Thursday, December 31, 2020

Welcome to Charlesworth Dynamics

NOTE: The site is long overdue for an update but you can still find most of my stuff here.

I am a 3D Designer and Fabricator with a specialty in designing assemblies. For 12 years, I was the Head Repair Technician for NYU Film & TV - responsible for the repair, maintenance and processing of all production equipment.  Recently I relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area where I am the 3D Printing & Fabrication Specialist on Tested.com.  I use my hands-on knowledge and sensibility, to design working 3D printed assemblies combined with actual hardware where appropriate.

This was originally an archive of my 3D modeling and printing thesis (see Octopod below) for a Masters of Science in Digital Imaging and Design at NYU.  It has since grown into much more, documenting my 3D printing as well as 'analog' projects which cover anything from camera repair to building Star Wars blasters.  I felt it was appropriate to combine the two since I constantly bring the digital world of 3D modeling and printing together with real-world hardware and construction.


SOME HIGHLIGHTS --

Adam Savage's Inventern

I won a competition to assist Adam Savage of MythBusters on a project.  I recount the experience for Tested.com.






3D Printing & Fabrication on Tested

I build unique projects, reviews and LEGO on Tested - run by Adam Savage and Norman Chan 





CHARLESWORTH DYNAMICS SHOP

A selection of my projects and kits are available in my Etsy shop. Custom orders accepted.







STUFF I LIKE

I get asked a lot about tools, toys, etc I use, like or recommend - so I set up an Amazon Associates Storefront to share some of it. This is all stuff I actually do use, buy, like - I'm not just throwing junk up.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.




Cutaway Lightsaber

In conjunction with Formlabs, I designed a custom cutaway lightsaber.
See how it was designed on Tested.
Watch Punished Props build and paint one!

Download print files here.
Buy one here.



Ghostbusters Ghost Trap

See my fully 3D printed Trap on Tested.

Download & print your own.

Get the hardware to put it all together.

Get assembly guides.

Octopod Underwater Salvage Vehicle

My thesis project which I designed, printed and built.  Make sure to look at past posts which go into great detail about the modeling and printing process.





The Octopod won an Editor's Choice Award at Maker Faire New York 2012 and is featured on the MAKE site and in their "Ultimate Guide to 3D Printing" issue.

It has also been featured on the Objet site and with great pride on Tested, an awesome site which features my hero, Adam Savage from Mythbusters. (Seriously, check out the videos of Adam's workshop).


The Scuttlefish
(aka Gowanus Monster)

I designed and modeled this for an animated film by Bold Machines. It's definitely in the same fleet as the Octopod.

Download files here.
Buy one here.

TARDIS Kits
3D printed TARDIS kit.  We are offering a regular TARDIS, Half Wolf TARDIS (shown) and a lighting upgrade package (soldering skills required).

They are up on our Etsy Store, so check it out.

See my full write-up of how the TARDIS was created on Tested.com.



Iris Box v3

Update to my original iris door box, derived from the Octopod moon pool door.









Buckaroo Banzai Jet Car

My other on-going project is the Jet Car from one of my favorite films, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.  It was my first 3D print and I did a full write-up of how it was done for Tested.com.

The Jet Car was on display in Vienna, Austria for Vienna Design Week 2012.




Iron Man Arc Reactor

Ongoing project to 3D print the MK I Reactor.


These are my other creations which range from useful to fun.



'Analog' Projects

A selection of hands-on projects I have tackled, including a Stormtrooper Blaster.













FAQ

Q:  What did you go to school for?
A:  I went to New York University's Center for Advanced Digital Applications in the School of Continuing and Professional Studies for a Masters of Science in Digital Imaging and Design. Whew.
I originally intended to be an animator, but started modeling more and then found 3D printing and that was that.

Q:  Are the Octopod & Jet Car for sale? 
A:  There is a lot of interest in the Octopod, but at this time it's not for sale for a variety of reasons.  Mainly, it's very expensive to print and would drive the price up quite high.  In addition, I have learned a lot since first designing the Octopod and it needs a many updates to be ready to sell. The printing material has a tendency to sag over time and my original Octopod has a lot of fit problems now, parts need redesigned to fix this and bring print costs down.  Basically, the Octopod needs rebuilt from scratch - it's going to happen but will take awhile.

The Jet Car is usually available in my shop. I have a 10" version printed in nylon and I'm working on smaller versions as well.

Q:  How about the Iris Box, can I buy one of those?
A:  No -  I stopped selling those as they're too labor intensive - BUT you can download and print your own.

Q:  Can I have your files so I can print my own?
A:  At this time, other than what I have up on Thingiverse, I don't plan on releasing the files for anything.  These models have taken many hours to design and I'm not quite ready to let them go.  Thanks for asking.

Q:  What do you model your stuff in?
A:  I use Cinema 4D, a professional production suite.  It has great modeling tools and recently added the ability to model in scale.  I am not an organic modeler, but I do use ZBrush for some stuff, particularly decimating the model (reducing polygon count), I then use Netfabb for STL clean-up.

Q:  What do you print on?
A:  At home I have the Ultimaker 2+ and 3 Extended. I also have a MakerBot 2X, Lulzbot TAZ 6 and the Formlabs Form 2. They're all good for different things but my goto is usually the Ultimaker. For the Octopod I used the Objet Connex500 which uses photopolymer jetting (deposits resin on print bed, hardens with UV light) and can print 2 types of material at the same time. I have also used the 3D Systems ProJet 7000 a good bit. I have used Shapeways with nice results using their Strong and Flexible nylon material.