Focusing on the more useful kits – wake up and smell the molded plastic!

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Because of this...



I had to update the list at the very start of this thread.
Because the long awaited M3 Medium tank is on its way.

Also, some of us are still hoping that the QF 6-pounder AT-Gun mentioned above will be a 57mm Gun M1 / QF 6-pounder (American/British) AT-Gun combo kit.
Similar to what RM did with their Jeep kit.

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I have updated the list at the very start of this thread to include a few bits of new information (new releases).

Still hoping to see the QF 6-pounder AT-Gun mentioned earlier turned into a 57mm Gun M1 / QF 6-pounder (American/British) AT-Gun combo kit.

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It seems the Rubicon Models forums are more like a ghost town; not much activity anymore. That being said, I will add a comment about 3d Printing to this thread for those few ghosts in the town that might read it.

Years ago when this wish list thread started, I don't think many people considered 3D models as a real thing.

Just recently, a friend gave me two Soviet SU-76s - because he knew I wanted one for my Soviet collection. When I first saw them, I originally thought they were plastic model kits, so I said, "Where did you get these models? Who makes them? I didn't know someone finally released a model kit of it." He replied, "I did." I then replied, "Yes, I figured you assembled them, but who makes the model kits?" That's when he told me they were 3D printed.

Upon closer inspection, I can tell they are 3D printed, but I was (and still am) amazed how nice they look. This gives me a much better understanding on the topic of whether 3D printing will influence the gaming miniature community. Certainly yes!

What is the future for the "Wish Lists" section? Or for that matter, for models being used in tabletop gaming in general. Well, a "Wish Lists for STL files" is the future. Are you tired of waiting for that SU-76, M3 Medium Lee/Grant, or even that T-35 Heavy Tank? Well, 3D print it, but there needs to be a good STL file.

Are 3D printed models better than a good plastic model kit? No, I don't think so. Even if 3D printing technology gets even better, and it will, it will not be as good as a good plastic model kit. However, looking at my new SU-76s, I have to ask myself. "Will I still buy a model kit of the SU-76 if Rubicon Models releases one?" ...good question.

Side note: there is no SU-76 model kit to compare these 3D printed models with, so instead we have a 3D printed M5 Light Tank, and we compared this with a Rubicon Models M5 Light Tank. If viewed up close, sure, you can tell which is which, but at arms length, they are very hard to tell apart.

This was supposed to be a quick post, but it looks as if it should have been a start of a new post. Oh well, still, "Wish List".

[ripley]

  I've bought some 3D printed stuff from a US company and a couple of UK sellers who are licensed to print other's files . Depending on the file, the vehicle can be a very well detailed single piece or a kit of 6 - 8 pieces . I'm pretty happy with the tanks I've bought . One of the T-70s is hollow molded with separate driver and turret hatches , which I like as I tend to add crew and turret detail ( gun breach / radio , etc). I've also got some artillery pieces from the same companies , very well detailed guns but IMO the crews are hit and miss , with figures replaced with Warlord plastics. I will still get the plastic kits when they come out as plastic is so much more kit bashable . I do find the hollow printed kits have much finer detail than the solid ones. A couple of Stugs had some misshappen detail on the track run and both had the same misprinted spare wheels , these were repaired/replaced with detail bits from the parts box .   I really could use a SU-76 or 2 as I have a couple of real good reference books on the subject for additional detailing . Could you PM the name of the company you got it from ? .

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I really could use a SU-76 or 2 as I have a couple of real good reference books on the subject for additional detailing . Could you PM the name of the company you got it from ? .

Here is the link to the STL file:
https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/game/su-76m-self-propelled-gun-for-dust-warfare-1947

However, it is scaled for 1:48, but it seems that it is really easy to get it to 1:56.

What he did was simple, since we measured the actual size of a real SU-76, he just used this for resizing the STL - a good reference book confirms our measurements. From track tip to track tip, it was printed at about 82mm (81.8mm to be more precise). For this STL, this gives a fender tip to fender tip of about 87mm, which makes it about same size as a Warlord Games SU-76; one of their "nicer" resin and metal parts model kits.

[ripley]

Thank you . I find most heroic sized  BA figures seem to fit well with 1/48 vehicles . I fact because I hate all the molded  stowage on a lot of the resin BA vehicles , I've used Tamiya 1/48 kits for my Jeeps , Kubels & small armoured cars . Plus they are easy to kit bash

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To use or not to use 1:48 model scale models for 28mm gaming scale has caused many discussions and misconceptions. Some good articles and physiology papers can be written about this topic. What some people don't realize is that model scale and gaming scale are two different worlds.

What I have done, was to started a simple topic on this under "General Discussions", since it really doesn't fit here under "Wish List".
For those few that might be interested, please go here:
https://forum.rubiconmodels.com/index.php?topic=1228.0