Hi guys!
This is a very preliminary work on a soft top jeep;
Attachment 13072
It was done more than a month ago and I hope that, by publicly showing where I am, it will give me the proverbial kick in the a$$ I need to restart the "flow of creativity".
My efforts were stopped by a stupid accident that could have killed me, but (unfortunately some will say...) didn't. Ask Ivan for details.
The wound is mostly healed and only lazyness keeps me from getting back on the saddle.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hi H; I am using your jeeps in cfs2, they put the stock jeep to shame! A rag top would be nice. Thanks for the great model.:salute:
I take it you will have some provision for putting textures on the canvas top? Will it be doing anything that isn't obvious?
Looks Good!
- Ivan.
BTW, That sure was a fancy way of stabbing yourself in the back!
Since the windshield can no longer fold, I'm thinking of having the window lift upward. But apart from that possible "movement", nothing special.
The jeep was, after all, designed first with the idea of creating a "follow-me" vehicle, so the top was always in the back of my mind. The .50 cal model was a "en passant" construction.
And, yes, the top will be painted...:mixedsmi:
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
it's coming along rather very nicely...
now, quit
and get 'er done...
all joking aside,
the jeep is a fantastic piece of work. :salute:
well done!!!
I am also very pleased to see
that it has been noticed
and used over at CFS2.
sometimes the magic works.
sometimes it doesn't.
Today, I worked for about three hours on the project, but nothing worth showing.:redf:
The folding windshield it took me days, weeks, to build and tweak is gone. The headache for the removal is not as strong as the one for building it, but it is there!
Now that I'm back on the saddle, let's hope the horse won't buck!
Tonight, we're going to see the last Harry Potter movie. I just hope I won't be thinking of my next move while watching Hermione, Ron and Harry chasing the hoxcruxes.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hey Hubbabubba,
Over the last few days, I have spent many hours working on drawings and templates and such and not created more than about 4 polygons for a project. Plenty of work, but not much to show yet....
I know the feeling.
- Ivan.
Yesterday evening, I made polygons to "extend" the top on the sides. Although it will be textured-over, it must give the impression of cloth stretching near the supporting arches poles and sagging in-between. Well... let's just say that it needs to be redone.
But this is part of the "fun"; experimentation -> failure -> re-experimentation -> re-failure -> headaches -> re-re-experimentation -> re-re-failure -> bigger headaches (put as many iterations as you want HERE) -> solution -> elation.
The "elation" is the fun part btw...
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
:salute:Hello!
Sides are done to my satisfaction. The stretching-draping effect along the poles is looking okay. The stretching between the center and aft main pole is pretty straight but, after examining all the pictures I could find, thats the way it is. Sagging was only evident between the windshield and middle pole. Texturing should, I hope, do the rest.
Attachment 25221 The idea here is to give the basic polygons a "textile look" as much as possible before applying the painted texture. No so easy with triangles...
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hi Hubbabubba,
The top looks pretty good. Texturing this thing I am sure will be fun. If you were doing this in AF99, I would ask how, but with SCASM, there probably aren't the same silly issues.
- Ivan.
Hi Ivan,Originally Posted by Ivan
I had to think really way back to remember how painful AF99 texturing was... yeah:isadizzy:!
Not that texturing in SCASM is a "walk in the park" but, if you look at my textures for the jeep as an example, you are not limited at up/down - front/aft - right/left for one element. The same "component" (I use the term loosely as it makes little sense in SCASMing) can be textured in many different ways. I don't only mean the direction of the texture projection, but also the rendering (smooth/hard), the color (FS or CFS style), even the transparencies or luminosity.
Yeah... AF99 was very restrictive and was not taking advantage of the improvements made between FS5 and CFS1 texture-wise.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
I don't know that I find AF99 texturing particularly difficult. It is tedious, but not really all that difficult. The 256 x 128 pixel limitation is a pain but you have the same even within SCASM. Yes, there are more limitations such as the constant scale which you don't have in SCASM.....
- Ivan.
Something worth showing;
Attachment 32887 The folded poles are gone. The rear of the canvas is in place. The new extended poles are in the making. I had to research a bit before going further; there are four or five different ways summer top were made. I've chosen a "classical" style; top and rear are sewed together permanently. Contrary to what Ivan has accustomed us to, the exterior is one color only. The reason is simple; different colors are useful to find bleeds - which was done before - but stands in the way of judging if light reflections are OK. As I will be using transparencies, shaded polys have to be restricted (transparency doesn't work on them), so simple polys "well draped" must do their best to look like fabric.
