Prototyp models began in late-2000 as a project inspired by some great papercraft designers and their kits Yasu Tanaka, Oniya, and Hitoshi Shinozaki aka Saurus One. This was a time when literally all of my design work existed only in virtual form on the web, and I wanted to create an opportunity to produce something tangible.
The original kits were produced as a series of seven pre-printed kits and sold from 2001 through about 2010. Printing was digital six-color Epson Photo ink on Epson stocks; a double-sided card for cover art and a construction guide, glossy sheets for bodywork parts and matte sheets for chassis and tires. These were packaged and protected in a white envelope sealed with a Prototyp [ //] logo sticker.
With the ubiquity of good injet printers now, this next release of the kits will be done digitally through eCardModels.com. One major hurdle in converting these original letter-sized kits to PDFs for an international audience is the physical page format. The parts sheet layouts have to be rearranged to account for what will fit on a more universal A4 page ... ideally without dramatically changing the numbering as this would require further changes to the building instructions.
The re-released models will also get some updates, improvements, and additional cars. For example, the 1990 evolution of the Group C Silk Cut XJR-11 ran a widened front track, wider front wheels, and wider nose bodywork with low-mounted headlights. This changed the look of the car and is worth incorporating into the model.
PDF's give me the opportunity to pack more into a single kit, too. Variations of a car can be done as separate pages or layers in each kit. The Silk Cut and "Purple" versions of the XJR-11 can be combined into a single kit. The Japanese Suntec kit will also contain the JVC car. And the Castrol XJR-10 will have both the #60 and #61 cars.
Lastly, this revised version of the models is an opportunity to create a refreshed "poster" approach to the cover art.