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[G_Works]

I decided I should set myself up a thread, like all the "cool kids" I've been customising TFs for years, but recently seeing all the great stuff on Shapeways by people like Fakebuster, and seeing work by Wheeljack (Ninos) on Sector70 has really made me want to take a stab at using 3D design for some of the projects I could never really successfully build by hand. I haven't been especially active on forums for a while, and mostly keep up with TF stuff via Twitter, but I thought it would be nice to get some feedback on these. They're all a little self-indulgent, as they're all things I've built for myself first and foremost.

First up was [url="https://www.shapeways.com/model/1400917/trailcutting-hoisting-robot-double-ankle-hinges.html"]a set of hinges to make Generations Trailbreaker/Hoist taller in robot mode.[/url]I didn't quite think the whole thing through though, and while it does work, the feet are too small to support the whole toy without some difficulty, and look a bit silly.

I've got a plan for a revised version, but involves whole new feet...

Next up was [url="https://www.shapeways.com/model/1530860/foc-prime-knee-extensions-pair.html"]a set of extensions for the FoC Prime/Magnus mould, as I thought it was a little too short[/url](sensing a pattern here?). The alternative was a set of chunky "shoes" or a new ankle assembly, and I thought it was worth trying something a little more subtle first. I haven't tested these yet, but but they basically came about as part of the brainstorming for a Thunderclash kitbash I'm probably abandoning for now in lieu of an alternative.

I will order myself a set at some point, as I've got a custom FoC Magnus who could stand to be just a little taller~


This evening, in response to something someone mentioned on twitter, I took it upon myself to try and make [url="https://www.shapeways.com/model/1536664/generations-stealth-bomber-shoulder-cannon-mount.html"]a shoulder connector for the Generations Stealth Bomber mould that can fit the Fusion Cannon.[/url] It was pointed out to me that it would make Dreadwing more strongly resemble the original toy, and a shoulder-mounted cannon is hardly unheard of for Megatron, either.

My current project is a bit more ambitious... A set of parts to convert a Classics Voyager Prime/Magnus into a decent sized Thunderclash. The plan's to have the roof of the cab fold and rotate into a chest, and have a "backwards" version of the regular transformation, so I guess I'll need to swap the fists round too. I'm having tremendous fun building stuff with Sketchup though, and have found a 3D print shop within travelling distance of where I live, so I am looking forward to lots more of this in the future.

[G_Works]

Time to update this with some actual content! There's [url="http://replicatorwarehouse.com/"]a store fairly local to me[/url] which does 3D prints in ABS/PLA, so I thought they'd save me a lot of time and money vs using Shapeways for working the kinks out of this stuff. Right now they're using a Makerbot Replicator, until their own printer designs are out of the prototyping stage, so there are some issues, but I'm pretty pleased.



I had a set of replacement inner shoulders for Classics Prime/Magnus (for a pair of cheap KOs I picked up years ago) printed, in black and white respectively, and they turned out pretty well. Magnus-who-will-be-Thunderclash now has a nice tight set of shoulder joints. Since they're pretty solid and thick parts, they printed nicely, and just needed a little bit of cleanup.




These turned out okay as well, though not as perfectly as I would like... I need to tweak the design a little, but I'm happy that the basic concept is sound, and it grips well enough to support the weight of the cannon. I kind of want to make them more posable though... Maybe allow the cannon to elevate, like the original, which means making it a two-part piece.







This... Could have gone better. The basic concept is sound, and that's great to know, but apparently the size of the parts causes problems printing; specifically, the .4mm nozzle means that it's difficult to fill in between the "walls" the printer creates when printing, so it's near impossible to print without breaking with that particular printer. I did learn that I'd managed to fluff up my measuring at some point, too... Or more likely, extruded something the wrong way and failed to notice during the build. Either way, it's led to what's hopefully a more sturdy revision. I'm not 100% certain the design can be printed successfully on their printer (due to needing to fit the original Magnus parts) but the revised version for Shapeways will definitely benefit from the test.



This is a simplified version for the extrusion printer... I hope it will print better, but if not, it isn't the end of the world, it didn't take long to change. Just hoping I can find the cash for a Shapeways print before the Xmas shipping cutoff date!



So, all in all, a pretty good outing for Replicator Warehouse, I will definitely be using them for non-detail parts when I can, as the price and service are fantastic compared to spending £8 on shipping alone for every Shapeways order. The actual print cost isn't too different but the convenience of shopping in person makes the whole process much faster.

[G_Works]

I was going to post these when I got them last week, but my computer died and screwed up my schedule a lot. X_x

While my Shapeways prints of everything are still being processed (and should arrive around Xmas), I got some non-Shapeways prints done of the revised Magnus knees, there were some tolerance issues but they turned out okay,I felt:





I also got some parts made for the Generations ATB mould, mostly for Dreadwing;




I had to replace the hinge pegs due to a bad print, but the idea is sound, if the Shapeways parts turn out okay then I will be very happy with the design. They don't get in the way of the arm's motion like the original version did. I just need to make a cannon for Dreadwing, now...



