Dragon - Crewed

This is the first spacecraft, since the retirement of the Space Shuttle, capable of sending humans from US soil and to return them safely. With its powerful engines, curvy lines, touch screen controls, fancy seats and a lot of space inside, this ship certainly has started a new era in human space exploration .

The model was designed using the latest references available of the debut crewed flight of this capsule. It captures an unique amount of detail such as panel lines, doors, windows, hinges, heatshield tiles and solar panels. With removable nose cone and docking mechanism, this model can be displayed in two different configurations, Flying and Docking. Additionally, the trunk and the capsule can be separated and put together as desired. The design of the parts allow for the printing in the respective main colours of the spacecraft, another unique feature of this model. Obviously that even more details can be added with minor painting and post processing if you are a rigorous Dragon fan.

The scale of 1/32 makes a great model with 265 mm height that will certainly be an eye-catcher even for the non-familiar with space. On its original scale, a regular print bed of 200 X 200 mm and a 0.4 mm nozzle is all that you need for great results with this print. If you are looking for a challenging Endeavour you can also print this in a larger scale which will certainly look astonishing once is complete. For smaller scales it is recommended to use smaller nozzles (0.3 mm and 0.2 mm ). The tolerances are well within 0.2 to 0.5 mm so just minor sanding and filling will be required if you have a tuned printer. The assembly process does not require any special tools other than glue, files and sandpaper for the finishing. While more experienced modellers are likely to have an easy time building this model, the instruction PDF guides you almost autonomously so you do not have to be an expert in Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) of spacecraft to complete the task.

This is an unique model which will surely stand out in your space collection. And if you do not have such a collection, what a greater model to start with?!

If you have any feedback, questions, suggestions or just want to share the results of your print feel free to contact me.

Cheers!

Additional Materials Required

Recommended: At least 4 strong magnets (neodymium magnets) of 10 mm diameter and 5 mm height
Optional: 2 strong magnets (neodymium magnets) of 5X5X5 mm and 1 strong magnet (neodymium magnet) of 5X5X2 mm

Layer heights and support are suggested in the instruction for each file. Infill ranging from 15% to 20% suits most of the parts.