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[Cattriss Wren]

Don't worry, my attempt was worse. 

Im just a poor boy with my paint 3d

You might not be saying that if you had seen my first time trying it.

[BigEd27]

i love looking at the progress you're making!! Great job!!
 

[Cattriss Wren]

i love looking at the progress you're making!! Great job!!
 

Thanks vode!

[Aster Veris]

Love all the designs, but the specifics on three are awesome!

[Cattriss Wren]

Love all the designs, but the specifics on three are awesome!

Thanks Aster!!! I appreciate the compliment!

[ishtob]

not sure if anyone mentioned this, but theres a couple good free gauntlet patterns on the MMCC 3D library:
http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?action=store;cat=19

could be a good place to start in terms of getting a good base

[Cattriss Wren]

not sure if anyone mentioned this, but theres a couple good free gauntlet patterns on the MMCC 3D library:
http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?action=store;cat=19

could be a good place to start in terms of getting a good base

Thanks Ishtob!

[Cattriss Wren]

So I bought some westar blasters for my kit  and I can't to get started working on them. But I do have a quick question about sanding. Should I use bondo when I sand or do I not need it? Anything I should know before I start?

[Vajrapani]

So I bought some westar blasters for my kit  and I can't to get started working on them. But I do have a quick question about sanding. Should I use bondo when I sand or do I not need it? Anything I should know before I start?

I personally would sand some of the spots that might be rough, then apply a thin layer of bondo. Sand that, hit it with some filler primer, and repeat until it looks like you want 

[Tramp Graphics]

I didn’t use any filler when I sanded mine. I kept the plastic completely bare except for some detail work. The Westar 35 is canonically made with a polycarbonate shell, so I chose to highlight that feature of the weapon. As such, I suggest see what you can get away with withou using bonds or any other filler if possible.

[ishtob]

you could get away without bondo or fillers, but it will take significantly longer to clean up. And depending on how well that model is printed, it may not sand out clean ever. Without paint some models still show print lines.

the was 45 minutes of sanding with 120 grit without any fillers, as you can see it's nowhere near ready. Again, depends on the quality of the print.

You can try wood filler or the filler primer spray too, it is easier to work with but a little less durable than bondo.

For me, I sand with 80or 120 grit to get most of the bad print lines out, then thin layer of the filler in spots that have deep defects, repeat 80 or 120 grit, spray filler primer and sand. Repeat  until all the print lines are gone. Then I move up to 400 grit -> 600 grit -> west sand 800grit -> wet sand 1000grit

The end goal is to rid the whole print of any evidence of 3D printing

[Vercopaanir]

I like to wet sand my prints a few times before I consider filler.  I'm also a fan of adding a resin coat to nearly all my 3-D prints to increase it's durability, but that is by no means a requirement.

[Matchstick1021]

Definitely use filler primer/ spot putty, it’ll make your life so much easier.

 The problem with just sanding 3D prints is depending on what material is used, straight  sanding would take an extremely long time when compared to other options.

Like others have said I generally hit the bare plastic with 180 grit to knock down any high print lines and then use filler primer and wet sand with 220-400 grit. Any deep or stubborn spots can be filled with spot putty.

Then you can paint any finish you want after the lines are removed.

[Frostfyre]

Thirded this.

 Unless the print is made at the finest detail layer height, sanding isn't an instant fix all to remove layer lines. There is a process to it to make it look less like a 3d print, and sometimes it includes filler agents.  If the machine made a specific area uneven, you have to use bondo or any spot putty to fix uneven spots to ensure it's even. Once any metallic paint goes on to it, the layer lines and uneven places become really obvious. Smooth surface, smooth application of fillers and resins, and less likely those lines will look obvious.

Using spray fillers green putty and/or bondo can help with uneven layers, printer hiccups, and any issues that leave an obvious z-axis seam on the object.

Most of my prints are seamless because I pre sand before applying resins and spray fillers to make sure the surface area is even.

[Aster Veris]

So my method is using filler primer first, before anything. Fills in the weird cracks and gives you a layer of primer to work with. Then just sand and prime and sand and prime. Only use bondo for significant lines or holes and such, sometimes using to much is just a waste and you sand it all off to still have print lines.