3D printed Indian Motorcycle

[jbwelda]

Here is a 3D printed Indian motorcycle that I bought on ebay. Supposed to be 1/24 scale but looks closer to 1/20 to me. I bought it mostly for the front fenders and wheels and in fact asked the seller/maker if I could just buy two front fenders and the wheels separate for a rod project (those fenders will look uber-kool on the front end of a dropped coupe and I can always use the wheels and tires for something) and he agreed to sell me them so I will go ahead with this motorcycle as is instead of using it as a donor kit. Haven't got any real plans for it yet, but just cutting it from the base was an adventure. Probably rake the front end and do some kustom touches to it.




Not very exciting yet, but may work into something nice. By the way, the seller of these makes all kinds of really neat bikes though as I mentioned, they appear significantly larger than the 1/24 he claims, especially next to my 1/25 scale bikes.

Thanks for looking and all comments appreciated!

jb

[patw]

Interesting to see exactly what you will do with it!

[Bernard Kron]

As we get further into 3D printing the big question emerging is how is the surface quality, especially in a small scale like this. Will it require extensive prep? Also, I notice that more and more 3D stuff being offered is self-printed instead of using a service bureau like Shapeways. There are several major reasons for this. One is that Shapeways, for example, has failed to keep up with printing technologies and has not offered breakthroughs like resin printing. Combined with the fact that capital costs (the costs of printers and media) have come down fast, has made it possible for 3D enthusiasts to explore possibly becoming businesses to offset what has been essentially a hobby. Service bureaus, too, have the additional problem of obscuring the value of your brand - i.e. I got my Indian from Shapeways vs. I got my Indian from XYZ 3D Printing. Do you know if this seller prints his own stuff?

Anyway, the initial excitement over 3D printing continues to be justified IMHO with the advent of interesting and creative offers like this Indian bike.

[jbwelda]

Hi Bernard, the surface still has texture on this item but not nearly to the extent that some do or did, its pretty clean at least looks so from the coat of primer I shot on it. You are right about a lot of things in your post, Shapeways has not kept up with the tech, and I heard they are farming out their actual printing these days though I am not positive that is correct. But they do obscure your brand if you use them for what amounts to distribution these days. The days of having an affordable, adequate for small detail printer at home is rapidly arriving and at that point all one would have to sell is the design and then let the purchaser print it at home at their leisure. I see that as the future of model building actually, no more packaging, no more cutting tools, no more expensive injection molding. I think it will be a major boon to the hobby if not the model companies who are sure to drag their feet against progress just as much as music companies had about downloading music instead of buying physical product.

I think I did ask the seller of the bikes if he printed his own stuff, but I am afraid I do not recall his answer, but I am pretty sure he does not use Shapeways, and kind of got the impression he designs and prints his stuff himself. He has a big line of really kool bikes, I bought this one as a test, but I am going to pick up a couple of others as soon as the opportunity presents itself.

jb