Best 3D-printed models of November 2019

The 3D printing community is terrific. Not only are there people from every walk of life ready to help anyone get better at the hobby, but there are also talented designers churning out inspired models for us to print. One of my favorite things to do in my spare time is to look around the web and find some of the best models that people have printed and ask them how they managed such beautiful work.

I think this kind of talent needs showcasing, so each month I will be showing off some of the best prints I’ve seen from around the ‘net. Each entry will have a link to the person who printed the model, and, where possible, the person who designed it and the printer they printed it on. Hopefully, these designs will inspire you to push yourself, and maybe seek these community members out.

Model of the month

This section is dedicated to the very best model that I have seen in the community for this month. The winner can revel in the knowledge that they are Windows Central’s Model of the month!

Model by Louise Driggers

Dragon Chess printed by Louise Driggers

I have been following along with the progress of Louise’s dragon chess board for a while now, and the whole set is finally ready to be showcased. Each different chess piece is a new design from Louise, and each piece is designed as a different type of dragon.

I think my personal favorite is the queen dragon. I have been a massive fan of Anne McCaffrey for years, and Louise designed the queen to look like Ramoth, the majestic golden dragon from the Dragonriders of Pern series, and that just makes me happy. All of the models print without support, too, making them easy to print on any printer, except the knight piece. The knight is a dragon/horse hybrid — much like the Longma of Chinese mythology — and he is shown rearing up on his hind legs. It really is a magnificent model.

Louise printed her models on the Elegoo Mars and the new SL1 from Prusa and painted them using Rub n Buff, one of my favorite model painting materials. You rub the waxy liquid onto the plastic then polished after it dries to give a weathered, almost tarnished, look to the chess pieces.

More fantastic models

There are so many great models out there we couldn’t just stop at one. Let’s celebrate some of the very best models and printing people around!

Model by Wekster

The child, printed by Tom Jackson

This month Filament Frenzy, a.k.a., Tom Jackson, has made one of the best prints of “The child” I have seen so far. By the way, you are going to be seeing variations of this little guy around a lot in the coming months. He’s adorable, so you’ll have to deal with it. Tom used his trusty Sidewinder X! to print this model, and the details always show through so well on it.

Using the fantastic Wizards Voodoo PLA from Fillamentum, Tom has produced an almost flawless print of Wekster’s amazing model. These two guys have me in awe every week at the models they design and the models they print. I’m a big fan!

Model by Fotis Mint

Faerie dragon, printed by Fotis Mint

Dragons seem to be a theme this month, with a gorgeous looking faerie dragon from the incredibly talented Fotis Mint. This dragon requires a fair amount of support, but the model itself is insanely detailed. The model lends itself to resin printing; in my opinion, all those little cracks and creases would look fabulous at 0.03mm layer height.

Fotis used the Zmorph3d for his print, though. I’ve not used the Zmorph before, but if these results are anything to go by, it may be worth taking a closer look. Fotis has done an excellent job designing, printing, and painting this model. Beginning to end, this model is superb.

Model by Chris Frieze

The Child (Baby Yoda), printed by ArtMods_

The Mandalorian has become something of a phenomenon recently, and we have been seeing gorgeous models, both of Mando, and the child. This model designed by Inspyre3D and painted by ArtMods_ is one of the best versions of the child I have seen.

I love the video too. It really adds to the impact of the painting, and the drama of the model. This model is split into separate sections to make printing and painting it more manageable, and ArtMods_ used the Peopoly Phenom to print the model as layer free as possible.

Model by Fernando Jerez

Articulated lifesize robot, printed by Fernando Jerez

Where do you even start with this model? Firstly, every single thing in this lifesize model is 3D printed. All of the parts, including the attachments, used to connect it together. It’s taken 25kg of filament to print it, and it’s fully articulated, posable in loads of different ways.

It’s the level of detail that makes this a fantastic print, though. The head is, of course, the size of a human head, but inside, some tiny people are driving the robot! It is so cool. I wouldn’t even know where to start making something like this, so I’m always amazed that people can think of them, let alone make a physical copy of their idea.

Creator of the month

Instead of having a manufacturer of the month each month, we will try to highlight creators as a whole. So it may be a company that creates impressive printers or filament, or maybe it’s a YouTube creator that inspires us. We will showcase the best right here.

Siraya Tech

Resin printing has become extremely popular in 2019, and with that popularity, manufacturers have come along to supply cheap materials for us to use. Some inexpensive resins are cheap because they are bad quality, but Siraya Tech bucks this trend and offers quality resin and a reasonable cost.

I’ve enjoyed using Siraya Tech Fast resin. It offers fantastic results at any layer height, and, as the name suggests, it allows you to print with lower exposure times, speeding up your printing process considerable. As you can see from the details on the image above, Siraya Tech resin is excellent at picking up small details.

The company is also an active member of the 3D printing community over on Twitter, so drop them a follow if you can.

Be a part of the action

This entire article is to showcase what is great about the 3D printing community, but I can’t do it without your help. If you see terrific prints anywhere on the web, or you have made something magical yourself, drop a link in the comments below or tag either @windowscentral or @keridel on Twitter, and we will check them out.

I also think we need a Hashtag. #WCModelOfTheMonth might work, although that’s a little wordy. Help me out in the comments.

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