I see more and more people talking about rapid prototyping and Shapeways as a source of new items. This leads me to my questions: How bad is the learning curve? How hard would it be to make an EMD E2? After you've made the E2A, would it be "easy" to cut off the cab and make a B out of it? Can you make a generic windowless passenger car and the add/move windows as needed to make any passenger car(s) you wanted. I read something one time that says the NMRA doesn't consider it scratchbuilding if someone else's laser cuts the laser cut side you've designed. What do you think? In the modern world, is the work in the many hours of work to produce the digital input the creation (whether laser cut or rapid prototyped) or do you have to do the last few minutes of work too? Lots of question, huh? Does someone want to make me an ABB set of E2's? Just asking. Terry
Well, yhate to say it but if you are looking for an EMD E2 you are out of luck... EMD never produced an E2. Now if you are looking for an EMC E2 a company by the name of Porthole Productions of San Jose, CA., Robert Fabris, owner, use to make the shells, though how easy it would be to find such is very, very hard to say. Producing such with Shapeways, as it presently stands, would be difficult to do since the resolution is not fine enough to really do well. Even on some recent shots of straight sides there has been evidence of the problem with "banding" where the overlapping layers of resin do not perfectly line up and on curved ends, sides and roof banding is considerably worse off, making it a major production to clean up/smooth out. While within the next couple of years things will definitely improve as it currently stands it really isn't a practical application, though I am sure that there will be someone would would choose to disagree...
How painful is it? Ask Matthew, who just finished working and tweaking his S2 and S4 shells only to have both Bachmann and Atlas announce commercial models of each.... Maybe doing more obscure projects like the bulbous nosed E2' s is safer? Nobody will ever make those, right?
Jerry, you sound like me when you talk that way! CPF, Obscure? Really? Not counting the EA and E1 it was the first real almost-production-line passenger locomotive from La Grange (happy Jerry?). I think it would be a great locomotive pulling a string of early UP City of Someplace cars with a brown roof. Sadly, I'm unlikely to ever make them myself and no one else is ever likely to make them in N commercially. I suppose I could buy the brass one in HO, but that somehow seems wrong... Terry
How painful is it? It is very easy. You upload your file to Shapeways and them place an order, very easy. The hard part is drawing it in 3D not having it printed.
I don't really care. The idea of defining scratchbuilding is based on distinguishing an individual modeller's work from commercial products, but 3D printing removes that distinction. I prefer not to take that sort of ideological approach to modelling.
What was I thinking, calling the bulbous nosed E2 obscure; there were count them, two of them, shared by three rairoads. I take it back! But I'm sticking to my guns on the bulbous nose part, and yes I too would love to have an ABB set... Otto
It's harder than most folk realize. Pretty steep learning curve, plus lots of tolerance, clearance, and interference issues, let alone rendering issues.
Hmm, well... -What software are you thinking of using? -How comfortable are you around computers? For me personally the learning curve was steep (but not insurmountable). It took me around three months to get from zero (discovering that Shapeways existed) to having my first car in hand (but I do keep learning more as the days go by). That said, I chose an "easy" prototype and am a reasonably tech-savvy guy (at least I like to think so) - in other words, yes I have played with CAD extensively over the years. I'd imagine that the learning curve would be much steeper for someone with less computer experience (and the E2 is "curvy" enough to be a real pain depending on the software you use). That said, I always encourage people to give it a shot! Yea... I'm really going to have to disagree with this one. Why would 3D printed models not be 'distinguished' from commercial products? Consider my D&SL gondola fleet for example - I've hunted down reference books, extrapolated measurements from grimy archived photos and researched nut/bolt placement; I've incorporated this information into a digital model which is, to my knowledge, completely unique in the world. I've then ordered copies of my design which need to be treated, cleaned, smoothed, finished, weighted, painted, decaled (with decals that incidentally also do not exist and I intend to custom print - lettering stolen from prototype photographs by yours truly) and finally weathered. I then need to make and install custom loads - at the end of the process, no two are the same. How is this not "scratch-building?" I like to think that I've put just as much time and effort into making these as the traditional "scratch-builder" would have. The only differences that I see are that 1) I chose to work digitally and 2) that I can, with this groundwork set, now rattle off as large a fleet as I see fit. Don't get me wrong, I don't currently have any plans to enter my work into a contest - that said I do think it's fair for me to assert that my work can be distinguished from the "commercial."
