3D printing is cool but I don’t think it will ever overtake soft vinyl production. Great for rapid prototyping or testing scale or whatever, but as a means of final product I don’t think it will be the end of sofubi. similar to the music industry- tapes took out 8 tracks and vinyl - CDs took out tapes - mp3s took out CDs. And now we are back in an era where analog is chosen over digital by a lot of people - and it’s still expensive and tedious to produce analog media.
Off topic now, but this was the only resin figure/scene I've ever been tempted by. The artist shows the whole process, and does amazing work...
Looking at it this way, it does pose some interesting oportunities, just like a vinyl or tape might have a different sound quality, and you may want both to experience the music both ways. A 3-d printed figure like this might have a different qualities an enthusiast might be interested in having along side a vinyl figure. You have the traditional vinyl, but then also a resin figure that hasn't really gone through the smoothing or remolding process and might possess a higher quality sculpt while maybe feeling squishier or rubberier. Also, what artist hasn't gotten their vinyl figure back and said, uggh i wish this was a little different. You are left with a production medium where you can continue to tinker with and improve the figure from release to release, that as a collector might be fun to discover. Anyway something interesting to think about, if both mediums sit side by side the more I think about it there is definitely room for both. You never know what the future holds, looking at 3D printing a few years ago vs what it is today and the range of resins available. Sofubi is a stagnant manufacturing process that has really never changed, but 3D printing and the materials will just keep getting more advanced and better and faster and is now affordable for anyone. it might get to a point soon where you can just print quicker than they can manufacture vinyl for you.
3D resin printing is a cool technology, and @JoeMan, as you said, there are certainly benefits for the producers that traditional slush casting doesn't provide, but I think resin figures like these face a steep challenge for people to accept them as an equivalent to sofubi figures. For me personally, there's the tactile experience of vintage toys that set expectations during childhood. If I buy a kaiju toy with vintage styling today, when I hold it in my hands, my brain is going to anticipate the feeling of holding that Godzilla's Gang figure when I was a kid. I've handled large resin figures and they don't give me the same dopamine hit. Looking at it from a broader perspective, slush casting can be seen as "stagnant" but we're talking about Japan here. Many traditional ways of doing things are often held in high regard. And right now, the sofubi factories are swamped with work from domestic and foreign makers. There also may be different costs to consider. How much more does a liter of resin cost in Japan compared to America? Do they have access to the same brands of printers, and does the average maker have the space for one? I am also curious to see if, over the course of years, these resin figures have issues with the paint staying on, or deforming under their own weight, or if the joints have gotten permanently stuck, or if they can take a six foot dive off a shelf onto a hard floor without shattering. Time will tell. If anyone is interested in a quick primer on how resin printing differs from filament printers (RepRap, Prusa, MakerBot, etc.), this is a good video:
From HxS on his new Godzilla V. Gigan sculpt "Showa era toy store's Standing with a thud in front of the store Image for standing storefront Vs Geigan, Godzilla! 3D printers that are sweeping the world today However, this Godzilla is from the original Everything is handmade until completion. Scan the softbi as it is, for a short time, It's a dick that can be made at a low cost. Unlike things, handmade "warmingness" There is, and there is a soul in it! I know that there are pros and cons of which process is better, It takes a lot of time, but After all, handmade is good. I thought. I hope you can come and see it. Thank you, Mr. Ryouhei!" I have to say I agree...
Is the sculpture clay or digital? Did he sculpt them, or hire someone? Did he make the big fabrication, or hire a team? Everyone has their agenda, he operates a Japanese vinyl factory. Why does he even need to worry if other artists are 3D printing or making toys in China?
I think 90,000yen is pretty bogus for these—that's the asking price for this model I came across at TFO14. Just below standard size at 22cm.
Is this the same sculpt that was released before for ¥24k? I feel like there is an arms race going on with newer sofubi makers, they just keep one-upping themselves with retail pricing.
I think this one is a bit larger (standard size) with perhaps more gimmicks? The mouth opens and the lower jaw spreads. It does look pretty cool—you can see it in action in one of his IG posts—but still feels like they're asking for too much for the costs involved. I believe there are only 4 so it is a "limited" release, but even then I'd say 50,000-60,000yen would be more reasonable and a more comparable asking price.
Feels like we're in the twilight of hand sculpted / pulled dollies. Only value 3D printing brings here, IMHO, is accessibility and price which is clearly not the case here.
I really like the sculpts. Though, there is something slightly off after print. There's a softness or a fuzziness to some of the textures that I think betrays that they've been made by computer. I can't put my finger on it exactly. In terms of price, I haven't seen these go for over 30K in the aftermarket.
I don’t think it’s the printing. If you use a 4k or 8k printer, detail should be sharp. A lot of digital sculptors overuse the smooth tool. I think especially in sofubi. There’s just a common aesthetic, of smoothed out wax prototypes that result in smoothed out toys. I think people mistakenly try to achieve that effect in sculpting now. Instead of aiming for crisp detail and letting the production process kind of naturally give you that finish. But also these don’t go through wax, so maybe it was intentional to make it look more like sofubi
Yeah, I think a lot of these sculptors confuse "sofubi style" with "softened detail." One of the strengths of working with soft vinyl is its ability to convey surface detail, and some of the best vintage toys exploit this property very well. Pick up any Astron or Ghostron toy and you will get it. It's not just about the visual experience, the tactile experience counts just as much.
Have there been any sculpts released from any artist that have used a combination of soft vinyl and 3d printing? Like a 3d printed body and vinyl head?
I can't think of any I've seen like that. If a person invested in a slush cast mold for one part of the figure, I don't know why they wouldn't produce the rest of the parts the same way. I can think of one recent "mixed media" figure, though, the first version of the Y-MSF Gfantis (https://tempting-toys.mybigcommerce.com/gfantis-black-sample-6-inch-figure/). I don't believe it was made in Asia, IIRC it was done in Central or South America. The main body was hollow vinyl and the limbs and head were solid rubber. They never sold finished figures out of it, instead offering unpainted production copies as Kickstarter rewards when they made the second version of the figure (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gfantisfigureproject/gfantis-figure-project). I can imagine that if you're an independent maker without a big budget, having your figure produced using multiple materials can be a pain in the ass when you are trying to do things like match the color between main body and limbs, getting joints to fit and move properly, etc. The professional toy makers I've talked to say that there is usually a lot of money paid to specialists at the factory to make sure everything goes smoothly in this regard. Smaller operations like the Glyos folks avoid this hassle and expense by using the same material throughout the entire figure.
Shingangu/tru tek does it. He’s done a lot of accessories and breast plates/helmets that make the toy more like a henshin cyborg. super beneficial if you just want to do say a single run with a unique part and don’t want to invest in wax/metal molds.
I also just remembered that @3wing has done vinyl Bubbies and Gordons with resin armor. There's also an upcoming figure (rhymes with "Schmudbelly") that will have something similar.
Are most tricycle toys a mix of sofvi, hard plastic and metal, like what's come from Shima-x recently?
I guess, but they are designed so you can separate the vinyl figure from the metal-and-plastic vehicle, right?
