Inspired by the perk pins on the loading screen of Fallout 4, the Best Game of 2015 (Porda Awards), these pins will let other wasteland wanderers know from a glance that you mean business. Although, if you have the sniper perk they may not get close enough to see your pin.

This project was made possible with the Autodesk Ember SLA 3D printer. You'll probably need an SLA printer to replicate at pin size, but you can also easily scale the model to print at a normal FDM size.

Step 1: Supplies

You'll need the following snazzy items to replicate this pin:

STL of pin (found in next step)
Autodesk Ember (or other SLA printer)
Blue, yellow, tan, and brown acrylic paint
Eyedroppers for paint
200 grit sandpaper
Black sharpie
Pin back
Hot glue

Step 2: CAD

Using Autodesk Fusion360, I copied the outline from an image attached to a sketch plane and extruded the features.

You can download the STL of the pin on the Thingiverse page here.

Step 3: 3D Printing

Using Print Studio, I prepped my print settings, standard CMYK, with a slightly longer exposure on the first layers to reduce curling.

The print came out beautifully from the Ember in 14 min. A quick dip in an IPA bath and the print is now ready to be painted.

Step 4: Painting

Using acrylic paint and eye droppers, I messily filled in the colored sections of the pin. I also used the pin back's needle to spread the paint into nooks and crannies. The needle was also helpful in removing some overflowing paint.

Step 5: Sanding

Using a very fine sandpaper, 200 grit, I removed the paint from the outline of the pin. Although the pin looks fairly nice, it was lacking a certain pop so I continued with a black sharpie which can be seen in the last step.

Step 6: Glue Pin Back

Using hot glue, adhere the pin back to the print. Simple enough.

Step 7: Further Steps

Possible improvements:

Use a black sharpie to accent the outline
Print in black and painting the grey sections with acrylic paint
Find a better way to paint small items (if you have suggestions, please let me know in the comments)

If you can think of any other ways to make this more awesome let me know. Or just let me know what your favorite perk is. I'm thinking about making a second pin.