The popularization of 3D printing has led to the development of a vast number of chess sets with all sorts of figures from the abstract to the adorable. Recently, Guilhem Cano contributed to the world’s population of chess pieces with the creation of a Jurassic Park set.
Interested in keeping the pieces as true to the movies as possible, he spent hours searching the web for models of dinosaurs that would correspond to the film. In all, it took him over 50 hours to print all of the pieces and the bases upon which they stand. With the completion of printing, he then dedicated another significant chunk of his time (measured in days!) to polishing them with acetone vapor and painting them by hand.
In a traditional chess set, the two sides are differentiated by the use of different colors. In the case of dinosaurs, such a color opposition was not possible. Instead, Cano created two completely different sets of dinosaurs, meaning that you’d better remember the difference between a Homalocephalus and a Velociraptor or you’ll wind up moving the wrong pieces!
The board is alive with teeth and tails as the T-Rex and the Stegosaurus which serve as the kings are alternately protected from and threatened by the pawns (Homalocephalus/Velociraptor), knights (Parasaurolophus/Pteranodon), bishops (Gallimimus/Dilophosaurus), and queens (Triceratops/Concavenator). The rooks are made in the image of the gates of the park and each piece stands on a cylindrical base covered with some sort of ground-like material.
All in all the idea is pretty cool and probably a pretty good way to get some extra paleontological education into an afternoon game of chess. It’s also an impressive effort when you realize that its creator has only been wading into the waters of 3D printing for the last year.
In an interview with 3DPrint.com, Cano, a native of France and a resident of Tolouse, talked about his introduction to the technology:
“I discovered the many possibilities of 3D printers one year ago in an association named FabLab who give light formation to use 3D printers. As a member of the association now, I learned many techniques during an entire summer, intensive two months. I finally bought my own printer in January, a 3D Up Plus.”
He has plans to create a board to accompany his pieces and if I could make one suggestion for the overall design of the pieces it would be to pay more attention to the labeling. Each piece currently has its position written on the front of the cylindrical base, something which can be very helpful since dinosaurs are similar in color and it can be confusing to try to differentiate between them on the fly. Unfortunately, the text is sloppy and takes away from the presentation of the pieces. On the other hand, maybe it’s just difficult to write the labels because the pieces keep gnawing on you with their sharp teeth…
When Cano isn’t creating chess pieces, he earns a living creating props for cosplay through his company Iron Foam Armor & Equipment. Do you want to take a bite out of your competitor with a game set like this? Let us know in the 3D Printed Jurassic Park Chess Set forum thread over at 3DPB.com.
