3D-printing Normandy... Pt. III

After printing a couple of houses and farms to replace my scratch-built foam buildings (more on that in another post) I figured I might as well update the rest of my scenery, too...

First up are my trees... Since no battlefield is complete without at least a few trees and my table measures 220x160cm I ended up having more than a few... My trees are split between single based trees and forest bases. A quick count yielded almost 30 forest bases and at least as many individual trees. 

Safe to say, I like my WW2 battlefields green, and for most of my games, I put all my trees on the board. 

A few months ago I picked up a set of trees to print as scatter terrain for D&D. Great looking Fantasy trees, suitably twisted and gnarly. 

The full set... As far as scatter terrain goes, this is all I need for D&D.

The design included a canopy, but I haven't printed those yet. These trees are meant to serve as scatter terrain for our D&D sessions, and the canopies would only get in the way and block our view of the board.

One of the many benefits of digital designs is that you can scale them any way you wish... I cut a bit of the bottom of the trees to remove the wide base of the trunk and made them a lot thinner. These trees are part of a Fantasy range of models and are thus scaled heroically (is that even a word?), by which I mean their shapes and measurements are slightly exaggerated, so to fit in with 15mm Historical terrain they needed some tweaking. 

I ended up with this set...

This batch represents four full plates on my Elegoo MARS. The tallest trees are using the maximum of height the MARS has to offer.  

I used round MDF bases to mount the trees on. I decided to use several different sizes, making a distinction between large and smaller trees.

There is no way I will be able to replace all my trees in one go, but this first batch is a nice start.

The painting was fast and easy; a basecoat of Dryad Bark and a very quick overbrush of Gorthor Brown. The bases were covered in a layer of textured paint. 

As soon as the textured paint has dried, I will give the dirt a quick drybrush with a lighter shade of brown. After that I plan on adding some static grass and larger tufts. For the trees I have several shades of clump foliage...

More pictures coming soon!

Déjà vu; here we go again...

Oh man, life goes on and typing this makes me feel a bit like deja-vu...

Over the last couple of months I have spent plenty of time on my hobby, but I haven't found/taken the time to keep his blog up to date...  

So, what have I been up to? 

Well... A lot of different things, actually... 

First up, I have purchased two new 3D-printers... After my two Elegoo MARS, the larger Elegoo SATURN is a proper upgrade; the larger print volume gives a lot more options. I also picked up a FDM-printer: A Creality CR-10S Pro V2... Having a FDM-printer with a large print surface, allows me to print bigger pieces of scenery. My printer prints at a very nice quality, mind you, it can't compare to resin, but for scenery or terrain it's perfect! It might not be faster, but the ability to print bigger makes all the difference, and that it's cheaper is a bonus, too.

I have printed a whole lot of resin 15mm buildings for my Flames of War scenery. Most of these still have to be painted, but my table now has a proper village. Even better, my friend and neighbour has been busy building and painting two whole armies and together we have been playing some games. 

Well, maybe not a proper village yet. Mind you, this is a 220X160 table...

I have completed a whole lot of pieces to decorate The Dungeon. I commisioned a set of full-plate armoured suits to put on display. I found the sculpter of Uncanny Minis on Thingiverse, joined his new Patreon and contacted him with a proposal. If you are interested in fantasy miniatures, check out his Patreon or his Thingiverse. Most of his models are absolutely free and, most important, very good! 

Two of the full plate armoured suits...

A painted example of one of his designs... 

After the set of armoured suits I asked him to design my D&D character: Gabnast, a Gnome Ranger wielding a heavy crossbow...

Meet Gabnast 'the bullfrog' Millwop... 

Speaking of D&D... Almost a year ago I joined a group of players for a new (and my first) D&D campaign. After our lockdown ended, we switched from online to physical game sessions. So far, I have printed and painted all the character for the players and I have been printing miniatures for our DM, too. 

I have also started printing scatter terrain for D&D. So far I have printed ánd painted (yes, I'm surprised, too) a set of trees, a complete cavern/mine set and a whole lot of ruins... We have been using my terrain during our sessions, which serves as a great motivation to actually paint all these pieces.

