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You asked for it....

Hi guys, I'm looking forward to working with Colin and Milviz in getting this thing going! He's put a tremendous amount of work into the modeling and from what I see in the pics above it looks fantastic!

When we first discussed this project we both determined that to keep it cost effective it will have to be "pretty basic." By that, I mean no "fancy" systems will likely be included (the crosswind takeoff feature, I don't believe Captainsim has modeled the visuals for this in their external model), etc. I will take it as far as I can, but some of it will be dependent on both what can be accomplished within the limits of FSX (8 engines ??) and my level of knowledge of XML programming. To accurately program all the systems would likely take longer to complete than the 3d modeling alone, which is one reason I think Captainsim decided to release the external model now.

A plane that requires a crew of 6 or more to fly is a heck of a lot more complicated than your average Cessna 172 :icon_lol: I've just received the pilots operating manuals for the B-52 that I've purchased and combined, they come out to something like 950 pages:isadizzy: There are a lot of switches folks!

But nevertheless, at least we will finally have a great looking and at least partly functional VC to go along with a great looking B-52 :ernae:

Darrell
 
@James: I feel nor see no reason to talk to CS about our product (yet). They're not doing a VC... we are.

It is our intention to put it up for sale, more than likely on Simmarket, for between 20 and 30 bucks depending on how far Darrell takes it.

However, there are a lot of things that need to be taken into consideration in the coding of this bird... It may well be that I will contact Alex of CS and ask him to re-export the model with additional "features". We will have to see.

thanks for all the compliments. I really appreciate them.

kc
 
Darrell, my hats off to you and Colin for taking a shell and giving everyone some hope of a more complete warbird. I am certain whatever product you and Colin put forward is already 110% better then the stock 747 pit CS released with it. Anyway, the crosswind feature would be cool, but not necessary. A working FLIR/EO would be cool, but lest I digress....I certainly won't complain about anything released by your team at this point.

Matt
 
Those screenshots are fantastic! However; Darrell - dont take it too far! ;) I was hoping it would be $10-15. $20 is manageable for a VC for such a great plane. $30, however, is getting close to what one would expect for a complete airplane, not just a VC and especially not one without detailed systems. Not meant to be frustrating - I know the logistics in building something like this - its just my input.

Its looking great so far! I'll be keeping my eye on this one! :applause:

And KC, I agree with you - who cares what CS is or isnt doing or planning. This is YOUR VC for sale. A separate product. If they (or anyone else for that matter) have issue with it; you're not building it for the CS model; its just out there, and it 'just happens to work quite well with the CS model.'
 
Colin, you're making my wishes come true. Thanks for taking this on. I've been waiting for the CS B-52 since they first posted screenshots way back when but was a little disappointed when there was no VC. Now this should round things out. If you make it, I'll buy it (and the CS external model too).
 
I would also suggest keeping the VC basic. More than $20 is too much. I was expecting $15. CS have given us a work of art at great price, and it would be nice to see the VC at a great price as well.
 
Wow this is a suprise. I didn't even know we had this project going on. Looking sharp! Maybe I will consider picking up the B-52 after all since it may have a cockpit now..
 
Props to you Colin - well 8 big fans anyway, you do great work. :ernae:. I tend to agree with SolarEagle - I think if you price it much over $20 then you'll only attract the hardcore fans. It's your call of course, just my2p's worth as an interested spectator.
 
we're looking at 20 to 25 as our price range. I totally agree that we need to keep it low but, please remember that Simmarket takes a whopping 30% off for their cut...

kc
 
Great Looking Pit!

I've never been in a B-52 cockpit, can't roll the plane worth a darn, its got 8 engines and I usually want to only deal with 1, and I'm former Navy not a 'blue suiter', BUT this airplane is so appealing. KC, the cockpit looks great and I will purchase it.

As one of my hobbies, I build computers and software can be very frustrating. (In fact last week I somehow corrupted my FSX load and had to re-install.) The folks on this site that do the programming and creative work are amazing and must spend a great amount of time getting it right. Given the limited market for FSX products, I sometimes wonder how you all make ends meet. Anyway, thanks to all you talented, creative people.

