HS4000 Kestrel Locomotive and 3d cab

Hi All,

I have completed my model of Kestrel, as those of you on Elvas Tower will have noted.

This has been in progress for around two years, on and off. In the course of this model I have had to move from modelling in Trainsim Modeler to Blender, which took a time to learn.
That was worth doing, however, because I think a better looking model has been achievable in Blender.

I have uploaded the model with it's 3d cab into the download section, where it joins my other models, kindly hosted by Justin.

Please let me know if there are any issues with downloading or installation, and I will try to help. The installation should be straightforward; just copy the downloaded folders into your Trainset folder. I have even supplied a consist to enable you to drive right away.

There are two activities that I am aware of, that feature Kestrel. My version can be swapped in for the earlier version of Kestrel.

Cheers,
Geoff

Hi Geoff

It's a lovely model - both loco and cab. Without taking anything from Clive Heard's magbificent model, it can be clearly seen what more modern computer technology can achieve.  Nice to have the custom 3D cab. I downloaded and installed the Kestrel in Open Rails without any difficulty (in answer to your question).

I haven't tried it out yet, but I did drive it for a couple of hundred yards at St Pancras  where it drew many admiring glances.

I wonder if you would ever consider relating your experience with Blender - how did you find it in relation to TSM? Also curious why you swapped, was TSM not up to the job? How hard is it to use in relation to TSM, or to gmax?

As soon as I get a chance I'm going to run some comparison trials on Shap (see Clive's read me).

Congratulations on a magnificent model.

Regards

Tony

Likewise I loaded "Kestral" to OR with no problems and took it for a quick run on the S&C,then over the Pond onto the NEC v4.

She runs very well and theres no problem with stopping.

Now all we need is an Activity ( maybe on NWE 3.1) where we can see her at speed.(she did the Ton on NEC)

Many thanks Geoff,very enjoyable   Neanderthal

Thanks Roger and Tony for the feedback. It's good to know the download works and you are enjoying the model.

In response to your question Tony,
"I wonder if you would ever consider relating your experience with Blender - how did you find it in relation to TSM? Also curious why you swapped, was TSM not up to the job? How hard is it to use in relation to TSM, or to gmax?"

I have been using TSM for a few years with good results, but I have noticed that as my models got more complex, TSM seemed to struggle with exporting to the sim. I would have anomalies - "flying polygons" - which spoiled the model. I got over this for a time by using Freight Animations to add further details. Also, when modelling a 3d cab, the amount of zoom available in TSM was not enough to get into the small details on switches and controls. Again, I worked around this by scaling parts up by a factor of five or ten and then shrinking them down when finished.

These things made it attractive to try out Blender, since I had read and seen good results from other modellers. As with any new software, there is a learning curve, but it does help if you have experience with 3d modelling with another tool like TSM or Gmax. At least you then know what you are looking for - even if you can't find it right away! The starting point for me was to work through a simple tutorial, of which there are plenty on youtube. That got me used to the user interface and layout. Once I had built my first simple shape and exported it successfully into Openrails, I was ready to try something more complex. The big breakthrough for me was when an experienced user converted my unfinished model from TSM to Blender. That gave me a head start.

Blender has some really useful features. For instance, if you want to focus your view on a particular component, you can select it by clicking on it, and then press . on the numpad, and the view automatically changes and zooms to that part. If the area around a part is crowded, you can press / and all other parts except the one you have selected are hidden. Transparent parts, like windows display correctly too on the model.

You can set up the workspace with 3 orthogonal views and a 3d view, like TSM or Gmax , but I don't, since you can get a side, top or rear view easily with one mouse click, and use the whole screen.

As you might have guessed, I am now a big fan of Blender, but it took a bit of time to get used to it. There are many, many aspects to Blender that you will never need to use, and that makes it look complicated.

Fortunately, there are quite a few users out there who can advise on Blender modelling. I am happy to try to help anyone too.

Geoff

There's an activity called "Kestrel Testing" in Woodhead V4, which makes use of Clive's model.

Hello Alec, Yes indeed, I've run an "Kestral Testing" act a few times,it's a goody, I didn't think it was on Woodhead though .But you know what I'm like I've never got the hang of Changing Loco's or even stock over  Roger

Hi Geoff, Thanks for such an excellent model, I have rostered it to the Kestrel Testing activity from Tinsley to Shireoaks  (Woodhead V4) it performed superbly on the empty mineral wagons; I will  now try it on a KX to Newcastle express on the superb Mid East Coast Route in place of a Deltic. (using Open Rails of course.)  Best Regards KenH.

Thank you Geoff for your comments about Blender. I tried it years ago when it was only available on Linux and was version 0.something. I found it hard going, and not having anything specific to use it for I left it, especially as there didn't seem any way of exporting to MSTS. I did make one model using GMax, but I found it an enormous effort so I left that too. I also downloaded TSM, but not the "paid version" and after reading Brian's comments (https://tsforum.forumotion.net/t1009-win-10-tsm-train-sim-modeler-a-few-limitations#13513) it appeared that with the version I had it was probably not worth pursuing, although I did manage a simple building. I might now try Blender (inspired and intimidated by your Kestrel), if I can find some tutorials that can ease me into it. The various features you mention address some of the things that made GMax frustrating, so I think it is worth looking at.

Kind Regards

Tony

I ran the new model in the "Kestrel Running in Return" activity by Clive Heard and it performed beautifully! The activity was written for "Thames Trent V2" but can be run in V3 of the route as well.