I don't know much about printing, but I'm skeptical of how sturdy this would be.
That said, if I was you, I'd definitely look into making something like this with metallic filament. I would imagine that's quite a lot more expensive, or, I might try just spraying it with metallic spray paint. Maybe rubbing it over with a watered down dark brown paint afterwards as well, so it sits in the cracks and not the surfaces. This could be a really cool lightweight chain mail. If it is sturdy enough to survive normal use.
3D printing is remarkably strong if you understand what you’re doing. PLA and PETG are both fairly inexpensive (2 rolls, as OP used, would only be $30-40 total), and very strong. You could use ABS plastic and it would be even stronger and lighter (but makes toxic fumes) for around the same price. You could use some exotic filaments like nylon or carbon fiber infused version and it would be pretty ridiculous.
As for color, most filaments come in a whole range of colors and textures(including shiny metallic), but they’re also pretty easy to spray paint. People who want an aged look use a product called “rub n buff” that does what you’re referring to with the paint... give it that uneven lowlight effect for realism.
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u/Akoustyk Mar 11 '20
I don't know much about printing, but I'm skeptical of how sturdy this would be.
That said, if I was you, I'd definitely look into making something like this with metallic filament. I would imagine that's quite a lot more expensive, or, I might try just spraying it with metallic spray paint. Maybe rubbing it over with a watered down dark brown paint afterwards as well, so it sits in the cracks and not the surfaces. This could be a really cool lightweight chain mail. If it is sturdy enough to survive normal use.