Space Program Playset Project

Overview

This project offers CAD files and STL meshes for model kits and play-set components inspired by the first Kerbal Space Program game.

I am not the world's best artist or sculptor. I encourage people who are better artists than I am to fork the project (or make new projects) with fancier components based on the simple ones I've provided here. My focus was on getting component assembly working properly.

The CAD files were made using FreeCAD. I have a love/hate relationship with that program; use it if and only if you're willing to put up with its quirks. The IGES files can be imported into any other CAD program, and should let you make your own variants of the parts without having to fight with FreeCAD.

NOTE - Anything recognizably from Kerbal Space Program, as opposed to resembling historical spacecraft, is likely to be covered by trademarks from that game. I've taken care not to duplicate those here. Don't duplicate these in your own projects either, unless you have permission from the trademark holder. Also don't use textures, meshes, or other art assets from the game - those are covered by copyright, and will likewise need permission from the copyright holder.

There may be similar issues with making close duplicates of real spacecraft. Some of these are freely usable, others aren't, and it's up to you to find out which you can duplicate before doing so. I've avoided doing that here, with the exception of historical NASA spacecraft (which had an explicit exemption, which may or may not apply to more recent NASA spacecraft).

Using the Pieces

The parts described as "models" are intended to be glued together and then painted. The parts described as "play-sets" are intended to snap together, and may be pre-coloured or pre-painted. There's a bit of overlap: certain parts of the model set (such as decouplers) are intended to be detachable after assembly.

My usual printing service is Shapeways, using their "versatile plastic" SLS nylon process. The parts should print as-is with that process (you may need to check the "print it anyways" box for models with small details). For filament-printing, you may need to scale up the parts to 150% or 200%, depending on your printer.

These parts pretty much have to be 3d printed. Making them compatible with injection molding would impose substantial constraints on geometry, and virtually all parts would have to be heavily modified. So, for now, the parts are print-only.

Folders

• The release folder contains archives with files for the various model kits and play-sets. If you want to print or import the kits, these are the only files you should need.

• The cad-model-shapes folder contains CAD files for basic shapes and for the linking components used for model assembly.

• The cad-model-basic folder contains CAD files for model components using a very simple art style.

• The reference-pics folder contains reference diagrams and photographs of specific spacecraft and space science instruments. NOTE - These are not released under the project license. For license information, check the associated government agencies or commercial space agencies.

• The reference-notes folder contains other reference material.

Gallery

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