Creation of a new unit for OpenRA (alternative)

I'm using three programs - 3dsMax 9, Bulk Rename Utility and SHP Builder

3dsMax: we make a model with a shadow plane and sunlight, eventually also spotlights from opposite sides, if some faces get too dark;

for a usual tank, I'm using 32 cameras placed in a circle above the model clockwise; 63° from the infantry/sprite tutorial is a good angle (an example here)
if you're not using TS-like voxel barrels, it's good to make them somewhat larger; they tend to lose pixels in conversion

3dsMax rendering: first, as the tutorials mention, you need to turn off anti-aliasing, namely under the Rendering/Render Scene/Renderer and Customize/Preferences/Rendering

under Render Scene/Common Parameters I'm setting only the Output Size 420x420
the actual rendering is made by the Rendering/Batch Render function: here we Add 32 entries (or as many cameras you made) and for every one we set an output file (for the sake of simplicity, the example uses from 1 to 32.png; 24bit RGB)
if you're rendering an animated model, you have to set the output Range under Render Scene
clicking Batch Render button then creates you 32 .png's
it takes time, but a file with a preset Batch Render can be used as a template for other models
if the unit has a turret, do two renders: one for the chassis, the other for the turret; just make sure you don't overwrite the first output

Bulk Rename Utility: let's open the program and drag and drop all the .png's we've made inside, sorting them by name

under Remove we can chose the digits 0123456789; under Add/Prefix we choose the unit name; finally under Numbering we create a Suffix, starting at 0, Incr. 1, Pad 4 (important for SHP builder)
then we select all the files and Rename

bru

SHP Builder: now we can make a single .shp file from the output pictures; open the program, choose File/Import and select the first frame (name0000.png)

select the optimization; under Frame Size choose the desired frame size (e.g. infantry 50x39, mammoth tank 48x48), under Extra Settings choose Auto select background by pixel 0,0; then, click ok
use the fifth tool icon Replace Color to select the correct colors for team and shadow; beware the dark shades receiving the background color (0 in RA palette)
now we save it as SHP(TS) and put to our mod/bits