How Do You Start?

[dalem]

I can sketch passably. Can't truly draw. No 3-d software skills. I don't work in clay either. So when I get an idea (like I just did the other day) that needs a little "pre-vis" I tend to start with a couple little sketches and then use thin cardstock and tape to make little maquettes. From there, if I continue the project, I move to styrene and start knocking something out.

How do you guys deal with getting an idea from your head to the bench?

[southwestforests]

How do you guys deal with getting an idea from your head to the bench?

For me that turns out to be a bit variable.
Varying both in the process itself & depending on what exactly I'm kitbashing or scratchbuilding.

A lot of times there is at least some manner of sketch involved.

But sometimes, and especially for pieces the size of game miniatures, it can go straight from brains to building.
Especially when the core of the mini is being made of parts donated by model kits or other minis.

Since I do have old-school 1970s and 80s high school and college drafting experience there are sometimes multi-view plans drawings made before construction commences.

Have a sci-fi build going right now which was begun a few years ago by sticking some model parts together and then making a sketch.
And then putting all that in a box for several years.
There is a general concept in mind & the details are being invented as I go.
Have been taking sketchbook with me to physical therapy and making notes for it while sitting with the heating pad after PT exercises.
Still is not a general plans drawing for the thing.
Probably never will be.

(yes, it is inspired by a mix of real life Vincent Bernelli concepts and art from the Terran Trade Authority theme/setting)

[dalem]

Cool! Is that based on the one blasting out of the docking bay?

I was looking for pics of one of my little Trek ships to show that I start straight with styrene sometimes too, but then remembered I started that one in cardboard too.

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

I wanted to be an engineer so I took mechanical drawing classes from junior high through high school, so that helps. I don't do them that technically, they are basically loose sketches or usually a series of sketches of whatever part I'm working on. I know a lot of people use a program called Sketchup, but I haven't tried that. I prefer drawing it out, that's part of the experience for me.


What I love here or on the RPF is the people that post "I did a little sketch to get started." and it looks like professional artists drawing like you would see in the Art of Star Wars books or something!

[southwestforests]

Is that based on the one blasting out of the docking bay?

Yes, that is half the inspiration.

[southwestforests]

I know a lot of people use a program called Sketchup, but I haven't tried that. I prefer drawing it out, that's part of the experience for me.

I've used Sketchup some but it is a whole lot easier to take a sheet of paper to the model building table.

(and then spend 8 minutes looking for the X-acto knife I laid the paper on top of)

[Lt. Z0mBe]

If you want to get good at building, you literally have to treat it like a sport. Build a little everyday. Specifically, you’re asking about getting ideas on paper. Well. it’s like any art, in that there’s no best way. What is an absolute though, is that you literally need to figure out the relevant information for your build, as you see it in your head, and then put that on paper. I use graph paper, straightedges, French curves and templates.

I mention the part about treating it like a sport because it’s one of those things like using oil washes, or sculpting, or scribing that you have to just try, and fail and try and fail and, just like that, one day, you look back at the early builds (or sketches) in your display case and marvel at how good you are now.

So, let’s say you’re going to scratchbuild something simple like a classic sci-fi moon rocket. What are the most relevant details you need on paper? Well, in order to get started, you’ll need a series of circular bulkheads. That means drawing a long rectangle or gently-sloped oval on paper for a sideview of the craft, then drawing some front and aft views. Then, say, alongside said sideview, you draw the appropriate bulkheads that would be placed at regular intervals within to generate the roundish shape seen from the front view and the contour seen from the sideview. The rest of the details kind of fall into place once you’re that far along. If you can, make your plans at the same size as the finished model. If not, do the math and figure out how much they need to be scaled up or down once they’re drawn. Scan them in and enlarge or reduce as needed. When I draw, I will usually put the prototype measurements as well as the scale measurements. I literally used this method to make plans for a design I saw (and then built) on the cover art for a paint set:

https://finescale.com/sitefiles/resourc ... 3E7A052%7D



You use the exact same process in Sketchup or CAD: get the most basic, relevant details on “paper” first. Measurements, basic shapes and contours are where you start.

I hope this helps.

