3D Printed models to expand the range of British N Gauge modelling!
About Me
Hello there! My name is James, and as you can most likely guess, I'm from the town of Gosport on the south coast of the UK (right next door to Portsmouth for those wondering!), and as you can also guess, I'm into trains and also modelling!
But have been into trains since Thomas use to be voiced by Ringo Starr, and when growing up I lived beside what was the Fareham-Gosport Branch line!
And have always been into modelling of all kinds, from making plasticine models, to Warhammer 40K and all sorts, but there has always been a place in my heart for model Trains!And so to help encourage me to finally finish off a layout instead of getting side tracked (no pun intended), I began my Youtube channel back in 2019, slowly learning as one does all the things people before have done, and hoping I've figured out some new things on the way!I chose N Gauge since I'm use to not having much space for myself, having had to share a room with both my brothers, getting the most out of the available space in my room is always a must.
I originally began just modelling anything I fancied at first, with no real draw to any prototype or region, that was till I came across the Farish SECR N Class, a marvellous runner, then learnt they use to run round Gosport, I became much more interested in my local area's railways!
But the range of Southern items in N Gauge is a little lacking, after buying them all I wanted more, so I began getting into kit building, which became a theme for what to also do on my channel, I tried brass, white metal, resin moulds and 3d printed items.
But I finally got round to making my own prints after getting my own printer, at first just a PLA printer which was only good for basic prototypes, now with a resin printer I can now produce my own quality models for both myself and anyone else interested in them!I'm still learning however, I will make mistakes, not do things well and other failings, but I aim to learn from them and hope that others can learn from them too!
Also hopefully it's fun to watch as well heh
3d Printing Faqs
All my prints are designed to fit around Ready to Run chassis, or require very little else to get them running to make them as easy to get fitted for the end user.
The bodies may need some filling to help get them fitted snuggly (due to some minor variances between prints), but the main work will mostly be on the chassis themselves.These can range from some simple filling or removing some plastic parts, to removing large sections of the metal chassis body or splitting the chassis in two then putting back together again for a different length.But all prints will be first built by myself on my Youtube channel, which also serve as guides on what to do to put the kits together!
The Printing Process
My prints are made from water washable resin, mostly due to it's easier to wash off with just any normal water than using alcohol.The print process itself usually takes about two hours, this just depends on how tall the item is, so smaller items take less time and taller take longer.
Printing is done under a light cover to block out any stray light source.After this, and after any remaining resin is allowed to run off the build plate, the prints are given an initial wash for thirty minutes in a tank with a propeller at the bottom to agitate the water.
After this the prints are given one more wash under flowing water to wash off any remaining fluid resin prior to the curing process.
The models are now freed from their support struts at this point, which unfortunately at this point isn't recyclable, though looking into how to reuse them!
Once free, the models are checked over for any issues, if anything I note them down so can fix later on and reprint, if all good they are placed inside the curing machine, which blasts them from three sides with UV lights on a rotating turntable.
After at least fifteen minutes, the models are turned around and given another blast under the UV lights for around twenty minutes.
Total time under the UV lamps is at least thirty minutes or so.And lastly, the models are left to sit, upright and to the side somewhere to allow any minor warping to right itself, once a day has passed, pictures will be sent to the customer, upon approval then they are packed up securely and safely to be sent off the next day!
Commissions
While I do have a range which I produce by myself, I'm perfect fine taking on commissions, either designing something which you only have the plans or pictures of or have designed yourself!Both will be charged at my usual printing rates, those which I've designed myself for someone are likely to become part of my range while those which someone else has designed won't be.
This is mostly due to I feel it's unethical to sell someone else's product without some sort of arrangement, and I don't feel comfortable doing so either.Either way, feel free to enquire about commissions via my usual ordering methods!