3D printed manipulators (1:144 scale)

To start with a little background story:

Some annoying problem I always have with Gunpla modelling is - I am never happy with the manipulators that comes with the model. They might be OK for 'playing' but for posing or static modeling, they are crap. The HDM packages are good, but they are quite hard to find these days.

Ah, I did try the gunpla builder hands.. they are never in the right size or pose. Working on it takes time too.

So I had to sculpt these hands myself.

I love sculpting so naturally I enjoy this process. And I could do whatever I want for the specifics I want to create. But the problem is - it is a lot of work. Each hands usually takes around 3~6 hours depends on how much details I want to put in.

Reusability is another huge problem - if I have a good design I love, I have to sculpt it all over again...

Also, there are other parts in the model I need to work on. In short - time is the biggest problem.

So after a bit of research, I decided to get myself a 3D Printer.  Here is a bit of testing I did, to understand its limitations in practice and strength.

Here are some hands I designed, modelled (in 3D) and printed. The material is ABS plastic, quite strong for the size and hold details good. While it couldn't reproduce details below a certain threshold, it is perfectly fine to give me a basis to start from, and saved me around 70% to 85% of work.

(Note: grid is in 1cm spacing)

I am in the process of building a new frame with this new toy. Will show it when its ready :)

Another great benefit of the construction material is - its stronger than the styrene plastic I used, and
surprising light. It appears to have no problem creating the joint systems which the styrene plastic have problem with. Hopefully I will have something to show soon :)

I can see this will be perfect in recreating curve surfaces. Think AMA-100 Z'od-iacok from Gundam Sentinel. Previously its a multistage process and resin cast, now I could do this in front of my computer with little room for error. 

To summerize it up, I think the '3D printing' is extremely powerful for gunpla and does set the modeller free. The tricky things is to design your 'workflow' and make it as efficiently as possible.

And as the 3D printing technology become better and cheaper, it might even change the way Model manufacturers doing their business. Bandai/Tamiya/etc could very well 'sell' the design, or even the 'construction material' for us to 'print'. But then again there are problem there too.

The biggest problem I see is - 3D graphics/modelling skill is a MUST for anyone who "want to create their own design". At least until accurate 3D capturing and EDITING is as easy as taking a 2D photo. I tried quite a lot of solutions out there (professional and consumer level), none are easy or cheap. In the meantime, pickup Solidworks, or even Blender 3D, would be necessary.

Phew.. this is getting too long. Hope I didn't bore you all to death. Have fun everyone!