That's a comparison of Galvatrons. The neck is mounted on a simple part I designed, but you have to pop it off for transformation. In the earlier pics, the head was held on with white-tack...





Excitingly (for me at least), I've also designed a part to allow the Animated Arcee mould to fit the head from her Prime RID counterpart. The real reason you'd want to do this, of course, is to mount the custom heads made by the very cool Tecrom.

Assuming the SW prints turn out okay, I'll price up and make the neck adapter, cannon parts, FoC Magnus knees and Thunderclash chest on Shapeways sometime early in the new year. Some of them are up there right now at no markup, so anyone who feels brave can test them out themselves. Hopefully people will enjoy them!

[G_Works]

Not a huge update, but I just wanted to share how the kit looks on Dreadwing, now I have one.



HOPEFULLY I finally get my Shapeways prints tomorrow, after they screwed up my order and didn't ship it before December 24th :/

[G_Works]

This is my second or third attempt to post this, so hopefully it sticks now. Not that anyone is actually reading the thread...

Well, this stuff finally arrived.



Unfortunately, the Dreadwing/Megatron shoulder cannon mount test parts had issues and didn't arrive, but the Thunderclash and Arcee parts arrived, as well as one version of the FoC Magnus/Prime knees.

Unfortunately, in WSF polished (which I am designing the big, expensive parts for) the slight shrinkage means that the roof doesn' quite fold down properly in truck mode, but you get the gist:



More importanly, here's the 'bot mode;




He stands well alongside original and Botcon Thunderclash, I think... With a new head, he'll really look the part. Downside is, I need to add a new hinge to allow the chest to fold properly.




FoC Magnus Knees. I made slight error in measurement with the main post, but everything else fits fine. 99% sure the version now up on Shapeways is okay now (and someone's bought a set, so I hope they'll let me know!).



Arcee arm and hand replacement parts, particularly intended for anyone who's turning the Animated Arcee into a more CHUG/TFP type of figure. The hands are patterned after TFPRID Arcee's, but as you can see the thumbs ended up a little weird when printed, so I need to mess around with the shape a little.



Unforunately, in WSF Polished, the balls joint ended up a bit small, and the sockets were a bit short, so I need to fiddle with those a bit too. On the bright side, the neck joint to adapt the PRID Arcee head (and Tecrom's customs for that mould) is a perfect snug fit, and means you can headswap an Animated Arcee without any need for tools besides a screwdriver.

Besides those, though, I made something to answer a request on Twitter...



One Illin' Gatling, for a certain Generations Stealth Bomber. I hope people like it!

[KnightStrike]

Nice work on these! That makes me want to pick up an Animated Arcee now. That gatling cannon looks great!

[Cyber Bishop]

This is some excellent work you have done!

[Fuhzimota]

Thanks for posting, GlauG. I really like the Thunderclash parts. Hope you get the hinge issue addressed; would love to upgrade my spare Optimus. Please keep us posted!

[G_Works]

Thanks guys! As part of a big blitz of activity before I start a second day job, Thunderclash is now almost done, I think. Just need to do a new head and sort out a new set of hands maybe, and he's done. The big hinge now folds twice, allowing for the smooth transformation of the chest. I also hollowed a few areas to make it cheaper to print (the prototype parts were basically solid blocks).




The cannons on the left should slide neatly into the large window pieces hanging off the arms, and help make him more distinct from Prime/Magnus in terms of silhouette. The feet on the right should make him ever so slightly taller, but more importantly add the ankle tilt that so many people complain about these days. To be honest, I am pretty sure I will list the feet and/or hands separately from the Thunderclash parts for people who just want to upgrade their Classics Prime/Magnus toys. Also, the roof parts can mount the cannons in truck mode above the cab, a little like his original toy. They've got 5mm pegs on the side for more general use.

I'm actually really excited about the feet, it's hard to resist trying to order a set before I'm done with the head and hands!

[Bozziusmaximus]

Hey, it was me that purchased the knee extensions for the foc Ultra Magnus. I've been wanting to do upgrades to certain figures for a while, but never had the guts to do it til now. It probably won't come in until after the 20th being they are coming to America from Europe but I will be more than happy to post pics and details about them. I'm going to start a blog looking at Shapeways upgrades as well as other 3rd party projects.

[G_Works]

Thanks for making yourself known, Bozzius Please let me know how you find them! Surprised to hear that they are coming from Europe, Shapeways have two factories IIRC, one of which is in NY state somewhere, or so zi thought.