The cavern/mine set, all VaeVictis Miniatures...

Most of these ruins will form the basis of a new set of terrain for 40K. This set of terrain should help me to get back into playing 40K.

And because an update without some fresh pictures is just lame, here are a few from last weekend, if only as proof I actually printed and painted something...

These ruins are from Devious Games and are easy to print (they require minimal supports) and fun to paint... I think they are equally usable as scatter terrain for D&D or other Fantasy games as well as terrain for 40K.

I have designed a full set of detailed round bases, which I uploaded to Thingiverse. Originally I designed these for a project of my own, but for now, that project is on hold... Judging by the number of downloads, I think other hobbyists enjoy them, too. You can check them out HERE.

I sold my orange Feudal Guard army, clearing some space for a new Valour Korps force from The Makers Cult. Even though the VK models are pretty awesome to begin with, I found some room for improvement... 

I have kitbashed and designed a set of extra gear for the standard Korpsmen, resulting in kitted-out models which are a joy to paint! I digitally added bayonets and belts to all the lasguns, so I can print them as complete sets.

This army will get it's own series of posts. Well, that's the plan, anyway... 

So far, I have settled on a colour scheme, as can be seen below, and I have printed several squads of Korpsmen to get my army started.

A painted test model...

A squad of Korpsmen, equipped with extra gear...

Painted test model of a Sentinel...

This is the part where I normally say that more updates are coming soon, but looking back, I shouldn't be making any such promises...

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-printing tanks... pt. VIII: Dorchester ACV

I have printed a couple of Dorchester ACV's...

I opted to print two different versions because, well, because I could... Two very different vehicles, but with the same function. These two vehicles don't have a place in any of my current projects, but I have a feeling I will be expanding my British forces sooner rather than later...

I love printing vehicles like this, it's very hard to get these otherwise... 

The big, 6-wheeled Dorchester...

The article in the picture above is well worth the read...

The smaller of the two, but only by a little...
This picture shows the early variant of the vehicle...

In my previous post I talked about how I botched up the first print of the 6x6 Dorchester (which I updated to include comparison pictures). But with a little care, these two models came out great!

I used Tinkercad to make them hollow, thus saving quite a bit of resin.

I equipped both models with antennas. I carefully drilled out the stubs on the roof of the vehicles. I opted for longer antennas than usual, I think it adds a touch of realism to these miniatures as well as make them stand out even more...

Both these designs are available on Thingiverse. They were done by m_bergman, and can be found here. I am slowly printing my way through his vast collection of incredible designs... 

These things are big... Bigger than a Churchill...

The Churchill tank on the picture above is no ordinary tank... It is an AVRE variant, equipped with a SBG assault bridge. More on this tank in a future post...

3D-printing... A learning experience...

The last couple of weeks I have been printing one model after another, rarely allowing my printer a moment of rest. Most of my prints have come out rather well and apart from some issues with supports I have yet to suffer any serious failures. 

But today I did learn something new, something I could have known, no, something I should have known...

The MARS had just finished a Dorchester ACV (more pictures in a future post) I found on Thingiverse. Because I had another model ready to print I immediately started the clean-up. 

I followed my normal procedure, starting with tilting the build-plate to let any excess resin drip back into the resin vat. However, I neglected to put the red hood back on... In the few moments it took for me to take out my gloves, tools and water, it all went wrong. The print itself was flawless, but due to the abundant sunshine the layer of liquid resin started to cure. Fast... Before I realised what was going on it was too late.

I tried to salvage the model, submerging the print in water, scrubbing and poking at the blobs, but to no avail... Most of the flat surfaces I managed to clean to some extent, but the smaller details were all but lost.

The railing just under the roof is all but gone, as are most of the other small details...

The covered windows and vision slits are just about invisible...

Ah well, lesson learned... However, the model won't be tossed away. I will most likely find a way to include it in a piece of terrain or objective. I will print this one again and take extra care not to expose it to sunlight...

Update...

After finishing the second model I can offer some pictures to compare the difference in quality...

3D-printing a complete army... pt. II

The printing part is done...

A 1750 points Late War company for Flames of War...

