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3D design and print of a 1/35 movable crane for inclusion in a dockside diorama


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I was in a local model shop and chatting to the bloke who runs it about his dioramas and the stuff I've been doing teaching myself about laser cutting and 3D print. Quite quickly I found myself offering to have a go at making a dockside crane which he doesn't seem to be able to find in 1/35

 

So...

 

After a lot of procrastination I've bodged up a likely looking crane that, while not an exact replica of a particular crane, does reflect the feel of pictures I've been able to pull together. With any luck I'll be able to print it this week and see how it turn out in person. Good thing bout 3D printing is that if I decide to use it myself for something at 1/72 it is a simple % scale change for the whole model rather than starting from scratch

 

49007414707_315d9114d1_b.jpg

 

49006664843_7247c5b1ea_b.jpg

 

 

 

Edited by LostCosmonauts
made title clearer
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Very nice. I really must pull my finger out and get designing stuff as I have access to and look after 9 3D printers. Where did you get the dimensions for your design?

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34 minutes ago, Shar2 said:

Very nice. I really must pull my finger out and get designing stuff as I have access to and look after 9 3D printers. Where did you get the dimensions for your design?

I worked backwards from the rail width. I started with a photo of the rails he wants it to fit and a guage width. Once I had that I knew (roughly) the size of the base and then extrapolated and adjusted via Mk1 eyeball 

 

There aren’t a whole lot of good pictures online but this is the kind of thing I was hoping to work toward

 

49008345771_7d21074118_n.jpg

 

p.s. 9! Wow. Resin or filament? I bought one out of curiosity and now have access to 2 but am still very much a learner

Edited by LostCosmonauts
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Cool, thanks. 8 filament and one resin. Mostly ABS, but one we use mostly for carbon fibre/Nylon. Oh and our large printer which can print up to 1m cubed, uses PLA.

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On 11/3/2019 at 7:31 PM, LostCosmonauts said:

There aren’t a whole lot of good pictures online but this is the kind of thing I was hoping to work toward

The picture is of the Airfix Travelling crane first issued in 1959 and in its 60th year still a current model sold by Dapol

 

https://www.dapol.co.uk/shop/model-accessories/self-assembly-oo-kits/c030-travelling-dock-side-crane-563

 

****Edited to reflect comment made further down****

 

I accept that the request is for a 1/35 model and this is 1/76th but I am only pointing it out as the source of the picture and something that could be measured and scaled up.

 

 

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29 minutes ago, Paul821 said:

The picture is of the Airfix Travelling crane first issued in 1959 and in its 60th year still a current model sold by Dapol

 

https://www.dapol.co.uk/shop/model-accessories/self-assembly-oo-kits/c030-travelling-dock-side-crane-563

 

 

Ah, that is OO scale. I’d been asked to do something similar at 1/35 and 1/48

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21 hours ago, Nick Belbin said:

So which software are you guys using? I want to get into this in the new year and have been told that Fusion360 is very good . . .

 

Nick

 

 

Fusion 360 - takes a bit of effort to learn (still a work in progress) but free and pretty powerful

 

Cura is the slicing software I use and my printer is a Creality Ender 3 Pro

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Positive feedback from the guy that commissioned it (& off the back of the initial pictures he has managed to get another couple of sales already which is terrific for me)

 

Some tweaks to the design to adjust proportions and break it down into an easier print and we have

 

49045396526_2103cd4070_z.jpg

 

Edited by LostCosmonauts
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On 06/11/2019 at 15:34, Paul821 said:

I accept that the request is for a 1/35 model and this is 1/76th but I am only pointing it out as the source of the picture and something that could be measured and scaled up.

Very good point. It turns out that the guy who commissioned it has one of these still in kit form so I’ve got a load of fresh pictures to work from and when I am next in town will pick up the kit itself

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On 11/7/2019 at 10:39 AM, LostCosmonauts said:

Base and cabin finished printing overnight

 

As they were on the build plate:

49027648178_270a276b7e_b.jpg

 

And after the supports were pulled away

 

 

 Wow, ive never seen supports built up like that, its almost like 'thick curtains!' - i use Simplify3D and havent seen a similar option to generate support towers in a similar way.

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7 hours ago, Kushan_Farsight said:

 Wow, ive never seen supports built up like that, its almost like 'thick curtains!' - i use Simplify3D and havent seen a similar option to generate support towers in a similar way.

Tree supports in Cura - they are just one line thick and far easier to remove than normal supports. Worth experimenting with if Simplify has the option (or you don’t mind trying Cura)

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I've designed several things and had them printed by Shapeways.

 

I would have designed the mounting legs on their side with the turntable platform as a separate part. This would speed printing and use far less filament and reduce the steppy surface of angled faces on the finished model.

 

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9 hours ago, Niall said:

I've designed several things and had them printed by Shapeways.

 

I would have designed the mounting legs on their side with the turntable platform as a separate part. This would speed printing and use far less filament and reduce the steppy surface of angled faces on the finished model.

 

You’re right, that platform is a separate part in the first production version to reduce need for supports although the legs are still upright as the steps are small enough that the surface finish is fine. 

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7 hours ago, michaelc said:

Resistance is futile I suppose. ;)

It doesn’t really suit mass production but I think it is probably going to become more and more mainstream part of the hobby. The explosion of hobbyists designing whole kits, modifications and new parts could be really positive for the hobby as a whole as a whole new toolkit for making exotic types and marks possible and flexibility around scales

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8 hours ago, LostCosmonauts said:

It doesn’t really suit mass production but I think it is probably going to become more and more mainstream part of the hobby. The explosion of hobbyists designing whole kits, modifications and new parts could be really positive for the hobby as a whole as a whole new toolkit for making exotic types and marks possible and flexibility around scales

I couldn't agree more.  I remember as a kid, finding exotic vacuform kits or plastic molds for aircraft variants, one that stays with me is the two seat trainer for the (Airfix) Hawker Hunter.  It was like a whole new world of modelling.  Or going through the spares box hoping that there was something that was going to be close enough for a particular antenna etc which could be adapted.  Or the whole scratch build journey and then, what? scales other than 1/72nd??? Modelling heaven, as it was. :)  Yes, this definitely makes it easier, yet more challenging and with information so freely and widely available on the net, dare I say it, but it could be seen as a new golden age.... if many of the younger people could get away from their phones etc long enough. ;) That being said, there would also be retirees who can return to their interests of younger days.  What I find interesting is the alternative materials which are now starting to become available as well.

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@michaelc have you seen this build ? 


He's designing and building an entire Sea Vixen kit in 1/72 from 3d printing. Its a mind blowing thread but hard for an old dog like me to follow all the technical stuff. 
 

Dennis

Edited by Corsairfoxfouruncle
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