3D Printed Street Furniture

 Things have been quiet on this blog, and whilst I have been sketching new designs for Coastguard Creek on and off for months, as well as trying a couple of them out in Train Simulator (long story there...), I'm still not quite in a position to give you an update yet on that project...

...but I thought I'd share some bonus photos from just one aspect of the latest commission for BRM that won't make it into the article. And yes, this is one of many aspects that there just wasn't room for - the joys of getting carried away with detailing! 

This is also a good point to promote a supplier I had never heard of before - Model Railway Scenes. And no, I am neither being paid for this, nor do I know them; I'm just a happy customer.

A look online for some thin metal bollards suitable for a street scene turned into this discovery. Model Railway Scenes produce a variety of 3D printed kits and accessories in a variety of scales - all those little things that make up really nice details and potential cameos on model railways. Upon finding their online store, I immediately found more and more interesting and well-modelled accessories which I knew I could find a use for - the shopping cart grew instantly! What's even better is that these are the cheapest 3D printed products I've seen - excellent value for money.

Above: Once the parcel arrived, I was immediately surprised at just how tidy and well-packaged it was, and also pleased to see it was entirely recyclable. The personalised letter was also rather nice (and yes, I know that this is most likely an automated response/mail merge, but it's still a nice touch!).

Above: The contents of my order can be seen, together with an inset image showing one of each item in detail. As you can tell, the prints are incredibly crisp - much better than most I've seen. A combination of the bubble wrap and neat stacking within their packets meant every item arrived intact. Something else to mention is that I didn't actually order the grit/salt bins - that was an unexpected freebie!

Above: Let's start with the freebies! A four-step process as described in the photo. The only thing to add is with the third and fourth step where a wash is used, I always have the items on a bit of kitchen roll so that the excess water immediately gets pulled down into the towel.

Above: The benches are next, again, the photos should be self-explanatory! Not shown here, but the other style of benches (not the picnic type) started with reversed colours - so a darker undercoat, with lighter "replacement" planks.

Above: The planters are first sprayed with Plastikote "Dove Grey" chalk effect paint. Once dry, they are weathered much in the same way as the other items. Add a bit of "Middlestone" for a greeny tint to the weathering process.

Above: The bollards need only a repaint in a slightly whitened "Dark Grey", followed by a dry-brushing of "Pale Sand" for the highlights. Anyone want to go 10-pin bowling?

And since I took photos of the others, here are the rest of the close-ups:

Not bad for a days work painting and weathering these lovely 3D prints! I'll finish off with a photo showing all the components - I can't wait to use them on dioramas and of course Coastguard Creek!

I think it's fair to say that I'll be on the lookout for an future releases from them - the kits certainly paint up well, and don't even need to be cleaned beforehand. As always, feel free to pop any questions or comments below!