Tortoise (15mm, 3d-print)

[Fitz]

Here's yet another print of a vehicle I have no actual tabletop use for. Still, "need" is such a subjective thing.

This is the Tortoise, a British WWII super-heavy assault gun. Half a dozen prototypes were built, but its main intended purpose was smashing through fortifications like the Siegfried Line, and by the time it was ready, there was no longer any need for it.

This model is 1:100 scale (15mm), and was printed in PLA+ on my Ender-3 FDM printer at 0.08mm layer height. It took about seven hours, and was a royal pain to clean up.

[Fitz]

I decided to paint the Tortoise I printed most recently, the one printed with tree supports rather than zig-zag verticals, without any surface finishing at all apart from string removal.

Both models have been printed with identical quality parameters: 0.08mm layer height, 10% triangular infill, and printed fairly slowly. The one on the right, the first, has had many of its surfaces scraped down to remove as much of the printing layer lines as I reasonably could. The one on the left, the newer model, has not, but has just had paint applied straight over the surfaces as printed.

There is certainly a visible difference between the two models when seen in close-up, but with paint on, at tabletop distances, the variation in surface quality is pretty much invisible. For purely gaming purposes, I'm doubtful that the extra time and effort involved in smoothing down visible layer lines is really all that worth while.

[Ewan]

They are absolutely beautiful 👍🏻

[Wildman II]

Great work! Maybe an A41 Cruiser to go along with them. And possibly some Oxford and Cambridge carriers? Just dreaming.

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Neat prints.
A comparison shot between them and a Cromwell/Comet/Churchill/Centurion would be good.

[Rich H]

Nice

[grant]

Very nice; it’s too bad the lines still show. Technology is ALMOST there. Soon I think we will all be doing this, and you’ll be able to see you were at the leading edge.

[Fitz]

Very nice; it’s too bad the lines still show. Technology is ALMOST there. Soon I think we will all be doing this, and you’ll be able to see you were at the leading edge.

I suspect I'll be able to look at my models from these days and think "my god, it was so primitive..." 

I've only been at this 3d printing lark a few months, and already I'm craving a much better (and much more expensive) printer.

[Rich H]

Lovely stuff