- January 7th, 2021, 4:26 pm#4944073
Hey all, just wanted to share a build thread as I set to making an MT500 for my uniform. I'm working off of Quentin Machiels' fantastic model set for all the parts. It's well worth the $6 to throw at him for it (https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/gadget/ ... rola-mt500). I know this isn't a particularly difficult or detailed prop to build, but I figured I'd share my experience as I go in case anyone else ever wants a reference or has questions.
I'm printing the non-springloaded version, though I'm not necessarily planning on adding my own electronics to it (for now). I'm building this mostly for looks rather than function.
Here's everything laid out. Sorry, I don't recall total print time, but it's not long. The midship and back frames are like 5-7 hours each. Front and back plates were like 4-5 hours. All the little stuff was fast. This is all done in PLA, except for the antenna with is TPU (just in case it ever snags on anything).
Some front detail. I printed the front plate at .12mm with a .4 nozzle. While it has some visible texture, it's not very dimensional, and should take filler easily.
Here's what I'll be painting with. I wanted the plastic to have some of that mottled texture to it, so I'm gonna test out the hammered black (I might change this after I test it). Silver for the aluminum parts, and a filler primer for the big front and back pieces (the rest of the fine detail is enough that I don't think it'll benefit from thicker primer). But what's the liquid electrical tape for? Even though the antenna will be printed in TPU, it's going to have some print texture to it I can't fill and paint away. Instead, I'm gonna dip it the liquid electrical tape to give it that vinyl coating look.
On the middle frame, there's a registration ridge that mates with the front plate, and it's a tight fit. Tight enough that I don't want any paint or primer building up the thickness, so I've masked this off for now.
And first coat of primer on all the silver pieces to get started. I did use normal primer on all these, not the filler primer, for the reason noted above. One thing I haven't plotted out yet, though, is how I'm going to do the labeling on the top plate for the knobs. I have the graphics for the Motorola sticker that goes on front, but the top is going to be an interesting challenge. Suggestions welcome.
The middle frame is the biggest piece, but at .12, the vertical resolution is more than good enough that it won't benefit from the filling and sanding, really.
More to come as I make progress!
I'm printing the non-springloaded version, though I'm not necessarily planning on adding my own electronics to it (for now). I'm building this mostly for looks rather than function.
Here's everything laid out. Sorry, I don't recall total print time, but it's not long. The midship and back frames are like 5-7 hours each. Front and back plates were like 4-5 hours. All the little stuff was fast. This is all done in PLA, except for the antenna with is TPU (just in case it ever snags on anything).
Some front detail. I printed the front plate at .12mm with a .4 nozzle. While it has some visible texture, it's not very dimensional, and should take filler easily.
Here's what I'll be painting with. I wanted the plastic to have some of that mottled texture to it, so I'm gonna test out the hammered black (I might change this after I test it). Silver for the aluminum parts, and a filler primer for the big front and back pieces (the rest of the fine detail is enough that I don't think it'll benefit from thicker primer). But what's the liquid electrical tape for? Even though the antenna will be printed in TPU, it's going to have some print texture to it I can't fill and paint away. Instead, I'm gonna dip it the liquid electrical tape to give it that vinyl coating look.
On the middle frame, there's a registration ridge that mates with the front plate, and it's a tight fit. Tight enough that I don't want any paint or primer building up the thickness, so I've masked this off for now.
And first coat of primer on all the silver pieces to get started. I did use normal primer on all these, not the filler primer, for the reason noted above. One thing I haven't plotted out yet, though, is how I'm going to do the labeling on the top plate for the knobs. I have the graphics for the Motorola sticker that goes on front, but the top is going to be an interesting challenge. Suggestions welcome.
The middle frame is the biggest piece, but at .12, the vertical resolution is more than good enough that it won't benefit from the filling and sanding, really.
More to come as I make progress!
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