Boeing 737 MAX-8 1:250 Scale

Overview

A scale model of the Boeing 737 MAX-8, made for a technical drafting project.

At 1:250, exact dimensions would be invisible anyway — so proportions were dialed in for visual accuracy rather than spec-sheet precision. This also made the model way more printable: fewer tiny details means cleaner results, less failed supports, and a much faster print overall.

The landing gear was redesigned for printability by being simplified to a clean strut form and repositioned to extend from the fuselage rather than the wings. At this scale it reads the same, and it's a fraction of the hassle to actually print.

Includes holes through the front and rear windows to hang it from a ceiling

Printing

Designed for printing with a build volume of at least 256 x 256 mm. Will not work without scaling down on an A1 Mini, Prusa Mini, Ender 3, etc.

Everything was printed with pretty much default settings, with some painted supports for the engine and the landing gear. 15% infill, 2 walls, etc.

• Print body L and R separately out of PLA (or PETG, or ASA, or PEEK, doesn't really matter).

• You'll need supports on the engine and on the rear landing gear.

• Unless your printer is gigantuous, you'll probably need to position it diagonally on the build plate. Make sure it doesn't contact the filament calibration line extruded at the start of your print.

• Print the front axle and two of the clips out of the same material as the body. They can be printed on the same build plate as one half as the body.

• Print two front wheels and four rear wheels out of TPU. PLA might work but I haven't tested it — if you go that route you may need to scale the wheels up slightly, or design your own. Rear wheels are 8.8mm OD × 4.5mm wide on a 4mm × 2.7mm axle; front wheels are 6mm OD × 3.5mm wide on a 3mm × 3mm axle.
  

Assembly

1. Remove the supports, unless you want to have them sticking out of the plane.

2. Insert the two clips into the holes inside the right half of the plane (or the left, if you want).

3. Insert the front axle into the hole at the front of the plane.

4. Put the two halves of the plane together.

5. You can glue the two halves together to make the seam smaller, but the clips are enough to hold it together.

6. Put the rear wheels onto the rear landing gear, and the front ones on the front. 

If you plan on painting it, I'd recommend painting it after it's assembled, but before the wheels are attached.