Just Flight's Constellation question ?

[Crusader]

I was just curious why this aged old classic at Just Flight has very few repaints . I found a few over at Ox . I know the Constellation is aging a little since it came out on Just Flight but I was hoping someone would do a " Columbine " repaint of Ike's Presidential plane . We really lack repaints to this popular old AC which a lot of us still fly frequently . I even fly it in P3Dv3.1 .

Rich

 

[Daube]

That Constellation has unfortunately some very outdated graphics, especially for the external model which looks like early FS9 stuff. I never saw many screenshots of it. In fact, the simmers preferred the freeware Constellation by Manfred and his team.
From my side, I couldn't decide between the two of these. The external model of the Payware Connie prevented me from buying it, but now it's one of the default planes in P3D, so I could finally fly it. What I like about it is the complete virtual cockpit, which includes the engineer panel, thus allowing a complete start from Cold&Dark.
The last version of Manfred's Connie I tried had an incomplete VC, the engineer panel was not available or not clickable, so a Cold&Dark startup was impossible from the VC.

Perhaps there are some additional or more valid reasons, like bad paintkits or bad texture mapping (mirrored, hard to edit, etc...) or stuff like that. Potential repainters would be able to explain this much better than myself.
It's a shame because a good repaint would probably compensate for the lack of polygons...

 

[BendyFlyer]

Crusader, the issue of the basic JF model and graphics is one issue. The other is that it does not perform or behave like a real Constellation did or would have. The Manfred Jahn and Teams Connie is simply better in model design, accuracy and operational fidelity. There are a number of upgrades available via the various sim sites to the VC and while the Engineer panel is not clickable via the VC you can pull up an icon and have the whole panel to operate, which by the way you need to do as this was a hideously complicated beast to operate in real like and that in particular refers to the engines and their operation. With the addition of camera views etc you can quite easily bring up the Connie to a very high standard indeed. The JF model is a dog. I bought it, tried it, then compared it to the Jahn Connie and deleted it from my system.

 

[Daube]

Is manfred's model still a FS9 model ? Or was it updated to native FSX ?
I was thinking about merging the Manfred's external model and flight model with the JustFlight's VC...

 

[BendyFlyer]

Is manfred's model still a FS9 model ? Or was it updated to native FSX ?
I was thinking about merging the Manfred's external model and flight model with the JustFlight's VC...

The Jahn model was udated for FSX but it is not a true FSX beast but that does not matter as far as I can see, the model and systems work fine. As for merging the JF with the Jahn model I do not think this can be done, the models are different.

 

[BendyFlyer]

Here a couple of screenshots to help you.

Jahn 749 in Qantas colours:


Now the VC with additional windows for the GPS and Captain Sim Wx Radar:


Wing view for the EC121:



Wing view for the 749:



These are all easily made modifications and work really well.

 

[Daube]

The Jahn model was udated for FSX but it is not a true FSX beast but that does not matter as far as I can see, the model and systems work fine. As for merging the JF with the Jahn model I do not think this can be done, the models are different.

If it's still a FS9 model then it's not possible to merge the JF cockpit in Manfred's model, because this works only with full native FSX models.
Another problem is that I'm using P3Dv3.1. FS9 planes are displayed much better than in FSX (no transparency issues, like props behind clouds or anything like that... and cockpit shadows work), but they loose the clickability of the 2D switches. That means that Manfred's Connie will be even less usable than in FSX :/

 

[BendyFlyer]

If it's still a FS9 model then it's not possible to merge the JF cockpit in Manfred's model, because this works only with full native FSX models.
Another problem is that I'm using P3Dv3.1. FS9 planes are displayed much better than in FSX (no transparency issues, like props behind clouds or anything like that... and cockpit shadows work), but they loose the clickability of the 2D switches. That means that Manfred's Connie will be even less usable than in FSX :/

I accept that is the case but I only use FSX and I am not contemplating going over to P3D even though I agree it is a superior product but I have too much stuff integrated into FSX to migrate a lot of it.

 

[TeiscoDelRay]

For me the JF Connie will always be the one. Here is one of the paints I did for JF many years ago for their Exapansion Pack "C".

 

[Roger]

For me the JF Connie will always be the one. Here is one of the paints I did for JF many years ago for their Exapansion Pack "C".

Well Paul,

I'm encouraged to buy the expansion packs seeing your screen shot. I like Manfred's Connie but at dusk it becomes transparent, plus the JF vc is more detailed.

 

[BendyFlyer]

To not stray from the original question re paints, JF paint kits and models have a reputation for being difficult to do repaints with and for, not impossible, but they present a number of problems that a lot of very skilled and masterful repainters, like Jan Kees for instance, find them not worth doing for that reason, so thats why not so many paints also because I am sure JF have a heap of copies of the Connie out there. Then there is the issue of variants is it a 69 or a 749 or a 1049, G, H, EC121, see and they are all different aircraft visually. It is clear that the uptake has been for the Jahn model and that it is the most popular and there are heaps of paints for them especially if you can convert a 2004 across to FSX. I have not not been able to find a paint for the airline or op of my choice and that includes EC121 in Vietnam War era camouflage. Coupled with some of the available sound sets and you have a great model. Sure a lot of the VC is not clickable but the graphics are fine especially with some of the VC upgrades and the systems are very accurate indeed.

I tried the Abacus Connie first ages ago and then replaced it with JF Connie. The Abacus was very ordinary and had a terrible plastic feel to it, the JF Connie was ok as the 749 but the EC121 was completely out in terms of nose and cockpit sections and all of them had wheels that were too big and not in the correct proportion. The Jahn model has some nice touches like the airstairs.

 

[TeiscoDelRay]

"JF paint kits and models have a reputation for being difficult to do repaints with and for, not impossible, but they present a number of problems that a lot of very skilled and masterful repainters, like Jan Kees for instance, find them not worth doing for that reason,"

That is what I found when I painted the six liveries for the Just Flight Connie Pack "C". The fuse is in several parts (six if I remember) and you had to make it all line up of course. Seemed like it took forever to paint them but I loved doing it and I am always up for a challenge, and as I am just a working painter I will take on some projects that the "very skilled and masterful repainters" will pass by.

Link to Pack "C" http://www.justflight.com/product/constellation-professional-expansion-pack-c