Desktop 3D printers

[AF350]

Well still have not ordered the 3D printer yet. Last Night was playing with Sketchup 8 and found it to be not so bad once I printed out the quick reference card

Now to get the Printer and find some reference material as far as doors and end parts for box and refrigerator cars. I have a sheet that lists some truck styles and corresponding pictures.

All I know about door types is Evens and plug door, but need to know what other types there are out there. Also ends as well.

[nkp_174]

I've been designing my parts using standardized reference material and road-specific documentation and photos.

Some stuff can simply be scaled up or down, other things can't. For example, the sprue size when packing 4 truck side frames, 2 truck bolsters, and 4 caps to attach them together required sprues. I made them the minimum size, which requires them to be adjusted for different materials or scales.

Scalability...

Making trucks isn't as simple as drawing up something which matches a prototype, it also requires scale specific considerations. You can't design a truck without deciding what axles the wheels will have...needle point, shoulder, or flush? How long will they be and what is the diameter of the axles. What clearance is required? If brake beams are included, you should also select a wheel diameter. How will the trucks be attached to the car is also a design consideration. Printing my On3 trucks in HOn3 has required numerous changes to the truck bolster, journal boxes, and the the sideframes were made integral to the sides (On3 trucks usually allow for the sideframes to rotate independently for equalization while HOn3 trucks are rigid).

Whether parts are solid or hollowed out is scale specific. So is the walls thickness for hollow parts (e.g. the thickness of a railroad car's sides). This is a material specific consideration, and so an On3 car sides would probably have the same actual thickness as its HOn3 brother, but the scale thickness would basically double.

My first HOn3 truck should arrive next week along with a revised version of the On3 trucks. I'm working on the corresponding boxcar with the intention of offering it in HOn3 as a printed car, and probably as a resin kit in On3. I'm not certain of all the design tweaks that this will entail, but I'm awaiting an experimental print which I hope will guide the design tweaks for the full boxcar in HOn3 and On3 (and later, hopefully, Nn3 and Sn3).

[nkp_174]

I forgot to mention sources to study...

Car Builder Dictionaries are the best source for truck information. You could use calipers to measure dimensions from commercial trucks, but that is definitely better as a complementary source of information to the Dictionaries. The 1879, 1888, and 1906 have been reprinted. Others can be found on the internet (I believe that I have electronic version of the 1909 and 1895 dictionaries).

Also, John H. White Jr.'s American Railroad Freight Car, American Railroad Passenger Car (1 vol in hardback, 2 in softback), and his American Steam Locomotive 1830-1880 (or such) are the best references for rolling stock in general.

There have been hundreds of different truck types and variations. The details have varied greatly. Many model railroad terms are almost ludicrously generic. While most modelers would find any generic archbar truck to be acceptable, designing based off of a specific truck is usually the best approach. For example, the DSP&P had at least 4, but probably 6 or more, 4' WB, swing-motion truck designs between 1874 and 1884.

Birth of California Narrow Gauge is also a great source to study as Curtis Ferrington has produced many gorgeous graphics illustrating some Carter Bros trucks (I tend to recall a 10t swing motion truck in particular as well as a passenger car truck).

[AF350]

Wow that will help quite a lot. I thought about the wall thickness and how it would throw off dimensions and that I would have to account for it in the design of the parts. And the axles May just use commercial parts and design the trucks around pre existing wheel sets. Mounting of the trucks as you said would be scale specific(I would strive to have 2 versions one for truck mounted couplers and body mounted option for the scale modelers).

I did find some door names: wagner, Evens, Superior, Box car end door, Youngstown, Thrall, and Trinity.

It is a start, I am thinking of just doing parts for myself and if skill improves maybe for others as well who knows maybe even a kit or two.

[nkp_174]

What time period are you interested in? Transition I presume, based off of the parts you've mentioned?

This evening, I was working on an 1895 Carter Bros passenger car truck. Using a shop drawing of the original, plus a few photos, and then tracking down various things such as standard dimensions for a 3/8" round bolt head (approx. 0.8" in dia and 0.2" tall in the middle). I drew the round head bolts and applied 11 of them to one of the passenger car truck sideframes along with (6) 5/8" bolt heads with 1.5" washers.

I highly recommend starting with things such as standard NBWs and other detail parts. Learn to draw them before tackling something more complicated.

[AF350]

I was thinking of 40's up to current production.

I did a simple side panel with ribs and small circles in google sketchup using the push pull tool still looks like an exaggerated detail job but is good practice, between sketchup blender and 3D wings I have the drawing portion figured out, like you said I will have to do some research on dimensions of details including NBW. In my small but growing library I have a book on CSX rolling stock and a book on cabooses. May do other eras as well.

Still planing on the Replicator 2 3D printer but have to wait a bit longer money wise.

[nkp_174]

Do you have the "solid inspector" add-on? It is essential to making sure that your meshes are printable. My first truck design was not...and I couldn't salvage it.

[AF350]

I will download the plugin maybe Friday afternoon, sounds like a good tool to have. Thanks for the information.

[AF350]

Checked my books and found 4 that have a lot of pics of rolling stock should keep me busy drawing wise:

Caboose by Solomon, Railroad rolling stock by Barry, CSX freight equipment by AL Hepler and Illustrated Tresuary of modern freight cars of North America by Kerr.

Will download the solid inspector here shortly.

Again thanks for the pointers.

[nkp_174]

Glad to help, especially since getting the stuff you want in S-scale isn't exactly easy.

[AF350]

Money wise not quite there but getting close to ordering the 3D printer soon, when I get it set up and running will post a pic or two.

[AF350]

May have to wait a bit longer than I had first thought, as I have some temporay setbacks(taxes need done first) and some bills poping up. May be by mid may I will be able to procede with the plans of getting a 3D printer.

[AF350]

Turns out the version of sketch up I have is not pro and can not use solid tools

[AF350]

Update on 3D printer,


I am with in $900.00 of being able to afford the Makerbot Replicator 2 just might be able to swing it in May if I curb my spending on non essential items

[Mike Kieran]

CBS Sunday Morning just did a piece on 3D printers. They're talking about using them for replicating human tissue. Amazing!!!