Going to MARS... We have liftoff...

Oh boy, do we have liftoff...

My printer arrived a day sooner than expected... Yay!

I won't bother you with an unboxing, there are already too many of those to be found in YouTube. Suffice to say, the machine was extremely well packaged and came with plenty of useful goodies...

My workspace... 

Getting started was fast and easy: within half an hour of arriving, the printer was installed and ready to go... I decided to print the innkeeper from VaeVictis first as I really like that design! 

Below you can see the steps from digital file to a real miniature...

The rendered file in Chitubox...

I don't have any pictures of the actual printing. But due to the way this printer works there is very little to see while the print is still in progress...

First print, still dripping with resin...

The buildplate in the slanted position, enabling even
more exess resin to drip back into the resin vat...

The models during their first rinse...

The ultra sonic cleaner working its magic...

You can clearly see the supports...

All cleaned up and left to cure under the UV-light...

I knew this machine was good, but that my first print would impress me this much I hadn't dared to hope... I am also quite relieved that my first print went so well.

Here is the printed model next to one of my metal miniatures...

The model is nicely detailed and the qualitiy of the design gives the miniature some real character! Talking of detail, it easily equals most of my other plastic, metal or resin miniatures... 

My second print can already be seen in the background and the third is already on it's way... 

Going to MARS... The final countdown...

The final preparations have been made, all I can do now, is wait for my printer to arrive...

Today I picked up several plastic containers at IKEA, the last of the supplies I needed... These come with a clamped, rubber sealed lid so should be watertight. These containers are going to be used to clean my printer parts (as they won't be able to fit in my pickle jars), like the resin vat and the build plate...

I also prepared a couple of files in Chitubox, the slicerprogram that's used to convert stl-files... I have studied several tutorials on how to operate this slicer, mainly focussing on support placement and model orientation... While the program is quite easy to use, I have the feeling I still have a lot to learn...

These models will be the first things I hope to get out of my printer. After that, I must really make some plans to get the most out of this machine...

The Innkeeper and a barrel from VeaVictis miniatures...

A rack with barrels, made by EC3D Designs...

Both of these prints will be printed at 28mm scale and will be put to good use in my modular HirstArts Dungeon. I really hope this is the next step, bringing further detail to this already vast project... The barrels were hollowed out, using the slicer.

A Jadgpanzer 38t, found on Thingiverse...

The Jagdpanzer will be printed in 15mm scale end will be used with Flames of War and What a Tanker! I used the slicer to hollow out this model, saving some resin.

All of these models can be found for free, on Thingiverse. A lot of designers use this platform to share their models, often giving access to free designs to promote their paid content. I have already found some very nice designs I am more than willing to pay for. When I am more confident I am getting the hang of my new printer I will surely get some of them...

Going to MARS... Preparing for launch...

As stated in my plans for 2020 I really want to get started with resin 3D-printing... This type of machine is well suited to print highly detailed models used for wargaming, be it miniatures or scenery...

"3D-printing...
I already have a bit of experience when it comes to 3D-printing, as I have an Ultimaker 2+ in my classroom. While this is an excellent printer, it's hardly suited to print 15mm or 6mm miniatures. At the moment I am saving up to purchase a resin 3D-printer, most likely an Elegoo Mars, preferably the updated Pro version... This type of resin printer has become surprisingly affordable and seems to yield impressive results..."

During the last month I have gathered all the materials needed to start this new project. Printing in resin can yield impressive results, but also requires some precautions as the resin the machine works with is highly toxic...

The resin... I opted to go with the water washable resin as it saves me the
additional hassle of working with 95% Isopropyl Alcohol (or IPA).

This water washable resin is relatively new. Earlier types of resin needed to be cleaned with 95% IPA, which in itself is a hazardous substance... As I will be operating this machine in my gaming/hobby room I preferred the water washable variant... Slightly more expensive (but only slightly) it was not a difficult choice. The additional cost is easily covered by not having to spend any money on the IPA.

So far, I have two bottles of grey resin. For someone used to plastic and resin miniatures, this colour is quite familiar and reassuring... As most of my prints will be painted anyway, the colour of the resin is not a big issue. For future, more special projects, I might get some different colours.

Nitrile gloves... You really want to avoid any skin contact with the resin...

Safety goggles... You don't want the resin on your skin and certainly
not near your eyes...

As mentioned, you really, really, really want to avoid contact with the resin... Disposable gloves and a pair of safety glasses (these are big enough to cover my own spectacles) are essential.

The ubiquitous pickle jars... The strainer will make it easier to rinse models
of uncured resin... 

A set of plastic scrapers... 

A funnel and fine paint strainer to feed any left-over resin back into the bottle...

While the items shown above are almost mandatory, the next two appliances are entirely optional... You can clean your prints just fine in a jar of water and curing the resin can also be done in the sun...

An ultra sonic cleaner... This machine will ensure even the hard to reach areas
of the prints are thoroughly cleaned...

An ultra-violet light... The UV-light is needed to fully cure the resin.
If all else fails, I can always start my own nail salon... 

As you can see, you need quite a bit of tools and supplies to get started... Not pictured above are a metric tonne of paper towels, some micro fibre cloth and a respirator. When we next visit IKEA, I plan to buy a couple of larger plastic containers to be able to clean the resin vat and print plate...