The first models I printed for this project were the Rams. These were done on March 14th. Yesterday, March 21st, I finished the last models, two Sherman V's... This entire company took me only a week to print. Admitted, if I weren't forced to work from home it would have taken me a bit longer, but only a couple of days... Consisting of 22 vehicles, this is quite a sizable force. I actually printed more vehicles than were needed for this list (like the Daimlers) and even did some prints for another player...

Apart from the infantry, these are from PSC, check them out here, everything is printed on my Elegoo MARS.

I used about an entire 1L bottle of Elegoo's water washable resin, meaning this army (excluding the infantry) costs me about €45,-/€50,- in raw material...

The company roster...

I know, fielding seven platoons is sub-optimal, but this is what looked right to me...

Some of you may notice I took the liberty to swap out the command Shermans for my Rams. I really wanted to include these models in my army, the miniatures just look too good not to use... In games they can easily pass as a Sherman, some players might not even notice... To be on yhe safe side, I will add a couple of Shermans to the company so I can swap them if the need arises.

With all the models completed I am waiting for my paint to arrive... I lacked the colours I wanted to use for this project and none of my local stores stock my brand of paint anymore...

3D-printing tanks... pt. VI: Daimler armoured car and Dingo

Ever since I started playing Flames of War, British armoured cars have always been a potential next project... Something about their design appeals to me. Availability always stopped me, but that's not a problem anymore...

As far as armoured vehicles go, the Dingo is very compact...

After the Staghound I decided to print a couple of Daimler Dingo's and Daimler armoured cars.

A set of Dingo's... 

I opted to print two different versions, opened and closed. For the open cars I will have to look for some models to crew them...

The Daimlef armoured car...

To complete the Recce platoon I also printed a set of Daimler armoured cars...

Daimler armoured car... This design comes with two different turrets...

Magnetized turrets... 

As with all the other tanks, I adapted the design to accommodate two smal magnets. I also hollowed out the barrels.

The Daimlers... The difference in size is striking...

When these came out of my printer I thought I had scaled one of them incorrectly. But after some quick onlime research it turned out the Daimler armoured car was quite a bit larger than the Dingo... These models will make for a nice Recce platoon.

I can't take any credit for these designs. The Dingo's were done by m_bergman, they can be found here. 

The Daimler armoured car was done by Kharn3655 and can be found here. This design comes with two different turrets, both of which I printed.

More tanks to come!

Review: 15mm British infantry and heavy weapons from Plastic Soldier Company

To serve as infantry support in my British/Canadian company I purchased two boxes of 15mm or 1:100 Late War British infantry and heavy weapons from Plastic Soldier Company...

A quick review of both boxes...

The Late War infantry box contains 144 models, including officers, PIAT-teams and light mortars. The models come in a nice variety of poses and the large number of miniatures means this box is enough to field a complete company of three platoons and command.

The Late War heavy weapons box contains Vickers HMG's, 3-Inch and 4-Inch mortars and a flamethrower. The set contains four of each of the heavy weapons, enough to provide the basic suport an infantry company needs.

Infantry sprue, fully packed with models...

Heavy weapons sprue...

As far as I can tell, uniforms and gear are all historically correct. Furtermore, the detail and character on these miniatures is very good.

Instruction manual... Quite straightforward...

For now I needed just a single platoon, but the rest of the models will be built as soon as I expand this company. I haven't even really started on the heavy weapons yet... The boxes contain enough models to build three platoons of infantry.

The completed platoon...

No PSC but 3D-printed... These Ram Kangaroos will serve as transports
for the infantry platoon...

The good
The boxes offer good value for money and cover all the basic needs whether you are starting an infantry company from scratch or just want to add some support to an armoured force...
The models are very detailed and I quite like the character of the models. I think these will paint up nicely.
The wide variety of poses means you can make each base unique.

The bad
None... Reallly? Nope... Well... Maybe... If I needed to offer some critisism it would be that some of the sprues had quite a bit of flash, but nothing that couldn't be solved with a sharp knife...

The verdict
PSC is always my first stop when it comes to buying 15mm miniatures. These Late War Brits are yet another great example of the quality PSC delivers. I will be back for more...