Simviation Forums

Hello All

I haven't been on this forum in ages until a few days ago when I got the itch the start modeling aircraft for FS again. I quit modeling aircraft to model/skin for a mod team for BF2, that got old after a year or so and turned into more of a job then a hobby. So after messing around with this and that in the evenings after work for a few months, here I am. The time I spent modeling and skinning for BF2 related stuff really taught me a lot of new things about the whole process... Or at least I would like to think it did.

I would like to stick around Simv a bit longer this time and bring some nice models to the table while I'm here. There's a lot for me to learn about getting high quality aircraft into FS9/X and when I have questions I will bring them to the experts (you guys)  :)


Anyway this is the F100D I've been working on, modeled in 3dsmax. It's still very basic with no landing gear or VC. Currrently the face count is around 4300. Crits welcome. Also let me know if I went overkill on the images.

Looks good. 8-) Welcome back.

Nice work, there!  I can't see any poly flubs or warped areas, which is really nice considering the intricacies of the aircraft.  I especially like the canopy work!  Your wireframe model also shows that the poly count is way low, which is a blessing.  My models always seem to get really poly-heavy, even though I always try to keep them down a bit.

Is that 3DS Max?

Is that 3DS Max?

Yes, it's 3dsmax 7.

The BF2 engine doesn't handle 60,000 Poly models very well so that was one thing I struggled with in BF2. After a while I got used to being limited to 3000-8000 faces for my models, and learned to squeeze as much detail as I could out of those polys.

Since my first post I've cut the gear bay's and I'm working on the doors. The rear landing gear on this plane is very awkward, not so much the gear itself but the 3 piece gear doors. Once I've worked my way down to the wheels I will update this thread with some new renders.

That is indeed some very clean and simple mesh.

I know that some feel differently, but might I urge you to take the time to UVW Map and create your basic texture sheets as you model?

Looks lovely! You could be onto a real winner.

Thanks for the comments guys.

I've browsed Simv for F100's and I've found two, but neither seem to be very high quality (no disrespect to the designers). Do you guys know of any other FSX/FS9 F100's of decent quality? Freeware or Payware, I would like to check them out if you guys know of any good ones.


@ n4gix
I understand what your saying, but I think it would really throw me out of whack if I started unwrapping the model before it's finished. I constantly tweak and adjust different parts, which I think are finished one day... But find they are totally wrong the next, as I come across better photos and diagrams.

Double post but I wanted to post an update on the Hun.

I've finished cutting the gear bay's and gear doors, hopefully I won't have to change them. The gear is 80-90% complete, I want to add a few more details to really make them look like the real thing. They are complex and I'm sure it's going to be a PITA to get them animated properly. I'm not sure how the gear retraction and extension goes since I've never found any videos showing the sequence. I also corrected a few errors with the vertical stab and the windscreen. I've redone the leading edge slats so they will look like the real deal when they extend.

Wow...This looks really nice! Keep up the good work

@ n4gix
I understand what your saying, but I think it would really throw me out of whack if I started unwrapping the model before it's finished. I constantly tweak and adjust different parts, which I think are finished one day... But find they are totally wrong the next, as I come across better photos and diagrams.

I'm not speaking of "polished UVW Maps and textures." I'm talking about spending a few minutes to create some very basic textures and UVW Mesh Maps. Enough to provide something just a bit more interesting than gray putty.

Bill

@ n4gix
I understand what your saying, but I think it would really throw me out of whack if I started unwrapping the model before it's finished. I constantly tweak and adjust different parts, which I think are finished one day... But find they are totally wrong the next, as I come across better photos and diagrams.

I'm not speaking of "polished UVW Maps and textures." I'm talking about spending a few minutes to create some very basic textures and UVW Mesh Maps. Enough to provide something just a bit more interesting than gray putty.

Bill

Why bother?  It seems as though you would only end up with UVWs that are not conforming to the actual model once its done, so why do you have them?  It just looks like you'd be wasting that time spent getting those UVWs mapped and such . . .

I think he is referring to base textures where you would have the outline of the model's surface with a few lines here and there. Am I right?

I'm not speaking of "polished UVW Maps and textures." I'm talking about spending a few minutes to create some very basic textures and UVW Mesh Maps. Enough to provide something just a bit more interesting than gray putty.

If I'm going to take the time to unwrap even one part I want it to be "polished" and complete when it's done. The grey putty may not be all that interesting but I've found it gives the best render's when used with raytracer lighting. I myself think it looks much better them some of the rainbow colored Gmax previews I've seen.

I see your point, but it just doesn't make sense to me.

I think he is referring to base textures where you would have the outline of the model's surface with a few lines here and there. Am I right?

First of all, I offered this as a suggestion, not a criticism.

I didn't take offense to your post (ok maybe just a lil bit).. I probably overreacted, it's just that unwrapping the mesh is the most dreaded point in the process for me. Thats actually what burned me out on BF2 modeling.. Unwrapping countless poorly done models with thousands of broken vertices. It seemed like I was spending more time fixing the model then I was unwrapping them.

I've now found that I need to actually pre-plan my textures as part of the initial development process, since a lot of the mesh modeling decisions will be affected by the texture sheet decisions...

I agree with you 100% on that one. It seems like I always hit a brick wall when I start unwrapping my models. I do get them finished and looking decent eventually, but the tweaking involved to get them right takes ages for me. I will take that tip to heart and keep it in mind when I start my next project.