Gmax for Dummies

  • Thread starter MustangNightFighter
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MustangNightFighter

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I'm downloading Gmax right now and I was wondering how do you use it. Are there any great tutorials for building from start to finish or at any step inbetween for CFS3? :help:
 
Mustang NF P-61. If you dedicate all your efforts to building a P-61, you would rock for all time! All of this other modelling stuff going on and still no P-61? You want an NF for the PTO? Go P-61 and watch the "husbands" drop like flies. Real radar, real canon.
 
I want to build the P-61 models A-C for every CFS3 model and the P-38M, but can't even get Gmax to work. I go to open the P-47D-25 that came with the CFS3 SDK and it dosen't show any plane... :faint:
 
Hello all of you CFS3 experts :wavey:

I think we have MNF working in gmax now ... just basic driver setup issues.

I just wanted to pop in to say you guys have amazing things going on here, pretty much over my head, but very interesting. Love the effects and action in CFS3 and wish I had a computer that could run it.

Also, we are in the final stages of a Beechcraft A28/XA38 Grizzly whose 75MM Cannon M-10 might be of interest along with the 6- .50 cal. machine guns.

Also WIP with an xp-47j for a possible June release.

The point here is that these aircraft are done in gmax and according to my reading of the CFS3 SDK, everything is very close to the same except animation frames for gear and a few naming conventions for the VC. These things can probably be changed in an hour to be compatible for a CFS3 export. Now, I know there are also other things to be added, not the least of which is the LOD's and the weapons support.

I am offering any aircraft designer here the gmax source to be converted to CFS3 if you are interested. This also goes for the Beech D18S wheels/floats/amphib versions, the Spartan Executive, and the A-26B/C.

The one big challenge may be the LOD100 model may simply be too heavy and it would then require serious surgery. I cannot say but if you have a serious gmax CFS3 designer here who would be interested in conversion, please contact me.

Have fun :wave:
 
What an offer! Thankyou Milton. There may also be issues with the textures from what I remember of fs9 butI really hope someone takes these on board. What wonderful models. :)
 
Uncle Milty's stuff is awsome, kids... The D-18 has been my all time fave in FS9 forever and it would be so very slick to have it in CFS3...:engel016:
 
OMG!!! I'd sure love to see that xp-47j in BFS3!!!
Me want Me want!

Too bad GMak scares the **** outta me!
 
Pat Pattle said:
What an offer! Thankyou Milton. There may also be issues with the textures from what I remember of fs9 butI really hope someone takes these on board. What wonderful models. :)
Click to expand...

Yes, I believe that I read CFS3 recommends or limits the number of textures to 7-9? My thoughts were that the aircraft should be remapped anyway for CFS3 to save on texture overhead and of course the new LOD's would need to be mapped as well. I think the larger issue would be to "lighten" the number of parts and polys for the grizzly. She would make an awesome tank or train buster!
 
Milton Shupe said:
Yes, I believe that I read CFS3 recommends or limits the number of textures to 7-9? My thoughts were that the aircraft should be remapped anyway for CFS3 to save on texture overhead and of course the new LOD's would need to be mapped as well. I think the larger issue would be to "lighten" the number of parts and polys for the grizzly. She would make an awesome tank or train buster!
Click to expand...

While there's not really a limit to the overall number of textures, there should be just a single main texture for the external model if you want it to work with the damage mos file.
What most do is map the major surfaces on a single 2048 sheet and map the small bits on an extra sheet.
As for polygon limits, havn't yet come across anything that CFS3 couldn't handle. For fun I've ported our FSX Fw190 over to CFS3 which is at fairly 120k faces inclusive full 3d virtual cockpit and it's smooth as silk on my nowaday midrange system.
 
For fun I've ported our FSX Fw190 over to CFS3 which is at fairly 120k faces inclusive full 3d virtual cockpit and it's smooth as silk on my nowaday midrange system.
Click to expand...

Any chance there could be a cfs3 version in the Classics Hangar shop Mathias? You've already done the hard work :) :)
 
Using any good overview introduction like the link posted by LZ, things fall into place quickly when learning gmax.

I guess it's like building a house, you must really prepare the ground and do a nice foundation before starting the framing and closing in. There are no shortcuts to anything worthwhile and complex.

I did a series of basic easy-to-use tutorials that seemed to work for those who otherwise had trouble here: http://www.flightsimonline.com/C162/

This was presented graphically step by step as the aircraft was being built. Unfortunately the original thread got lost in the SOH DB crash but all the tutes were preserved on my site.

I also did a basic gmax introduction done as a video tutorial.

Basic GMax Video Introduction:

Download the zip of the .avi file to play:
http://www.flightsimonline.com/C162/...basicintro.zip
 
Milton's Grizzly is out as a WIP:- http://www.sim-outhouse.com/index.php?lloc=downloads&loc=downloads&page=info&FileID=14069

If anyone's taking him up on the offer and is porting to CFS3, this should be a lovely bird for finishing off. More screenshots at:- http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php?t=15639

griz_3.jpg
 
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