USS Wainwright

The roughness with FUD is the layers. That layering effect is very well known to hobbyists with 3D printers. Part of the solution is how you orient the miniature in the printer, but Shapeways does not let the modelers specify their preferred orientation. They optimize the miniatures in the print area to maximize efficiency, not quality.

I don't work with the detail plastics too much, but I would think light sanding would help. The white versatile plastic that I prefer is nylon and it cannot be sanded. Sanding causes the nylon to break down into strings and makes a mess.

The I-168 I am giving away this month is detail plastic. The layering is visible along the sides. I think subs are a good example of a mini that would be better printed vertically in the printer chamber rather than horizontally.