BSC2025 zemjw Caspian Sea Minnow

[snitcythedog]

Very fancy indeed.  Watching with interest.

[zemjw]

I have been spending quite a bit of time on the model, and I think most of the big bits are done(ish). It also now has an engine, which I forgot about last time

There is still quite a bit to do, especially around the cockpit, but it's getting there

Working out how to print it, that will be a "fun" challenge...

[Burgundavia]

Very nice. I'd cut it up.  Wings, body,  airplane and fan all separate.

[Wirelizard]

That is looking very cool so far!

Are you going to fully detail the STL, or print a more basic form and use styrene and more traditional modelling to do windows and panel lines and such?

Either way, looking forward to seeing this progress!

[HerbertTarkel]

I like the fan on top - and I second the question- details or simplicity?

[zemjw]

The plan is to do as much detailing on the STL as possible, although there's not a huge amount on the real-life vehicle. I did notice some bits near the front on a photograph last night, and they may end up as plasticard - it just depends on how it will look when printed.

I have cut out the basic cockpit from the fuselage, so I'm going to work on detailing that. However, other than pushing the windows in a bit, there's not a lot there.

In terms of printing, most parts will be done separately. I usually end up digitally cutting holes for piano-wire, so I'll probably try that again. As well as strengthening the join, it also helps me to correctly locate the parts.

Printing the main fuselage is going to be tricky, and I'm leaning towards splitting the model behind the cockpit. That would let me print the front and back sections vertically, which should avoid the need for supports. It should also hopefully help avoid some of the problems around printing curved surfaces horizontally on an fdm printer, when the stepped nature of the printing process is very noticeable.

[zemjw]

Real Life(tm) got in the way of things last week, a combination of avoiding layoffs at work and getting my breath back after completing another lap of the Sun.

The cockpit caused me more problems than I care to admit, mostly because I did things in the wrong order, then I couldn't figure out how to re-join it to the main model.

I stripped it back to pretty much a basic shell and rebuilt it as a separate piece. It now merges with the model, and the slicer on the printer will handle the heavy lifting of merging the two pieces

I need to move the engine a bit after the cockpit work, but I think I'm back on track. There's nothing image-worthy just now, but hopefully there will be by the weekend.

[tomrommel1]

Very nice start

[zemjw]

Okay, I think that's the main modelling done. There's still a lot of things to do, but I'm not planning any major shape changes at this point...







Next up is scaling it to its model size, then getting the parts to fit together. I also want to add support for a flight stand base, so I'll need to find the balance point. It's going to be a long weekend

[carlos marighela]

Looking good!

[zemjw]

It has been a while since my last update, mainly due to slicing and printing issues.

I have accepted that the build will never be finished in time, so I am dropping out now, rather than stressing myself out over the next few weeks. The decision was made slightly easier by looking at the quality of the competition, as there was no way I was getting past the first round 

I have printed some of the parts, but the amount of filling and sanding that will be required is a lot more than I'd expected.

I'm not binning the project, but it has moved to the paused queue on my project board. I have a load of figures and scenery to paint, and a piece that would have been largely passive on the table is not at the top of the queue.

Good luck to everyone left in the competition, and I am looking forward to casting my vote.

The photos below show it where it is at the moment. The figure is a Reaper Bones 28mm Nova Corps trooper

[Lost Egg]

It's a shame to hear zemjw but you do have a beauty there. It's definitely better to spend the time getting it right rather than rushing and stressing yourself out.

[Burgundavia]

That's some lovely modelling and printing. Sorry to see you go, hopefully we'll see this finished sooner rather than later

[snitcythedog]

Noooooooo!    I was looking forward to seeing it from printing to completion!  You really need to update this thread once it is done.  It is a great subject and your designs were spot on!

[zemjw]

It's a shame to hear zemjw but you do have a beauty there. It's definitely better to spend the time getting it right rather than rushing and stressing yourself out.

Yeah, it was definitely getting to the "rushing it" stage, and that was before the prospect of having to use an airbrush for the first time in at least 6 or 7 years.

I had thought about putting the parts in a box and quietly forgetting about them. However, when I put them together for the photograph I decided they didn't look as bad as I'd feared, so I will keep working on the build. Sadly, my record of painting vehicles is not great, and I have at least 3 that have been built and awaiting paint for more years than I care to admit.

All plans took a sharp left turn yesterday evening, however. I switched on the computer, only to have the power supply blow up (there was a huge spark and the Magic Smoke was released) I need to buy and install a new one, and hope that it was only the PSU that broke...