TB3 Rocket Display Base

For my TB3 Rocket I needed a display stand that would hold it on an uplifting angle. Without carving a slot into the body like many model kits do, I wanted to be able to hold and support the weight of this rocket with a stand that fit with the design of the rocket, but, when attached, did not detract from the design of the rocket, or make people think it was a part of the rocket.

With a 3D model, many possibilities present themselves. For example, you can take the actual rocket body model mesh and invert it to make a holding receptacle that will fit it exactly, in any countour. So I decided to make use of the heat-sink vanes on the side.

I modeled a holder that one of the vanes would slot right into, and on an angle that looks optimistic and impressive, I needed some way to hold up part of the rocket’s weight, so, again, using the model itself, I made a shoe that I could fit the butt-end of the rocket into.

I modeled up a first attempt, using the front arm of the rocket as a base model for the two supporting arms. They printed rather a bit thinner than expected, and the rear one broke from handling. It was too thin.

Note: I modeled it in ugly yellow because I have a full reel of that, and I really dislike the color, so many of my test parts will be in this ugly yellow:

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As you can see, the front shoe holds one of the side vanes snugly – but not too tightly – I modeled in a bit of room – and it could be any of the vanes, so the angle I hold it at can be changed; and the rear shoe has a little tab to hold the butt weight so it doesn’t slide backwards.

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This was a prototype, so I didn’t model the shoes to fit with the arms, knowing that later I would. This was to test the concept – could it hold it firmly? Could it support the weight? Would it fall over? Was the center of gravity ok?

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Here is the original prototype next to the final modeled version. I modeled it in blue because several model kits I have had modeled their bases in blue, and as it is a nice color not included in the printing of the rocket itself, it stands out as more neutral against the rocket.

You will notice the weight-supporting arms are much thicker and the shoes have been made part of the arm design.

So what of the base itself? Why a pyramid?

That’s my new logo for my 3D printing hobby, and business if it comes to that. I’ll make a post on my logo later. But for now, suffice it to say I needed a broad base to hold the rocket without danger of falling over, and I thought my logo would be perfect for the job.

Here’s the rocket in its final stand:

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