At this point I can't say with absolute certainty that 3D printing will provide the type of detail I want to sculpt. I'm suppose to receive my first FUD figures today almost 9 days after the date they should have arrived. Still I sculpt away because at least I have sculptris, meshmixer, accutrans and Daz, and while they may not print out a 3D figure they provide all the tools I need to create figures that I know some day will get printed even if I have to wait for the technology to catch up (who knows, though, maybe I wont)
Here is what I am workng on now. I started this figure in 3D about 6 years ago, one painful vertex at a time. I actually sculpted him in polymer clay too, but I can't work that small,,, tried, but my eyes just can't do it. I have almos completed now.

He just needs a hat, a final inspection and then I'll send this guy off to the printer; that is if the prints I recieve today live up to my expectations.

I do a lot of work in DAZ just for the colour prints. Never thought about 3d printing. I await the results of your prints.

Ken

Thanks ken, but I can't tell if you are giving me the finger or seriously awaiting the prints. If you are seriously awaiting the prints then they are under the shapeways topic. Here is more work on the hat I finished tonight.

Added buttons, worked in the likeness a little better and I think this should do it.
Oh, and with over 40,000 polygons to spare. I'll need those polygons on the SE and 1:12 scale so that I can add the depression in the thorax and save on material cost.

I got back my 3D prints for Pippin yesterday. Its odd, but it seems the larger the model, the less detail they print regardless of material. Also these prints had a lot of junk I needed to remove from them. All and all I was disappointed with the 7/8ths prints that seemed to be lower quality than the 1:29 scale figure shown here.
There were long jagged lines of supporting material running up the legs, on the back and all over the hat on the 7/8ths scale figure. I needed to scrape it off with a knife. I can't ship items to my customers like that, not for what they are paying. I may end up making molds after all, but right now, I'm not going to worry about it.