Shapeways New Pricing Scheme
Just a head's up, in about a week Shapeways is going to be changing their pricing scheme. In some ways this is good, in others, bad. It is good because the overall price may be dropping for single models. It is bad because come October 7, you will no longer be able to afford any large bombers. The Zeppelin-Staaken R.IV will be $76, and that's with NO markup at all from me. So, if you want large planes, better get them while you can.
Wow, I've only done a cursory look, but it appears that every single model will be increasing in price by about 10%, doubles by about 30%, and quads by about 45%.
Originally Posted by jbmacek
It is impossible for a man to begin to learn what he thinks he knows. -- Epictetus
Hey all,
Just wanted to let you know that we have an active forum topic about this here:
https://www.shapeways.com/forum/inde...ded=1&&start=0
Feel free to post any of your concerns or questions there (or just post them here, i'll try not to forget to check here and reply)
Best,
Mitchell
I suspect this will force many of the model makers away from Shapeways. The ~10% price increase on most of my models isn't too bad, but it is sad that the huge models will no longer be affordable. I will try finding a home for them elsewhere.
Hmmm, I may have to place a pre-emptive order this week before the new prices take effect.
Just did my pre-emptive order. Getting 2 Zeppelin Staakens, 2 Handley Pages and a bit more. IF it was only 10% all around it would not be too bad.
Thank you for the heads up, John.
Will head there this week.
You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. ― Plato
From reading the SW forum it seems the scale modellers have been shafted. Let us know where to buy your designs from John !
I'm seeing the similar changes in prices - about 80% are going up. I'll try and get some stats together.
I suspect it's not too bad for my models, certainly double and quad models will change more. Luckily I packed mine closer together.
The main message - get any planned orders before Oct 7th.
Could this be the end of Shapeways models for us?
I don't think I'll be recommending them now at shows, just checked the site but can't see any increase as yet, but read the forum, some seem to be excessive.
I suppose we will see after Oct 7
It looks like I may be getting sucked into the Shapeways maelstrom sooner than I'd planned...Although I must admit my interest lies in the single-seaters and seaplanes moreso than the bombers.
Ah, well, if it's not going to be Kansas anymore, I might as well embrace the tornado!
All the best,
Harry (Matt) Materne
Personally, I don't see 10% per model as a great threat. But overpricing big models isn't good at all.
I'll get some more details soon, but single models looks like around a $1 to $2 increase on average
I'll experiment with multiples - I suspect they're trying to cut down on those so joining them with a sprue might help
Assuming I stay with Shapeways, I don't see any benefit to having multiples at all, so I will be ditching mine.
You may not see the benefit but I bet everyone on a tight budget like myself does. Buying a pair of Paul's fighters saves about €2 - €2.50 over buying two singles and that soon adds up.
OK I admit the temptation then is to use the "saving" to buy something else but every little helps.
Note that if the designer adds a sprue between the 2 parts, the labor cost will only be for 1 part (instead of 2 parts without the sprue) in our new pricing.
Sure, I see the benefit at present (fwiw, I was one of the first to start doing multiple part versions), but I just don't see it for the new pricing. That being said, I will do at least one experiment with a connecting sprue to see if that will help.
Either way, you now have five days before large bombers become unaffordable, and medium bombers become expensive.
The good news will be on the WWII front, I think. My guess is that monoplanes should be coming down in price.
I may have to change my area of focus.
I think I may be sourcing my aircraft elsewhere. I love shapeways and recommend them to all who ask at shows. A pity, do we know the reason why such a big hike in prices for the larger models?
Neil
See you on the Dark Side......
So will I Neil.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
John, will you finish your RS-III or abandon it? That one interests me.
Hmmm...
Perhaps this is becoming a more viable option? Star Trek is not too Far Away
That unit for single planes (3x4"), but for nearly 8x10" there is this:
http://store.makerbot.com/replicator
Hey! Anyone in New York, Boston, or Greenwich CT can visit a Makerbot store and get a demo. Perhaps if you bring a plane, you can check out the quality?
Makerbot Retail Stores
Maybe some of our Shapeways model file creators could become producers?
Mike
"Flying is learning to throw yourself at the ground and miss" Douglas Adams
"Wings of Glory won't skin your elbows and knees while practicing." OldGuy59
As a newcomer to the forum and someone who had never heard of Shapeways before, I was wondering if there is any trick to ordering from them. Do I need to login or become a member to order from them? Or can I just go on the site through Zoe's links to a "manufacturer" and hit the "buy now" button? It would seem to be a little more complicated than that...
Any help would be appreciated - the coming price hike has me chomping at the bit to pick up a few models.
All the best,
Harry (Matt) Materne
The RS.III was at one time one of my major problem children. It would have taken so much material that the price was way up there. I spent many hours hollowing it out, and by so doing was able to get the price down to something reasonable.
Oddly, this is one of the few that dropped in price under the scheme. Now there is a caveat to this... I haven't added the underwing support struts. Those will add waste space to the design, and probably crank the price back up there. I'm curious to see what will happen, so I'll do a test model with struts as an experiment.
Worse case scenario, I could make the struts a separate model. That might be a workaround for this particular case, though in my mind counter to what 3d printing is all about.
Last edited by jbmacek; 10-01-2014 at 09:08.
