The “Articulated Night Spirit Dragon” is a captivating 3D printable model, perfect for hobbyists and dragon lovers alike. This model, available for download as a PDF, builds upon the popular Spirit Dragon design with unique modifications and enhancements. Let’s delve into what makes this Articulated Dragon 3d Print stand out and how you can bring it to life with your 3D printer.
The Evolution of the Spirit Dragon into the Night Spirit
The creator of this model has a personal connection to articulated dragons, driven by their daughter’s fondness for them. This passion led to continuous refinement of the original Spirit Dragon model, focusing on robustness and printability. The Night Spirit Dragon emerges from this iterative process as a distinct variant, showcasing a unique head design and addressing previous user feedback.
Initially, the creator experimented with various dragon heads from other models to diversify the Spirit Dragon. However, the allure of a specific head design led to the birth of the Night Spirit Dragon. This variant is not just a minor tweak; it’s a standalone model with its own identity. While other dragon variations are planned for the main Spirit Dragon listing, the Night Spirit is presented as a special, dedicated release.
A key consideration in the Night Spirit’s design was printability, specifically addressing concerns about horn overhangs that some users faced with the original Spirit Dragon. The Night Dragon head presented its own challenges with overhangs on the lower fins and chin. To overcome this, the model was rotated, scaled, and the base flattened. The fins were reshaped to a more printer-friendly 45-degree angle. Although the creator’s initial fast prints didn’t fully capture the thin frill detail, subsequent updates and user feedback have refined the model for better results.
Head Variants: ‘og’, ‘thick’, and ‘bumpy’
The Night Spirit Dragon offers different head options to cater to various printing preferences and aesthetic tastes:
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‘og’ model: This is the original head design directly from the Night Dragon model. It features thin frills and horns that offer a detailed look but require slower printing speeds, especially for the horns, to prevent print issues. Users seeking maximum detail and are comfortable with careful printing will appreciate this version.
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‘thick’ model: Addressing the printability concerns of the ‘og’ model, the ‘thick’ variant features thickened and textured horns. This design makes the horns more robust and easier to print without supports, while maintaining a visually appealing aesthetic. The creator expresses a personal preference dilemma between the ‘og’ and ‘thick’ versions, inviting community feedback on which is more appealing.
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‘bumpy’ model: This variant was born from an exploration of texture. When creating the ‘thick’ horns, the creator experimented with adding bulges, resulting in horns that appear to “grow”. While potentially appearing repetitive at smaller scales, the ‘bumpy’ horns offer a unique and visually interesting option, especially at larger sizes. This option provides variety and caters to those looking for a more stylized dragon head.
Optimal 3D Print Settings for Your Articulated Dragon
To ensure a successful 3D print of the Articulated Night Spirit Dragon, consider these recommended settings:
- Walls: 2+ walls are recommended, with 3 walls providing extra robustness to the model.
- Infill: A minimum of 10% infill is suggested. The creator prefers 20% for added weight, but even lightning infill or 0% infill may be viable depending on the desired weight and material usage.
- Layer Height: .10mm layers or above are suitable. The model maintains good visual quality even at .2mm layer height, offering a balance between detail and print speed.
- Supports and Brims: No supports or brims are generally required, simplifying the printing process and material usage. However, this can vary depending on your specific 3D printer and its calibration.
- Scaling: Scaling at 70% or greater is recommended. Scaling below 70% may cause the articulated links to fuse together. While slight touching may occur at 70% scale, the parts are designed to break away easily. At 100% scale, there is no part touching, ensuring smooth articulation right off the printer. For scaling below 100%, separating the model into parts in your slicer software is advised to prevent unwanted merging of parts during slicing.
Attribution and Commercial Licensing
The Articulated Night Spirit Dragon is a remix, gratefully acknowledging the original creators: sunset_3d_design and MZ4250, for their contributions to the 3D modeling community. Proper attribution to these creators, as well as AKinferno (the remixer), is required when sharing or distributing this model.
For those interested in commercializing prints of this model, commercial rights have been secured from sunset3d for the dragon model, extending to derivative creations like the Night Spirit Dragon. Commercial access is granted through joining the creator’s Printables Club, which provides an exclusive maker coin to signify club membership when selling prints. This membership covers all models created by AKinferno, with plans to expand beyond dragon variants in the future.
Continuous Improvement and Community Feedback
The creator actively engages with the 3D printing community, demonstrated by a history of updates and issue resolutions. The provided history log details corrections made based on user feedback, highlighting a commitment to model improvement and user satisfaction. Users are encouraged to report any issues or provide feedback, as the creator actively monitors comments and aims to address concerns promptly, often within the same weekend.
In conclusion, the Articulated Night Spirit Dragon is a well-crafted and thoughtfully designed 3D print model, offering a unique take on articulated dragons. With its various head options, optimized print settings, and ongoing community support, it’s an excellent project for 3D printing enthusiasts of all skill levels. Download the files, choose your preferred head variant, and bring your own Night Spirit Dragon to life!
