3D printed miniatures are the future.

Perhaps one day we'll just buy the files and print our games at home.

Yeah, they are definitely coming. I bought a 3d printed set of wonders for Clash of Cultures and thought... the future is coming and it's pretty cool.

My buddy sells his own 6mm miniatures line and his process is he designs the models on the computer, sends the file to a printer, they print out a proof in plastic with lower res, he revises/signs off, then they print a brass one to sends it to the caster to be made in pewter.

So it is just around the corner and only a matter of time before you download a file to print out at home.

I'm slightly skeptical of how close we are to seeing this have a serious impact at the consumer level. Any unit that looks to be affordable for an average person does not output the quality that comes close to a well sculpted miniature. Additionally, how many miniatures are you going to print to really make that cost of the unit worth it?

Many people don't really discuss the price of raw materials as well as the natural waste that will occur and add up.

Also, what do you do when your $300 3D printer breaks?

Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1450 but ink is still so goddamn expensive.

They're becoming more prevalent in the workplace and they are already cheaper and material cost cheaper than I realised. I'm looking forward to Games Workshops stuff being dropped out on torrents worldwide in the future. Just for the schadenfreude

More seriously, this is just begging for companies to take a hold of this NOW while its in its infancy and find a way to make this work with print on demand stuff, or selling designs, or making games and components things you make yourself via micro transactions etc. Feels like there must be some good business to be had, a bit like when digital streaming music kicked off, the ones who embrace it earliest usually end up in a good position

Hopefully there will be enough "good guys" out there putting stuff out for the love of it to share with people as well


I've got those Acquire hotel pieces printed from work
www.thingiverse.com/thing:77343

they look great and fit peachy on those 3M black plastic tiles

I think we're pretty far away. We do a lot of 3D printing at work, and I've tried to do a few minis. Unless they are very blocky the results are poor at best. And to get fine details will require a pretty major jump in how these things operate, and the cost of the filament.

I just don't see it giving the detail that people want out of a miniature.

This is like the VCR stage for this tech. HD quality in the future is inevitable.

As I understand it a lot of mini companies are making their masters from 3D printing now.
From there yes, it goes cost effective to make a mold and mass produce. But like all technology this is destined to go down in price. There will come a time where 3D printers with a very high resolution will be available for at home use. We're starting to see the first round hitting and yes, they have lines, they don't have high resolution.

I've seen masters printed in brass and they look fantastic. No lines, no look of being printed in layers. So current technology for at home use, yes there are limitations, but each year it's going to get closer and closer for at home use.

Then consider the implications to manufacturing. Filesharing from 3D designers, no longer do Chinese hands have to sort and paint models since it is possible to print in color.

Around the corner was an exaggeration, but I feel that by the time the 20's close out many homes will have their own 3D printers.

So how do you create the model in software? If I wanted to recreate Mimring and I had one, what would it take to create the digital version for printing?

My buddy draws his models from scratch.

But there are also 3D scanners, which again are still pretty early on in their ability, but they way they modeled the Cave Troll in LotR movies is by creating a scale model then scanned it into the computer to render. It'd be the same process to copy a mini.

At least I'd assume that's how everything would work together.

I don't know if physical stuff like CNC is subject to the same exponential improvement curve as computers, but I hope it happens.

There's already a guy on BGG who will make out-of-print games on demand, but you're looking at 80 bucks for Dune, I believe. So perhaps the cost of using a third party for DIY miniatures will still be too high. I mean, who needs a corner mini-printer when you have China?

Look at the cost for ink if you want to print out something at home. My guess is that when decect 3d printers start showing up at work, then "free" minis will start cropping up.

I actually watched that third video, "Figure Printing" and there is some serious hardware behind making those large Warcraft dolls. I didn't understand the machine that was immersing them in something--the "Super Bee." Is that just varnish?

It's interesting to think about the intersection of advancing technology, countries like China and cheap global distribution. Did you know that giant cargo ships are more fuel efficient that your Prius?

Still very, very far.

I doubt that this would grow exponentially like computers. This is physical stuff. I know many independent miniature makers who use 3D prints, but not for mass production. They make a 3d print, clean it up, and finally use it to create the mold. Slight mistakes in cleaning will cause the ridge lines to appear (sometimes worse) on the metal mass production copies.

I've held low quality 3d prints and high quality 3d prints in my hands. Even the best just don't compare with FFG new crop of plastics. And to say nothing about Games Workshop quality, which is still leap and bounds above most competitors.

Sevej wrote: I've held low quality 3d prints and high quality 3d prints in my hands. Even the best just don't compare with FFG new crop of plastics. And to say nothing about Games Workshop quality, which is still leap and bounds above most competitors.

Quality of the prints? Or quality of the medium?
I've venture a guess, and were I a betting man I'd bet the farm, that FFG is now using 3D printing for their prototyping and masters.

Here's some of my buddy's work. He models in 6mm, so the troops are about 1/4-3/8" tall. The vehicles are about 1" long and less tall and wide.

Masters (meaning the models they make the molds from) printed in metal (I'm pretty sure brass, but it doesn't look brass so I need to double check) of the troops:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xap1/v/t1.0-9/24304_195744847259085_1520800731_n.jpg?oh=01c3f0982342658ab526f68e14a5d346&oe=55456F39&__gda__=1429091345_845e28e89ee455741d60725734f7f145

Masters of the dreadnought sized walker troops, these are about 3/4" tall:
https://scontent-a-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/408508_164516637048573_2121722322_n.jpg?oh=f8a9ef4a1ac492578fbe547163c64fa2&oe=553DCC37

Here are prototypes for his signoff in plastic prior to the masters being printed up:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/1011433_179117968921773_1904774520_n.jpg?oh=68dc257caf21971579d091942d435b36&oe=553B1FC8&__gda__=1430387995_9fb0613449538af1b22830e3093d8ba2

And I'll need to double check if these are the masters or the finished product just primed and a quick wash.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/v/t1.0-9/1454837_228529110647325_173396504_n.jpg?oh=219679fd6bac408265e9a7b6fe73f72b&oe=552E101A&__gda__=1429250493_1ecbcebd980e1c455520a334d08a00b5


Keep in mind the scale of these, being as small as they are, it is not possible to put in that level of detail using traditional armatures and green-stuff modeling epoxy.

When sculpting in 3D you can zoom the model in and add details that you just can't get by manipulating and pushing medium, that's why the model quality is getting better and better because this technology is getting more accessible. Back 10 years ago everything was sculpted by hand but with Rakham/Confrontation the rumor was that their detail was achieved by computer modeling and 3D printing, but they kept their process under wraps, and this was during a time when everyone sculpted by hand.

10 years later, using a few subcontractors my buddy is able to run a miniatures company out of his basement.

Now...This addresses just the prototyping and master model creation, the finished product is still cast in pewter. But 10 years from now I wouldn't be surprised to see him investing in some at home printing to cut out his subcontractors.

EDIT: Damn, photos won't embed, I'll try to figure out later but my 2yo is running around like a dang fool demanding attention. I'll try to fix later, till then just cut and paste.

This is why Facebook is terrible. Not only does it reduce the images to the level of crap, but it won't even let you link to it. It's like locking turds in a safe. Not only that, but your friend's great stuff can't even be found using an image search tool like Tineye.

He should have a tumblr or something.