3D-printing tanks... Pt. IX: T18 Boarhound

I love printing unusual and less-used vehicles, and while Thingiverse is a true treasure-trove not everything I am looking for is available there...

One of the vehicles I have been looking for, is the T18 Boarhound armoured car...

I really love the design of this vehicle... 

I wanted to add this armoured car to my platoon of Staghounds or have it serve as a command vehicle in a British armoured car company... It's initial version was armed in the same way as the Staghound Mk. I and is't a nice miniature to add some variety.

As with the Staghound, this is a very large armoured car...

With a Sherman and a Staghound for scale...

Not only is it almost as big as a Sherman, it weighs just about the same too... This is one impressive armoured car!

I found the Boarhound on Shapeways and contacted the designer (Kampfflieger) to ask him if the stl-file was available for download. He quickly responded and directed me to his Patreon: Panzer Printer... Apart from the Boarhound there are a lot more cool designs, mostly of rare vehicles. The designs themselves are pretty good and there's a wide selection of models to choose from.

I had to re-scale the design from 1:72 to 1:100 and I have adapted the model to accommodate a set of small magnets. As an added bonus, the design itself is already hollow and open at the bottom; resulting in a rather economically effective print, despite it's size...

However, that proved to be something of a hindrance, too... The walls of the hull are so thin, the vehicle started warping, even after I had cured it. I think it's because the design was originally intended to be printed by Shapeways, and they use a different technique...

It might be hard to see, but the thin sides are flaring outwards...

Above you can see the first two printed hulls. At first I thought the warping was caused by the supports I left inside the hull (I didn't bother removing them as you wouldn't be able to see them anyway), but the second print suffered from the same problem, despite having all of the internal supports removed. I took extra care while cleaning the model, but it started warping even before I got the chance to fully cure it...

Screenshot made while in Tinkercad...

To counter the warping I thickened the walls of the rear half on the hull and I inserted blocks to connect the axles and strengthen the overall construction.

The model on the right features the strengthened frame...

Here you can see the adaptation I made to accommodate a small magnet.
I also added a few pieces of stowage...

The stowage is from Thingiverse. The pieces are designed by TigerAce1945 and can be found HERE... Seeing how easy it was to add some detail to the (already awesome) model, I regret not trying it any sooner...

While cutting up the file and re-scaling the model I forgot I had already re-scaled the turret... Hence, the first turret came out much too small, being scaled down twice instead of just once... For the second print I replaced the file and printed it in the right scale...

The difference in size is obvious...

The warping and the re-scaling error are all part of the learning experience... In the end the Boarhound turned out great and I will be printing a couple more!
I really, really, really like this model; it's a clean design and nicely detailed. You can expect to find many more of Panzer Printer's designs here in the future!

3D-printed reinforcements... pt. II

The first order at Shapeways left me wanting more... I already had a few items stored on my wishlist and decided to treat myself once more... All vehicles are designed by Masters of Military and printed by Shapeways... The prints and models themselves are highly detailed and of superb quality.

I picked up a German fieldkitchen, often referred to as 'Gulaschkanone'... While not a combat unit, I really wanted to add this to my collection...

No army can fight on an empty stomach...

Picture from Shapeways...

The printed models in their delivery form...

This will serve well as an objective or as part of a terrain piece. I think it would also be well suited to enhance a HQ unit...

I also purchased a unit of Selbstfahrlafette auf Fahrgestell VOMAG mit 8.8cm Flak...

Essentially a mobile gun platform...

The VOMAG in deployed state...

On the left a VOMAG with 8.8cm flak, on the right a VOMAG with range finder...

The printed models in their delivery form... These prints are extremely well done!

These things are big, and I mean really big! They dwarf even my Sturer Emil... The main reason I wanted to include these is that they are so weird/special/unique... The German idea basically was to take a bus or truck (the chassis was used for both), cut of the roof and put a big gun on top...
These actually saw action all through the conflict, serving all over Europe.

The models offer the option to be built either for travel or for combat.

Last models on the list are a set of SdKfz. 247... These command vehicles were built in limited numbers in the late 1930's and used during the early stages of the war.

The SdKfz. 247 Ausf. A...

The SdKfz. Ausf. B...

The printed models in their delivery form...
Note the difference in size between the Ausf. A and B...

I have both these vehicles in 15mm for my Flames of War Germans and I really wanted to include them in this new project too...

Once again the quality of the Shapeways models amaze me... Looking forward to get these painted!

3D-printed reinforcements...

To augment the GHQ Micro Armour I picked up at Crisis last week, I placed an order at Shapeways... For those who aren't familiar with this company, they offer a wide range of 3D-printing services... Primarily, you can get your own designs printed, but you can also order prints from their well stocked store (filled with products from various designers)...

In the past I have purchased several 15mm vehicles for my FoW Late War Germans, but these were the first 6mm miniatures I ordered...

While not cheap, these small models are a lot more affordable when compared to larger scale printed miniatures... Due to the difference in cost, I will only use 3D-printed miniatures to get my hands on vehicles that are otherwise unavailable...

First on the list was a mixed set, containing two of each: Dicker Max and Sturer Emil...

The 3D-printed miniatures in their delivery form...

Dicker Max...

Originally designed as a bunker buster to tackle the French Maginot line, it later served as a tank destroyer... Armed with a 10.5 cm cannon it is a fearsome weapon.

Sturer Emil...

And when the 10.5 cm cannon of the Dicker Max isn't enough, there's the 12.8 cm gun of the Sturer Emil... Both of these vehicles were built in very limited numbers. In fact, only two were built of each type.

I also purchased a set of 8.8 cm (SFL) auf Zukraftwagen 12t (Sd.Kfz 8), better known as the Bunkerflak or Bufla...

One of the more interesting vehicles of the period, in my opinion...

The 3D-printed miniatures in their delivery form... 

The Bunkerflak, as the name suggests, was originally designed to tackle bunkers, in particular the Czechoslavakian border defenses. As these were bypassed without any real fighting, the vehicle later also served as tank destroyer. Most German anti tank guns of the time had little to no success tanking on the heaviest enemy tanks like the British Matilda and French Char 2B. The mobile 8.8 cm had no difficulties with those targets...
By no means a small target, these pack a serious punch... While they have little to no defensive capabilities (the halftrack is only lightly armoured and the gun's crew is very exposed indeed), offensively they can take on anything the enemy has to offer, be it bunkers or tanks...

Speaking of the enemy... For my battle buddy I ordered a French Char 2C...

Bigger than a Tiger II (but slightly lighter), with a crew of 12 or 13, depending on the variant...

While these saw only very limited, if any, use, this tank is too cool to pass up... A product of the First World War, only ten were ever constructed. These landships were, and still are, the biggest tanks ever built!
All were destroyed by the French to prevent them from falling into German hands...

The Char 2C in it's delivery form... 

The 3D-printed models are as crisp as I expected them to be from my previous purchases. They might be more expensive than GHQ metal models, but it's the only way to get these less mainstream vehicles... And when ordered in small numbers I can still get away with it...

The miniatures are nicely detailed but lack the finer touches that can only be achieved in metal casting. Even so, this is the first order of many, I suppose... There are a lot of other, less used tanks and vehicles I want to add to my collection...