Another important step was made;
Attachment 32888 In previous pictures, the top was a one big component showing last. Now it is a series of smaller components attached from front to rear as shown by the yellow lines. The red line shows the "frontier" between the main jeep and the top, where the "glue-like" command changes showing order. They're still a few bleeds, but nothing I can't get rid of.
I also have to think how I will implement the windshield movement.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hi Hubbabubba,
I see you have the top in the "Canopy / High Wing" section of AF99.
Just kidding.
It does look pretty good. Now since you mentioned the windshield movement, what will THAT do?
For folks who don't do this kind of work, I can tell you that in AF99, adjusting shapes, flipping the craft around in the sim and going back to adjust some more is a serious amount of labour to really get things right. I would imagine that doing this in SCASM is much MORE work!
:salute:
- Ivan.
You had me with that one Ivan, for an instant, I thought "He's he gone mad???".:mixedsmi:I see you have the top in the "Canopy / High Wing" section of AF99.
When the top was on, the only way to fold the windshield was up. But you won't find many picture of that;Now since you mentioned the windshield movement, what will THAT do?
Attachment 33042The reasons why are quite obvious. In a summer top configuration, you had plenty of air coming from the sides. In a winter configuration with side panels, you could "roll" the doors' panels. If, like in this picture, you just opened slightly the inner frame, the two "slider-like" fixations were acting like steel daggers pointing to your face or the face of the front seat passenger. So, why not take the five minutes to remove the top and fold the entire windshield on the hood?
In "my" jeep, I will have the inner frame go all the way up in a one shot motion using the spoiler key... or not at all.
Anyone's takes on that will be appreciated while I'm working on thatwindshield...
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hubba, I will take it now, no need to finish it!
Looks great, but what else would you expect from the " Barbarian"
Gunna have to get our " Wizard" to make you some scrape sounds as that sucker bottoms out going over a hill at 65 mph.
Great Work
Dave www.thefreeflightsite.com
Now, the top and rear parts are done, poles included;
Attachment 33048You will notice some red from the inner section. I did that to verify for bleeds. What is less obvious is the work on the joint between top and rear panel;
Attachment 33049There was a dent at the internal junction and a slight bleed of the front sides panels through the lower rear. So I added parts to the junction to "stretch" it over the back pole and added a back panel associated with top section. But there is still one place that needs work;
Attachment 33050The internal back and sides are bleeding through the windshield and wipers. Here comes the decision; moving or not moving windshield?
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
here's my "takes";You had me with that one Ivan, for an instant, I thought "He's he gone mad???".:mixedsmi:
When the top was on, the only way to fold the windshield was up. But you won't find many picture of that;
Attachment 33042The reasons why are quite obvious. In a summer top configuration, you had plenty of air coming from the sides. In a winter configuration with side panels, you could "roll" the doors' panels. If, like in this picture, you just opened slightly the inner frame, the two "slider-like" fixations were acting like steel daggers pointing to your face or the face of the front seat passenger. So, why not take the five minutes to remove the top and fold the entire windshield on the hood?
In "my" jeep, I will have the inner frame go all the way up in a one shot motion using the spoiler key... or not at all.
Anyone's takes on that will be appreciated while I'm working on that
as usual, you workmanship is incredible
and your attention to detail is superb. :salute:
please do not be offended,
but i have to say,
that you and Ivan take
anal retentive to a whole new level.
far be it for me to say,
that the minute details that you
both tear your hair out over,
would, most likely, not be noticed
by most of us.
the point is,
you spend your time fretting over and redoing minuscule discrepancies
that are unnoticeable, except when you point them out.
i completely understand the whys and wherefore's,
and that this is your hobby.
if you could only see the tedious switch parts
i am building from scratch,
you would see that i do understand.
but jeez, from a purely selfish point of view,
how long have i been waiting for a decent A-20?
heck, i even tried to build one myself,
to no avail.
patience may be a virtue,
but i will probably be dead
before i see one,
let alone, fly the damn thing.
there you have it,
that's my takes.
she is fantastic,
i commend you for a job well done.
or should i say,
almost done.
sometimes the magic works.
sometimes it doesn't.
