SP 60' Arch Roof Coach - Shapeways Build

[Norway2112]

SP 60' arch roof coach: My first shapeways project, this is somewhat of an experiment for me. The designer offers this as a 72' commuter coach, and in the truncated version I purchased (Note: this is not an exact match for the SP 60' single window coaches, its simply a 72' car shortened). Having never worked with a shapeways product before I chose to purchase this shorter version for around $30 to see how it turned out before spending the $75 on the full size 72' arch roof commuter coaches. Initially it looks pretty good, all of the pieces fit together and work nicely. The car rolls well with FVM metal wheels. I have some concern for the printing lines in the roof, they may require some extra care to smooth out. Anxious to get a coat of Mr. Surfacer primer on and see how it looks then. More photos to follow as the build progresses:

Tips and advice most welcome!

[wazzou]

Not having Shapeways experience of my own, I would say that most would suggest a Bestene bath and scrubbing with a toothbrush to remove any wax residue which will also take away the translucence.
I'm sure others who do have experience will chime in.

[sirenwerks]

2 questions of my own Norway2112: What's the name of the designer on Shapeways that offers teh car and how do you plan on weighting it?

[jimmo]

What's the name of the designer on Shapeways that offers the car?

Susquehanna Car Shops

[jmlaboda]

He offers a number of interesting items that I will be scoping out once money comes available, including some "shorty" models of popular cars for those who are radius challenged.  SP suburbans (full length and shorties), D&H head-end and passenger cars (including the ACF lightweight #200-series coaches and #151 dining car which was rebuilt from a coach), some Pullmans not presently available all add to the mix of what is available through Shapeways... the one issue, though, is the banding problem that is common on their prints.  He also has some #242 top-equalizing trucks for any who can't wait for the MT baggage - express to be released.  Will be interesting to see how this shell will end up looking once primer is put on it and sanding is applied.

[Catt]

I typed "Susquehanna Car Shops" into the Shapeways search window.I got one item a caboose and a rather silly question.Quote "Are you looking foe a shop called "Susquehanna Car Shops"  Anyway I clicked on that and went right to Susquehanna Car Shops.  Being the nice guy here's the link for anyone who wants to check it out.  https://www.shapeways.com/shops/bots

[Norway2112]

Going to soak these parts in Bestine for at least 24 hours.  Hopefully will have the primer coat on this weekend.  If all goes well with this Ill do the 72' suburban coach next.

[sirenwerks]

I'd love to see some close-ups once the car is primered, if you could indulge.  Several of his cars look interesting.

[jagged ben]

Thanks for the link...
At first I thought:  SP suburbans!   
And then I looked at the price and thought:  !@#$%   
And it's in 'beta'.

Is this normal?  Am I missing something?

[Catt]

I think a lot of Shapeways designers are frustrated E bay sellers that just have to rip some one off so they jack up their percentage and you get ridiculous pricing.
 But then again Shapeways is like ebay in the sense that they keep looking for ways to jack up their cut.

[PROPULDUDE]

Sorry, pricing is out for me..Considering you can buy Jame's wonderful Locos, The Baldwin B Steeplecabs  for a far more reasonable price. Wheels of time cars are cheaper. Sell in volume, Not 72.00 for an unfinished car...

[brill27mcb]

Yes, especially when you're just drawing up-front, and not actually producing each ordered car as with resin casting. How much time and effort is involved for the designer in selling a second or third car, compared to the first? None.

Rich K.

[PGE_Modeller]

Thanks for the link...
At first I thought:  SP suburbans!   
And then I looked at the price and thought:  !@#$%   
And it's in 'beta'.

Is this normal?  Am I missing something?

Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but my understanding of Shapeways' pricing is that it is based on a combination of the volume of the material (Frosted Ultra Detail in this case) used for the print, the volume of the supporting material for overhangs and the area of the build tray that is occupied.  Considering those parameters, the price for the 60' coach is in line with my experience.  A few years ago, I purchased a pair of Pacific Great Eastern 30' cabooses comprised of a body shell and combined floor/interior detail at $30 each.  There were no trucks included.  The 60' coach is going to use almost exactly double the amount of FUD for the car body and floor - same width, height, side thickness and double the length - plus some extra for the trucks.  Thus, IMHO $72 for this coach does not appear to be out of line compared to $30 each for the cabooses I bought.

Whether the models are worth that much is a totally different question!  In the case of my cabooses, the time I have spent attempting to get them smooth enough to get a painted model acceptable for use on the layout is such that I could have scratch-built them four times over for a total cost of about $5 worth of styrene! (Trucks and couplers not included).

Cheers,

[jagged ben]

...
Whether the models are worth that much is a totally different question!  In the case of my cabooses, the time I have spent attempting to get them smooth enough to get a painted model acceptable for use on the layout is such that I could have scratch-built them four times over for a total cost of about $5 worth of styrene! (Trucks and couplers not included).

Cheers,

Duly noted.  Thank you.

[peteski]

Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but my understanding of Shapeways' pricing is that it is based on a combination of the volume of the material (Frosted Ultra Detail in this case) used for the print, the volume of the supporting material for overhangs and the area of the build tray that is occupied. 

I was also under the impression that the seller of the item can also tack on additional charge (profit for him for designing and providing the model to the buyers).  This might be in applicable here.