I think I have mentioned stuff like how Magnus's knes is glued shut on the store page, but when it comes to installation, let me know if you have any issues (feel free to PM me or leave a message in this thread). My test prints were a very tight fit on the Magnus joints, so you might find it helpful to very carefully use a 4mm drill bit for the holes or a small file for the posts if you find the upgrade parts are a little too tight. While I like WSF Polished a lot, apparently it can sometimes be a little inconsistent regarding size/shrinkage so it's hard for me to model for a perfect fit in that material.

I look forward to hearing your impression of them.

[Bozziusmaximus]

I did not know about the american factory, maybe it's just processing time. Anyways I just received an email, I ordered the part in white polished strong and flexible, they said it could not be done, so I just did another order for just black strong and flexible. Hopefully they will allow it as I would love to have a taller Ultra Magnus without spending 50 or more bucks. Plus I'm a huge fan of this mold.

[G_Works]

Yeah, I just got the email about that myself, not sure what exactly happened as it's identical to my test model which I ordered in WSF Polished, except I extended the length of a part. If you want the parts in WSFP, feel free to cancel that order and I will fix the model when I am back from work this evening.

[Bozziusmaximus]

Cool, just cancelled it. I can wait. Just let me know when you get it up.

[G_Works]

Bozzius, out of interest was it you who just ordered a set in White Detail? I think I've repaired the model for use with WSF, feel free to give it another shot. And as ever, any problems, give me a shout.

Sneak peek of Thunderclash's hands, and the front detail on the feet, based on the Alex Milne MtMtE design.

[Mindmaster]

Pull an EchoTF, collaborate with a known third-party company to mass-produce these (with paint), and I'll be all over it.

[G_Works]

Haha, thanks for the kind words. It's not something I'd planned on doing, although someone did ask me to paint up a few samples. On a smaller scale, I might be persuaded to paint my designs for people, but that will obviously cost money...

[G_Works]

Okay, hopefully this is the last update for Thunderclash before I order my test prints:




That's the complete set for that guy. New ankles/feet, new knees, new shins, new hands, new chest/cab roof, new head, new cannons... I never thought I would design anything so ambitious, but there you have it. I'm not happy with the head, not as dynamic as I'd like, but I have a way to go with Sketchup still. Overall it's meant to create a hybrid between his original toy, and Alex Milne's IDW design.


I realised I didn't show off the new ankles/feet/hands, which are probably of interest to people for upgrading a vanilla Classics Prime/Magnus.




If the Thunderclash set turns out okay, I might redesign the toes slightly so that it resembles the MP Prime feet more.

[G_Works]

Okay, I took some advice from a few people, including Javaco, and I made the face a bit slimmer. Thoughts? I think I'm going to finally remake my Hoist/Trailbreaker parts, and then make a SW order for myself...

[Bozziusmaximus]

So the extensions are headed to print and I'm excited. Told a buddy I was upgrading my Magnus, he said awesome city commander is good, I said no, then he was like oh the exclusive diaclone colored one. Doesn't even know about this stuff on ahapeways yet, but soon.

[G_Works]

I know Bozzius now has his prints, so I'm very excited to see how they look in-hand, and in use.

A very small and quick update from me, I'm expecting my prints to ship to me in about a week. I did, however, go totally back to the drawing board, and revise my plans for Trailbreaker/Hoist feet/ankles:



They'll stick out at the back of the truck mode, but hopefully won't look too silly. Depending on how these turn out, I might try and revise the design further so that it somehow magically folds smaller... Had a few thoughts on the matter, but I need to get a physical part in my hands first to think about how it will go down. What do people think of the feet having big bars on, to look like a rear bumper extension?

[Fuhzimota]

I think the bars are a great idea, will give the alt-modes a heavier, more rugged look. Depending on how they look in real use, you may have to come up with some front bumper upgrades to match...

[Nighttracker]

What 3D program is that in the image?

[G_Works]

Thanks guys!

The hard part with the Hoist/Trailbreaker feet is making sure that whatever I add doesn't extend past the bottom of the car mode wheels, but I have an idea in mind for how the feet could have a double joint which hopefully makes them look more natural in car mode. The basic ones Im having prints done of right now will just stick out at the back a bit, so I'm not too unhappy with them as my focus is on 'bot mode, but it's a personal challenge to make it as seamless as possible in both if I can!

Nighttracker, I'm using Sketchup. I'm almost entirely self-taught, it's very easy to use once you get the hang of it.


I've started a crazy project I'm not sure I will actually complete... A set of parts to give Generations Skids better shoulder articulation. The problem is, they would require more than a little work to fit, and would involve cutting parts of a frustratingly hard-to-find toy, so I'm not sure I really think it's worth doing.

[gothsaurus]

I'm all for g1 accuracy here... So whatever would add the articulation and be the least distracting ou outrageous. Ha ha