Hey Smilo,
The A-20 is a VERY easy aircraft compared to the Dornier 17Z I am also working on. I haven't given up on the Dornier, but it is one seriously TEDIOUS plane to work on. That is why I take so many breaks from it.
I won't try to speak for Hubbabubba, but here is what generally drives me:
This is a hobby for me. I have never made any money from it and I doubt I ever will. I do this for enjoyment and to work on moderately challenging tasks as a change of pace from what I do for a living. When working on one problem becomes too draining, I switch topics. I don't work very efficiently because the only times I have to work are those left over when everything else is done. Generally it is between 11:00 PM and 3:00 AM. I don't do this for recognition or to see my work distributed widely. If I were concerned about that, I would probably release a lot more stuff and upload my projects to many different sites but this is the only place I have ever uploaded anything.
At one point, I was very interested in releasing my designs for everyone to play with. I don't consider that very important any more because of the many times I have seen stuff I have built end up pirated and uploaded as part of someone else's package. That can be really discouraging.
I still build stuff, but I work on whatever I feel like and if something gets completed to the point where I don't see any significant problems, I will release a new airplane. Hubbabubba once asked me as a joke what my motto was. I told him it was, "As Real as I can make it." and this is what really determines when something is finished. I don't release anything unless I am satisfied. Because of this, even though YOU can't see that little bump or dent in the contours, *I* know it is there and have to make an effort to remove it. If I don't, then I can't say I have done my best work.
I also work on CFS planes as a learning experience. There are a lot of times I will read through old NACA reports so that I can understand how things work. For someone who is aware of what I am working on or is interested in the results of a project, this can be aggravating. (Isn't that right, Smilo?) Basically, I am generally working on whatever interests me the most at the time.
Pardon me for being so long winded.
- Ivan.
I could almost say ditto.
Like Ivan, I'm not building for others. This is, in fact, a very selfish enterprise. Some like flying and killing each others, virtually I mean, with the game. I like building for it.
But you know, smilo, that, unlike Ivan, I decided to join the "on-line" community and took the Joint-Ops course and then went to AAC, and then... you know pretty much the rest.
The reason was, again, very selfish; I wanted to know what people flying the game actually were looking for. But as I was almost forced to get back to the AAC as it was in danger of sinking, I found myself in the company of gentlemen I came to be attached to; Minuteman and you, OB!
You were, and still are, one of the best guy I ever met. Your no-nonsense approach to the game gave me a fresh perspective and, because of it, I started doing things for the multiplayer community. I don't complain as, as I see it, the future of CFS1, if there is one, is in MP games.
But, probably without knowing it, you are one of the main reason that kept me away from aircraft-making! The time I spent creating land and sea "targets" was time away from a/c, so was AAC Ripe.
So, I will make you a promise, smilo; keep in good health and you will fly a British Boston III over the Low-Countries before long.
But patience, my old friend, patience.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
thank you gentlemen for the confirmation
and especially for not getting irritated with my comments.
i have the utmost respect for both of you
and take great delight in watching the progress of your projects.
as far as i'm concerned, you are both masters of the craft
and stand on par with the best developers CFS1 has seen.
it is true that i do get frustrated,
but to be honest, it is more with myself.
i feel that i could create a quality aircraft,
if only i could keep focused on the task at hand.
i always seem to somehow get sidetracked
and never finish anything.
my life is filled with projects in various stages of completion.
many haven't even made it past the thought process,
many others past the drawing board.
and then there are those laying around
that will never be finished.
now, as i've said before, i am working on physical controllers.
i already have a flaps, gear and spoiler levers,
and a separate teamspeak push to talk button.
my current project is an auto-pilot array
with 4 knobs that push to toggle ALT, HDG, VS and AS on/off.
these knobs will also increase when twisted clockwise
and decrease when twisted counterclockwise.
i could go out and buy these knobs,
but they are about $20US each.
way to much for an old tight wad like me.
then, there will be the push buttons for MASTER, APR, NAV and BC.
after that is finished, it will be COM1, NAV1 and ADF radios.
small wonder i'm only slightly crazy.
oops...sorry Hubba,
i've hijacked your thread...again. :redf:
sometimes the magic works.
sometimes it doesn't.
