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Hello friends,
I recently got myself a shiny new Prusa Core One L and after running it in on some pre-made models and useful things (such as pen holders, paint holders, and the officially released Xenonite Grace model from the Project Hail Mary movie) I’m now gearing up to print some model related stuff.
I’m curious to know how those of you with FDM/FFF printers have found the process of printing parts and assembling versus print-and-place if the model fits on the build plate? I don’t mind a bit of post print assembly as that awards the opportunity to paint in ways that might not be possible or as easy with print-in-place.
Keen to hear some thoughts!
Ray_BnN_MRR, Modeltrainmedia and 5 others5 Comments-
I have an Anycubic Kobra 2 Neo (filament) 3d printer and have printed a few models. First was a center depressed flat car with load (pic added). Currently building a roundhouse (YouTube link – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cotSIYg8QW4&list=PLL9v7-5k0Ybn1_2YClShmakuaIj2L1JVE)
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@Ray_BnN_MRR thanks for replying. I would assume you’ve used PLA for your prints? The flat car looks pretty mint, do you purchase bogeys to attach or are those 3D printed too so it keeps to the prototype?
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@ScottyB The only thing that wasnt 3d printed are the wheel sets and couplers. It is PLA
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Overall I prefer to print my walls laying down and use ironing, so print-and-assemble. I find the layer lines harder to hide when they’re aligned with the horizon because we typically light from above so the shadows show up at the “hull lines” a lot more. I’ve been fooling around with fuzzy skin on portions of print-in-place models but I model in N scale so the surfaces are still kinda out of scale.
I use the clear Gorilla glue to assembly, it has a little bit of flex and doesn’t blush like CA does. High-build automotive primer does a decent job at filling in the small gaps left at corners, etc as artifacts of the FDM process but I don’t hesitate to break out the red autobody glazing compound.
I’ve found no better filament for models than the Polymaker CosPLA, by the way. The sandability is excellent and it takes paint nicely even when I get hurried/lazy and don’t prime.
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@Dielectric
ah yes, ironing was something I was considering as one of the advantages of print-and-assemble. Aside from brickwork I don’t see much benefit to printing an entire structure pre-assembled and ending up with layer lines or stepping on angles like rooftops.
Thanks for the tip on CosPLA, I’ll look into it. At the moment I’m printing with Prusament but will be looking for cost-effective alternatives.
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