3D Printing Props and Armour?

[Aiden26]

Hey guys, so in this post I would like to ask some question about 3D printing armour, Props, and the printers themselves. So first off,

Is there a way to scale models before printing them like in the pepakura software?

I noticed people that print helmets need to modify them so they can take it on and off. Is there a way that I can just slip the helmet on? Or is it based on the design?

I see there's multiple materials to print with. Which one is best for props and armour?

Is it possible to turn Pepakura files into 3D printable files?

Which 3D printers have a large platform? I understand it will cost more but I don't want a ton of parts to glue together.

I'm looking for Halo reach Helmet files along with Marine and ODST? The only helmet I can find is Master Chiefs Halo 4 Helmet.

 

[Dumontrudisel]

Ill just answer them right away
-Yes and no. Its nowhere near as simple as pep where you can pick 2 points to measure. There are ways to scale parts. It varies depending on your printer software
-That really depends on the file the print was made from.
-There are really only 2 types of plastic used for hobby 3D printing. ABS and PLA. Each have their ups and downs. I prefer ABS
-Yes, but its not a common practice because of how low poly pep files are.
-Taz is known for its large print volume, but trust me. You should go for print quality over build volume.
-3D print files are rarely shared because of the time it takes too design them. So what youre looking for, youre probably not going to find. Youre probably going to have to hire a modeler or buy a file

 

[Aiden26]

Ill just answer them right away
-Yes and no. Its nowhere near as simple as pep where you can pick 2 points to measure. There are ways to scale parts. It varies depending on your printer software
-That really depends on the file the print was made from.
-There are really only 2 types of plastic used for hobby 3D printing. ABS and PLA. Each have their ups and downs. I prefer ABS
-Yes, but its not a common practice because of how low poly pep files are.
-Taz is known for its large print volume, but trust me. You should go for print quality over build volume.
-3D print files are rarely shared because of the time it takes too design them. So what youre looking for, youre probably not going to find. Youre probably going to have to hire a modeler or buy a file

Thanks! When you say "quality or volume" Are you saying that the smaller the platforms and models are, the better detailed the model is? Also do you recommend any brand/type of 3D printer and material for printing the stuff i'm interested in? Thanks!

 

[Hazmat]

Thanks! When you say "quality or volume" Are you saying that the smaller the platforms and models are, the better detailed the model is? Also do you recommend any brand/type of 3D printer and material for printing the stuff i'm interested in? Thanks!

No. Some printers are better than other. Some have large print volume and still make high quality prints. There are loads of articles out there comparing 3d printers. you should read those.

 

[MrGreene]

I use 3D modeling and printing for 75% of my work, and generally speaking, you're going to pay at least $1500 for any printer of acceptable quality. Any pre-built kit less than that is most likely a toy and won't have the feature resolution you need. If you know what you're doing you can build a decent quality printer for $600.

Also, it's SLOW. You can wait 36 hours for the printer to do the work for you (with the risk of the print failing and having to start over) or you can spend 36 hours doing the work manually and get more finished.
3D printing is only faster if you're exceptionally fast at modeling, or if you have a TON of printers.

When it comes to build volume, bigger isn't necessarily better. Splitting a big part in half and printing on two printers is more than twice as fast as printing it as one solid piece.
For anything substantial like a helmet or suit of armor, you ideally want between 5-10 printers running at the same time. ABS is finnicky to work with if you don't have a temperature-controlled environment, but it's far superior to PLA for parts that need to be welded together.

Lastly (and most importantly), if you're just printing out low-poly files that someone else makes, it would be cheaper, faster, and easier to just use pepakura designer instead and hand-make them.
Anyone can download a file from thingiverse, click print, say "I made this," and turn around and try to sell it online, and those people are ruining rapid prototyping's reputation in the costuming world.

 

[Dumontrudisel]

No. A smaller platform doesnt equal better prints. Some printers just produce higher quality prints overall. I paid $1270 for my Up Plus 2 printer. Build volume is small, but it has extremely well done prints compared to other printers ive seen. High quality printers are going to be more expensive anyway. Makerbot printers for example. And yes, the process is extremely slow. All 3D printing really does is skip over hand made detailing, and the entire hardening process of pep, at the cost o time and risk of failure. 3D prints still require just as much surface work as any pep model.