3D print people figures

[Durley]

Looks good Phil, you’ve described the process I have been following too.

Unless you particularly want it, I wouldn’t bother ‘texturing’ the model. This actually just provides the coloured ‘skin’ over the model, it doesn’t provide anything that will be relevant to the STL file that you will print. It is mainly intended for use with 3D models in computer games or CGI video.

Texturing uses up Meshy credits I think. It also can hide unwanted details or features in the underlying 3D model, or introduce errors in the texture that you can waste time trying to rectify unnecessarily.

One piece of bad news, the paid Meshy subscription is not discounted in the first month if you already have an account, so it’ll be £16 and not £8 when you decide to download all of your models - sorry!

[philipy]

Unless you particularly want it, I wouldn’t bother ‘texturing’ the model. This actually just provides the coloured ‘skin’ over the model, it doesn’t provide anything that will be relevant to the STL file that you will print. It is mainly intended for use with 3D models in computer games or CGI video.

Texturing uses up Meshy credits I think. It also can hide unwanted details or features in the underlying 3D model, or introduce errors in the texture that you can waste time trying to rectify unnecessarily.

One piece of bad news, the paid Meshy subscription is not discounted in the first month if you already have an account, so it’ll be £16 and not £8 when you decide to download all of your models - sorry!

I don't think I would normally bother texturing either, although in this case it did show up Meshy errors that were not obvious in the uncoloured version. The close up I posted above showing the errors in the neckerchief, also shows the two extra layers of clothing that Meshy has kindly invented. That really isn't obvious in monochrome, it just looks like fabric folds.

Well, if thats the state of play with the subscription, sobeit. To be honest, if I generate, say, 10 different seated passengers then whether they cost 80p each or £1.60 each to download isn't going to be a major concern in the grand scheme of things. Factor in some resin and paint and it still means that the printed figures will only be a few quid each.

Thinking about it, I'm now wondering how complicated it would be to make removable/interchangeable heads. I think I can see how to do it with some 'post-Meshy' doctoring of the stl's, but for semi-visible passengers inside a coach I'm not sure it's worth it.

[GAP]

A large language model is just a type of AI tool that you put words into (the prompt) and, based on its prior learning of lots of other words (the language model) it gives back a response in words.

An image generator is another type of AI tool that can create 2D images from a prompt that could be just text or text and another image. It is based on prior learning from lots of other images and text descriptions of those images.

Things like Google Gemini (and other ‘chat bot’ style AI) combine these two types of AI in one interface.

Meshy.ai is an example of the ‘specialised AI tool’ referred to in Graeme’s post that is needed to create a 3D model that can be output as an STL file to be printed on a 3D printer. It has been developed based on prior learning from lots of other 3D models, images and text descriptions.

Currently Meshy.ai (or any of the other 3D model AI generation tools) are not combined with chat bots that I am aware of, so you can’t get a chat bot to directly create an STL output.

Thanks for that very informative.
I use AI primarily to generate code for the electronics I am putting on my railway.
Haven't even thought about using it for 3D models.

[Durley]

No problem Graeme.

Here’s a photo of my Meshy.ai created figure printed, painted and in my garden recreating the scene in the original photo of the Glyn Valley Tramway.

IMG_5353.jpeg (977.91 KiB) Viewed 5091 times

He is painted following my approach described here: https://gardenrails.org/viewtopic.php?t=15320

[SimonWood]

Here’s a photo of my Meshy.ai created figure printed, painted and in my garden recreating the scene on the original photo of the Glyn Valley Tramway.

This is just mind-blowingly extraordinary, the way you have combined your well-honed skills with some really bleeding edge technologies to take a dusty photograph and make it into an incredibly realistic 3D scene in what feels like no time at all. If I could go back a decade ago to when I started out in this garden railway lark, I don't even know how I'd explain to the me of then what is possible now.

[philipy]

That is absolutely superb.
SWMBO, has just come home from a cataract op and even she says how good it looks even with a fuzzy eye!

I guess my Crimbo list has to include a set of the appropriate Citadel paints.

[Paul_in_Ricky]

That is a sensationally good figure. Well printed and fabulously painted.

Outstanding work.

[Peter Butler]

That looks too good to be true.... the fast pace of development has left me behind, and suspicious! That could be an AI generated composite image.

[philipy]

Peter, I'm sure that was said tongue-in-cheek. I can't begin to emulate Durley's painting skills, but the quality of the creation/productions I can vouch for. I've been working on the batch of passengers that I mentioned on the other thread and just as 'f'rinstances, these two ladies took me about 10 minutes each to design in 2D and convert to 3D using Gemini and Meshy, as described before.
The LH one was described to Gemini as a Welsh quarrymans wife with a basket of vegetables and the RH as a fashionable 1920's lady. There were actually a few more words to each 'Prompt' but that is the gist, and then AI does the rest. I'm not a big fan of AI in general terms but it certainly works in this context.

