A good day to everbody!
A couple of months ago I got a request from our good Fibber if I could paint the propeller blades and replace the prop blurred disc on Paul Clawson's Vought SB2U Vindicator, an old conversion from a FS2002 model that can be found over at Simviation.
That model conversion is so old I couldn't do anything to it, until a discovered there's another conversion carried out by The Virtual Navy guys, available here. The "newer" VN model has a nicer 3d engine and a separate prop disc texture file, but, being a beta release, there are some heavy issues about the texture mappings.
As you can see below, I already proceeded to paint an alternative prop disc and I was able to adapt the historical #6 aircraft skin of the Marine Scout squadron which gallantly fought from Midway on June 4th, 1942. This livery belongs to the older Simviation's conversion and fits the pre-war model converted by the VN team, so it's possible to have the best of both conversions. Although this aircraft model is indeed jurassic, I think it remains a "must have", being an historical part of the Battle of Midway, but......at this point start the texturing problems.
Please, watch closely the attached screenie:
- There are two models in VN's conversions and the Midway model does not take the historical skin, but on the prewar model the solid fuselage area between the cockpit and the rear gunner canopy remains stubbornly untextured.
- The prop disc is not entirely transparent and hides some aircraft details, like the pilot/rear gunner, the swing rack and the payload hanging from it.
- 3d engine, prop blades, spinner, undercarriage legs, inner wing structure (visible when the wings are folded), tail wheel assembly and arrestor hook are untextured.
Since I remember from previous SOH cooperation conversions there are several skilled SOH members who can put their hands successfully into an mdl file, why don't we bring this historical bird up-to-current-standards, obviously as much as we can?
I can offer prop discs, adapted Midway historical skin and updated dp with exhaust effects and DBolt's US enhanced weapons.
The mdl to work with is the VN's USS Ranger pre-war model, which takes the previous conversion historical livery and has the same animation features as their Midway model. Why not work on the latter model? Because texture mappings are entirely different for the historical Midway skin and the provided livery, which also appears belonging to a latter war period.
Cheers!
KH :ernae:
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