After posting pictures of my 3D printed locomotives (Rocket and Union Pacific Big Boy) and discussing with Paul_l I am creating this thread. I have two 3D printers. On the left is a Tevo Tarantula ... this came as a kit (took me 2 days to build) and I learnt a lot putting it together. The x-y-z printing volume is 200x280x200. The larger printer is a Tevo Nereus (320x320x400) and took only 30 mins to assemble. Why 2 printers? Things happen and it is handy to have a second printer when one is temporarily out of action. Also when printing something major (like the Big Boy) it saves a lot of time using 2 printers. There are hundreds of settings that control these machines and you can adjust any print depending on what you want (fine/course/fast/slow etc.). You can also print in many colours but I mostly use grey or black then paint the completed model. The printing quality is the same on both printers. Tevo has changed their name to Homers and the Tarantula now comes in a built Pro version (not sure if you can still get it as a kit). I have done some modifications to both printers which I can go into if anyone is interested.
Nice Chris........ There is a small community growing on this forum who are using 3D printers for all sorts of projects, so I`m sure this will be of great interest to them. Keep up the good work. Gormo
G`day Chris, Buffer stops arrived safely today and thank you very much indeed... I have tried some in their intended locations. Rail height and sleeper spacing matches Peco code 100 beautifully. Buffer height is spot on The metal bracing and rivets built into the model well suits the engine shed area. Also in use up on Bamford terminus......the tunnel portal was printed by Chris as well folks. And two for the sidings behind Bamford terminus platform And next to a store bought model. I think they stand up rather well against a proprietary model. The only thing I have to do with them, apart from painting and gluing in place, is trim the last sleeper away on the sidings to match up the sleeper spacings so it all looks like one length of track.....no big deal. Well done Chris and thanks again. Gormo
Hi Gormo, Sorry, I have been slow in reply to your post. The buffer stops fit well in your pics, I'm glad the height is correct (I hadn't really checked that as my test wagon is US and doesn't have buffers). It will be good to see how they look after you install and paint them. I noticed there are some small artifacts that I didn't remove. You can remove them with a small file or hobby knife. It is interesting to see my model next to the black commercial one ... compares better I think. Probably easier to remove the front sleeper from the model rather than from your track. Quick cut (this plastic melts quickly) with a Dremel would do it if you have one. The new tunnel portal suits Great Chesterford better than the concrete one. I have other tunnel portal models that may be of interest but I haven't printed them yet. In case we don't talk before ... have a Merry Christmas. Chris
G`day Chris, Yes , now that you mention it, it would be far easier to make the sleeper adjustment on the buffer, so that`s what we`ll do..... Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year to you and your family Chris. I`ll catch up with you in the new year Gormo
I’ve just about finished this. It’s in O gauge at the moment, but the great thing with these files is you just rescale them for the size you want. (Taking in to account the minimum thicknesses for printers) North Staffordshire Railway signal box. This is the original signal box from Cheddleton, sadly the original was set fire to pre preservation of the line. I’m now in a quandary re printing. Normally I’d use the mail order company Shapeways to print and post my model to me, but with the changes to the EU in January post Brexit, I don’t feel that these models will be economical any more. My FDM printer was never up to the task of this model, so it looks like I may have to invest in the new year in a new resin printer. That or I simply sell my designs for someone else to print. Laters Andy
Hi Andy, Have a look at ideaMaker (it's a free slicer). You can scale your model's X, Y and Z separately. So ... with your model you can scale down the X and Y but keep the thickness (Z), or scale it less. I had to do this on some of the smaller components of the Big Boy as it was scaled down to 33%. Some of the piston rods were just too fragile unless I adjusted them in ideaMaker (worked). I would think your model should print well on an FDM printer at OO scale. The lantern might need printing with a finer layer extrusion (0.15mm). You can also use finer nozzles (down to 0.1mm) but this can dramatically increase the printing time (there are some YouTubes on this). I have thought about getting a resin printer for smaller detailed parts but the mucking around with sticky resin and the cleanup puts me off a bit. Chris
G`day Andy, Short answer " Dunno "....and that applies to the 3D printed grey ones as well as the Black bought from the shop job..... Gormo
I’m already using a .4 and .2 nozzle. I’m not sure after 5 years I have my settings correct and I also think I have a slight shift in one of the belts. I’ve never had anything like your models on my FDM printer in quality, and any horizontals just turn in to arch’s. I’m looking at a resin in the new year, but few things to look in to first. (Such as which is best for resin etc, less messy and best size build plate. Andy
