A new seller in the Z market. Thought I'd take a chance and buy three different. Most of what I've seen and purchased so far has been clunky. This is one of them that arrived today. I'm stunned by the engineering and quality of design that went into this. The quality of printing is pleasing too. I will be buying more from them. (Not affiliated with the seller, just a happy customer). https://www.ebay.com/itm/2342967321...var=533892184277&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
Mitch, I’m glad you took the plunge and bought a few of these and have given them a thumbs up. I saw them listed on eBay a day or so ago and thought they looked nice, but was hesitant to pull the trigger. I too like you, have been burned by previous stuff posted by other sellers that were far below expectations, and required substantial rework if I wanted to use them. I would note that judging by the pictures on a few of these offerings, there would be some additional X-Acto work and sanding required to clean up flash or window edges, and what not. Also I do see some heavy step lines on some walls. My greatest concern was the brickwork on one that I had seen - the General Store. But in Z-scale seldom do such imperfections show to the naked eye, although they do occasionally pop up in pictures. These are very intricate designs though and if one is willing to put in a little extra work, you could have a master piece on your hands. However, I must say the price was rather appealing on what I saw. I’d be interested to do a side-by-side comparison with a complete ARCHISTORIES home of same era. Question is could two such models from different manufacturers sit side-by-side on the same layout and complement each other?
This house, in particular comes in a few parts, some assembly required. But the elegance would be gone if it came printed in one piece. There is the house itself, very little xacto cleanup needed, then both porches are a separate piece. It's the delicate railings that amaze me. Both porches have a separate roof piece. The house sits on a footprint that matches the house and has a hole in the center for lighting if one wants to add such. I also bought one of the shops. It is delightful too, very delicate and has a separate roof piece and an awning for the rear entry, along with a footprint base. I'm so impressed that I purchased a rowhouse and another building or two.
I have to agree that these are impressive. I've bought a number of these in N scale , and cleanup is actually less than most Walthers or DPM kits. Fit of the pieces is very good....so good you could set these on a layout without gluing the pieces together. They do require a little extra work, since windows,doors, ect. are molded in, so you need a steady hand to paint them, but that's no different than DPM and some Walthers kits and actually gives better detail than most "add in" windows and doors. I really like the row houses, which aren't available from any one else........the 4 units models come in 9 pieces. the housing units come in 2 pieces, the main roof is one single piece that locks the 2 units together, then there are 3 porches, a central double porch and two outer single porches and finally 3 porch roofs. I just wish they had more stuff!
Dave, well-described, thank you. I bought the row houses along with three other houses. They are all so well engineered that the pieces come together so nicely. I've written the seller and raved about the houses. Decades ago I rented an apartment in one of these. https://www.ebay.com/itm/234296735518?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649 I'll be looking at their Z offerings occasionally for anything new.
I picked up one of the house kits as well as a storefront. Really great quality, can't wait to get more from them. Steve W
Hey guys, they'd added three more buildings to the lineup. I was hoping he'd shrink the N scale office building to Z. It should be fun. https://www.ebay.com/itm/2343368961...rand=Unbranded&_trksid=p2060778.c100290.m3507
For an FDM printer, it's definitely putting out some high quality prints, especially for such a small scale like Z. I think the shingles hide a roof that would otherwise have noticeable stair-stepping, and the siding/bricks hide the layer lines pretty well too. Overall, very creative design and use of the printer.
I agree, these are some of the most unique and fantastic architectural designs we’ve seen as of late. However I’m still seeing some stairstepping in portions of these that give me a bit of pause. Granted I’m a realist and fully understand we are dealing with 1:220 scale after all. And beggars like us can’t be choosers when it comes to what is being offered to us. One thing I would be tempted to do is blow out the windows and replace them with laser cut window frames. Maybe I’ll pull the trigger on one and see what I can do with it paint wise. Unless one of you other artists/experts beat me to it. I got enough projects on the table as it is. LOL
I haven't tried it personally, but I have heard mention of filler primer from Mr. Hobby called Mr. Surfacer. Some of the guys who have bought models from my Shapeways store have used it to fill uneven surfaces. Granted, the Shapeways printers are SLA and have much finer layer lines, but it may be worth a shot on FDM prints as well.
My buildings have arrived. I agree, very nice quality. I have bought other 3d printed buildings, but these are far better than anything I have.
Hot dog, they did it again. The corner store arrived today with two other building I ordered. Simply fabulous. I've shopped in stores and deli's like this when living in older urban areas. Kudos, well packaged and easy to unwrap too. Can't wait to see what they come up with next. https://www.ebay.com/itm/2343368485...var=533919397158&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
I can't for the life of me get myself to buy 3D printed stuff. The grooves just drive me insane and I hate sanding. I hope at some point the printers evolve where this is no longer an issue. I've seen some finished structures on eBay that were 3D printed and you can tell they're 3D printed. Glad you are happy with the product though.