After you add models to your shopping cart and click on checkout, it gives you the option to either join, or continue as a guest.
Personally I prefer resin AIM models over the S. ones. They are cheaper, sturdier and their surface is way smoother than WSF.
"We do not stop playing when we get old, but we get old when we stop playing."
Thanks Mitchell - With a bit of close packing and a sprue I can possibly see the price of multiple models staying fairly low.
The main price benefit for multiples is for the FD and FUD materials - I presume those may change shortly too.
I doubt it could make a miniature aircraft. There is a world of difference between a fat gnome with no overhangs and an aircraft. Someone tried making spacecraft with a similar machine and had to make it in parts since the machine cannot extrude plastic into thin air (well it can but it would flop onto the base plate). overhangs need supports. Notice that demonstration pieces tend to be fatter at the base than top and any thickening of the piece is very gradual.
Just my opinion but they seem to promise more than the machines can deliver. Guess like television selling channels, they will sell more by being frugal with the facts.
Definitely has a big effect - a lot of my WW2 monoplane models are going down so I'll try and reduce their sale price after the 7th
Most down by $1 or $2
The 1/144 Pe 2 down by $5 and the IL4 down by $10!
Larger monoplanes seem to be best
Interestingly, my Felixstowe has stayed the same price all WW1 ones went up slightly.
I must agree with you on that one Andy. I much prefer Aim if I can get the requisite aircraft from that source. However, I must add a rider that I have been most indebted to the members here who have produced specials for me over time. The Austin Ball and Swordfish to name but two.
As it is, I think that I have probably just sent my last order to Shapeways, unless something miraculous happens.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Unfortunately Shapeways makes so many otherwise unavailable WWI planes. Until the prices change we will have to wait and see if they price themselves out of our wallets.
Warned by John I have just placed an order and hope when it comes down it will make me busy painting till the end of the year. Something for post WWI (1920) and something for "what if" scenarios of September 1939...
"We do not stop playing when we get old, but we get old when we stop playing."
I also placed an order to get some Zeppelin Staakens and Handley Pages and a mix of others before the jump. 38 planes in all! Should keep me painting well into next year.Warned by John I have just placed an order and hope when it comes down it will make me busy painting till the end of the year
Thanks for the heads up. Just placed my Christmas order now.
38Peter, without the Welsh Dragon's support it is going to be a difficult task
"We do not stop playing when we get old, but we get old when we stop playing."
Wow... individual planes increased a little, balloons about the same; but observers are much more expensive and the Zeppelin and hangar frames are off the charts. (The 1:288 zeppelin frame went from 50-ish dollars to over $200.) I'll have to research their new pricing criteria and see if there's a way to "repack" things to keep the price down.
By the way... no need to overreact to this and swear off Shapeways forever. Your average-sized fighter or two-seater will probably see only a small increase in price: $0.50 to $2.00. It seems to be the things with a big "footprint" or many parts that are in danger. I'm glad I didn't put any more time into 1:72 scale planes (for which I've had a couple requests).
Thanks for the info, John - I'll try ordering some models later this evening
All the best,
Harry (Matt) Materne
So just skimming the thread on Shapeways, biplanes will be going up, monoplanes down, and anything bigger than scouts/fighters will be increasing, some by a lot.
Is that the idea?
Karl
It is impossible for a man to begin to learn what he thinks he knows. -- Epictetus
She doesn't know at the moment. This weekend I'll pass on the good news!38I'll have her painting before the year is out.
That sounds about right.
I seem to recall my Catalinas are coming down in price, so even large monoplanes seem to be on the plus side of this change.
Good to hear. I just started to work on a WW2 list and my eyes opened a bit with the price.
There may be ways to reduce the new prices slightly. Moving the prop from the tail to underneath the body helps a little bit.
Combining doubles with a sprue adds to the volume but knocks off a dollar
Just need to find out how to optimise things - I don't think it's going to be too bad in the end.
Definitely good for WW2 fans, monoplanes drop by quite a bit.
My new tanks and some of the larger ships in WSF have also dropped quite a bit
One way to think of it is this:
* Up to Oct 7 you basically pay for the volume of material used in the final model (and this price is supposed to reflect their other costs as well, such as cleaning and repackaging)
* After Oct 7 you pay for the material (at a cheaper price) plus a charge for the hollow spaces in the model (since they have to be cleaned out and take up space that might otherwise be used in printing) plus a charge for each separate piece (since they have to be fished out of the print and bundled together)
Dense models get cheaper; sparse models get more expensive; very sparse models (like frameworks) get much more expensive.
Note also: so far the pricing changes do not apply to FUD.
We will not be changing the way of how we calculate FUD right now
Get your large biplane bombers now - or see prices skyrocket out of reach. That Zep Seaplane in particular is going to go stratospheric.
Yep, with a modest mark-up, we're talking almost $90 for that one.
And the one that I just finished a week or two ago? It's going up by close to $20. I was hoping to be able to buy one, but not at that price.
Presumably Shapeways are making these changes to reflect the actual cost to them and encourage people to make designs that are most efficient for their processes?
That's the basic idea, though there are ten pages of debate on it in their forums. :-) Personally I was a little surprised that dead space in your model costs *almost* as much as plastic in your model, but I guess it makes sense given that the material itself is fairly cheap and the cleanout of unused material from the voids is a manual process.
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