Steamboat Model: 3D to Laser Cutting to Assembly
Making a custom designed steamboat model is the latest model I’ve made from 3D modeling through cutting and assembly.
My background before CNCROi.com and even before my since shut downed CNCKing.com was model making, you can get an idea of my work by visiting my online gallery with images and 3D animations as well as lots of videos showing me making them start to finish.
When it comes to custom model making, anything is possible size, volume or material wise as long as you have a budget that supports it, a custom steamboat model or an Eiffel Tower, there really is no difference.
For this steamboat model, the material used is 1/8″ or 3 mm thick MDF which is widely available just about anywhere and everywhere.
There is quite a bit of laser cutting using our Austrian industrial CNC laser that’s been tested at 140 watts, even with all this power in the CO2, it still takes a while to cut all this material out.
Due to our virtual to physical approach at CNCROi.com, a model can be produced almost at 100% accuracy when it comes to prototyping as the parts are completely designed beforehand to make sure everything fits properly.
This mean that for this custom designed steamboat model, the first time it was cut, it all fit together perfectly other than me screwing-up two very similar parts that I’d further refine in the second round.
This is pretty impressive considering just how many things can go wrong, fit sideways or shift when making this custom steamboat model.
Such as the army transport truck kit above, only two parts where a little off kilter which is easy enough to fix and hence, why the first time something is cut by CNCROi.com is considered a prototype.
CNCROi.com also has lots of other ways to produce a model, if you want it in metal, plastic, lamacoid or literally anything, we have the experience and equipment to “pull it off” cost effectively and within tight deadlines and budgets.
It’s pretty impressive how little waste is produced using the 3D virtual to physical steamboat model, just look at the MDF all laser cut, there are only a few thin strips and smaller inner geometry that will make its way to the fire pit.
As I wasn’t sure, and still aren’t sure, if I’ll end-up painting this model, I decided to mask everything so that this custom steamboat model that I designed would be OK in raw form should it continue its life in that fashion.
The masking greatly reduces but not eliminates the smoke stains and as this is very thin MDF, I don’t want to spend a day sanding all that off in the CNCROi.com shop.
Though as you can see, that isn’t an issue anyways because our custom downdraft table is more than up to the job.
CNCROi.com could have made this model out of just about anything, polycarbonate, lamacoids, other types of wood like Oak or even made it into a wedding themed boat.
After all the parts are cleaned-up by removing the protective masking on both sides of this steamboat model, the next step is getting the glue warmed-up and ready to spread all over these pieces.
As for signage, if you wanted this custom steamboat model to be part of a larger sign or made into a 3D sign on the side of a building, CNCROi.com can do that just as easily at pretty much any scale that matches your budget.
As with any other wood shop, though CNCROi.com does a lot more than just wood projects, there is never such a thing as having too much clamps.
I had to build this model in 3 phases because I kept running out of clamps but that’s not necessarily a bad thing either as it’s good to step back and see how this custom steamboat model was coming with a fresh pair of eyes.
It’s a very similar approach to the custom slat lamp I made for a customer a few weeks back.
Just the pieces are different, in that case, it was quarter inch or 6 mm plywood but the approach is almost identical, this also started life as a virtual 3D model that then evolved into a physical product.
This virtual to physical approach is the same CNCROi.com took for this custom welding table that happens to fit perfectly on our custom downdraft table and has since been invaluable for projects ranging from wood to metal.
And that’s the power of custom furniture and branding items, everything is made to spec and thus, the use and awareness is greatly highlighted over standard mass-produced items.
The toughest part of building this steamboat model was getting everything to interlock properly, when you have so many varying pieces that have to fit a certain way with one another, it takes time to get your alignment right.
Although this model had no engraving, you can see what kind of detail CNCROi.com could have achieved, so we don’t just have you covered regarding model making but also engraving that model too!
That being said, when it’s all dried-up, the end result is an incredibly sturdy steamboat model that turns heads and gets the attention it deserves at trade shows and special events.
If you are wondering, we also make custom tea lights for customers far and wide at CNCROi.com using our other company TeaLightBox.com, so whether you want something simple or complex, we can help!
Now that this custom steamboat model is complete, there are a few design elements I’d change to make assembly a bit more intuitive and to make the overall model a bit more functional but overall, I’m very happy with what our Trotec laser cut out on my behalf.
If you are looking for a custom model or honestly, anything custom to your spec, contact CNCROi.com right now!
Still reading? Here’s another video to get an idea of our capabilities in the shop, metal through wood, plastics through rock, CNCROi.com does it all!