parts also fit together pretty well. But shapewise, it's flawed. The biggest problem for me is the fuselage cross-section, especially at the canopy area, where it's very obvious. Therefore I started to think about a solution, using 3d printing, which ended up in a littel act of surgery. Here is the current status:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex
 

And with this I now appear have one third of a 1:32 737-800/P-8 fuselage! 
 

 

 
And here you can see the faulty print with some shrinkage - easily fixable with Milliput, or similar, but I'll probably re-print.
 

 
So - do I print the next section as well? 
 
Have fun!
 
Iain

I mentioned earlier that I had another component that had printed and was cooling off on the printer - well, here it is - the largest part so far at 191mm in height:
 

 
If this goes anywhere, it'll be a P-8 (very little interior to be seen/made!) - but I will have to fill the windows with styrene.
 
There may be a way of editing the .stl files in one of the CAD programs - investigating that at the moment.
 
Iain

Well - everything was in place Friday evening - and I'd split the first third of the fuselage model into 3 in Meshmixer: the section was too long as designed to fit in the vertical (Z-Axis) of the printer once scaled up to 1:32.
 
Then it was prepped for printing using a program called Cura - and, well, this happened:
 

 

 
Not a bad result for a first test print in HIPS - but it did take 18 hours to print!!
 
From there I've been playing with layer thickness/quality/speed...
 
Iain

The resulting parts - in this case for the port engine, came out really well - very light and strong, and with a commendably smooth surface.
 

 

 

 

 
Originally the idea was to just test print the engines, but they came out so well I thought I'd print a few more parts once I'd got my enclosure, and a supply of HIPS filament - purely for testing purposes, you understand...
 
Iain

I've wanted a 3D printer for years: I first came into contact with them decades ago - but the cost was absolutely prohibative. They were very expensive/complex beasts that were the domain of industry, not the individual.
 
However, the price/performance equation has radically changed, making such technologies the affordable domain of the common man.
 
Now - several influences have come to play in my thinking this year:
 
Tim Perry (@wunwinglow of this parish) is a good, and very patient, friend. As many will know, he was the man behind PP Aeroparts, the inovative, and pioneering, accessory company from the '80s. For the last couple of decades his day job has been in the rapid prototyping world - so his knowledge/experience/expertise in the field of 3D Modelling and 3D Printing is right up there with the best. And he's been nagging encouraging me to take the plunge for years. I'm currently building a Tornado F.Mk 3 with parts that Tim has designed and printed, using both FDM and SLA printers - and playing to the strengths of both. He's also been experimenting with printing HIPS (High Impact Polystyrene - the same material as plastic kits). Earlier this year I took delivery of a 1:32 Hawker Siddeley HS.780 Andover, designed and 3D Printed by Toshihiko Shimizu of One Man Model - the process of design and print of a small batch left me absolutely mesmerised by the process - and very inspired! As many will know, I've been researching/working on a fix for the wing cross section on the HobbyBoss 1:32 B-24s. I'd come up with an airfoil fix, but was looking at ways of producing a viable 'correction' set, originally looking at a series of longitudinal formers to be used with a modified spar - but modifying the kit spar to work with the new sections proved almost impossible and I parked it. Until I got the Andover - and until a few conversations with Tim - and I had that "light bulb" moment. Design as a 3D Model in CAD - print in several pieces on an FDM printer - in HIPS (High Impact Polystyrene) - the same as kit plastic!  
But I didn't have a printer...
 

 
Well, I do now - a Creality Ender 5 Pro - with a 220 x 220 x 300 print volume and capable of printing HIPS (and ABS) filament, as long as the printer is in an enclosure to keep ambient temperatures around the print high and constant, in order to prevent distortion and shrinkage.
 
So I purchased a thermally lined and fire resistant enclosure too:
 

 

 
OK - so new printer - needed to test print, obviously!
 
I didn't have anything ready yet as part of my playing with CAD software - and, being a kid a heart, wanted to find something other than a cat, or frog model to do some test prints.
 
A bit of Googling and I found a pre-drawn model of a 737-800 available to purchase and scaled to print at 1:100. The model looked really good - so I bought it!
 
Then, well, you know how you do, I thought 'I wonder if I can scale that' - so I did - to 1:32 scale and did a few test prints of the engine, using the free PLA filament that came with the printer.
 
So, this CFM-56 engine pod was the very firstest thing I printed with my new printer - and I was very pleased with the results:
 

 

 
It's not small! Ignore exhaust angle - that's just loose in pod.
 

 
But shapes look well researched:
 

 

 
Now, it just so happens that the P-8 Poseidon is based on the 737-800...
 
Can you tell where this *might* be heading?
 
Back in a mo...
 
Iain
 

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

Hey, thanks guys. I don't want to make money with this. Once the 3d model is finished, I'll propably make them downloadable for everyone interested.

In my eyes, surface detail of the Hobby Boss kit is pretty nice. The large parts also fit together pretty well. But shapewise, it's flawed. The biggest problem for me is the fuselage cross-section, especially at the canopy area, where it's very obvious. Therefore I started to think about a solution, using 3d printing, which ended up in a littel act of surgery. Here is the current status:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex
 

I too would be interested - could you also print a clear canopy to go with that? It believe that new forward fuselage dramatically improves the look and accuracy of the kit. I'll be honest - I can live with the fuselage as it is now, but I would be interested in an improved fuselage.
 
Best Regards,
 
Jason

I'm in for 2

Alex, I think this might be a good seller, combined with a K conversion set

Indeed! This could be a hot seller!!!