Paravane

The paravane (aka water kite, sweep, tadpole) was developed during WWI as a countermeasure against underwater mines.

It had a secondary usage against submarines that was probably infrequently used, and even less often likely to be successful.

I became aware of this obscure piece of equipment because they were shown in the Haifuri anime from last year, so when I came across some 1/72 scale models while browsing through Shapeways, I decided to buy a couple of the more inexpensive models from the 3D Boats store.

Three sentence review of Haifuri from Himeuta Channel

The models I bought were described as early RN paravanes, but they also looked like certain types of USN and IJN paravanes as well. Unfortunately, I couldn't really find any references on the appearance and classification of WWII paravanes to verify any of this.

The models were printed with the Frosted Ultra Detail material, and require the addition of some bent wire to complete.

I believe this is a Type B Mk. IV paravane

The resin used for the print allows a good level of detail. but is still unable to achieve the perfectly smooth surfaces of traditional models. FUD seems to be somewhat brittle, so care is needed when handling models made with the material (particularly with very thin parts).

The translucent properties of the material looks like it might have potential applications as well.

The models are covered with a sticky layer of support wax, and dust will stick to the wax and form a gooey mess on the surface if they are left on the desktop for any period of time.

To remove the wax, I washed the models with dishwasher detergent, then swabbed them down with 95% isopropanol.

I sprayed one of the models with a couple of coats of gray primer, hoping that the paint was sufficient to hide the layer lines of the print.

The top of the model didn't look too bad, but the lines on the underside of the model became a lot more apparent after the primer (I think they were a lot deeper to begin with, but it was difficult to tell until the model was painted).

I guess I need to add some smoothing epoxy to my shopping list for next month in order to finish these models.

IS-W

I purchased the turret from the fictional IS-W dieselpunk walker tank created by Noah Li from Shapeways just because I thought it looked cool.

The IS-W model is supposed to be 1/100 scale, but it looked like it would work fine for 1/72 as well. I considered buying the full model for a second, but decided against it since the total price would have been close to US$100.

The design is very similar to the KV-2X Heavy Walking Tank made by the now defunct MIG Productions in 1/35 scale many years ago.

The turret looks a lot like the conning tower of a submarine.

I'm not going to use the gun that came with the turret because it is way oversized. Here is the turret with a D-10T barrel.

I originally envisioned the turret with a ML-20 barrel like the IS-152 designed by Kow Yokoyama for the Panzer Front game (not to be confused with the real life ISU-152).

Here's the turret on a IS-3 chassis.

I dunno, doesn't look very convincing. I wonder if the T-10 chassis might look better...

Here's the turret on an E-100 chassis for purposes of showing it on a larger hull.

A little better? Perhaps. The turret probably still looks best with it's original walking tank body.

Swamp Stalker

There are several candidates that vie for the title of being the largest pterosaur, all belonging to the family Azhdarchidae. The most well known of these creatures is Quetzalcoatlus, which is represented in 1/72 scale by a model available from Shapeways.

Since I had two of the Shapeways Quetzalcoatlus models, I decided to modify one of them to copy the pose of a 1/40 scale CollectA model.

The first thing I did was to cut off the head of the model. It was filled with powder that was left over from the 3D printing process.

After removing the head, I split the beak open, and mounted the head back onto the body. J-B Weld (which is turning into one of my favorite tools) was used to smooth out the beak and crest, and emphasize details that should have been otherwise on the model. Some Elmer's-Tack was used to mask off areas that should have been depressions in the sides of the beak.

Kneadatite was used to make a tongue and build up the missing areas of the neck.

The small Apatosaurus being eaten for lunch is a "good luck" toy made by Safari Ltd.

One other model that can be used for a 1/72 Quetzalcoatlus is made by Colorata, available in their The Practical Guide of Dinosaurs Vol. 1 box set.

The Colorata version is in a flying pose, and has a different style of crest compared to the 3D printed model. Other differences include a smaller body and a shorter neck. The head however, is the same size, and the wingspan scales out to about 33', so corresponds well with the estimated wingspan of Quetzalcoatlus.

I haven't seen the Colorata model being sold by itself, so it always comes with 7 other bonus dinosaurs, of which only one other is approximately 1/72 scale.

3D printed models

My shipment from Shapeways arrived on a rainy Friday morning. I thought it was a bit odd when I saw the e-mail notification since postal delivery is typically in the afternoon on weekdays, but when I got home, there was the package.

Everything came packaged in padded bubblewrap envelopes, with additional padding to prevent the contents from excessive movement during shipping.

