Practicality of 3d printed trucks for P48 freight cars and tenders?

[WM183]

Hi folks.

I model 2 eras in 2 scales; pre-grouping Midland in 2mm, and never have trouble getting basically whatever I need for this.

Between-the-wars US steam (PRR mostly) in P:48. I have to scratchbuild virtually everything for this, due to cost (Importing from the US to Holland is *insane*) or simply lack of availability.

I *do* own a 3d printer. I havent used it much because I am kind of a luddite, but it was a gift and I'd like to.

Is it practical to 3d print my truck sideframes, if I install brass bearing races into them before I assemble them? Drawing them would be a pain, but once drawn I could hypothetically just print till my face turns blue, right? I can use Kadee P48 wheelsets easy enough.

What do?

Amanda

 

[richard carr]

Yes you can, I have some 3D printed trucks on a few of my freight cars. I didn't print them, I believe they were available from shapeways, I bought them 2nd hand but unused. I don't think they have any bearings and they use Protocraft P48 wheel sets.
The bolsters on these trucks are also 3D printed, not just the side frames.

 

[WM183]

Yes you can, I have some 3D printed trucks on a few of my freight cars. I didn't print them, I believe they were available from shapeways, I bought them 2nd hand but unused. I don't think they have any bearings and they use Protocraft P48 wheel sets.
The bolsters on these trucks are also 3D printed, not just the side frames.

Do you know what sort of plastic they're printed in, by chance? This sounds very positive!

 

[simond]

Amanda,

what type of printer?

The fused deposition type will make strong-but-not-super-detailed trucks, and the resin type will replicate fantastic fine detail but likely the trucks will be brittle. There are various resins and plastics for each type so my comments are rather general, but hopefully a useful starting point.

best
Simon

 

[richard carr]

Amanda

Sorry no I don't what type of resin was used.

I have had printed some replacement bolsters for Atlas trucks, these were done in siraya tech navy grey. Some are well over a year old now and running fine.

Richard

 

[WM183]

Thanks guys.

I have a Mars resin printer. I am not sure what type of plastic works well in this. I am so new to 3d printing.

 

[Stephen]

Hi Amanda,

Have a look at Sarah's Train Kitchen website and her downloadable parts - there are freight trucks there:

Freight Car Parts

Sarah is really approachable, and if you have any questions about how she has gone about her work, send her an e-mail, she'll be sure to respond with her thoughts. Earlier this year I contacted her to see whether she had thought about producing replacement IM box car parts for an SP B-50-24 box car, her response was "no, but lets do it!" and thus they were whipped up after sharing some drawings, and now downloadable on the link above.

Cheers,

Stephen

 

[WM183]

Oh how cool,

Thank you Stephen! I will look about on her website.

OH! She's in Austria!! Oh good! She will know how to work with our EU issues!

 

[WM183]

Attempting to print some camel door hardware. If our printer works, I suppose the sky is the limit of what I can make?

Amanda

 

[simond]

Amanda,

have a look here

3D Printing - whether to buy, what to buy and how to use it?

Following John Baker’s kind offer to 3D print the tanks for my model, I’m really intrigued by the process & possibilities. John uses an Elegoo printer, I’m interested to know what others have, what their impressions are, etc. I am seriously tempted! Also, the process, there seems to be a...

www.westernthunder.co.uk

following @mickoo ‘s lead, I have concentrated on using Siraya Fast Navy Grey, but there are loads of choices.

FNG requires alcohol washes, there are water washable resins too, which may be more convenient.

atb
Simon

 

[Bill Bedford]

FNG requires alcohol washes, there are water washable resins too, which may be more convenient.

Yes, but the water used for cleaning the resin should not be flushed down the drain. Instead it should be kept and disposed of as "chemical waste"

 

[mickoo]

As a broad rule of thumb, water washables are not as durable long term as alcohol washable resins.

In all the social media places I haunt with respect to 3D printing, water washables have the most build problems, adhesion problems, separation (splitting) problems and long term durability.

