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3D printing for modellers - RIVETS


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Hi everyone.

I am trying to resolve an issue with regard to rivets.

I need quite a few 100 really small rivets and they are aesthetic only not functional.

There seems to be several routes to this resolution.

 

1/ buy 1000 really small re its to BS641 with a shank diameter of 1/32” x 3mm long (don’t you just love this metric/imperial world we work in) with a dome head in brass.

 

issue- cost, weight and fixing issue.

 

 

2/ buy a 3D template or file from the ‘tank and military hobbyists’ 

 

issue- where can I get this file printed in a quantity that still makes it worth while.

issue resolved - plastic bits while be lighter than brass, easier to glue and not tarnish or blemish the paint.

 

Anyone used a 3D printing service for modeller's rather than professional 3D printing services?

 
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I’ve no personal knowledge but I’ve seen on YouTube, modellers using 3d decals.  Various scales appear on sale and they are applied like ordinary decals but these are in long lines, saving you adding them individually. Sorry if I can’t give you trade names or UK suppliers but I’m just alerting you to the fact these things exist.  

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The domed rivets here are pva from squeezed from a small dropper bottle. The model is near enough 1/5th and the sizing is pretty good. If your model is smaller you would need a very fine nozzle/needle to make the dots. Beware of creating oversized rivets on a smaller scale model as it can end up looking like a section of the Titanic!

image.thumb.jpeg.476f3d1c86532e76f27f9e068cb0298f.jpeg

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19 minutes ago, Nick Somerville said:

The domed rivets here are pva from squeezed from a small dropper bottle. The model is near enough 1/5th and the sizing is pretty good. If your model is smaller you would need a very fine nozzle/needle to make the dots. Beware of creating oversized rivets on a smaller scale model as it can end up looking like a section of the Titanic!

image.thumb.jpeg.476f3d1c86532e76f27f9e068cb0298f.jpeg

Wow, that’s perfection.

More details on how you did it please, that’s JUST the effect I am looking for and mine 1/4 scale.

The rivet details are on the floats but using water proof pva glue should overcome that issue as well as getting a few licks of top coat paint to cure and seal them all off.

Looks like a plan, thanks Nick

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I have a small 'concertina' bottle with a thin metal tube inserted.  I think that the bottle originally contained printer ink and the tube came from a bottle of airfix kit glue.  Slightly thinned PVA   Draw a few pencil lines onthe model and it becomes a riveting mass production machine.

 

For flat rivets a brass tube in a soldering iron works well.  I had the best results using it AFTER applying the final colour coats, which was a bit counter intuitive.  It needs only the lightest touch to put a circle in the paint.

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1 hour ago, stu knowles said:

I have a small 'concertina' bottle with a thin metal tube inserted.  I think that the bottle originally contained printer ink and the tube came from a bottle of airfix kit glue.  Slightly thinned PVA   Draw a few pencil lines onthe model and it becomes a riveting mass production machine.

 

For flat rivets a brass tube in a soldering iron works well.  I had the best results using it AFTER applying the final colour coats, which was a bit counter intuitive.  It needs only the lightest touch to put a circle in the paint.

Many thanks Stu

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