Urban Exile

Homemade 3D Scanner Turntable

February 5, 2017

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In my latest project, my goal was to build a motorized turntable that I could use with 3D scanning software to scan a small object into a 3D model. My initial plan was to use my Xbox 360 Kinect sensor and Reconstruct.me, but I eventually realized that the Kinect scanner is not designed for small objects. In the final design, I used my homemade motorized turntable, my camera, and Autodesk Remake to convert the still images into a 3D model.

Watch my YouTube video for the full details:

If you want to build your own, you will need the following materials: Continue reading “Homemade 3D Scanner Turntable”

Modeling and Printing a Brain Slug from Futurama

January 21, 2017

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Now that I’m feeling more comfortable with my 3D printer and I even designed some of my own files to print using Autodesk Fusion 360, I decided to try something a little more challenging: modeling and printing something more organic looking.

Fortunately, my wife gave me a Wacom Intuos 3D tablet for Christmas, which comes with ZBrushCore. ZBrushCore provides some of the same functionality as the powerful ZBrush modeling program that lets you sculpt your object, in a manner similar to modeling clay in the real world. This kind of modeling is perfect if you’re making something that is supposed to look organic. Continue reading “Modeling and Printing a Brain Slug from Futurama”

3D Printing Malcolm Reynolds’ Pistol from Firefly

January 8, 2017

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(Looking for the STL files? Jump to the bottom of the post for the direct download link.)

I have been enjoying my new 3D printer, but I grew bored of printing 3D models I downloaded from the Internet. So I decided to create my own!

3D printed prop of Malcolm Reynolds' pistol from Firefly (Moses Brother Self-Defense Engine). Click to view full-size image. — 3D printed prop of Malcolm Reynolds’ pistol from Firefly (Moses Brother Self-Defense Engine). Click to view full-size image.

Luckily, Bill Doran from the YouTube channel “Punished Props” recently released a video that shows how to make Malcolm Reynolds’ pistol from the TV series Firefly. And he graciously gave away the 2D template files to his viewers and encouraged us to make our own version.

So I decided that this was an excellent opportunity to create my own 3D models and try out Fusion 360 for the first time. I installed Fusion 360 a few months ago, but I haven’t had a reason to use it yet. Watch the video below to see how I made it!

And if you want to print your own version, you can download my STL files. If you make your own version, post a comment here or on my YouTube video so I can see how it looks!

YouTube – 3 Tips for the Prusa i3 MK2

December 28, 2016

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I decided to try something completely new recently: I created a YouTube channel! So far, I have a few videos showing my new foray into the maker movement. My latest video, which was just released, gives tips for anyone new to 3D printing or with a new Prusa i3 MK2.

I recently received my new Prusa 3D printer, which is the first 3D printer I have ever owned! With my history with 3D modeling, animation, and electronics, I thought this was a great next step. And it has been a lot of fun!

But the first few days with my new 3D printer were a bit troublesome, because I ran into some basic problems that were caused by a lack of knowledge. So I wanted to share some of what I learned, in the hopes that it saves other people time and frustration with their 3D printers.

Continue reading “YouTube – 3 Tips for the Prusa i3 MK2”

Dragon Ball Super on Toonami!

December 22, 2016

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Dragon Ball Super, the new series in the Dragon Ball universe, has been airing in Japan for over a year and a half. American fans have been waiting for Funimation to finish the English dubbed version. Now, the wait is over!

Funimation and Toonami have announced that new episodes of Dragon Ball Super will air starting January 7, 2017. According to Crunchyroll, Toonami will air the first 26 episodes (there are at least 50 more). You should pay attention to the airtime: 8pm and 11:30pm EST (I assume the second time is a repeat airing, but I do not have confirmation yet).

The midnight timeslot on Toonami, which is currently Dragon Ball Z Kai and the Cell Saga, will air some additional new Dragon Ball Z content: Dragon Ball Z Kai: The Final Chapters. These episodes are the “Kai” version of the Majin Buu Saga. I am torn if I want to watch these episodes; I haven’t seen the Kai version of the Buu Saga, but I was disappointed when I originally watched the full version of it.

While you wait these final few weeks before the episodes start to air, watch the sneak peak from Funimation!

Iron Giant Lego Set

December 8, 2016

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There is a proposal for a new Lego set for The Iron Giant, which already has over 5000 supporters. If it gets enough supporters and is approved by Lego, you could buy a Lego set that includes:

Iron Giant, with changeable eyes, weaponry, and an attachable S chest plate
Hogarth Hughes, with the Iron Giant’s bolt
Annie Hughes, with a coffee pot
Kent Mansley, with a fedora
Dean McCoppin, with a coffee cup

The entire set consists of approximately 2023 pieces. Who wouldn’t want their very own giant robot? Add your support today!

Live-Action Full Metal Alchemist

November 21, 2016

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Another anime is turning into a live-action movie! This time it’s “Full Metal Alchemist”, a very popular manga series and one of my favorite anime series (I am referring to “Full Metal Alchemist:Brotherhood”, don’t waste your time with the original “Full Metal Alchemist”).

The first teaser was just released and the movie is scheduled to be released in Japan sometime in January. Take a look!

Ghost in the Shell Trailer

November 14, 2016

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Marketing has officially started for the live-action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell, starring Scarlett Johansson. Check out the first official trailer:

Some of the scenes look ripped straight from the original anime movie, but there are definitely some new story elements that were not present in any of the anime. It will be interesting to see how much of the story stays true to the original.

Rurouni Kenshin – Battosai

November 9, 2016

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A few months ago, I learned from Pi Visuals that Rurouni Kenshin is getting a live-action treatment with a limited release in North America. Unfortunately, none of the theaters near me played the first movie, so I still haven’t seen it.

However, the first film is now available on DVD and Blu-ray. And to promote the release, Funimation released a small clip of the movie (about 2 minutes), featuring Kenshin’s backstory as the Battosai. The clip is subtitled although there is very little dialog (but lots of action). Check it out and enjoy!

My First 3D Printed Object

August 25, 2016

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I have been reading about 3D printing for a while, but I haven’t had a chance to play with the technology yet. So I decided to test the waters by using a third-party 3D printing service, Shapeways, to print an object I created.

I decided to make a small 3D version of my site logo, since I already had objects for the buildings. So I fired up LightWave Modeler and set up a single object with the buildings connected by a base. I had to tweak the buildings to make them printer-ready: all pieces must be fully closed, you cannot have stray polygons, all polygons should be tripled, etc. Newer versions of LightWave have a convenient command, “Mesh Repair” (in the “Detail” tab), that will evaluate if the model is ready for 3D printing.

Once I had the completed model, I exported it as an OBJ file and uploaded it to Shapeways. The system automatically checks your model for errors, which takes a few minutes to complete. If you have errors, you can try to fix them using Shapeways tools in the browser or you can upload a replacement object. I had to fix the thickness of the antennae because they were too thin for the material I wanted to use. So I fixed that minor error in LightWave and uploaded the final file. Continue reading “My First 3D Printed Object”