Backlit Gauges in the S2F Stoof

tgycgijoes

tgycgijoes

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Need some expert advice like Mike71. Were the gauges in the S2F and family lit red or white for night flying. After a few hours work this afternoon I found out how to do my new VC of an S2G panel for the TS-2A at KNGP here is how it is white light. Didn't see anything in the NATOPS but I may have missed it.Properly lit panel.jpg
 
All of the gauges are from different sources so I'm afraid that I can't share this panel. Sorry. You can download the original G7-S2F which Milton Shupe and his team created for FS9 and then it was modified for FSX native that has a really nice panel he did backlit like this I believe here at the SOH.
 
In that era, gauges were lit with red "peanut lights" - the little dust pan covers you see at the corners of instruments of that era could actually be twisted off and a bulb replaced in flight - I always had a couple in my flight suit just in case. To the best of my memory, red lighting had no intensity control in planes I am familiar with.

However, planes also had thunderstorm lights, usually a cylinder-type object with a rheostat knob at the back, and located above a side console etc to shine directly on the panel as needed. I often turned mine up just slightly to eliminate shadows etc. The A-4 series had two, one on each side.

We also carried a "gooseneck" 90 deg flashlight with a spring clip on the back. We carried it snapped over the chest strap of our torso harness. The lens cover could quickly be changed from clear to red as desired. More than a few pilots came aboard using the flashlight if they had some lighting problems.
 
I remember the "gooseneck" flashlights very well. The Navy ones were gray and the other services OD plastic. In CIC we used the "red" lens so that we did not ruin our scope vision. I saw the peanut lights you mentioned but I will probably "backlight" the gauges red because I would go insane in MDCx trying to attach effects with the object placer in every one of them for every gauge. (Don't let anyone know I cheated, LOL). Not that it's not common knowledge posted here. thanks Mike71. When I was commanding my Sea Cadet unit on summer trainings with ships or squadrons, we all had Mini Maglights with a lens kit that included the red lens I used it many nights on the bridge on a mid watch on Lake Michigan where we normally trained in our ex-USCGC MacLane. That was a real piece of history. Built in 1925, she was 125 foot, twin diesel. I had the XO's cabin (our required Great Lakes Captain had the CO's.) The bunk was teak with a drawer underneath, not the gray steel of later years. She was finally scrapped in 2000. She had two Japanese flags painted on her bridge for two a/c she shot down with her single 40 mike mike in 1943 in the Pacific in WWII. She chased down rum runners from Canada during the Roaring Twenties in Chicago. She had quite an exciting life! I remember just reading about the "storm lights" in the NATOPS and may see how to make a gauge to shine on the panel with a switch. The gauges I make I CAN share because they are my originals.
 
Tinkered a little more tonight. I found a fantastic free gauge by Lorby of his flashlight which when you read the manual is really cool. I didn't know P3D had an avatar which I have to figure out how to walk around for exterior inspections. Anyway, the flashlight can be used as a spot (flashight) or flood which I think makes a good storm light. Here is a screenshot with the new red gauges. The Lorby Flashlight has white, red and green lenses you can switch on the fly. Way cool! Google it.storm light and red lit gauges.jpg
 
Lookin' good - the FSLabs spotlight system might be useful as well. Someone here clued us in back awhile ago to solve the horrible VC lighting that exists in most planes. I just started using it and it is terrific.

Speaking of nostagia, I agree about flashlights. The spare lens was held in the bottom of the handle where you unscrew the cap to get out the D-cell batteries. There was a false cover to hold the lens.
 
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The "Stoof" series was typical of that era, later on planes started having backlit gauges but still red in most cases. The A-6 series was one exception in that the big VDI display was a soft green / white/ black tone for night ops. Its intensity could be adjusted though.
 
I looked at FSLabs but when I found Lorby for free instead of a license fee, I opted for that instead besides being able to use it outside for exterior inspection if I want to be really virtual and not start flying with it "already done". Especially when I am flying the ERJ's. Gonna fly FCLP right now TTYL.

Richard
 
Screwed up my views assigning controls to the avatar in P3D so I just went back to default and all is ok with the views now. Wasn't really crazy about how he acted anyway. He just slewed didn't actually walk like figures in GSX or certainly like games so I don't need him.
 
I went back into the S2F Stoof NATOPS manual and I can see the "peanut light" now on each gauge. I am going to check out the bmps in the gauges I have installed and if it not going to be an insanity project, I am going to create a bmp for them in my drawing program that I use to create all the gauge bmps for gauges I create and then add them where they are supposed to go. Also, I remembered "back in the day" when Milton and the G7 team created all of these that he has a folder in the panel folder for changing white to red lighting. Opened it up and I am redoing my "red" lighting like he has it. I'll post results here of my effort of at least the new red lighting if not added peanut lights.
 
I reworked all the red "peanut lighting" for the TS-2A panel using the way that Milton and the crew red lit the G7's back in FS9/FSX days. I chose NOT to add the actual peanut lights because it would entail way too much work with the panel already created so as Cody says: "It is what it is". I like it. If you are going to download and use any of the G-7 Aircraft in P3D V4.5 from the downloads here on the forum like the link I shared above, you have an option to have red gauge lighting just like this on the original panels. Now as soon as I "graduate" from PRIMARY in the T6-Texan II I can talk about orders for multi-engine training at NAS Corpus Christi while my training partner starts to train in Dino's T45 Goshawk. Got some hours to go yet though with aerobatics and Instrument Flight yet to come.TS-2A Panel with Peanut Lighting.png
 
I took a look at possibly redoing the panel bmp's for the VC of the pilot and copilot but after a half hour's work or so I decided that this panel is just fine and it is as accurate as I could make it from the NATOPS manual I have for the S2D, E, F and G matching the gauges with other gauges from that time from different aircraft and even made a few myself.
 
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