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03-25-2020, 11:02 PM | #11 |
retro O-rings, baby!
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 829
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You can also have some 3D printed on Shapeways. That’s what I’m planning to try over the summer, with those kits as a pricier backup...
BTW the other thread is “Classified Weapons” just a bit further down the page. |
03-26-2020, 11:07 AM | #12 |
That Ruined Face
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: magical mid-tn
Posts: 4,758
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03-26-2020, 03:41 PM | #13 |
That Ruined Face
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: magical mid-tn
Posts: 4,758
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03-26-2020, 05:31 PM | #14 |
retro O-rings, baby!
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 829
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Before deciding to stop buying stuff for the current crisis, I was going to get this one:
https://www.shapeways.com/product/PD...14068&li=shops This seller has several options, and personally I kinda like the Vietnam-through-end-of-Cold-War era selection he has. Sooner or later, M4s will be dime-a-dozen, but these seem unlikely to come along from others! |
04-10-2020, 06:29 PM | #15 |
retro O-rings, baby!
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 829
|
So the 1/12 carbine I ordered from Shapeways arrived yesterday.
As the small picture on the link above (below the main ones) shows, it comes with some sprue that connects three pieces: magazine, stock, and the carbine body with barrel. These sprue bits are very well engineered, meaning that a few easy cuts with a hobby knife remove them cleanly and separate the original single assembly into the three parts that then need to be glued to make the carbine. Before gluing, I took a minute to inspect the parts, since this was the first time I had an unobstructed view of everything. And I was impressed: the overall sharpness and symmetry of the design is more like 1/6 weapons than what you normally see for the 6” Star Wars figures. 6” Snake Eyes comes with a nice Uzi, but the sculpt of this Shapeways carbine is superior, and unlike a lot of Black Series weapons, to stay nothing of a lot of 3 3/4 weapons, the barrel is true and, if you glue the stock on at the proper angle, everything will be aligned perfectly. (I did toss in the couple bucks for the nicer of the two plastic options they offered, which probably helped make the fine details like the ribs on the horizontal foregrip as nice as they are.) Gluing was reasonably easy, but I was a little disappointed that gluing the magazine was a requirement...it was so loose that it would fall out immediately without hand support, although it did manage to look properly sized and firmly in place to the naked eye. Once glued, it looks very correct. As for the stock, the seller offers some variants with *either* extended *or* collapsed stocks, but in no case do they slide. Gluing into place was a little more difficult than the magazine because there was nothing to hold it true other than hand pressure, while I used the plastic model cement I had on hand, which takes some time to dry. I think supergluing would be much easier, but I did manage to do an ok job with it. Of course the gun comes in a whitish transparent plastic (this individual seller didn’t offer other colors, although Shapeways in general does). Before painting it I decided to do a test fit on Snake Eyes, because I was wondering if it wasn’t a little small. Unfortunately Snake Eyes has hands that do not flex easily, though, and I was worried about using too much force and snapping off the stock I had just glued a few hours earlier. It turned out that I accidentally snapped off the carrying handle on top of the receiver because I was paying too much attention to protecting the stock. It won’t be easy to reglue perfectly, but I will try. In SE’s hand, the carbine looks small. It does fit his hand and the finger does even fit inside the trigger guard, and he can hold it and aim it in a natural-looking way. But it looks a bit small, which makes me wonder whether action figures might not often have slightly oversized weapons for greater visual impact. So, while I am going to reglue and paint my 1/12 carbine, I also ordered a 1/9 from the same seller to test out. Overall, my impression is that these pieces are both beautiful and a way to get specific weapons that MTF and Valaverse don’t offer. For something simple like a pistol, I think everyone even a little interested in a pistol only offered on Shapeways should get one, because those will be tough and have less prep needed, although depending on the seller, they may still need paint, just as many factory items from Hasbro do. Whether 1/12 or 1/10 or 1/9 scale is still an open question though, IMO. As far as rifles, carbines, SMGs, etc, I think everyone should strongly consider them, because (from a good seller with good material at least) they are perfectly shaped and offer much more control over how your team is equipped. But they do have the drawback of being fragile, requiring a bit of prep, and, while not expensive, aren’t an amazing deal like MTF. (I don’t own MTF in this scale, only 1/18, but what I have is excellent.). To solve the hand problem, I think warming the figure’s hand with hot water (not boiling) or a hairdryer should be enough to solve most of the problem, if coupled with careful thought about how to hold the weapon as you press it into place. My overall prediction is that 3D printing is going to be a great way to equip a select few of your favorite figures with some perfect weapons, but might prove to be too inconvenient and too fragile to be the go-to option for a majority of your figures. Whenever I get my 1/9, I will follow up. The site warned me it might be several weeks, but last time I got mine faster than the site predicted, so we will see. |
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