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Ahhh protostars from the dark shapes, like the protoblood Kai needs from the Giga Shadow?
Sin tack
the any key okay
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I see two lords of hell, with their swords raised !
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Neurotech - Our Burial Ground[^]
Neurotech's latest!
His previous album wasn't really my cup of tea (but still good), but the one before that was my most listened to album in 2016 with my most listened track in 2016 and that made Neurotech my most listened to artist in 2016 
This latest (and also last  ) is pretty awesome again!
So enjoy this well deserved SOTW!
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If you're looking for something deep, I suggest this 34 track concept album:
Dream Theater, The Astonishing [^]
I've been a fan for over 25 years and imho, this album is a great addition to an incredible body of work. I do realize that opera rock is not for everyone...as my wife constantly reminds me. ('it's not easy to dance to') I find it moving nonetheless...maybe someone else here might like it as well. 
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
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Back in the day I used to listen to Metropolis Part 2: Scenes From A Memory.
I really liked that album, but other than that I'm not into Dream Theater.
I gave it another shot with Octovarium (first album without Mike Portnoy?), but nothing changed for me.
Now listening to The Astonishing and I'm afraid I'm still not going to make fifteen minutes.
Maybe if they ever get a new singer I'll give it yet another shot, I just can't stand his voice
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I have some small plastic parts which I would like to print with a 3D printer. With all trial and error this could cost enough to justify buying a small 3D printer. I know that the smaller printers can only make smaller objects, but that's still more than enough for what I need. But what about the quality and the printing software?
I have read reviews, I often heard that the printers were ok, but the software often was buggy and compatible to nothing, including itself. Any tips are welcome.
This[^] is one of the more complicated variants of the parts I want to print. Scale 1:16, of course.
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I have a Wanhao duplicator i3, apart from the software that came with it, I bought Simplify3D and apart from the odd minor issue its been great.
I mainly print PLA but have printed ABS and TPU, the TPU has to be printed very very slowly.
Most of the objects I've printed have been downloaded but I've even designed the odd thing in Sketchup and printed it, they say Fusion 360 is better though, but I've never tried it.
Great fun!
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KennethKennedy wrote: Most of the objects I've printed have been downloaded
That would be a nice side effect. Other people could improve their models as well.
KennethKennedy wrote: I mainly print PLA but have printed ABS and TPU, the TPU has to be printed very very slowly.
That's interesting. Do the different materials have an influence on the stability or the printing quality?
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CodeWraith wrote: That's interesting. Do the different materials have an influence on the stability or the printing quality?
They all have slight different settings and requirements to get the best out of them. Hot end and bed temp are the main differences, also filament feed rates.
PLA is a good all round material
ABS I used for a firewall on a model airplane that needed to be as strong as possible
TPU I used for printing a flexible tube
The most difficult to print with for me was ABS, much higher temps were needed.
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KennethKennedy wrote: ABS I used for a firewall on a model airplane that needed to be as strong as possible
A RC plane that flies, I suppose. That's exactly what I'm building as well. The weapons are for a 1:16 scale Vietnam Huey.
KennethKennedy wrote: TPU I used for printing a flexible tube
Flexible! I did not think of that! Is it flexible enough to print those ammo belts?
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Yes the firewall was an upgrade part for the Durafly Excalibur's original weak part, so an actual flying model.
That Huey sounds like its going to be the business. I'd be scared to fly it after putting in all the effort to make it a proper scale model.
TPU would be one solution for printing the ammo belts, its more than flexible enough, its also quite straightforward to print articulated parts with hinges etc using rigid plastics.
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I see, 450 size so not too expensive if it crashes, windows are usually omitted on scale helicopter bodies for cooling reasons.
Considering the need to keep the weight down too, most/all 3D slicing programs allow setting of the infill percentage, quite strong parts can be printed with surprisingly low infill values.
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KennethKennedy wrote: I see, 450 size so not too expensive if it crashes, windows are usually omitted on scale helicopter bodies for cooling reasons.
That and I might also mess up building the scale details. It's more like scratch building a model and I'm improvising a lot. At the moment I'm finishing the rivets, but I still have the entire underside to go. Anyway, my first try at a scale model should not be the most expensive one I can find.
KennethKennedy wrote: Considering the need to keep the weight down too, most/all 3D slicing programs allow setting of the infill percentage, quite strong parts can be printed with surprisingly low infill values.
The whole body is dead weight that has to be carried around. I have two options to compensate it. First, I already replaced the symmetric rotor blades with half-symmetric ones. They provide more lift while limiting aerobatics, so I can go easier on the throttle. If that's not enough, I might also replace the battery by two separate ones in parallel withn a higher total capacity. This may also free up the space for a scale cockpit. Just try to find some accurate pilot figures at 1:16 scale. 
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CodeWraith wrote: Just try to find some accurate pilot figures at 1:16 scale.
Autodesk make a 3D scanning package that can generate a 3D model using the camera on a Smartphone. Grab a 3D model of yourself in a sitting position, then print it and you could be the both the remote and on board pilot. 
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Oh no! That would provoke something nasty from our 'Admon'. He has not much hair left on his head and I joked that he served in Vietnam and got a good dose of the defoliating agent.
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Do you have a FabLab[^] or similar close by? I dabbled a little a few years ago using Blender & Sketchup(?), but I think something like that would be very difficult with those tools and no prior experience. The people there there were very helpful though.
Of course, I expect the tools have improved massively since then.
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I know. I have played around with CAD programs, usually for 3D graphics, but drawing detailed parts to scale is not so easy. But I do know a young lady who used to draw parts for a car tuner. I don't doubt that she can do it, provided we get enough pictures and /or drawings from the web. As an alternative, we can also use a small plastic model kit as reference, but they often have made some mistakes.
FabLab, you say? Google's database will soon know about my interest in this and combine this information with what I bought for the last bachelor's party. Who knows what they will deduce from that.
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CodeWraith wrote: drawing detailed parts to scale is not so easy
If you can find an old-fashioned draftsman, he/she can teach you the basics. You can then move onto the automated tools with some idea of what you're doing.
I'd expect that most of them are retired by now...
If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.
--Winston Churchill
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I do know a young lady who did this for a living at a car tuner.
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