Free Transport Delta Update!

Free Transport Delta Update!

The very end of the year sees the much needed update of our classic space opera design, the Transport Delta. This ship, originally conceived in 2019 for our Starship III Kickstarter. Using the design language of a galaxy far, far away, is very popular with our customers.

Despite this popularity, the Delta is a design that I (Ben) have been a bit embarrassed about. As far as construction goes, to me, the Delta always felt a little rushed. In addtion, the design certainly was not up to our modern standards of quality, detail and printability.

Enter the Delta 1700-Series:

The 1700-Series represents a modernisation of the Transport Delta to our 2023 standards. This all started when we partnered with Kathy Millatt Modelling during her Corrix Lava Moon Kickstarter. As a part of the campaign, Kathy produced a 35mm upscaled Transport Delta. We offered the Delta as an optional add-on.

I made some quality of life changes to the Delta to fix the worst issues as she printed the ship, primarily focusing on reducing reliance on supports and addressing the engine issues. In addtiion, whilst revisiting this old design, I felt there were additional areas that I could improve upon. I told Kathy that I would be adding a few refinements for her customers and a free update for mine.

What followed was a feature creep that Chris Roberts would be proud of. In the end, I spent around a month updating the design, and not just for printability.

Changes

Changes include:

• Increased printability of the ship – it can now be printed almost entirely support free!
• Redesigned the entire interior of the ship, including all new support-free models
• Revamped the forward cargo bays, including new grate-like interior floors
• We reinforced the cockpit neck, adding two additional clip holes so it should now no longer droop
• Added 6mm metal support rod channels if you want to reinforce the hull with additional supports
• Modified the ventral hull to have a turret port as standard with airlock hatch
• Updated the side turret models to our new Standard MK23 Turret
• Added a new rear ramp based on the Odyssey extendable ramp with a new ramp cowl
• Reworked the engines to become modular and they also no longer require removal if you want to take the top off
• Added basic lighting support
• Fully detailed assembly manual

Despite the amount of work I spent updating the Delta, the update is completely free. This applies to all past customers who backed or purchased a Delta. The update can be found in your existing downloads for the ship.

In the future, to help offset the costs of the update, which includes over 95% new or updated pieces, we are launching the 2400-series in February, on My Mini Factory Frontiers. This will include a brand new interior layout and additional updates of our classic design.

Stay tuned for more information on that, and in the meantime, enjoy our brand new Delta update wherever you got your Delta from.