I call it the "mental cramp". Simply not feeling up to it. A bit like the writer's "blank page" syndrome.it is true that i do get frustrated,
but to be honest, it is more with myself.
i feel that i could create a quality aircraft,
if only i could keep focused on the task at hand.
i always seem to somehow get sidetracked
and never finish anything.
my life is filled with projects in various stages of completion.
many haven't even made it past the thought process,
many others past the drawing board.
and then there are those laying around
that will never be finished.
Others are (the list is by no means complete btw...);
The "snag"; technical difficulty that needs some thinking before tinkering.
The "dead end"; doing something, sometimes for months, realizing it won't work.
The "what's next"; as many avenues to go on are open, trying to figure out those that are potentially "dead ends".
The "you have reach maximum possible size", only happened to me once since I switched to SCASM with St-Leu d'Esserent monastic church;
Attachment 33084And only a handful of AAC players, and Ivan, have seen it. The orchard on the right is in need of apple trees and the hole thing should be elevated. Loss of time? Not in my book! This was a learning experience that has been useful for the jeep and will serve me with the Harvard MkII and, eventually, a Boston MkIII.
The "research phase"; the Taifun came to live after two years of intensive research. The jeep took me about three months. It is always an ongoing process.
And this list does not include "real life" things that keeps you away from the PC like illnesses, death of a relative, household chores, ....
Not at all smilo. In fact, I appreciate any comments you have to make. Same thing for others; I would appreciate any inputs you may have (just stay polite!:violentoops...sorry Hubba,
i've hijacked your thread...again. :redf:.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Sorry, Hubba ( the Barbarian) the" members of the round table" have no available seats left for a member called "frusrated". I will be happy to take that project off your hands.( the Castle) I know what You and Ivan , and others work on. All the while attemptng to make everthing perfect...that will drive most people to drinking.
So I say to you, Grab a Beer or drink of your choice and "les bon temp rouler"
Ya'll stay safe and have a great weekend ( whats left of it )
Dave
Hello
Since my last post, a few things have changed...Attachment 33245... the back and internal sides of the jeep no longer bleed through the windshield. I copied/pasted the upper part of it (from under the windows to the top) in the top section. Ivan uses this method quite frequently in his models. If I don't make the "openable" windshield, it may well stay that way. The top colors have changed too; they are more in tune with actual canvas that were in the sand/khaki tones. I did that simply to reduce the weird looks of models when, for a second, they're loading textures in a sudden change of perspective.
The poles are now textured...Attachment 33246... recycling the old ones. This is a case of "thinking before tinkering"; poles, if you have followed this thread from the start, were integrated from the start, at first simply to "hang" the canvas on them. Using a special texturing command, I was able to stretch the horizontal poles of the texture BMP along the narrow poles canted right and left at angles. The joints between the different sections of the poles are seamless (5). For your benefit, I have left the back section attached to the rear box in green (4). The poles are textured inside and out, except for the external sections under the canvas (1 & 3). One of the toughest part was the junction of the main back and front poles (2). These are made by 5 layers of textures arranged in sequence. An 8 vertices part that was inflated to 24 on both sides! But the end result is quite satisfactory; not a perfect match to the real thing, but close enough. The internal poles are textured...Attachment 33247... with the same piece of BMP and, being close to the gamer, they had to be perfect. The same technique as for outside poles was used. The bitmap sections used were "cut" approximately to maintain the density (I discovered that long sections covered by short bitmaps were thinning to the point of showing transparencies!). It doesn't have to be to the pixel. As far as I can remember, AF99 paint tool only does rectangular application, so to get a canted pole like mine, you had to draw it canted. With a 256x256 pixel texture, the poles would look jagged with the pixel constraint.
While I'm still juggling with the "windshield question", I will try texturing the rest of the top.
Torture numbers and they'll say anything.
Hubbabubba, Touche à tout.
Hello Hubbabubba,
As expected, the Jeep looks great. I had to read your post over and over again to figure out exactly what you did, but it does make sense in a way. (I don't do my final assembly in SCASM, so I don't hit the same issues.) No argument about SCASM offering lots more possibilities. Personally, I am just not ready to go there yet.
There are a couple things I see and these really qualify as nit-picking:
In your second screenshot, I see just above the number 3 what looks like a mismatch of vertices of all the polygons that come together at that point.
Also in the second screenshot, I see (and I don't know if this is intentional) above the back of the driver's seat and just below the serial number on the windshield frame what looks like a small gap between the windshield frame and the dash.
- Ivan.
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