Vought RF-8 Crusader project, 2018

[DC1973]

DL, thanks for the info - the hump will always be shorter because the original model is split into four lengths, and to reshape the wing section to recreate the hump correctly would require reanimation of the entire wing, which I don't have enough time for, hence this simpler approximation of that area of the fuselage. I'm hoping that in the future I will have time for a more accurate representation though.

 

[delta_lima]

Ok - a bit of an better effort on my part, showing the overall "footprint", from the fwd edge of the hump the aft end, and the location of the apex of the hump. No surprise that it nearly coincides with the location of the dorsal anti-collision light.

I hope this helps. I found a picture that shows the left side of the plane, to compare against the port side screenshot. Hopefully it's a small little tweak to reflect how hard you've worked at this project.

cheers,

Daniel

Ps - good catch on Tarp's part re the flat refueling door, that was one I clearly knew about but forgot to mention earlier. We're blessed to have many eyes on this one.

And great to know about the interior vc night light maps. I'm excited to see how the new VC looks.

PPS- sorry Dean - I posted this while you posted your last note about the fuselage construction. A bummer, but I fully understand the issue of having to choose between the lesser of two evils. I suppose I'd have chosen a slight flatter profile, within the confines of the shorter footprint you had to work with - but of course, that was your call to make. The wing animation was tricky back then, and functional compromises in both Carl's original model and subsequent ports have been necessary, so I sympathise.

No worries - it'll be thoroughly enjoyed either way, and have a preeminent place in my hangar, without a doubt. And without a question, any future tweaks

 

[DC1973]

Alphasim RF-8G virtual cockpit night-lighting underway. The gauges are not night lit as standard, so some XML coding might be needed as well as LM gauge textures - will tinker with that over the coming days.

 

[delta_lima]

Nice Dean. A great deal better than the original.

Will your XML coding work in P3DV4?

cheers,

dl

 

[DC1973]

Nice Dean. A great deal better than the original.

Will your XML coding work in P3DV4?

cheers,

dl

Yes, XML coding doesn't change much between FSX and P3D, only DLL files are non-interchangeable unless altered. All Alphasim gauges for the Crusader are XML.

 

[DC1973]

It turns out that XML coding for night lighting has zero effect on already-compiled gauges, sadly. However, some careful fiddling with texture assignments is bearing some fruit, slowly but surely...

 

[Navy Chief]

Thank you, Dean, for your efforts! Looking forward to whatever improvements you make. Pete

 

[DC1973]

Thank you, Dean, for your efforts! Looking forward to whatever improvements you make. Pete

Thanks Pete! Final night map for you. This was the best compromise method, which happily also makes the HUD visible at night also. Final tasks now are fuselage bump maps and one or two colour schemes and she's done!

 

[Navy Chief]

Looks perfect to me! Pete

 

[delta_lima]

Thanks Pete! Final night map for you. This was the best compromise method, which happily also makes the HUD visible at night also. Final tasks now are fuselage bump maps and one or two colour schemes and she's done!

Hi Dean,

Looking really good indeed.

When you say “HUD”, I’m assuming you mean gunsight, yes?

There was no HUD in Crusaders.

Thx!

Daniel

 

[DC1973]

The ALPHASIM Crusader seems to have a normal Heads up Display, probably just there for convenience rather than reality. It can easily be switched off via the panel.cfg for those that would rather not have it there

 

[delta_lima]

Ok. Thx.

I had forgotten about whether the original FS9 one did or not.

Looking great Dean - appreciate the attention to the details you’re adding.

DL

 

[SiR_RiPPER]

Dean, this may be of interest: https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/vc-gauge-and-backlighting.247479/

 

[DC1973]

Dean, this may be of interest: https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/vc-gauge-and-backlighting.247479/

Brilliant, that's very interesting indeed, many thanks!

 

[DC1973]

Cracked it!!

The answer was to use a coloured night texture (LM), mapped to the $VC texture, and to assign the $VC texture the emissive setting "Multiply Blend". This brings out all the instrument gauge details while ignoring the overall VC texture map. Really chuffed that this shows up as well as it does ( this is P3D v4 ).

Just colour schemes to go now, should be released very soon.

 

[Navy Chief]

Whoa! That looks so clear! It will be even more amazing in VRNC

 

[delta_lima]

Looks superb, Dean!

Did you make the VC textures more crisp? Looks better than the default VC from memory.

You had mentioned a few other repaints, including a later/TPS era - which is awesome. The USMC VMJ birds, as well as the later era lower vis and (full TPS / low-vis) rarely get much love. To that end, will there be a paint kit? I could imagine a few repainters here might look to dip a brush or two.

cheers,

dl

 

[DC1973]

Thanks, guys,

DL - the paint kit used is the standard Alphasim / Virtavia one available on their freeware page. The VC textures are also standard - I simply created light-map versions and assigned them to the existing ones. I think that the textures just look a little sharper due to the contrast and also the rather cool back-lighting technique I discovered

I'm hoping to do about three paint schemes, including the later low-vis version, before release. Plenty of scope for repainters thereafter.

 

[jymp]

Looking good so far, like the lines of the F-8, sleek bird, the landing gear seems too weak for a carrier based fighter though in IRL.

 

[DC1973]

Two further schemes completed today - VFP-306 and VMCJ-3. Might be able to do one more next week, probably the low-vis late model, before releasing the package.