hey i think i might be able to help out with jbeam to some degree, still learning but wanting to start on something meaningful so i can learn properly with a proper goal :3
I know its been awhile since I’ve posted anything but I return with progress! Starting to get all the major components in there, like the torsion bars and suspension, steering, frame paneling, body supports, but its definitely moving along. Still need a 3VZ-E V6 engine, might use a base game model as a placeholder for now. Using what references for 010 as we can to figure out where linkage points are for the front suspension, the FH4/5 model is a bit vague where that is. Might have to use the AutoArt model as a reference if we have to. More to come!
Bit of a progress update: Was looking at what’s been done in Blender so far. The rear chassis is about 90% done, just needs suspension mounts and torsion bars, spare tire mount, smaller bits. The center chassis still needs a good bit of work but overall is about 50-60% complete. The interior also needs more work. The front section is about 40% done as there needs to be more triangulation and suspension mounts. Overall I say the chassis is about 45-50% complete at this stage. Will post more when there is any thing new to post.
Some time before this truck gets released, I will be having a smaller release of the wheels and tires made so far in common Beam sizes. So if you want some Ultra or Progressive wheels used by this truck, stick around! Will post more progress when I can. (Originally this was a hiatus announcement but then Blkfxx and DriverTech both offered to help out. This project has gone through a handful of modelers and honestly I was losing hope that this would get done. I am glad that my passion has inspired others)
I return with some substantial progress! After digging through absolutely every piece of media in the PPI archives, we scored some good references and progress is moving along pretty good! We also have the engine as WIP but its really rough. Will post more when I am able to! Courtesy of Blkfxx
exited for this sucker, looks promising, and should be some of the best textures on the repo, blkfxx is the GOAT at em.
Due to the nature of this project, the truck cannot be a repo release. I intended on having period correct liveries depicting Yokomaha and BFGoodrich tires, so that would disqualify the truck from being on there, unless we were to do some Beam-friendly rebranding. I did toss around the idea of creating a lore-friendly livery but we haven’t even started on the body panels yet. Still working on the mechanics. Appreciate the encouragement. Will post anything new by the end of the week!
As promised, here's a little update! After digging around a little, we finally discovered exactly which Yokohama tires were used from about 1989 to 1992 (noticed the truck sporting Yokohama logos in video taken during the 1992 Baja 1000) and struck some gold. After a few days, I'm proud to announce that one of the tire options for this truck will be 35x11.5r15 Yokohama Super Digger IIIs! So what does that mean? "Don't you already have Yokohama Mud Diggers planned?" Yes, but those tires were not used on this truck. I believe the MDs were used in the MTEG stadium trucks. Does that mean we will scrap a perfectly good tire model? Obviously not. We can either still use that tire (which means 2 Yokohama and 2 BFGoodrich tires) or we can bump it and Blkfxx can release it as part of his tire pack. Either way. I am extremely happy with the models he is making for this project. He even went out of his way to model the older BFG KM tire (there was a newer mold made, see below, older tire on right). Just to illustrate his attention to detail. References: Renders: Tire model/textures courtesy of Blkfxx.
In a weird twist of fate, we came across this image depicting the Yokohama Mud Digger tires being equipped on the truck, so that means yes, we’re keeping the tire for the project! Also it seems like the wheels all had the same knockoff and hub retainer ring so all we have to do is make all the wheels we need and then focus on the chassis, suspension, cockpit, and bodywork.
Got a nice big update to share! We’ve been busy with extra supplementary research and model work. With the miracle of reverse image searching, we struck a gold mine of old race photos from mid-1988 all the way to 1993. We won’t be focusing on the early chassis, only what is most known and familiar. For model progress, we have more chassis/frame work done, reshaped and edited the hood panel, added mirrors to the cockpit panels, cut holes for exhaust in the bedside panels, and made bumper variants. We’re still trying to work out smaller details like steering, rear suspension, number plates, and other things. Still need an engine, and spare wheel mount but once all that’s done it will be time to J-Beam.
We all got busy and motivation has been rough for some of us, but we’re still chipping away at it. The most recent thing I can recall is making a material texture for the trans cooling unit and starting the J-Beam. Along the way, we’re discovering little things here and there through cross references and observations. For example; 015 (the ‘94 chassis) had a popup plexiglass windscreen for large debris that would have come straight at Ivan’s face (open cockpit, open face helmet, no gloves) and needed a cutout in the hood panel that overlapped the instrument and gauge cluster. That cutout is present on 010 as a show truck so we can definitively say the chassis we’re working on will have the correct panels. When we do 015 eventually, we can just use the panels from FH5 in a lower poly form.
We have been busy (both irl and with the mod work). Latest update is that we’re working on smaller details like extra lights and mounts, hoses, lines, bolts, stuff like that. UVs for the bodywork are done so those will be sent off to be made into period-correct liveries for release. Model work is about 85-90% done, then we can start JBeaming the chassis and major parts and getting things set up to test. If I can, I’ll see about some renders to show off.
Okay I know I said I'd show some renders off...like, a week ago but this time I actually have something to show. Transmission and other frame textures are WIP, bodywork UVs were sent off and being worked on, we have some engine audio from FH5 that will be tweaked to sound like the real engine (listening to old race footage to approximate what the truck sounded like) and things are slowly coming into place. The last major thing we need is an engine but its buried so deep in the chassis you won't see it unless you take off a door panel, but we still think its worth modeling. If the main model is finished without the engine, we'll use a suitable placeholder. When it gets closer to the test phase, I'll be sure to let you guys know. I feel a release before the end of the year is very possible.
Merry Christmas all! We got the body work in game! Needed that for the initial liveries to be made. For anyone that wants to make liveries or custom paintjobs, the body and glass panel UVs will be included in the files. We’re still working on things here and there. A rudimentary drivetrain has been made using a modified Dunekicker as a test bed and I am running it through its paces on various maps. So far the mockup is performing as expected. First gear is kinda jumpy and short, second gear is also kinda short, the remaining three is where most of the driving will be in, mostly 3rd and 4th. Unless you have a good straight or shift early, you won’t be using 5th much. Should cap out around 90-95mph. We still have work to do so a release is not coming before the end of the year. We so have custom sounds and those are being tested as well. Hope everyone is staying safe through the holidays. Thank you from Project Ironman for all the support we are getting. I promise the wait will be worth it
Apologies for lack of updates. Project is still on-going, just nothing much to talk about but model is still being worked on. Filling in gaps where we have no references is tricky but I hope we can do our best to figure things out. Drivetrain is running great, the only issue is that if you manually turn off and try to restart the engine, it does not restart so the solution for now is to respawn/refresh the truck. Should work as intended when we get the real truck into the game. No estimate when it will be done as of now. Maybe I'll have some progress to share this month.
Minor update, I woke up this afternoon to 12 images of 010's front end. Thank you, Marty! Only mystery now is how the steering works, but its likely a beefed up rack and pinion setup with ram assists. *insert Kronk saying "oh yeah, it's all coming together..." meme*
