Released - New freeware MD-83 by Alrot

[deathfromafar]

A very nice model.. thank you.

Question?

What are the black bars on the undercarriage? I've seen them before but never thought to question what exactly they are. They seem to be a thing of all MD's and DC9's.
Sorry of a stupid Q..

FOD Shields. Keeps small debris from being thrown against the bottom of the plane/up into the engine intakes.

[Naismith]

Thank you! Figured it may be something like that.

[AusWilko]

Ah, it's out

Downloading now.. Thanks :ernae:

[dougal]

This is simply the donkey's wotsits!

STUNNING!

THANK YOU!

[Bjoern]

Thanks for the MD, Alrot!

[Bjoern]

Redid the brown VC textures. I prefer "noisy" textures over ones with gradients.




Will see if I can find a replacement for the ADI tomorrow.

[Daube]

Noisy texture are good, they give a more consistent look to the material, in my opinion.
However, in this shot, you're still lacking a little bit of shadow (painted on the texture). Because of that, the impression of volumes is not so good.
I discussed this same exact issue with Alejandro when he first completed his VC. The shadows were missing, and once he added them, the VC was looking so much better.

[Bjoern]

However, in this shot, you're still lacking a little bit of shadow (painted on the texture). Because of that, the impression of volumes is not so good.

Painted on instrument shadows?

Unnecessary, since shadows are either to be rendered by the sim depending on lighting conditions or not. Painted on is simply too static for my taste.

I've by the way also toned down the chrome on the switches.The default texture Alrot used is a tad too strong.


- Edit: Just in case anyone's bored and wants to paint...

http://www.planespotters.net/Product...erator.php?p=1

[Daube]

Painted on instrument shadows?

Unnecessary, since shadows are either to be rendered by the sim depending on lighting conditions or not. Painted on is simply too static for my taste.

I'm not referrring to the shadow that is cast on the instruments by the surrounding cockpit body like what we get with DX10. I'm more referring to this kind of smooth shadowing caused by ambiant occlusion.

[AusWilko]

Just thought I drop in and say I am enjoying the heck out of flying this plane, very much a fun plane and would love more paints for it.

[Bjoern]

I'm not referrring to the shadow that is cast on the instruments by the surrounding cockpit body like what we get with DX10. I'm more referring to this kind of smooth shadowing caused by ambiant occlusion.

You mean a shadow from the glareshield and stuff?

Might or might not be worth the effort.



P.S:
Couldn't find a suitable replacement for the ADI so far.

[Bjoern]

I *did* find an ADI replacement after all; had to modify one from an ATR. Save for the radar alt ground proximity indicator on the right, it's much more accurate now.

Don't ask about the color of the bezels, I took them from Lonny Payne's FS9 panel for the Super 80.







One small thing that's bugging me is the volt meters only reacting to the APU and not the generators. Alrot must've hardcoded them into the overhead, since I can't find anything related to them in the panel.cfg.

Also, the engine deice and the brake pressure indicator don't work. The former is hardcoded into the model as well.


Other than that, this is one of the best planes this year!

[Daube]

Strange, I haven't noticed the problem with the generator voltage...
I will make some tests tonight.

[Bjoern]

By the way: Is there a layered paintkit somewhere?

The blank textures are good, but require a ton of work to get them "paint ready".

[iheart707]

Congrats to the whole team on your hard work! This plane will be a "must have" for years to come.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
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For those who are interested, I wrote up a small and fair 2,099 word review that helps to prove why you deserve a 9/10.<o></o>
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http://chicagoflightsfsx.com/modules...owcontent&id=4<o></o>
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Thanks again for all the effort that went into this project! This truly is a great airplane to fly.<o></o>

[Daube]

Very good review in fact !
The Fixes section is also quite interesting

[Bjoern]

Nice review; enjoyed reading it!

The -83 is my current ride of choice for longer legs.

I just wish there were more repaints or at least a layered paintkit.

[iheart707]

Thanks, I really tried to be critical but fair on this review. Everyone who worked on this plane did a fantastic job. The MD-83's are truly an aviation relic.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
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I'm sure when you're modeling airplanes; it can become easy to forget some things here and there. I hope that the fixes are actually fixed in the future (Like the fuel gauge)....<o></o>
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If not, we can live with it!<o></o>