Warped 9, did you happen to see this?
http://io9.com/5987223/how-one-man-r...-in-the-movies
It's an article on the Freide, and while it's a bit light on the modelmaker, it does have some background information and large pics (click on them to enlarge).
I didn't know if you were going to go back to that model, but it's certainly interesting reading!