However, that does not mean 'all' water washables conform to this trend and there are some excellent results, but it would be fair to say, they take a lot more effort to achieve that. There are folks who cannot tolerate alcohol based resins for many reasons so water washable is the only resin they can use.

FNG gives excellent detail but can suffer from surface artifacts, Elegoo 8k gives much better surface qualities but lack the crisp bite of FNG. You can mix resins to give different results, FNG is often mixed with Tenacious to give the parts more flexibility, I'm currently running tests at 85/15% mix to see what it's like. However, there are hundreds of resins out there to choose from, pick the one you feel works best for you and work with it.

At the Kettering show, a client handed me a rubber tyre, the sort you see on heavy plant equipment, big squish things with big knobbly tread blocks, it was fully flexible, twist, pull, compress, etc and returned to it's initial state immediately, it was 3D printed.

All uncured resins are deemed chemical waste, cured resins are (generally) allowed in domestic waste, much like old paint is when mixed with soil, but check you're local council website first to see what is and is not permitted. The easiest way to get from one state to the other is to harden the uncured resin in the waste liquid, I simply decant into a big 5L container and let the alcohol vent off, the residue then hardens in the sunlight and can be disposed of in the bin, the same would apply to water washables.

Some people put their waste in a clear jug and put that in the curing station, the ensuing sludge can then be spread on a disposable plate and left to further cure and harden in the sunlight.

As noted by others previously, when 3D printing, get a bigger waste bin, lots of kitchen rolls and disposable gloves, consumables are the biggest hidden factor in 3D printing.

 

[WM183]

Thanks guys!

I managed to get some door hardware printed. I am playing with settings, but I will try some trucks soon. This really opens a zillion possibilities doesn't it??

I have an alcohol-washup resin from Photocentric - DLP Hard - and it seems brittle, but ok. I will try an "ABS like" resin next I guess. I have a wash/cure station too - my printer and the washup station were gifts from very generous friends a couple years ago - and I am excited to be able to use them!

Amanda

 

[mickoo]

Beware resins, they are the biggest factor in material quality, Spike (son of Dogstar) was using a resin where results were at best mediocre, a change to FNG transformed his work flow.

Basically most ABS like resins work reasonably well but also buy from a bigger dealer with a high turn over, that way you stand a better chance of getting a resin with a short shelf life, I buy from Amazon, most of the time it's cheaper but sometimes it's more expensive but worth the extra as you know it's not been sat on a shelf for months/years.

Mars is a good printer, think they're up to 4 now and have a reputation for solid reliable work.

One final point, don't race for time, many people are in a hurry and run lower print times per layer, it results in failures, warping and potential not fully cured resin deep inside, see what other peoples settings are and work from there, what they have will almost certainly not be the sweet spot for you, it'll be close and a good starting point but it'll need tweaking. I've got three Saturn 2 and all need slightly different settings despite being the same machine. It's always better to add a little more print time to ensure a reliable print and not one that goes in the bin.

Finally, 3D printing is infectious and can take over your life and yes, the only limit is your imagination and it's not just for toy trains; I printed some stand offs/adapters to fit under the alarm system window sensors, thus allowing them to fit snugly on my UPVC window frames.

 

[Dog Star]

Beware resins, they are the biggest factor in material quality, Spike (son of Dogstar) was using a resin where results were at best mediocre, a change to FNG transformed his work flow.

Whilst Peter (my Son, aka @Spike on this forum) does the 3D CAD work and runs the 3D printers I maintain an interest in the technology, the materials and the print quality... we had indifferent results until Mickoo spent some time discussing what Peter was doing, using what resins and various approaches to print settings. Since that education things have been real huncky-dory.

Basically most ABS like resins work reasonably well but also buy from a bigger dealer with a high turn over, that way you stand a better chance of getting a resin with a short shelf life, I buy from Amazon, most of the time it's cheaper but sometimes it's more expensive but worth the extra as you know it's not been sat on a shelf for months/years.

Agreed, we buy Siraya FNG from "3-Jake" either direct or via Amazon. This supplier seems to be within the EU so no surprises on delivery/shipment charges.

Rgds, G