iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Good news as I often model a 1941 era Sacramento Northern in G scale. That includes modifying a lot of existing 3D model designs into SN motive power and rolling stock. Hall Scott Interurbans, B1 cabs, GE steeples, even several caboose models. Lot of failed prints, lot of trial and error. It's fun.

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I think I'm going to get a larger format resin printer (Elegoo Saturn Ultra 16k) and do some aggressive tests with ABS-like resins. I wanna see if I can get that level of detail and durability. That or I'll just do the usual ASA on the Bambu P1S and stick to smaller parts to be resin.

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Now that I'm gainfully employed again, that is absolutely on the docket! I just gotta organize my shop and clear a ton of foilage.

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Yep! and it makes so many pieces a lot easier to print. I'm already modifying the core step components to be capable of fitting detail parts like rotating fans and a model of the diesel motor itself.

👀 It'd be one more motivation to finish my outdoor layout (after i dig it out of all the weeds after a year of involuntary neglect)

well yea, that colorway looks objectively better. It's just that I like schemes that look weird. I don't know why. My entire art background gets chucked out the window for weird green hues and bad color pairings.

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EMD GP9 Stepfile-Print | 3D Print Model

anywhere and everywhere, there's never one spot. Usually start with a meta search on yeggi, then image searches on google for wildcards. This model is on CGTrader. www.cgtrader.com/3d-print-mod...

cgtrader.com

Model available for download in Stereolithography format. Visit CGTrader and browse more than 1 million 3D models, including 3D print and real-time assets

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Fine #train foamers, you win. I don't even MODEL transition era, but this GP9 #3dprint model is trivial to convert to a GP7 and I am obsessed with how ugly the green/orange colors of the WP are for Sacramento Northern. So you win, diesel #modelrailroad nerds. My 1941 layout is cooked,chat.

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Using some of my failed #3Dprint build to test vinyl lettering that I drew and cut using a Siser Juliet. It's a little rough to apply it but that's why I'm practicing on my junk projects. #modeltrains

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Part of the reason I'm going "all-in" on 3D printing is the cost savings when you expand a layout. Upfront tool costs are higher but each subsequent locomotive or rolling stock gets cheaper to build than the last. Some G scale layouts are well over $10k and I can match their rosters for 1/8th that.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

I don't like how My 9 Games clearly reveals my age:

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Yea couplers and wheels are the last frontier for reliable 3D prints cause that cost is too much! The set I tried with carbon fiber filament just weren't strong enough. Gotta try again this summer.

Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

It looks real but it's "only" a #modelrailroad! Once again the Bishoptown Subdivision garden railroad shows that outdoor 1:29 scale #trains look stellar in natural sunlight. Expert weathering and attention to details go far for realism.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

When they dropping the Epstein GG1?

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Best part of 3D printing trains? You sometimes get updates to the models! #modelrailroad modeler Simon Wright updated his truck design for his recent D&RGW combine, while Chris Murray is working on a 6-wheel Buckeye that he'll be releasing soon on Thingiverse! These are both fantastic models!

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Seeing a completed SP SD9 #3dprint made by our garden railroad club president is so encouraging. There aren't many 1:29 scale releases these days + with a #modeltrain market that focuses on the most expensive models, printing becomes a necessity for budget builds. www.thingiverse.com/thing:7287868

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Yeah, I love rewatching that ep too. Anytime I'm stumped about a process with scratch building, I start here and work down my list of log jams. Being able to replay parts and figure out wtf I'm doing wrong with technique is also huge. Sometimes even figuring out I'm using a inferior paint or masking

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Everytime this dude posts I learn like 40 new techniques. Absolutely mind blowing work, with paint and finishing tips that can make any #modeltrain layout prosper. I can't stress enough how important YouTube is to making hobbies more accessible. Long gone are the days of grainy b&w photos.

youtu.be

The Hardest MINIATURE I've Ever Built - Golden Arch McDonald's Diorama (WORKING LIGHTS)

YouTube video by Smol World Workshop

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

I love when I see examples of 3D printed #modelrailroad structures especially when they were originally at a different scale. This locomotive shed started as an HO scale model, and comfortably scaled up to 1:29 G scale!

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Yea I got enchanted by the 40th and Shafter yard. I really looking at local history by visiting various former locations. I just gotta build this yard. It's so wild that the Bay Area had effective Interurban transit in 1940. People often don't know how long electric lines existed out here.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Sweet! That's the railroad I'm modeling for my garden railroad!

Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

The end of the Key system and the Sacramento Northern's passenger service is my villain arc. It is exactly why I have a garden railroad. I am building #modeltrains 100% out of spite.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

The past ten years of consumer level 3D printing have been astonishing. It's why I'm so excited for G scale modeling despite it's niche position in #modelrailroad culture.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Uhm where did you get that dare fanny pack? #askingforafriend #imthefriend

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

That's so good. Captured that era of illustration perfectly.

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a man wearing a blue shirt that says barber vac on it

ICE is already yanking non-white people at random for no reason whatsoever, and you think they somehow wouldn't do the exact same with thousands of voting lines in key swing states because it'd be illegal?

media.tenor.com

ALT: a man wearing a blue shirt that says barber vac on it

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Yeah. Thankfully the used market for G scale is generally pretty good if sparse. Most hoppers (other than AML) go for $50-$70 used. But that's still more $$ than 3D printing them. I typically can print 2 and 1/4 of them for one spool of ASA ($25) and hardware is another $20.

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While Bachmann released a new catalog today, you wouldn't notice much "Large scale #trains" other than $230 hoppers. Meanwhile in a year you'd see a dozen or so high quality models from just 2 makers, 512 Designs and RandyMower. #3DPrinting makes obscure #modeltrains scales thrive.

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

Fan of old timey western #trains ? Well modeler "swright3" has uploaded a gorgeous 1:20.3 Fn3 Combine that would look great next to your LGB D&RGW wood coaches. Yet another lovely example of #3Dprinting making #modeltrains more accessible. cults3d.com/en/3d-model/...

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Lego boxcab ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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Jimgress @jimgress.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

The Thiel presidency. Oligarchs should get credit not the puppet.

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Well please let me know when you complete that project! I'd love one of those.

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Yea, it would be great to have a consolidated source of train-related 3D print models. I spend a lot of time searching via yeggi, and then manually scraping printables, cults3d and thingiverse and still some stuff falls through the cracks. It would also be helpful to track what is and isn't made yet

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The newest #modeltrains releases in G Scale aren't from major manufacturers, but 3D printed designs. Not 1 but 2 different SD9 models have been released online for free, by 512 Designs and BAGRS president Roger Nicholson. Further proof that 3D printing is the future of garden #trains scales.

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