Star Trek : The Next Generation Comm badge

thingiverse

I modelled this Star Trek, the next generation comm badge using the best references I could find on the internet. I think the result is as close as you can get without having an original in hand to measure! It was modelled in Rhino 3D v6 and you can find here the .3dm file as well as exported iges and stl files. The badge is designed to be printed in 3 parts, the delta, the ellipse and the elliptical ring. This is to allow for easier sanding by hand to finish the print and get a great finish. The central ellipse has two small recesses for magnets to allow it to be worn much as many other replica badges are. It will need supports printed due to this and the unusual form of the delta underside. I printed this on my Ultimaker S3 at "detail" settings which gives a 0.06mm layer height. I found that the delta needs to be printed with a brim to give sufficient adhesion to the print. Once you are happy with the surface finish after a few coats of primer, maybe one application of wood filler and sanding in between each, you can glue the elliptical parts together and spray the delta and ellipse separately. The delta has a slight groove around the edge that should still be visible after sanding and priming, this is to give a nice edge to paint up to with black paint. I ran a blade around the groove to clean it up a little in after each round of sanding. As a final step I painted the black onto the delta by hand. The delta can then be glued in place onto the ellipse. **Update** I have created an updated delta with a finer trim based on feedback. It is just the upper surface that has changed so you could drop this new part into an existing print