A10 Warthog - Model & Display Stand

Brief History

The A-10C Thunderbolt II, also known as the A10 “Warthog”, is considered one of the most bada** aircraft ever made. Designed and produced by Fairchild Republic in the 1970s, the A-10's purpose was to provide Close Air Support (CAS) for ground troops. Its job was to level whatever obstacle was in the way of our troops. And boy does it do that job well.

But everyone knows what the A-10 is famous for: the absolutely absurd GAU-8 Avenger rotary autocannon. This plane was designed and built around this gun. And, it is what gives the A-10 its signature “Brrrrt” sound that is beloved by many military aircraft enthusiasts.

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I wanted to pay homage to one of the coolest planes to ever exist. It's not the most advanced, most optimized, or even most lethal plane to ever exist. But it is one of the most crucial weapons for close engagements, and is an icon for its repairability and reliability.

There were a few models on this site already, so I'm not the first. BUT, I feel good in saying that this is the first model that has been able to be printed without sacrificing the quality or details, and has a unique display stand that shows off some of the best angles of this aircraft.

Here are the printing details and settings:

A-10 Model Print Settings

• Models are not pre-oriented for optimized printing (working on it for future). Ensure flat side is touching buildplate. For Wings section, ensure flat side with the half of the engines is the side touching the buildplate. See pictures of the parts disassembled for example for orientation.
• .16mm layer height
• .4mm nozzle
• 2 wall layers
• Enable “Print thin walls” (or whatever related setting). This adds some extra detail, but not necessarily required.
• IMPORTANT: Horizontal Expansion 0.15mm
• IMPORTANT: Hole Horizontal Expansion 0.15mm (This is to help print the engine exhaust with the .4mm nozzle.)
• Infill at 15-25% with your preferred infill pattern. I used Triangle.
• Enable Supports. You can adjust these to however you like. I ended up adding custom supports in the slicer to support the full length of the wings and under every armament. Same goes for the “Pave Penny” attached to the cockpit).
• OPTIONAL: Slicing Tolerance (in Experimental settings) was set to Inclusive. This is to allow the slicer to get as much detail as possible out of the model.

I also printed each section of the plane separately. And printed all of the dowels at the same time as the cockpit section of the model. You are more than welcome to try and print all of the plane parts at the same time! I just didn't do it that way myself.

Model Stand Print Settings

• .16mm layer height
• .4mm nozzle
• 6(!) wall layers (for added strength and stability)
• 15-25% Infill, with Triangle pattern (all about preference)
• You could honestly just use the same print settings as the plane, but most are not required (especially the horizontal expansion bits).

I printed the base and display arm separately, but they could probably be printed at the same time. The arm prints just fine standing vertically. I just added some adhesive to ensure it didn't shift during the print and it came out fine!

In terms of post-print assembly, I did have to work in the dowels slightly to get them to fit (it was not inserting for me), and I used superglue in the dowel holes and on the flat surfaces to ensure it stays together, but the tolerances I added (in my experience) might not even require glue. But so far, working great with the glue!

As for the display stand assembly, I did have to shave off the tiniest amount of material at the bottom of the arm (the diamond-shaped part) to get it to fit in the slot, but after I did that it has fit PERFECTLY in the stand. This might have just been a result of the filament I used, so you might not have to. But after that change, I didn't even need to use glue to keep the arm in place.

And finally, the stand arm fit pretty snuggly into the plane on the underside. I had to clear out some blobs before it fit right, but for me it slotted in PERFECTLY into the model. No wiggling. And again, didn't even need to use glue to keep it in place.

I spent a long time working on this model. Sterling Archer once said “I've never half-a**ed anything. Everything I do, I do with my full a**” and I try to live by that quote. I wanted to do this right, and I didn't want to share it until I was satisfied with the result. At this point, I am VERY satisfied with the way it has turned out!

For those curious, I printed the plane with ELEGOO White PLA and the base with LOVOON Wood PLA (Dual color, Natural and Walnut) and I think it turned out great.

If there's enough demand for bigger sizes, changes to the design, or a different stand orientation, I would be happy to try and tackle it!

I hope someone out there enjoys this model!

CHANGES:

(11/26/24) - Updated model to include the correct version of the tail. Previous version did not have the dowel cutouts. Thanks to Joey Coolman for pointing this out to me!

(02/11/25) - Added a model that has no missiles, but keeps the attachment arms underneath. If there is any interest in having straight up bare plane, I can whip that up and share it here as well!

I made some significant changes to the model to ensure it could be printed with the quality I was seeking, as well as be compatible with a custom stand I designed to display it. I remodeled the engine exhaust to make it look cleaner and to print better, I added a custom slot that fits the custom stand I designed to display the model, I removed all of the ammunition and redesigned them before adding them back onto the model for a cleaner look (and easier print), and I split the model into 3 sections for cleaner printing, and integrated slots for dowels for absolutely perfect joining the 3 sections together. This was done to achieve the highest quality print I could get, because this plane deserves a high-quality, displayable model.

I wanted to include the model I downloaded and modified because they deserve some credit for it too. But everything in here I worked on myself.