So, now I have everything I need, except for the 3D-printer itself... As mentioned, I had set my sights on the Elegoo Mars, a very affordable resin 3D-printer. The updated version, the Mars Pro, was released last month but I haven't been able to pick one up... Initial supplies were very limited and due to the outbreak of the Corona virus, production in the Chinese factory has come to a halt. Mind, I appreciate the gravity of the situation, and this is by no means a complaint. I understand the necessity of this precaution and can only hope the situation will quickly improve...

However... Rather than wait for the unknown resupply date of the Mars Pro, I decided to get a regular Mars instead. When the Pro does become available again, I might always get second printer (should I feel the need to do so)... The money I saved by getting the regular Mars instead of the Pro was spent on another bottle of resin.

The printer is set to arrive this friday and I can't wait to get started! Expect 3D-printer related updates soon... 

Review: 15mm M60A3 Plastic Soldier Company

Work hasn't slowed down yet, but I desperately needed to do some hobbying...

I decided to build a 15mm or 1:100 M60A3 from Plastic Soldier Company, and because I thoroughly enjoyed building it I thought I should write up a little review... 

Because it is not connected to any of my current hobby projects, this kit has been sitting on my desk for quite some time now. A shame, really, as it is such a nice model...

The details...

The box contains five models...

The building instructions, as easy as it gets...

Both sides of the sprue... All the parts needed for one M60A3...

The tracks consist of two parts which easily snap together... 

There is no way to get this wrong... 

The headlights are a nice bit of detail... A pair of tweezers proved
to be essential here...

Crips detail and a tight fitting model kit...

The 'finished' product...

The model has two hatches that can either be modelled open or closed. For this first model I opted to keep all the hatches closed.

To put this tank together I used a sharp hobby knife, a pair of tweezers and a small drill. For the main construction I used plastic glue, which I always prefer when working with plastic. The magnets were glued with super glue.

After the main assembly I usually add a brass antenna, but I must somehow have misplaced my container of plastic and brass rods. This final detail will be added as soon as I find them again...

The verdict...

The kit has everything I have come to expect from a company like PSC, crisp detail, tight fitting parts, high quality plastic and not a single defect to be found... Parts like the headlights or the stowage rack at the back of the turret really add to the model.

The parts were completely free of flash, so getting them ready for assembly was as easy as cutting them from the sprue. The model is easy to build and goes together really well, if I hadn't magnetized the hull and turret I would have been able to assemble it in a couple of minutes. 

In addition to the complete vehicle, the kit comes with two crew and some additional stowage. 

The model is obviously designed for gaming, thus some of the smaller parts are a bit thicker than they should be, scale-wise. Fine by me, as I would end up breaking them if they were any thinner...

Extra work...

I took a minute to drill out the muzzle of the barrel. Nothing fancy, just a small hole to add some detail to the barrel...

Because of my slight magnet fetish I had no other option than to magnetize the turret and hull (not because the system provided doesn't work, because it does). It takes a little bit more time and effort, but this makes my tanks compatible with my smoke plumes, which, you guessed it, are also magnetized... I have a fair number of PSC miniatures in my Flames of War collection, and all have received a similar treatment.

Below you can see the extra steps I have taken to add the magnets...

Step 1: drill the holes...

Step 2: cover the holes...

Step 3: put the magnets in the holes...

As you see, it's not exactly rocket science... I use 5mm magnets and a 5.5mm drill. The white bits are just scraps of plasticard, cut to size. These are glued to the inside of the model to provide a surface to which the magnets can be attached.

3D-printing Normandy... pt. II

The 3D-printer is steadily buzzing away and the Sainte-Mère-Église church is slowly taking shape...

As far as printed scenery goes, this is a pretty ambitious model. Already consisting of more than ten parts and it still needs most of it's roofs. Apart from it's complexity it's also pretty big, printing it has taken several days worth of time.

The church is big... This is a A3-size cutting mat, you can get an idea
of the footprint of this building...

The church tower is almost 20 cm tall... 

When the printing is complete, I will take a couple of pictures and compare it to my own scratch-built church and the Battlefront model. 

Tight-fitting windows...

The church I am printing comes with all the files to equip the windows with frames. These only take a couple of minutes to print but do add a lot to an already impressive model...

At the moment I am printing the roofs for this massive structure, these should be done before the weekend.

The set of which this awesome church is a part can be found here: Jens's awesome 3D-files

If you go down to the woods today... pt. III

Under the guise of 'you can never have too many trees' I have been working on a new set of, you guessed it, trees...

This expansion comes in the shape of ten woods (a base with three trees) and ten single trees. All the trees and bases are made by hand as can be seen in part I and II of this series... The based trees are a good way to add some more diversity to an already very flexible terrain set.

Finishing these took me a good while longer than I expected (and hoped), but work is absorbing most of my 'free' time at the moment. On the other hand, a small and relatively simple project like this is perfect to clear the mind...

The trees after being basecoated... 

The finished set... 

With these new trees I can almost double the number of based trees for my 6mm Hex terrain.

When spread out, the added trees hardly stand out... 

While this evenly spreads the cover it can make for a very different type of battle, where you can move from tree to tree...

The trees can be easily clustered together to form larger woods... 

The trees can easily be clustered together to form larger woods, giving the battlefield an altogether different look... From a small distance, I must admit I prefer this approach. Slowly, the woods I want are beginning to show.