YAK-15 Feather Project

[Xpand]

I posted in the aircraft wanted section that I was making this plane, but I'll post the development here. Curiously I have no new pics to show, because I've been busy, so here are some from a few days ago...










And a bonus profile image:
http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/8011/yak15.jpg

I'm still struggling with the lack of images on some parts of the cockpit like the intrument panel's cover and gunsight strut.

[Xpand]

So I started to paint the exterior:


Long and tedious thing to do...

[hyperpep111]

That looks cool 8-). And Like your s-15 sig


[center]Ren

[Xpand]

Thanks!
I have a feeling that that sig will turn into a real FSX plane if all goes well. (though I haven't even draw the blueprints and made the calcs)...
But I'm already seeing its cockpit: The whole glass canopy turning blue with the VTOL info (Vertical speed, flaps position, etc.) Then, 4 arrows, two on each of the canopy side moving upwards showing that the VTOL mode is on. Can you imagine! Man! That would be awesome... Also, when the plane stals the canopy projected HUD turns red, when in High-G maneuvers it turns green. That's something I tried to do with the S-46 Orca but with the cockpit lighting... I couldn't because if you had the lights on, the three light colors (red,green,white) would be all active and, for example, if you had them on, the red light would disappear when you stalled instead of lighting up...

[hyperpep111]

Oh and not to be naggy. Are you resuming your awesome f-22 raptor? :-/


[center]Ren

[Xpand]

No, not likely... sorry... I just don't feel like doing every single one of the gauges exactly like the real thing and having to look up a plane that I can't even stand looking at it... It seemed like a neat idea back then... Anyways, I'll let it be in case I have a burst of willingness to make it...

[hyperpep111]

Oh well. Hope that motivation will come cause that raptor looks like a treat 8-) 8-) 8-)


[center]Ren

[Xpand]

Finished texturing (80% of the exterior, landing gear, gear wells, inner flaps and flap wells are still blank) and took it for a ride:






Another paintscheme:


Next: Cockpit...

[hyperpep111]

Oooooh this looks so cool 8-) 8-). And that's only a few days old?


[center]Ren

[Xpand]

A couple of weeks yes... Almost done with the flight dynamics. It only lacks the near ground lift and some wing effiecency stuff. It flys gorgeously...

[Xpand]

Ok, started the panel and major cockpit details. Took a while to get the appropriate info in order to make the panel exactly like in real life...

[hyperpep111]

Wow Good luck with that 8-) It's gonna be awesome

[Dickert]

Wow Xpand , that Yak looks great.  Love the detail on the landing gear.  So a question... I keep reading how very high detail slows the confuser frame rates, so how do you draw the line as to how much detail is too much?

ps.  the Yak looks great in red!

[Xpand]

Thanks!
Well, the limits to the detail are already intuitive in my case. I know my planes, when complete, have an average of 15000 to 30000 polys The (S-46N has 22k, for example). For example, the landing gear of the Yak, I tried to squeeze out as much detail as I could from a 16 side cylinder. And then there are a few simple things you can do like welding vertices together that, in normal zoom look like only one vertex. I know the YAK-15 has around 10580 polys, though there are a few polys that are going to disappear, like the ones inside the panel holes...

[Xpand]

Okay, I finished the aiming sight and started with the details around the sides of the cockpit. I'm doing this forth to back.