Kenny

[dalem]

If you want to get good at building, you literally have to treat it like a sport.

I like that. Thanks!

[Natsu-Rokka]

I usually start with a hand sketch. If it is a vehicle, I try to make at least a plan, side and front view to establish the overall shape and proportions.



Since I have access to CAD, I'll then take some measurements and draw it on the computer. Mind you, the fine details are omitted; the intent is to get a grasp of the overall "feel" of the subject. I then do iterative tweaks to the drawing until I have something I like.



Then I develop sections using the multiple views to be able to make a paper maquette.





If all looks acceptable, I then finalize profiles and bulkheads to make the actual model. One huge benefit of using CAD is that it is simple to offset lines to account for outer skin thickness.







I used to make detailed drawings years ago, but no longer do so, as laziness and impatience have set in. The sketch below was made around 35 years ago, when my eyes and hands were in better shape:



I am old school, so I hand build using basic materials like sheet plastic and sometimes wood for under structure. I am quite amazed by the folks that go straight from CAD to 3-D print, and recognize that's the way of the future.

[dalem]

Wow. That is...

Wow.

[southwestforests]

One huge benefit of using CAD is that it is simple to offset lines to account for outer skin thickness.

Ahh, that is a very helpful thing.

around 35 years ago, when my eyes and hands were in better shape:

You too, eh!

I am old school, so I hand build using basic materials like sheet plastic and sometimes wood for under structure. I am quite amazed by the folks that go straight from CAD to 3-D print and realize that's the way of the future.

For me there is much enjoyment in that old school hands-on process; the 'doing' of the shaping and making is fulfilling.

But, oh yes, if I had the income to spend on a nice 3D printer ... there are ... ideas ...

... and some things which have been in Sketchup for years ...

[Natsu-Rokka]

Yeah, 3-D printing is a game-changer to the way we build models. Like all emerging tech, the first printers were an expensive joke, but now decent prints can be made by even regular folk. Well ones with the know-how and the tools! For me, I want to get into the 3-D game because there are some things I want custom made that are nearly impossible for me to do by hand building, like tires

[southwestforests]

... there are some things I want custom made that are nearly impossible for me to do by hand building, like tires

Ah, good point.

And as seen in a couple of my recent posts, I've been buying 3D printed figures in 1/144 and some detail parts in 1/72, and the model train scales.

[seam-filler]

For me, I want to get into the 3-D game because there are some things I want custom made that are nearly impossible for me to do by hand building, like tires

Tires (or tyres if you're in the UK) are actually very, very easy to make by hand (there are at least two ways I've used)

Easy, but terribly tedious and/or fiddly.

Unfortunately for me 3-D printing will have to wait until I'm rich and famous.

[Natsu-Rokka]

For tires (tyres), the bugaboos are radially indexed items like hub spokes and bolts, and tread blocks unless they are circumferential. I have fixed up plastic kit tire treads, but it is dreadfully tedious.

3-D printing can do the “impossible”, like make parts with 360 degree detail. For example, the MaK Neuspotter/Krachenvogel kits use a pair of AT-AT “necks”. The parts don’t fit together all that well, and the ends have fine ribbing that is nigh impossible to align and sand. A properly designed 3-D part could eliminate the problem by making it one piece. That part will be one of the first projects I would like to attempt.

[Zubie]

It is possible to make tires through a process akin to quilling. I’ve seen some patterns posted on paper modeling forums. It’s a technique that should be transferable to thin plastic stock as well. Other methods involve multiple layers like stacking washers that are glued together, sometimes with light sanding and or filling to shape.

Another thing that one might find worthwhile looking into are the old techniques used in solid models. The following is from a booklet issued in the 40s to help generate recognition models for the war effort.
https://sites.ualberta.ca/~khorne/solid/manual.pdf

Even if you’re not making stuff out of balsa blocks, it’s similar to the methods that can be used when turning primitive solids into models in 3d software.
From my blog
https://constantvariation.blogspot.com/ ... khead.html

[Natsu-Rokka]

Ah yes, solid wood modeling. I just missed that era when growing up. I do remember a few commercial kits at the store (JP Penny's of all places) of hybrid wood kits with metal accessories. I specifically remember a 747 and F-4 Phantom II. As a little kid, the idea of carving a block of wood to match cardstock profiles seemed just too much to ask of a seven year old!