What I have trouble comprehending, however, is the big slice of pie taken by what I view as a non-value added middle man!? (I will understand if this remark does not get a response.)

The efforts of the builders, painters, programmers and creators on this site is certainly appreciated.
 
rvn817j said:
What I have trouble comprehending, however, is the big slice of pie taken by what I view as a non-value added middle man!? (I will understand if this remark does not get a response.)
Click to expand...

Although I can't speak for Simmarket or any other fs vendors out there, I assume it's probably to cover the costs associated with hosting the files, etc. Not only do they have those, but also the time in dealing with the "e-commerce" side of things in receiving/processing payments, website design, issuing serial#'s, monthly payments to the developers... Countless emails from people having installation issues... I'm sure the list could go on and on :wavey:

Darrell
 
Krazycolin,

If I may comment from an accuracy point of view (since everyone else loves it, there appears to have been no-one who has seen what a real H cockpit looks like!! and because I built the AlphaSim FS9 version, I'd offer a little pointer)

Before you get too carried away, may I suggest that you pour over some more reference photos like this one:

http://www.rbogash.com/DSCF2868.JPG

because your cockpit is way TOO dark man! It needs to have a light grey background, not charcoal colour. The dark charcoal background of the panel was on the earlier Buff versions ie A-D.

Also some of the switch colours are off - some too red etc. Just minor observations. Some items like the blue and white lights/buttons? do not appear on the H (talking about the area just in front of the throttles on the main panel shot).

It looks good, but it could do with some corrective work.

Please accept this as constructive criticism from someone who vowed never to build a B-52 for FS again.

Regards,

David.
 
Hi David,

TOO LATE.... Seriously, it's all baked in but I'm thinking that there are so many B-52's (and I have been in two in the pit), that I'm pretty sure this one is close to being ok. The pit I have wasn't for an H anyway. It was a G and it's correct to the one that I was in...

As well, please remember that this isn't in FSX. These are screenshots from within Max so the "lighting" is off and it's WAY darker than it will be.

All that said, it will still be very pretty and, as close to accurate as I can make it and still keep it inexpensive.

Thanks for the crits though.

kc
 
krazycolin, there are enough variations of medium gray, dark gray to black panels in the B-52H that you can choose from. I would stay darker on the textures and even consider making the panels black. These panels below are flat black with medium gray FS(Federal Standard) paint around the walls and trim in the cockpit. I've seen more and more of the B-52H's pits colored exactly like these photos.

View attachment 28874

View attachment 28875

View attachment 28876

View attachment 28877
 
FWIW - The B-52's I've seen all had dark grey interior paneling. KC, your work looks very close to what I've observed. I've never seen a 52 with a light colored panel. I'm not saying they're not out there, but I wouldnt worry about slight coloration differences - I'm sure there are many different configurations out there. Looks great as is.

Just out of curiosity, whats the poly count of the Huey Cockpit? Just trying to get an idea of performance.
 
I was kidding about the 500K poly count. Sheesh, that would STOP FSX dead in it's tracks.

The Huey VC is about 224K or so in terms of polys. Pretty heavy and detailed. Every single knob and panel has a bevel and so it is also one of the most detailed models in FSX. This is one of the reasons I was a bit ticked with an un-named developer. That count is after taking it down from 293K when it first went on sale. Those with slow machines were getting really bad FPS so, in the first patch, I took it down.

All that said, the Buff VC will be in the 200K range. Perfect for those with slower machines... (not P-4's mind you). Because of the physical size of the cockpit (immense) and all those engines, we are talking about quite a few textures to keep everything readable.

kc.
 
KC .. a VC .. for the NZ B52 Squadrons .. :173go1: Ha who are we kidding , Im in with a Grin with the VC and costing sounds perfect to me , and with JK s (JanKee) latest paint-skin she will be a winner :salute:
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If you want the VC for the BUFF faster, better start sending love letters to Darrell.... :engel016: (meaning he's got the model now...)

kc
 
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