As Matt said earlier, White = Clean. If your piece is still translucent, it is not clean yet and not ready to paint.
So 'real life' really got away from me this week but I've finally finished the design updates that people requested. The biggest change was the addition of fan detailing around the radiator on the roof of the hood. For the best effect this area should be covered with see-through etched mesh (I leave that up to the modeler though). If people would prefer the older design however I also included an extra section of roof that can be used to fill the gap. I also included nose mounted bells with the H-10-44 (for all you Milwaukee Road folks out there); they are optional, separate pieces and placement is also up to the modeler. As for the strange cancellations, now that the dust has settled I noticed a rather strange pattern. As far as I can tell, the only people whose orders were actually cancelled lived outside the United States. Everyone else (all people within the US) received their orders. I'm not entirely sure what to make of that, but hey, it is what it is... Anyway, I thickened several parts of the shell (including the rear cab wall); hopefully that'll solve the problems for good. I've ordered another sample and I'll make the shells available for sale (again) once mine hits production. Anyone made progress on the shells that were already delivered?
Got mine delivered while I was in Alabama. Man, those railings are fragile! I broke one just trying to pick it up with my tweezers. Nothing a dot of superglue couldn't fix right away. My shell has some noticeable stepping--will this go away with cleaning and painting? I certainly can't sand it off without ruining other fine details. I'm very happy with the product, but this is a new technology for me and, I suppose, many others, so I'm reading this thread and others to learn how to handle the kit.
[FONT="]Still gathering parts and decals. I'm planning to add a working beacon light (Miniatronics 1.2mm bulb) and BLMA grab irons. Since I have a "pre-fan" shell, I'm thinking of using the fan grille from my old Minitrix FM. Will let you know how that works. [/FONT]
Paint should certainly help, although it's difficult to tell if the stepping on your shell is worse than usual without a picture. The roughness on Fishplate's shell (posted below) is in the ballpark of what you should expect I think. If it looks offensive don't be too shy about adding an extra light coat of paint! Cool! Keep us posted
So after a few Sandy-related delays, the revised FMs are now available for anyone who might be interested!
I received my H10-44 this week. Unfortunately the hadnrails were already broken at arrival and a the shell was very rough. I wrote back to Shapeways and they confirmed tha problem and are investigating it. Hoefully I'll get a new print soon. Marc
Wow Marc, you've really gotten unlucky with these - first a canceled order then this... Any chance you can shoot me a pm with a description of which handrails broke?
Next time I should check the spelling . I will send you pictures of the parts and also of the shell. The handrails can be made in another way, but the shell is the problem. It is not a very good print. Today I received the following message from Shapeways: "Thank you for waiting. Unfortunately I received feedback from the production facility that they won't be able to reprint the model and guarantee that it will not break again. Cause Complaint: These wires were too thin for their length and construction. We should have rejected this piece, it is not very likely that we can reprint this without breakage. Solution: Coupon and redesign for future ordering. This is why we have issued a Store Credit: http://www.shapeways.com/credits" Marc
Matthew, Perhaps it's better to take a different approach to the shell. I would prefer a simpler shell without too many details added to it. Would it be possible to adapt the shell to f.i. the handrails from the VO1000 from Atlas? Marc
These are very simple handrails to make from brass/phosphorbronze wire. I see no need to have them as part of the main shell. If anything just provide a printable template so you can form them yourself. For the rail around the long hood, just use the stanchions from a GMM steam loco detail set and again, bend your own wire. I wouldn't even think to rely on a resin/polymer whatever it is handrail on these. Brass will be much more durable and provide a much more scale appearance.
I'll also buy this w/o the handrail fret...is there a way to sell this on shapeways w/o the handrails...just the shell and interior? Bruce
It would be very easy to do actually (to remove the handrails that is). In fact, I had originally planned to release a 'kitbasher's delight' version of all of my locomotive kits. That said, recognize that such a version would not be much different than the current one; the handrail sprue uses hardly any material (as in less than a dollar) so I wouldn't be able to offer much of a discount with them either. If I did go ahead and release a kitbasher's version, would you guys want markers (dimples/pilot holes) for placing the handrails/grab irons or just a clean shell?
For those using Bestine to clean the FUD models: if you soak the parts in a sealed glass container filled with Bestine for one to two days, you will not have to scrub off any wax. The Bestine dissolves the wax, which in turn adheres to the glass walls. Bestine is available via Amazon.com, as well as through art supply stores such as Blicks.
It's not a cost issue for me...I understand the cost would remain the same...but, yes, I'd prefer to model my own railings from brass wire... And, it seems Shapeways is having difficulty with the thinness of that fret, per the reports of cancelled order notices...I'd imagine that just offering the shell and interior would solve that issue. I'd have no problem with having dimples in the areas that require drilling for stanchions...I want the open fan area on the long hood to add my own screening..I model ATSF AND have a spare VO-1000 mechanism, so this is a must for me. Respectfully, Bruce
Hi Matthew, Dropping in over here from The Railwire thread, and thought I should restate my questions here as this is a much more complete thread. I am excited by this offering but still have questions. Please note that most of these comments are about limitations of the printing process, and not about your very nice design work which looks top notch! It appears that there is some significant evolution in design since your initial post in February 2012. Those photos of the H10-44 show quite a bit of stepping and what appear to be rather deep doors. Later photos the compare your shell to the MiniTrix shell appear to show thinner doors. How representative are the first photos from February of the current design and printing? Without a model in hand it is hard to know how significant the layering/stepping artifacts are. Any comment on this? What do you think about offering the shell without the side doors? This would make it easier to sand the sides and they could be represented by etched parts (either BLMA or custom by the modeler). Thanks for offering these much needed models. Best wishes, Dave
Yea I completely understand what you are getting at - I was just trying to explain my reasoning a bit... For the record though, as far as I can tell, Marc's problems are still an isolated case. Since I released the updated shell a few weeks ago no orders have been canceled and all seem to have been delivered on schedule. In fact, even when I was receiving cancellation notices for the 'phase one' shell, they all referenced the wall thickness and not the handrails as the primary issue. First off thanks for the kind words Dave! The photos that have been posted most recently are the ones that are most representative of the current design. As I design my models I try to upload pictures for comments/feedback; among the things that folks requested were the thinner doors that you see as part of the current release. As far as the stepping/layering goes - unfortunately there aren't too many concrete assurances that I can offer. The problem is that, since these shells are made individually, there is a degree of variability in the quality of the finish from model to model. That degree of variably isn't huge mind you, but it's just enough that it's difficult for me to point to a particular picture to say: "this is exactly what you will get" (if that makes sense). If you are looking for finished pictures of finished FUD models however, the best I have on hand right now are bumthum's beautiful S-4 and jcolombo's 1000-Series caboose (both my designs): I know that's probably not the concrete answer that you wanted but unfortunately it's about the best I can do at the moment... Also, I had not thought of offering a door-less version (you are the first to request it actually). I'll ponder that one.
Thanks for the information Matthew. It is great to see some painted examples. You guys have convinced me to try these, although I am still potentially interested in a doorless version if that comes to pass. Best wishes, Dave
I finally got around to stripping the waxy residue on the FM H10-44 as well as the KM ML4000. The shells are now completely white... so I guess they are ready for me to make a mess trying to paint them. Has anyone got new photos of their efforts to decorate and assemble their FM H10-44?
