Tangara Progress

So... How many handrails are there in a Tangara Control Trailer? I bet you really want to know. The answer is 22. I didnt believe it either - until I built them all.

There are several different types, depending on the location. For each type, I had to create one, and then copy it to the other positions where this type is found. That wasnt so hard. The hard part was doing the center handrail on the stairs - you know... the one that starts on the upper deck and twists and turns its way down to the lower deck. It started out as two different handrails (one from the upper deck, and one from the lower) with the ends cut off, and then I had to create a spline for the twisty bit in the middle which joins them together. Finally I then had to loft the spline to make it the right thickness, and then join the three pieces together. It was a real pain, but it turned out all right.

Ive noticed a few variations on the different Tangara trains that I have been catching recently. I have tried to build a generic impression of what I think of as a Tangara. This includes the "monkey-bars" that are progressively being removed from the vestibules in favour of a safer, simple, pair of vertical poles. I have seen quite a few people wipe themselves out on those older style bars which hang from the ceiling but dont reach the floor. I also noticed that some of the original cars have flat handrails, covered in black plastic tubing on the stairs, but I have stuck with the simple rounded chrome rails that Im so used to.

Ive added some other interior detail, and Im about to re-animate the doors (the final version) before beginning on the exterior detail.

As I predicted, the poly count has shot way up with the addition of the seats and rounded hand rails, but I was careful to reduce the poly count on the rails (I could do more if I wanted to spend the extra time on it - but Im over it). Even so, the total poly count (excluding bogies) still comes in at about 8000 as I had estimated earlier, so Im happy with it. The final detail will see that creep up a little, but I can live with that.

Oh... and you can see the bogies in the picture... I was kidding before when I said I wasnt going to show you. They could do with a little more detail (which I might add) but they're good enough, and currently about 2400 polys each. I blame the poly count on the rounded surfaces of the frame :)

Current poly count: 8400
File version: 235