Hellboy and Stormtrooper

[superrune]

Hi everyone :)

It is my first post here. I just made two small 3D models and just had to share them with someone, and since I've been lurking here from time to time, you're the ones that I'm bugging!

I've been playing with 3D printing lately, for a brooch project that I am doing with my girlfriend. I've done comparisons with some of the most well-known 3D-print houses, and posted the results on Flickr. Perhaps some of you might find that interesting? http://www.flickr.com/photos/superrune/sets/72157608208652833/

Anyway, some years ago I did a very very short Hellboy test animation ( http://www.superrune.com/gallery_3d/2003_hellboy.php ), and for my latest batch of testprints I just had to try out my Hellboy model. Here are some photos of the print:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3215/2977145331_1d41b48042_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3150/2978002400_cb08f7b944_b.jpg

Here's a comparison with the Mezco figure. It's interesting to see how some things are quite different, like the nose profile:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3150/2978001106_6d73a1c762_b.jpg

And I also printed a Stormtrooper. The details on this print is just fantastic:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3215/2977142707_eba88bfa58_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3276/2977999948_96d723794b_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3032/2977999560_926e0dec79_b.jpg

They're very translucent, so the detail are hard to pick up on these photos. I just did these as a fun thing, but I was so surprised at how well they turned out that I am thinking of painting them up properly.

I hope you like them! Cheers!

[Artastic]

Those are great!! How much did it cost you to have those printed out if you don't mind me asking. I would love to have some ZBrush models printed out so I can paint them.

[superrune]

Thanks :)

The Shapeways prices are really good. You can actually just upload a model to their website, and they will give you an exact quote. The Hellboy, trooper and another model all came at $98 (for all three), including shipping.

[Breath of Life]

I would be really interested in seeing how these paint up.

[Bai Fan]

Looks like a pretty nice result.

What 3d software do you use?

[maddmaestro]

I have never done 3d modeling, however I am totally intrigued by the possibilities afforded with the advent of the 3d printer. I wish I was rich because i would totally invest in one. Anyone have 45,000 dollars to lend me?

Nice work btw...

Maddmaestro:afroboy:

[superrune]

Looks like a pretty nice result.

What 3d software do you use?

I use 3ds max for the polymodeling itself. If the model needs microdetail, I do that in Mudbox.

[Bai Fan]

Cool. So they can work with normal maps?

Do you know if they take maya files?

[superrune]

Cool. So they can work with normal maps?

Do you know if they take maya files?

No to both those questions. Most print houses only take STL files, but some also can do 3DS or OBJ, even Maya if you're lucky. Shapeways only do STL.

[Bai Fan]

Shoot and shoot.

[TOYMINATORX]

I am curious to know what the prices were and what you thought had the besst finish

[superrune]

I am curious to know what the prices were and what you thought had the besst finish

I found out on this project that price and quality went hand in hand. Mind you, I got quotes from only five companies, so this is in no way an exhaustive test, but these were the ones that I've seen mentioned most frequently.

Shapeways was the cheapest, with prices from $50-100, depending on the material. Then there was 3D Total/Growit3D in the mid-range, with about $125. And the expensive ones were Offload Studios, Paradigm Dev Group and Thinglab. Their prices were in the $225-300 range. Thinglab was the most expensive, so I decided to drop them for this test (which is a shame, they have some incredible samples on their site).

The Shapeways-prints are like raw prints. They have a grainy look, and the finest material they printed for me have a sticky quality (I don't think it should be like that). The models from the other vendors had a much smoother feel to them, like that of finished products. Paradigm Dev delivered the sharpest-looking models, with a very slight texture to them. And the ones from Offload Studios even looked like they had been through a process of brushing and smoothing to remove the coarseness, they were really great-looking prints in presentation quality. The 3DTotal/Growit3D models were something inbetween these two, but more towards Shapeways in coarseness.

The Offload and 3DTotal/Growit3D models are have a less translucent look, with the Offload models being the most opaque of them all, which is better suited for detailed models. Surface detail blends together on the translucent Paradigm and Shapeways models, which makes them hard to photograph unless you paint them. Offload could also load 3DS files and print models with textures and colours. Definitely something I should have tried out with Hellboy :)

Shapeways and Paradigm had both the fastest response time (well, Shapeways is basically a do-it-yourself webshop), and the fastest delivery. Offload took a couple of days to answer, but showed most care in getting the model to look good (they asked me for the original MudBox or zBrush files, which is a huge plus). Offload were also the only ones to mention up front that they are commited to security and discretion, which is important if you're working on a NDA.

If you have no problems with funds and don't want to spend time sanding and priming the models, I definitely recommend the more expensive companies. They had the best quality, communication and support. If you are short on funds, and if you're going to mold/cast/sand these things anyway, the cheapest option might be good enough. I used Shapeways on my second printing round (the one I'm posting here) because of that. They had an unbeatable combo of price and quality, even though their models have this sticky quality. I'm not sure how that stickyness affects casting and painting (somebody know?), but I'm just about to find that out :)

Hope that helps :)

[oracrest]

The hellboy is awesome! I remember that video you made a few years back. I always hoped they would do a movie or something in that style, instead of reinventing the style each time.

Nice job!

[superrune]

I actually picked up on my Hellboy animation last week. I hope to have something new to show later this winter :)

[Victor B]

Nice models! and interesting process thanks for sharing!

[stoph]

ah i see you've had dealings with the guys at Offload :) theyre a good bunch, turn out some very neat gear. love the HB sculpt, its makin me think i could do something similar with some leftover sculpey i have just gathering dust in my room... but that would mean yet another project that would probably not be finished :P looking forward to your paintjobs!