The box is huge compared to what was actually being shipped, but it probably helps to prevent fragile parts from being broken in the mail.

Anyway, the models I ordered were:

• 1/72 Kosmoceratops by David Krentz (David Krentz Dinosaurs)
• 1/72 Arsinoitherium by Manuel Bejarano
• 1/72 Quetzalcoatlus by Aaron Doyle (Mesozoic Miniatures)
• Land Squid from Many Angled Studios (I'm thinking it's a Chthonian)
• HO Scale Frogs and Fire Hydrants by Dave Yale (Dave's Model Railway Stuff)

My impression of the models made with the White Strong & Flexible (WSF) material is mixed. Apparently WSF is Nylon 12 (aka polyamide 12), but it seemed very different from the material that was used to make the Serúdla models that I reviewed a couple of years back.

The models seem very light and don't feel particularly robust. I'm guessing that is because they are partially hollow. The material really reminds me of the type of plastic used to make caps for fast food drink cups.

The surfaces are very powdery/grainy looking, and edges that should ideally be sharp and smooth are covered with burrs. I tried to smooth the beak of the Quetzalcoatlus with some fine sandpaper, but it just made the burrs worse.

Perhaps some Mr. Surfacer will work to make the surfaces smooth, but I'd be open to suggestions from anyone with any experience polishing this material.

From a foot away, I'd say that the models look really good. The contours and poses are all top notch. However, close up they really look like rapid prototypes. My son examined the models a bit, and commented that they looked like "outlines" rather than detailed models.

The fine details of the mouth and eyes of the creatures are very soft or non-existant.

Here is a comparison of details from a Krentz resin styracosaurus and the WSF kosmosaurus.

Most of the skin texture that you see on the 3D render is lost in the print.

Krentz Kosmoceratops from Shapeways

Even so, I'm always impressed by the fine digits that are possible with 3D printing.

I won't go into the models made with FUD , but they look pretty fantastic. It's just that they're tiny, and the material is really hard to photograph in its natural state.

Dave's Model Railway Stuff  Frogs from Shapeways

I should have ordered one each of the WSF models in FUD to do a true comparison, but ordering another model at twice the cost didn't seem like it was worth it to me at the time. However, now that I think about it, in monetary terms, the FUD version of a Krentz model is still probably only ⅔ of the price of a comparable model in resin.

In addition to the Shapeways models, I had also purchased 3D printed elephant and mammoth models from an eBay seller. These models were made with ABS, which feels a lot more sturdy than WSF.

1/72 Columbian mammoth and Asian elephant

Layer lines are clearly visible on the models.

The underside surfaces have an odd fingerprint-like pattern to them.

The nice thing about ABS however is that it can be polished. Sanding is one option, but acetone vapor treatment also seems to work wonders. I will try this out and post about it at a later date.

In conclusion, my thoughts are that WSF is good for models that do not have delicate surface details or require hard edges. There could probably be a good market for sculpting dollies made with WSF. In the future, I'll go with FUD when ordering models. However, I don't really see myself ordering many models for the moment, because the price point seems rather high.

Modeling Notes:

WSF is heatproof to 80℃ / 176℉ and has a melting point at 172℃-180℃ (I wish I had known this when I was modifying my Serúdla). Additional specs can be found in the MDS.

A tutorial found at Shapeways recommends CA glue or Araldite epoxy resin for gluing Nylon 12. I also found additional information about bonding Nylon at RELTEK.

Frosted Ultra Detail (FUD) is some sort of acrylic polymer. Specs can be found in the MDS.

The layer lines on ABS models can be smoothed out using acetone vapor.  There are a number of tutorials that can be found online, but the method that I plan on using will probably be similar to the one described in this Airwolf 3D video tutorial.

I like this method because I don't particularly want to be working with fire and acetone at the same time, as described in many other videos. Having the liquid acetone above the the model (but not dripping onto the model) also makes a lot of sense, since acetone vapor is heavier than air.

My first order to Shapeways

I've always balked at the cost of the models, but I finally placed my first order to Shapeways when they had their Cyber Monday promotion. I like the fact that they give you an estimate of when the models will ship, and that you can check the status of the order to see which step they are on in the production process.

Being cheap, I chose the White Strong & Flexible (WSF) printing material, except where it was not an option.

Human sized 1/72 figures look very grainy with WSF, but I hope the larger figures that I purchased will look better.

Helja, Dwarven Dracomancer

The 1/72 figures printed with Frosted Ultra Detail (FUD) look pretty amazing though.

Cosmonauts in Orlan suits

I'm hoping the models will arrive later this week so I can post a review over the weekend.



P.S.

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