Hello everyone,
It has been four months since my last update. First and foremost I would like to thank everyone who continues to support my work regardless of the shipping rates. These costs are out of my hands, decided by those at “higher places” for which the impact is felt by all of us. On a positive note, shipments are being delivered faster than ever before, therefore the necessary increase provides the premium service you deserve.
Today I am presenting to you the final prototype of the catering truck Volvo FL CT6000 in 1/72 scale, the 1/144 and 1/200 versions are at this moment also in the final stages.
This project has been a significant turning point for me. I am writing this today with two fewer friends to share my progress with, a reality that has made the journey both quiet and reflective.
Throughout the development of this truck, I found myself at a crossroads, asking a difficult question: What do modellers and collectors truly want? Do you want highly detailed GSE models that take longer to produce, or would you prefer “one-piece” prints, no decals, no transparent resin, no movable parts that are faster to manufacture and provide easier revenue?
Deep down, I know I am incapable of creating “simple” things. My core drive is to create value through complexity and realism, however, this has forced me to evaluate the “time-worth” of these creations. This Volvo may be the last “big” 1/72 truck and the last “complex-movable” 1/200 model I produce. I have dedicated immense resources to this 1/72 model, and I know it may not break even in the short term. I have “wasted” or rather, invested a vast amount of material learning and mastering these new processes, because in this craft, the learning never stops, however, the experience here has been invaluable as this will be transferred to the huge projects like the 787 and 747.
This project reached a level of technical complexity that required me to solve problems I had never faced before. One of the biggest hurdles was answering: How much detail is too much and how certain parts should be made?
Parts like the chassis and the lifting scissors are long and thin. This type of parts are a nightmare for standard 3D printing. Regardless of what you might see on the Internet, 3D printing these parts is not a simple matter of hitting a button. The peeling forces that occur during the printing process cause these thin parts to bend or warp later on. And no, you cannot simply warm the resin and bend it back. The layers will always try to return to their post-cure state, pulling and warping until they stabilise into an unusable shape.
To solve this, I transitioned to polyurethane resin which I used a lot in the past. It is incredibly sturdy and far less brittle than 3D resin. However, this required moving into the world of professional molding, opening an entirely new chapter of questions.
Creating the molds was a journey in itself. I had to calculate part orientation, resin entry points and air vents to ensure minimal mold lines. I chose a high-quality Platinum-cure silicone for its superior properties, zero shrinkage, high humidity tolerance, and longer production runs.
But Platinum silicone has a weakness: it is susceptible to inhibition from sulphur, and as it turns out, many 3D printing resins contain traces of sulphur. I had to navigate silicone disasters where nooks and crannies simply wouldn’t cure.
The same level of trial-and-error went into the transparent cabin. It took me five attempts to get it right. These aren’t clear straight out of the printer, today’s printing technology does not allow for parts to come out crystal glass no matter how some “content creators” or resin manufacturers want to sell this to the public, the “layer after layer” process of 3D printing will never have a part coming straight out of the printer like glass. Of course, the size of these parts made it much harder, the master parts underwent rigorous modifications to ensure the windows were crystal clear. I’ve been testing my new transparent resin for 16 months now leaving parts by a window in direct sunlight to confirm there is no noticeable yellowing at all. If it does yellow over many years, the progress is so slow it will never be visible on parts as thin as these windshields.
Another source of stress was the upscaling/downscaling process. When I moved the main truck compartment from 1/144 to 1/72, the walls became 3mm thick, making the model far too heavy and unstable. I had to redesign the 1/72 compartment to be as thin as its smaller counterpart. Managing three scales is not one project, it is three different projects running simultaneously which is the main reason why things are taking me so long to complete.
Will I ever cover the costs of these difficulties? I don’t know. For now, it stays in the catalogue and I leave the future to the future. However, I am considering the dropping of certain 1/72 projects and “downgrading” the complexity of some 1/200 models in the future. In 1/72, the production costs often outweigh the sales. In 1/200, I find that many enthusiasts may be intimidated by small parts and high detail, often preferring simpler, one-piece models from other sellers.
I progress step-by-step to build a catalogue I can be proud of, even if that progress feels slow, but for now, enough words, here is the Volvo FL CT6000 catering prototype completed:
The work continues for the 1/144 and 1/200 versions, being at the molding stage. The goal is to keep the same detail as presented here in these smaller sizes.
The 787 and 747 projects are not abandoned, in fact, there was progress on the 787 passenger windows. However these projects deserve an entry of their own which I will write when I am ready for it.
Thank you everyone for your patience and support.
Best wishes,
Guillem