From there it is just a case of printing, which should be no problem, and then painting which I'm not good at.

Screenshot 2025-09-24 14.34.14.jpg (195.83 KiB) Viewed 4686 times

[Phil.P]

I can see a slight problem with the two sitting ladies..

But I am probably over-thinking this?

They should have been modelled on a bench-seat, then the bench removed..
That way, you won't need to fit barstools in your rolling stock.

Sorry, the results are amazing..

Phil.P

[Peter Butler]

Philip, all of the figures shown are absolutely wonderful, along with the superb quality of Durley's photography. This is all outside the capability of my low-tech brain to absorb, so I just watch in awe.
I see what Phil.P is pointing out with the skirts incorrectly hanging to be bench seated. I'm sure you had more important details to consider with your design but it's early days yet to make everything perfect. The only thing I noticed is that the Welsh lady could be seated at a Baby Grand with fingers like that.... that's just picky!!!
Just remember to be polite and say 'Please' next time.

[philipy]

They should have been modelled on a bench-seat, then the bench removed..

Guess what? That is exactly what I did! ...
but because you cant see the undersides in these screen grabs, you can't see that the fabric does indeed fall that way and is bunched on top. I can see what you mean, but trust me...!

Peter, I did say please at virtually every sentence! Got sick of typing it!

Edited to add the proof!
Gemini output in colour on the LHS
Meshy input in B&W on RHS, and 3d version in centre!

Screenshot 2025-09-24 17.34.09.jpg (159.58 KiB) Viewed 4671 times

[Durley]

Those two ladies look great Phil, very characterful.

Thanks for the kind comments on my painted GVT driver figure. I still can't quite believe what is now possible and I have the physical figure sat on the desk in front of me!

I have shared a couple of STL files for other figures over on this link: https://gardenrails.org/viewtopic.php?t=15352

Screenshot 2025-09-24 at 21.21.17.jpg (25.06 KiB) Viewed 4994 times

Feel free to download and print (note no commercial use).

Just for Rik, I even managed to get Meshy to add a pocket watch chain to one of the figures!

[Paul_in_Ricky]

Thanks for posting these files, a very kind gesture. They look really good.

On my next day off Ill have a go at printing one with a 0.2mm nozzle on my A1 and report back.

[Durley]

No problem Paul. Hopefully the figures I have shared demonstrate what can be achieved using Meshy and will encourage others to have a try at creating their own figures.

[GAP]

Resin printed or filament?

[Durley]

Resin printed or filament?

Resin would be preferable to capture the details in finer resolution, but they should print using either type of printer.

I printed in resin and supported the models to print head first, that way the edge of the jacket was self supporting.

[philipy]

I am now getting seriously worried about myself, having just had a meaningful discussion with an AI Bot!

In trying to create the figures for my trainload of quarrymen and others, I've found that whatever I tell it to do the men are are always 'manspreading'! Not only is that annoying in itself but it also limits the placing of the figures in a carriage.

In desperation I actually asked Gemini why it does that and it blamed the number of training pictures it had read where that was a predominant feature! Anyway, we went back and forth several times until I got it to produce a man sitting with his legs together and then it gave me the Prompts to be able to reproduce the effect.
This is the final chat, in case anyone else needs it:

I'm very glad we finally got the exact posture you were looking for!

Yes, making a note of that phrasing is definitely the key to getting consistent results for specific poses.

Key Phraseology to Control Leg Posture

The phrase that proved effective in overriding the model's default "manspreading" bias was a combination of descriptors that leave no room for ambiguity:

Formality/Intention: "sitting formally"

Specific Action: "with his knees pressed together"

Final Position: "and his legs parallel"

By using the combination of action ("pressed together") and final geometry ("parallel"), you are giving the model a very clear, strict instruction that it must follow, even if it goes against its general training bias for male figures.

Happy prompting! Let me know if you have any other image creation challenges.

unnamed.png (1.63 MiB) Viewed 4568 times

[ge_rik]

Just for Rik, I even managed to get Meshy to add a pocket watch chain to one of the figures!

And thanks for posting the .stl files. When I finish painting my present batch of figures (nowhere near your standard), I'll give them a try.

Rik

[Durley]

I have been having some very similar chat bot conversations Phil!

Another thing I tried was to add a photo of someone in the pose I wanted and ask Gemini to e.g. ‘put the Edwardian figure in this pose’, which (mostly) has worked. You could even take a photo of yourself in the pose.

Prompt ‘engineering’ is likely to become a more and more useful skill as AI applications evolve. To be honest, it’s not that much different to instructing a real person to do something, requiring unambiguous requests to get the best outputs. However, unlike a real person, the AI doesn’t generally get upset/defensive/angry when you tell the AI it has got something wrong!