From 3D file to the first print always makes me feel like a ten-year-old on Christmas morning. A ten-year-old with a ventilator, gloves and safety glasses in a basement workshop that smells more of chemicals than of pine. With this being the first whole car I’ve attempted to print, I hardly expected it to work perfectly the first time. Yet, you only reach success by working through the failures. So, just in time to display the car at the upcoming Railway Modellers’ Meet, I sliced the model and pressed “go.”
After twelve hours of sugar plum visions, there, entangled on a forest of supports, the coal car emerged. There are many improvements to make, but I morosely expected clothes beneath the tree. Instead, it wasn’t exactly what I wished for, but at least it was toys!
I’m surprised that the truss rods and most of the brake system survived. Custom supports will probably improve their chances. Most of the board details disappeared, but fortunately I parameterized them, and so that should be a quick fix.
The test print might not be suitable for a final model, but it is suitable for a test run. So, I also cut out a lead weight to replace the floor, and spritzed the model with a layer of primer. Now to dig through the Stash for some couplers and trucks…
Pembroke:87 