A friend with higher skills than I turned all his tires for a 1/144 Airfix Boeing 727 on a precision lathe. That was mind-boggling. He made individual bolts and spaced them by eye around the hubs. In 1/144 scale.

A CAD drawing in 3-D for such an endeavor is straightforward to do, requiring no dexterity skills at all. When my first job got CAD, I played around with making solids of revolution by drawing out the section profile, and extruded bolts and washers. But that was over 30 years ago, when there were no 3-D printers. Heck our office still had tractor-feed paper for our dot matrix printer, and a dial-up modem!

"When I was your age, we had no fancy 3-D printers! We had to make our models by hand. Using rocks. Hard, ugly rocks. And we had to buy our rocks from the hobby shop 20 miles away, uphill, both ways, in the rain!"

[seam-filler]

A CAD drawing in 3-D for such an endeavor is straightforward to do, requiring no dexterity skills at all. When my first job got CAD, I played around with making solids of revolution by drawing out the section profile, and extruded bolts and washers. But that was over 30 years ago, when there were no 3-D printers. Heck our office still had tractor-feed paper for our dot matrix printer, and a dial-up modem!

... and rendering a 3-D model had to be done in overnight batch.

[Natsu-Rokka]

I didn't even get to render anything - I started crashing my computer while drawing a TOS Enterprise in 3-D. 286 processor and all that.

Watching people using modern mesh programs to push and pull complex shapes is so amazing.

[mike robel]

For the last few years, I start, after getting an idea, by sitting quietly until the urge passes and do something else.

[Wug]

Here's the Fischer Body Craftsman's Guild guide to Designing Modeling Building a Model Automobile

https://archive.org/details/designingmodelin00fishrich

It's old. The materials are plaster and wood, but it's very informative.

Mike

[Natsu-Rokka]

WOW, old school! No school like the old school! It is a little sad that fewer modelers engage in this kind of craftsmanship. But, time moves on and now 3-D modeling is at the forefront.

Personally, I welcome any new tech or materials. When 3-D printing became a thing, there was scorn and derision by some in the modeling community. But it didn’t kill the hobby like they so fearfully predicted. Heck, I LOVE the fact that I can get a one piece F-15 exhaust with all the little linkages already in place. No fiddling with microscopic PE origami!

[Kylwell]

There's also Model Design & Blueprinting Handbook, Volume 1 by Charles Adams, https://www.amazon.com/Model-Design-Blu ... 0979175232

[Wug]

While the text is in Japanese, the step-by-step photos in Gundam Scratch Build Manual are very helpful.

It's available on archive.org.

https://archive.org/details/Gundam_Scra ... 9/mode/2up

https://archive.org/details/gundam-scratch-build-manual

https://archive.org/details/mobilesuitg ... trated2003

Mike

[Chacal]

I have a somewhat convoluted work process. I do have training in design, so sketching should be easy for me, but I prefer to daydream my shapes—I can kinda get a feel for the spatial relations, the different aspects of as model better than sketching a few views. Then I translate the ideas to a 3D program (I use Fusion 360). This allows me to actually look around to find less appealing aspects and problems that will happen in real physical objects.

The thing is… I don't keep working on the first 3D model. I go far with it, adding detail, but part of the process is a clean-slate re-do. I, keeping in mind the 'lessons' I learned from the previous attempt, start anew, paying closer attention the whatever was lacking.

Sometimes I go through several (seven, eight) iterations, until I'm satisfied.

Then I let it sit for some time, while I work on other projects. Coming back with fresh eyes does wonders.

Pretty much the final step is prepping the design dor 3D printing. I own an FDM machine, an Ender3, so I need to slice up the model, engineer the attachment points (basically creating a kind of kit to be assembled later). Not only that, but here's when I add reinforcements (metal rods or tubing to strengthen the model), and separate parts that need extra detail (small parts, for example—that are to be printed with fine nozzles, like a 0.2mm).

This whole rigmarole takes up way too much time, and allows for a hefty amount of procrastination, which kinda sucks.