1/250 SDF-1 Daedalus Prometheus ARMD

[Swooshiex]

Is anyone able to design a 3D model of the SDF-1 Daedalus Prometheus ARMD, in 1/250 scale? I'll like the whole SDF-1 but I think it'll be too huge to display at home at 1/250.

Can shapeways print this 3D model? If not, who can and for approximately how much?

Thank you!

[Swooshiex]

I'm thinking of hiring a 3D modeler to design it for shape ways. I already have some 2D designs of specific parts (like a kit) that probably can be used by the modeler. How much should I expect to pay the 3D modeler?

How much should I expect to pay to Shapeways for the production of a 1/250 Promeheus/Daedalus/ARMD? With color if Shapeways can color the plastic for me.

[coronadlux]

The entire SDF will be around 15 feet long... I gotta buy a house with a nice big garage for this.

Good idea.

[Chronocidal]

I'm pretty sure printing something like that with Shapeways would approach enough to buy a car or two. Possibly a house.

For an estimate of just how huge something like this would be, go look at the 6 ft Daedalus scratch build in the model forum, which is roughly 1/200 scale. It's massive. I'm not even sure Shapeways has printers capable of making things that big, and I can't even fathom how much it would cost to ship it to you. Even in pieces, that's a huge amount of material.

Edited August 8, 2013 by Chronocidal

[MechTech]

He he, Chronocidal said it! You're talking thousands of dollars! Mine cost me at least $1,000 in materials - easy! And six years later I'm still not done! My suggestion is to just make the bow of the Daedlaus. That may still be near $1,000 depending on how much of it you model. My advice, get some styrene and just recreate the upper hanger with an opening hatch - it will still look awesome on your shelf! - MT

[EXO]

Did you mean 1/2500?

[Chronocidal]

See, I was curious if that was the idea from the start, which would be much more reasonable.

You'll still be talking easily over $100 from shapeways for something that size, but it's much more potentially possible.

[coronadlux]

By the look of it, he did mean 250. Why would anyone pay a couple hundred for a 2500 scale SDF when he could just buy the 3000 scale one. It would be cheaper, well detailed, and faster.

[EXO]

Because that's his preferred scale and there's only the ARMDs?

[big F]

I just wish someone would make a kit that I can build and also fit on a shelf afterwards.

[ahiachris]

From what i see from what the big companies are releasing at all the big scale naval kits (1/350) and 2199 kits (1/1000)i wish that they are willing to roll out the sdf-1.

[anime52k8]

Now 1/1000 scale I could see working. at nearly 4 feet long it would be massive but still within the realm of something that could reasonably be fit through your front door.

[VF-18S Hornet]

How about transporting it in your car if you had it shipped to your job. you know what nevermind home delivery is preferred as long you know what day it will arrive. So you can take off from work.

[tundrayeti]

Wow.... Just wow....

3d printing would not be the way to go with this. And in color at that. The build table would simply not be able to handle something that size. You coul break it down into parts, but you may as well just take MechTech's suggestion and scratch build your own. It would be much cheaper and probably look better. The color stuff is basically sand with colored resin injected into it. If you don't have the skills, CNC would be the way to go.

Just my 2 cents...

[mslz22]

At 1/250 you are really talking about something akin to a studio model. To give you an idea the 6 foot TOS Galactica cost somewhere between $60,000 and $80,000 by the estimates that i have read, and that was in 1978 dollars, so around $230,000 to $300,000 in today's dollars. Now i know that is with studio overhead and etc but a lot of it is labor cost and materials.

Even scratchbuilding it for yourself you need to estimate what your own labor is worth.

Paying others to do it, labor is labor, in the computer or cutting plywood in a shop, the development time in 3d would be an enormous task. And even the CNC process, cheaper than printing, would be very substantial, even at the 4 to 6 foot range, can't even imagine it at 15 feet long.

I have wanted to do a big macross for a long time but have never really gotten to it because of the enormous time and material cost, and i was only thinking in the 4 to 6 foot range, with conventional materials like plywood, styrene, renshape etc. If you really want a big macross, I would look at this approach as comparatively it is much cheaper.

Wish you the best of luck, no matter which approach you take

mike

[Swooshiex]

Thank you all for the fast replies! Sorry for my late reply as I've been tied up with some other stuff.

I'm really hoping for a 1/250 so that I've something to display my Bandai 1/250 fighters with. I'm thinking of a hollow 3D model.

Sounds like Shapeways is not a sensible option. I think there should be a sensibly priced manufacturing option for a plastic toy. Sounds like I should contact my China friends to find out what are some better options since most plastic toys are now made in China.

[mechaninac]

1/250 in plastic, for a one off? You'd do better with rapid prototyping. Plastic parts require 3D modeling just like you'd need for RP, only more so because you have to take into account draft angles, undercuts, pull direction, plastic shrinkage, wall thicknesses, internal ribbing geometry to supply wall buttressing while avoiding sink marks, and on and on. Then there is the need for the injection molding tooling -- aluminum (for low production runs) or steel (for high volume) blocks ranging in size from a small coffee table to a Smart Car that need to me sourced, designed with cooling lines, ejector pins, injection gates, cams, swappable inserts, etc. After that you need to secure a factory with the necessary injection molding machines to accommodate your production run. You'd be in the hole for hundreds of thousands of dollars before you ever saw your first off-tool sample.

[HWR MKII]

Simply put there is no economic way to do the Macross or any components in this scale. The best way is to get the sheet styrene, make a frame and build it from the ground up the old fashioned way.

[anime52k8]

basically, if you can't build it from scratch yourself, you're better off spending your money on something more practical... like a Lamborghini.

[Scyla]

Before everyone is turning this idea down maybe we should ask first how much the budget for this project would be. If he wants to spend a Million Dollars (insert Dr. Evil meme here) on the Daedalus then he's got other options then say spending 100K, 10K 1K bucks on it.

While I'm writing this a 1/60 launch deck from the Macross Quarter would be wicked cool to display my Renewals on it.

[Felindar]

Ok I know this is a bit late. We were hashing out ways to make a model this size in the RPG forum. Obviously 1/285th. Now wile it would work much better for the Zentradi, one of those inflatable Balloon displays. there are company's that do customs. A Zentradi Carrier would run around 3 grand. We were thinking in teams of inflating them for some huge games.

Disclaimer

This Idea originated with someone who probably had the munchies soon after. But who knows.

Edited October 26, 2013 by Felindar

[bry]

Printing something that large isn't going to be affordable via a service - Shapeways wants $75,500 to print my 1/60 destroid monster, and an ARMD at that scale would be substantially larger.

If you're looking to print a model that large, it makes economic sense to build yourself a printer and make it yourself.

Edited October 27, 2013 by bry

[MechTech]

If you're still serious, just use the foam idea Felindar used for his cout ship. The sheets are cheap enough and you can easily cut the sides of the ship out and glue them together. You can still build internal decks and it would be light enough to carry. Just make it two pieces for transport - or buy a delivery truck!

If you still aren't sure about cutting the pieces out, see about a water jet cutting quote with you supplying the materials. The water jet would make quick, smooth work out of the foam. - MT