Hobby - Resin 3-D Printing

 Back in March 2016 I bought a Wanhao i3 PLA 3D printer. This was a filament machine and I used it to print off a large amount of wargaming terrain - both for Kings of War and Warhammer 40k.

Over the first 2 years of its life I printed 3-4 times its purchase cost in terrain pieces. The big thing was that I discovered 3D printing was a hobby unto itself and could be very time consuming - and bloody frustrating when things aren't working. As a result, once I had printed the terrain pieces I wanted I stopped using it regularly and for the last three years it has sat largely unused in my garage.

I have, however, been watching the evolution of 3D printing and the arrival of resin printing. This has been on the wargaming "scene" for a couple of years and we have seen a move towards miniatures as well as terrain pieces.

A number of creators use Patreon to fund the production of new designs and recently I was introduced to Archvillian Games and their latest campaign. Regular readers will know I am a sucker for all things "ratty" and their March campaign seems aimed directly at me.

I purchased the STL files for this set of miniatures which all come pre-supported (important as it reduces the risk of print failure).

So now I'm looking at dipping my toe into the world of resin printing. I got a ballpark quote to print the figures locally which was around $400. Jack is getting a quote from a US printer to see how it shapes up.

Here are some prints he received for some Aliens figs - cost USD 50

The bulls are 40k bike sized while the Queen is 6" tall. Jack says the detail seems good so I'm keen to see them when he has painted them up.

Locally you can buy a printer for $650-850 that is aimed at the entry level hobbyist. I have been looking at the Phrozen Sonic 4k Mini which has a build plate slightly larger than an iPhone. The 4k is important as previously machines have generally been 2k. The progression means you capture greater detail in your prints.

I'm in no particular rush to buy as I think that we will see more 4k entries to the market over the course of the year.

Interested in people's thoughts and experiences with resin prints.