If we're going for Soviet paper panzers, I'd put my votes in for Ob'yekt 268 or Ob'yekt 704. The SU-122-54 if we're including low-production-run vehicles. It may be a controversial opinion, but
I think assault guns are cooler than tanks.
Don't tell anyone though, it's RC
Tank Warfare after all.
General Jumbo01 wrote:Could the problem you've described lead to delamination of the print layers?
I may not have said so, but I'm using an MSLA printer; these are all done in resin, not filament. Because the layers are cured from a liquid, the finished part is actually isotropic. The prints break at natural weak or stress points, like injection-moulded parts would. The layers physically can't separate once they're cured.
I've been trying to use an extremely dense and strong resin, but I think that's why I've been having issues. In typical fashion, I'm trying to run before I can walk and learning this whole caper using complicated models and high-performance resins. From what I've been reading, Siraya Tech Blu is notoriously tricky to print with and is very sensitive to environmental conditions; the room temperature should be over 25°C (and ideally over 30°C) . That wouldn't normally be an issue in Australia but we're heading in to winter, so the resin is really thick at room temperature. It's got the consistency of honey, so that's probably why it's getting stuck between the supports and partially curing in places it's not meant to be in. I've tried preheating the bottle beforehand, but even with the air conditioning on it cools down too quickly.
Printing in straight Siraya Tech Blu gives very crisp and strong prints, but these have been unusable as resin pools in between the supports and then partially cures.
I tried mixing in some thinner-consistency resin (Phrozen ABS-like) to get the Blu to flow better (2:1 Siraya:Phrozen). It flowed a lot better (the mix had the consistency of maple syrup), but still pooled between supports.
Just to confirm my suspicions, I printed a set in straight Phrozen ABS-like to see how a thinner resin (consistency of milk) did. Still a little bit of pooling, so I think the print may have been oriented at too shallow an angle and the support structure was too dense.
I wonder if the shape of the stamped rim is also partially to blame; because it's a flat surface, there aren't too many opportunities for the uncured resin to drain back into the vat. I've got a set of half-spider wheels printing right now to see if the holes in them help in that regard. I've also ordered some parts to make a little heater to sit next to the resin vat, I'm hoping I should be able to maintain 30°C in the printer and get the Blu to flow well enough to behave itself.
I probably shouldn't have jumped in the deep end with all this, and tried something more straightfoward to begin with, but hopefully we'll all end up with some nice wheels eventually!