clipka wrote:

> I did some more work on it in October, but didn't find time to post any
> updates, as I was busy making the deadline for the TC-RTC "Across the
> Plains" round:

> These days I might post some interim shots created during that time.

That would be good, I look forward to them. Good luck with the competition too!

> > You seem to have better drawings?? What loco is it?
>
> It's a USRA/Baldwin "Heavy Santa Fe" (a late-WW1 2-10-2 heavy drag
> freight engine featuring the uncommon Southern valve gear), which I
> chose mainly because of the particularly detailed blueprints I found on
> the Wikimedia Commons

Ah, interesting. Not being a train enthsiast as such I often wonder why trains
such as these contain so much complexity in comparison to others. While at the
same time not being sure if I would understand the answer if someone gave me a
lecture on it! The quantity of linkages involved seems rather overboard.
The train I modelled is a modified Hall Class from the Great Western Railway and
I only had one basic overall blueprint of the dimensions to work from
http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/loco_draw.htm
Consequently much of the detail is from photographs. One was a part on the
rear of the main steam pipe to the cylinder, I just called it "brassything" in
the code as I had no idea what it was. I actually ended up contacting the Train
Manager for one of the preserved trains who told me it was called a "Snifting
Valve" and sent me detailed pictures of the real thing. I wasn't far wrong.

> Other sources were numerous photographs from the web, both of USRA
> locomotives and others;

Indeed! I downloaded as many as I could find but sadly everyone seems to take
that same picture, from in front a few yards up the station platform! What was
really helpful was actually contacting a train forum and asking there for what I
called more "pornographic" pictures of details under the platform as it were! I
got some very good images sent to me that way. One particular area that I was
struggling with was underneath the footplate steps to the cabin area. I knew
there was a sandbox there but only blurry images of that whole area. I managed
to concoct the attached image from images from one very helpful chap in
particular.

> > I was also be interested in your approach to the chimney and steam valve covers
> > - you used blobs there? I'm afraid I went traitorous and used jpatch for a mesh
> > object I (sort of) manipulated to fit. I also used jpatch for the firebox main
> > object.
>
> I actually found blobs easier to use than trying to model a suitable
> mesh (I would have used Wings3D for that).

Curious. I'll have a look at Wings3D. The main problem area as you'd expect was
the smooth junction between the vertical and horizontal cylinders which I
haven't quite got right.
I guess I concur with the earlier posting asking whether the bevelled edges code
element is likely to become available???

cheers!
Olly

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