D14 and D18 to be mass produced!

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Magic, Jul 25, 2012.

  1. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Hi all,

    I am very happy to announce that two dice, the D14 and the D18 from the Truncated sphere series, are about to be mass produced!
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Like all my other dice, these dice were prototyped through 3D printing by Shapeways which is a really great and unique mean to create a brand new shape and be able to manipulate it in real life.
    Numerous dice fans and collectors have bought those two dice through my Shapeways shop: however those buyers, as all of us, are pionneers.

    Until the prices of 3D printing go down a little bit more (I know it will happen since everyone is working on it :)), mass production is still an inescapable way to democratize a new object.
    But the main drawback is that it needs some initial investments (for the molds).
    That's why a KickStarter project was submitted to the crowd yesterday!
    I am very proud and excited about this project. :)

    If you want to support it, you can do so either by investing some money on it (in exchange to the very first mass produced dice) or by communicating this link: https://kck.st/SSfJg0 to whoever could be interested (game fans, dice collectors etc.).

    Note that, if the founding is successful, other dice are planned to be mass produced!

    Thank you for your support!

    Magic

     
  2. This is great news, Magic!!!

    I have two D16 dice that were made by Impact, and they are great, so I know the end product will be well received by both collectors and gamers. Awesome to see that they're going forward with this.
     
  3. lensman
    lensman Well-Known Member
    Really? I don't wish to rain on anyone's parade, and I'm not a gamer, but it is my belief that surely die like these already exist to be purchased, no? If that's not a true statement then congrat's on finding a new market... it's just that on first seeing this I thought you were simply re-inventing the wheel.

    Glenn
     
  4. I have seen D14 dice before... any even-numbered die higher than twelve is typically the same D10-like "double cone" shape (visualize the bases of two cones glued together and add dimples). They do this double-cone for the aforementioned D10 & D14, as well as the D16. Chessex even manufactures a D34 this way. But I've never seen it done to the D18, except for a design here on Shapeways.

    Mass-producing Magic's D14 and D18 means that those unique shapes will be readily available for the first time (just try to find them online now). What will really be exciting is if they also decide to mass produce Magic's D11 or D15 (which is listed as a potential stretch goal). Those dice are arguably more rare and more unique. :)
     
  5. lensman
    lensman Well-Known Member
    Haha... new things learned every day :eek:

    Glenn
     
  6. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    @Lensman: Dice with unusual number of faces exists as dipyramids, trapezohedra and elongated regular prisms. Here the idea is to make them more spherical (so that they roll as you are used to see standard dice rolling).

    @Td: Yes, I'd like to see D11 and D15 too. As they have odd numbers of faces, the numbers are not located on faces, which makes them unique indeed...

    The more numerous you are to pledge, the more chances there will be to see the D11 and D15 added to the D14 and D18!

    I also added videos for the D14 and the D18.

     
  7. lensman
    lensman Well-Known Member
    Yep, there certainly are a large number of dice out there... even I got in on the act some time ago with my interpretation of the Roman Long Dice

    Glenn
     
  8. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Elongated regular prism... :)
     
  9. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Hi there,

    The mass-produced D14 and D18 are now funded!
    :eek: :eek: :eek:
    The new streched goal for the KickStarter is now $12,700 to add the D22!
    Thank you very much for your support (in particular: Kevin, Alea, Td, Orangery, Henry, Justin etc.).

    Cheers!

    Magic

     
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2012
  10. stop4stuff
    stop4stuff Well-Known Member
    Awesome!

    Congratulations :)
     
  11. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Oops! Paul, I forgot you in the thanks, sorry!
    Thank you for tweeting about this KickStarter! :)
    I really appreciate!
     
  12. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Hi all,

    The KickStarter is now finished. It was a huge success. $24,230 were pledged (to be compared tot he $7,000 initially needed).
    As a consequence, in addition to the D14 and the D18, this D22 and this D7 will also be mass produced in March 2013.
    Of course, even after this date, these dice will remain on Shapeways so that you can order them in a wide range of original materials (like metal).
    Thank you again for your support.

    Magic, very very happy.

    [​IMG]

     
  13. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    I am very happy today, since I received the mass-produced dice.

    The D7:
    [​IMG]

    The D14
    [​IMG]

    The D18:
    [​IMG]

    The D22:
    [​IMG]

    All together:
    AllNew.JPG

    All this couldn't have happened without Shapeways, so beside Tom for Impact! Miniatures, I would like to thanks again Shapeways and, of course, their great community :)

     
    Last edited: Jan 14, 2014
  14. I have received mine as well! These are all wonderful, especially the seven-sided dice.

    I hope the rest of your dice with odd numbers of sides get mass-produced too, Magic!
     
  15. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Thank you for the kind words TD. It is a huge satisfaction for me not only to have those dice in my hands but also to know that so many people can play with them and appreciate them.
    The next one on the list is the D5... So, stay tuned!

     
  16. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Now that all the rewards of the Kickstarter have been shipped, the 4 dice are available at Impact! Miniatures for only $2:
    [​IMG]

    Of course, there are still available at Shapeways if you want them in special materials such as Stainless Steel.

     
  17. MrNib
    MrNib Well-Known Member
    Congrats on getting this done! I assume that with injection molding you can get more consistency of parts, finer detail resolutions, and more finishing options, not to mention access to a multitude of plastic types. Did you go directly to a mold maker/injection plastic service or did you go through some existing process and contacts at IM?
     
  18. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    Thanks MrNib.

    To be honest, 3D printing can probably be more precise and detailed than Injection Molding (because there not a so "violent" polishing), depending on the material you use.

    For me, there are only two main issues today with 3D-Printing vs. Injection Molding.

    The first one is price. Of course, for Injection Molding, as you have to invest into a mold, you have to insure that you will have enough customers to make this investment profitable (that was the goal of the Kickstarter), but once you get the mold done, the price gets drastically low (the retail price is $2 here).

    The second advantage of Injection Modeling is the quality of the plastic. The die is heavy, durable and has the regular feeling of a finished product (at least for us that are more used to Injection Molding than to 3D-Printing).

    Tom from Impact! Miniatures took care of all the process of going through an Injection Molding Service (and also running the Kickstarter). He only asked me Frosted Ultra Detail prototypes of my dice. Thanks again Tom :)!


    Ps: @MrNib: I love your Ring Holders ;)
     
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2013
  19. MrNib
    MrNib Well-Known Member
    That's why I love old Autopoint mechanical pencils. The old, old ones had heavy Bakelite bodies but the later ones were all sorts of interesting injection molded bodies, including speckled red/black versions. Holding a nice solid and heavy pen or pencil is a joy compared to newer mass produced product. Of course when you make millions of something every penny of material you can shave off each part adds to the bottom line so you can understand why things are as they now are.

    I suppose you need some additional polishing of injection molded parts to eliminate molding seams. But if you look at the fine surface detail on things like injection molded airplane models that show ridiculously small rivets and tiny grooves, well that's nearly impossible to match (for now) with the cheaper laser sintered processes like alumide or strong & flexible. I'm not sure about FD or FUD but for pen bodies that means no internal coloring and is generally too expensive unless I end up going the mold and independent sales route myself.

    And yes, ring holders for everyone!
     
  20. Magic
    Magic Well-Known Member
    New dice are about to be mass produced! Check this thread!