Swamper's Garage

[Pat]

oooo ooo  Jan give me a great reason to get rid of the no track checker mod eheheheheh!!!! That is fantastic!! A question though are you going to have amber lights on it at all?

[Swamper77]

oooo ooo  Jan give me a great reason to get rid of the no track checker mod eheheheheh!!!! That is fantastic!! A question though are you going to have amber lights on it at all?

Pat,

This won't replace the track checker. It will be an additional vehicle that will only appear near the BSC lumber mill once it is released. I might see about making a mod to replace the game's track checker with this RTL vehicle. As for the amber lights, I don't see why I can't have them this time around. The only reason I didn't do them on the Vandy Automata was because I wasn't skilled enough with automata modeling at the time. There are more than just the cab's clearance lights that are amber this time, as the following picture shows:


I'm getting close to making an automata out of this RTL vehicle. I've added the track wheel assemblies under the cab and near the back of the truck. Although they aren't shown, there are lights under the back end of the truck for the brake/running lights. I've also added marker lights along the sides of the flatbed, placed two turn signals onto the front fenders, and installed two spotlights onto the front bumper. All of the amber lights and the head/tail lights will be lit for nighttime use in the game. The front spotlights will flash with a wig-wag pattern at all times for safety.

-Jan

[Sciurus]

Nice, but to Amercian for me, sorry

Guillaume

[nerdly_dood]

Great work with the truck/locomotive Jan! (As usual...)

In Europe i think they use a Mercedes-Benz Unimog for a road truck that can be used on railroad tracks - a very versatile truck suitable for any terrain except that which is vertical or nearly so.

Pictures of such usage: Here and here.

I have also come across one image of American-style trucks in that type of use just for reference while modeling: [Link].

And a few images of the wheel attachments: [link].

[Pat]

Jan that is looking real great there!!! BTW is there an update coming on your MD?

[Swamper77]

Nice, but to Amercian for me, sorry

Guillaume

@Sciurus: Well, I am an American so most of my models end up be American as well. I'm sorry it's not an European model, but I don't have any European truck models to work with. I'd probably have to build them from scratch, and that would take awhile to do. It would require more time than it is taking to build this model.

@Nerdly: Thanks for the links. I won't be doing anything with them at this time and I will be keeping my rail wheel assemblies as they are.

I've put a few more hours of work into this and have started the automata model:

(Ignore the light blue patches. They will not be visible on the final model)
I've decided on the paint color and have added the BSC Globe logo to the truck. Most of the cab details are done at this point. I borrowed an existing automata model from the Vandy Automata set to get a quick start on the automata model and altered the skin image in PhotoShop to include the details of the RTL. Most of the truck is done right now. The lights on the cab are done and I have added a visor over the windshield. The front bumper is 3D to give it some form. The machinery boxes and the spare wheels on the flatbed are also done.

Left to do:
- Railings on the flatbed
- Front spotlights
- Marker lights
- Rail wheel assemblies
- Rotatory safety lights for the cab roof
- Add shadow plane
- Create headlight model complete with the twin spot lights and the marker lights.
- Create animated model for the safety lights.

I did a little more research into the front lights. I have decided to not animate them and create headlight beams for them in the headlight model. For safety, two strobe lights will be placed on top of the cab and they will be running at all times. Since emergency vehicles can't run on railroad tracks, I have found a method to add animated lights to vehicles that aren't designed as emergency vehicles. The lights do not require a dispatch or player control to be active.

As part of the research, I also looked into functionality of the RTL so a few mods will be made with it. In addition to creating a "track checker" for the unreleased BSC project, I will be making two standalone track checker mods. One will replace the Maxis default and the other will just be an additional track checker. I will also be making an additional freight train engine out of it.

-Jan

[Swamper77]

The modeling is done and working:


The front headlights and spotlights turn on at night, along with all of the marker lights. The marker lights are on the roof of the cab and along the sides of the bed. The turn signals are also lit at night. The two rotating lights on the cab roof are always on and cannot be turned off.

Proof of concept works. Now, I just need to do the modding for it function properly. Here is the list of variations that will be provided:

- BSC Lot track checker (Cannot be uninstalled)
- Replacement track checker (optional file)
- Additional track checker (optional file)
- Additional freight engine (optional file)

The first version is for the BSC Lot that hasn't be released yet. Initially, I created this vehicle just for that project. As usual, I've found other uses for my models

-Jan

[Pat]

Sweet Jan that is looking real great!!! LOL about finding other uses as well....

[carkid1998]

Nice work!!!

Will you release a road version as well?(It is a Road Transferable Locomotive)

[Swamper77]

I can do that. I'll have to alter the current automata model first. Otherwise, the track wheels will be dragging on the pavement.

-Jan

[Une_ame]

Sweet modele Jan !! And very good idea to use it as a track checker. SC4 is limited and I always want more stuff on my rails .

[Swamper77]

The Logging Equipment is now live on the LEX: SW77 Logging Equipment

Vehicle Manifest:
- 2 Freightliner semi trucks
- 2 logging trailers with logs
- 1 loaded log carrier railroad car
- 1 empty log carrier railroad car
- 1 Road Transferable Locomotive (RTL)

Some mods have been included, which use the model of the RTL Unit:
- Additional Freight Train Engine
- Replacement Freight Train Engine
- Additional Track Checker
- Replacement Track Checker

By default, the RTL will not appear without the BSC lumber mill which is still being worked on. So I made the tracker files to allow it to appear without the lot. The logging trucks are modded as freight trucks and will appear with the other existing freight trucks. However, their trailers will not appear behind any other semi trucks. The RTL will only run on the railroad tracks at this time. A new model will have to be made for the road version of the RTL.

My Automata Essentials File is required for these vehicles to function properly. This file has also been updated today to include files for this release and future releases.

-Jan

[Swamper77]

Things have been quiet in here and for various reasons:

1. Offline stuff: With the sunny weather, I've been spending more time outdoors and away from my computer. I also have a life outside of SC4, and there are things that I want to do. Time spent here on my computer is time that I can't spend on other stuff. I much rather be hanging out with friends or reading books than be here on my computer.

2. Overload: I've simply taken on too many projects and I'm getting burned out from having done automata modding for so long. I've been doing this stuff since 2004-2005, and I can't keep doing constant modding anymore. Maybe a project here and there with breaks in between, but certainly not projects back to back anymore.

From now on, I will be helping limited numbers of people with their projects. I don't want to sound mean by being picky as to who I help, but I can only help so many people with the limited time that I have. Right now, I will help the handful of people I promised to with their projects, then I will be taking a long break from automata modding.

-Jan

[SC4BOY]

Clever, functional, sweet.. love the whole set and especially that track checker.. hehe.. its not like any checker I've seen but truth is I haven't seen one of those in rl since probably 1960ish and it looked much more "industrial" but I like the "truck as checker" idea..

[Exla357]

Jan,

Great work with your automa modding! They beat the poopoo out of Maxis stuff.
Would love to see glr/monorail generator if its not too much to aske?
Thanks

[vester]

Jan, hasn't been around for quite a while, so don't get's your hopes up.

EDIT: Last visit was over 1,25 year ago.