Hello Yevgen,

I also have a 3D printer.
If you have good CAD software and can use it well, you are able to design 1:72 figures.
I've already created a few figures with it (see my post "Somewhere in hell" here in the forum).

But you should know that the liquid resin used in the 3-printer is highly toxic.

When working with it, you should definitely wear chemical-resistant gloves and a gas mask with a filter against solvents. Therefore, never use the 3D printer in your home, even if the advertising pretends that this is harmless. Find out more about the dangers from independent Internet forums than from the manufacturers.
This stuff is really extremely unhealthy for humans and animals.
The cleaning and disposal of the toxic residues that arise when you clean the printer and the figures afterwards are also a problem.
And of course the price of the chemicals...

If you need a larger number of figures, then plastic injection molding is still the better and cheaper solution.

But i think, 3D printing technology is very useful for sample figures and individual pieces.

Those figures do look amazing. I have one question though. Do they size up with the Strelets figures? I have ordered some figures from a manufacturer of metal figures( not Art Miniaturen or Schilling) whereby the figures were clearly oversized. more like 24/25mm iso 20-22 mm. The length usually is no insurmountable problem at 24mm, for there were taller soldiers in each regiment, but the proportions and the bulk are too much compared to the very well proportioned figures by our host.

From left to right, Grenadier HAT, Zvezda, Speira, Franznap, ESCI, and the last two miniature schilling.
I raised the Speira a bit because its base is extra flat.

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These figures are so detailed that I personally couldn't resist painting all the details.
They are very easy to paint because all the details are clear and well marked, the brush glides by itself.

Very nice, and do You see the levels of 3d printer once You print them?

In the photos I do not see them at all.

Hello Yevgen,

it is good that you are informed beforehand and are careful with the toxic Resin material. But over the last year I have had frequent contact with people who have also just started with 3D printing. And it was shocking how little these people were aware of what they were dealing with and the dangers they were exposing themselves to.

A young man complained that the printing process smelled so badly of chemicals. He would have the printer in the living room and his wife would have complained about it. Also, some fish would have died in his aquarium since he left the printer running there. I then made it clear to the good boy that he was working with highly toxic stuff. He was really shocked and now only operates the printer in his garage.

So I just wanted to warn you. But I see that you are well informed and well prepared.

Here are a few links to companies and Internet marketplaces. The prices for finished print files are quite high. Because the sellers of the files know that they will definitely not just used for printing a single figure.

For example, if you have found printing files for a few nice marching soldiers and then print these files 100 times to create whole marching columns, the price is put into perspective. But if you only need for example a flag bearer once then 4-6 EUR for such a file is very expensive.

https://store.regimientosdeamerica.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1

https://germania-figuren.eu/3D-Drucker---Druckdateien/

https://www.3dprintterrain.de/collections/figure-sets


From my own experience, however, I can say that the design of such detailed figures with a CAD program takes an enormous amount of time. I have often worked 2-3 weeks (in the evenings) on the few figures that I have designed myself so far. If you want them to look good, you must invest 50-60 hours of construction time. And this has its price...

The people from SPEIRA in Sweden are also ready to make the figures a bit smaller / bigger, just as the customers want it. This can be specified on their website when ordering.
For the CAD-software, the switch from 1:72 to 1:725 or 1:74 is done quickly. Click twice with the computer mouse and the figure shrinks or grows...

Gerd,

Please show us Your 3d figures. It’s very interesting.

Kind regards,

Yevgen

Thanks Raph86 for the images. It is good to see they match up reasonably. It widens my scope.

3D printed figures seem decent enough, albeit they can be fragile in certain areas such as swords, bayonets etc. But the level of detail is amazing and the faces have good lifelike appearance to them.
I have been buying some from a UK based ebay seller. I have purchased and enjoyed painting both Napoleonic French & British artillery and Dutch/Belgian Carabiniers. Some Hannoverian Infantry too.
The British & French infantry have proportions which may not be to everyones taste, but I have seen worse.
There are some nice wagons too.
I will probably put a order in for some figures from Spiera Miniatures in the new year too. Loads of figures on there I like the look of!

I wouldn't mind getting into 3D printing at some stage myself. I need to do a lot more reading up about it, pros/cons, designing items etc. I can see its uses beyond miniatures. It is certainly an exciting technology.
What we really need is someone to invent the replicators out of Star Trek!!!

I see


Piano wargames

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pianowargames/the-alps-aflame/description

Napoleonic stl

Coexmini

Multi size figures

Thank you for this link..

Really wonderful figures of the napoleonic area..

This figures can be used to represent the units of the German principalities that had sided with Napoleon at the time.

They are slt-print files for 28mm figures, but there is no problem downsizing these files to 1:72 with the printer's software.

In 1:72 they should look fantastic...

Link to the shop: https://pianowargames.de/de/collections/stl-bundles

Yes, they are great.

The post was well-written, providing an in-depth look at the subject matter. www.themagazinepro.com

I looking forward to decent ancient figures. There is need for Iberians or decent fighting phalanxes. I would love to create my own. Which 3d printer is usful? Which software is the best choice?

Zvezda created the last batch of their big sets via 3d (spartans for example). I would like to try this myself.

Hello,

i think the Elegoo Saturn S-Printer would be a good choice if you just want to print small vehicles or soldiers in 1/72-Scale. But the previous models Eleggo Saturn oder the Elegoo MARS are also very good and sufficient devices.

The printers have different sizes and can then also produce larger objects. However, you then have to handle larger quantities of the toxic resin liquid.

You might want to try your first steps with a used Elegoo Mars printer. Such devices can sometimes be found for as little as EUR 80....

But Anycubic also has good printers...

It just depends on what you want to do with them.
Most people eventually buy one of these printers and then use it for a number of years. As such, there are no real comparisons to use as a basis to help you make your choice. Therefore, before you buy a 3D-printer, it is better to read a few test reports and comparisons on the Internet.

And then you have to determine your needs (faster printing, large or small printed parts ??) and choose a device (price / performance).

To create Your own figures You will need software and You have two options:

- Blender: it’s totally free software, but a little bit complicated in the first steps

- Zbrush: it’s more intuitive program and more easier to use then Blender. The unique problem is that You have ti pay 30-40€ monthly for that program. Well taking into account that it’s worth 3-4 sets per months it’s not so much.

Hope this will help.

Kind regards,

Yevgen