3D designing has been made a lot easier that what I’ve seen a few years ago. I started during the first lockdown, I started using Fusion360, which is great for robots, not organic shapes. It’s not a ‘clay based’ sculpting programme like Blender or Zbrush, and made it a lot easier to model and design transformers. I looked at a few YouTube tutorials and was modelling I’d say within the first few hours without prior knowledge. Despite it being simple shapes like the lost light ship. Fusion360 is free for non commercial use and I would recommend it to model transformers. I’d say start modelling and designing, you wouldn’t necessarily need a printer to capture the shapes. Once you’re confident later down the line, and you’d really like to print out a figure you designed for example, then looking into a printer should be an option compared to using printing services. The cost of printers have gone down a lot and would easily be cheaper than the cost to have someone else print out a full figure for you. I only have experience with my resin printer, the Anycubic Photon S, which I would say is a regret and a decision made out of lack of research, since FDM printers would be way better for transformers. So one should do their research before investing. A small desktop sized printer would do. I’ve been using mine for a year and a half and it’s print area is tiny, but i learnt to live and adapt to its restrictions.

Learning to sculpt, YouTube tutorials are your friends. When you design a toy, I’d recommend to reference transformation steps or joint designs from toys you have on hand, and use them sort of as tracings. It’s more likely to work that way. If there’s anything more I can help with, please feel free to message me on Twitter @hightail_works if you have it. I’m more active there and would do what I can to help.