Is there any way to change the scale of a node without scaling its children?
Literally, no. But you are probably really asking, “is there any way to scale a model without also scaling nodes that I want to move with that model”, which is a different question.
To achieve that, parent the model and the nodes that you want to follow the model (but not inherit its scale) to a common node. Then scale the model, but not the common node. But move around the common node.
Alternatively, you can load up the model, apply a scale, and then call model.flattenLight() before you attach any other nodes to it. This will permanently bake in the scale to the vertices, so that the model will retain its scale, but nodes you attach to it will not inherit the scale.
Finally, sometimes it is appropriate to introduce a counterscale. For instance, scale node A by a factor of 2.0, then scale node B (which is a child of A) by a factor of 0.5 to exactly undo the effects of the scale.
David
Thanks for your help, drwr. That works perfectly.