The Newbie and Short Questions thread

[Gubaba]

Lol, I didn't mean it to come off that way. The way I framed it follows my line of reasoning when I usually talk about people's rights...

I guess the less cynical way would be for me to say "the efforts and work of every Macross production should be treated as important and unique contributions to the franchise."

Yes, that does sound more positive!

[sketchley]

EDIT: And yeah, what Sketchley said about the soft g.

Whut? Didn't say nuttin' about no soft Gees in the hood. Maybe Tochiro said it?

The only thing I was thinking about saying is something about Hepburn and the difference between how Kanto and Kansai people pronounce the う.

Official romanizations, I think, work against translating dialogue. For example, we have terrible things like Vrlitwhai, which is just the Japanese trying to make things look weird, alien, and hard to say. Translate the kana, you get bu-ri-tai -> Britai.

I think we should get the benefit of attempting to say the names in way that would at least resonate with the spoken Japanese....

Even though I know very little Japanese, I'll invoke "Hannou Heiki's Britai Rule" : Official romanization is discarded in favor for the romanization of the kana. From there a "resonate" english equivalent is produced.

Just romanize everything in Hepburn. It mitigates a whole bunch of headaches! (see my sig for details. My translations for examples).

[HannouHeiki]

Sketchley,

I have a lot of appreciation for the way you translate things. Although it isn't what I would call a "localized" translation, your simple and straightforward method gives me a sense of connection with the original Japanese. Like you said, it avoids a lot of headaches...and questions and opinions on how names and terms should be "localized" becomes a discussion that is outside and separate from your translations.

For someone like myself who doesn't know effective Japanese, it gives me a sense of direct connection to the original material that I otherwise couldn't have. It especially helps with Zentradi and alien katakana words, because it helps me learn how things are said the way the Japanese pronounce them. For example, If a listener doesn't have an "ear" for Japanese, there is no way for them to know that "Gnerl" is being pronounced "Jinaro" (or whatever) instead of "nerl."

[Einherjar]

So, I might be working on something by the start of 2015. I didn't get to read up on Macross the First for a couple of years, but I am really curious what has been revealed so far about Gina Bartrow's character?

[GundamSFS]

I've got a few questions imy head for quite some time now, so I'll just ask them now lol:

1. Is there a reason behind YF-29 and Alto having golden aura in Sayonara no Tsubasa?

2. Is Richard Birler (owner of SMS) connected with the SDF-1 crew somehow, since he has a photo of Lynn Minmay in his ring and all?

3. The general consensus is that the best pilot (skill wise) in Macross Universe is Max?

4. Which is the best fighter, performance wise?

Edited January 8, 2015 by GundamSFS

[Gubaba]

Question 1, there's probably no good answer. Just artistic license.

2, well... The world was nearly wiped out... I think quite a few survivors had a connection to the SDF-1. But even if he didn't, Minmay was a huge star, so pictures of her should have been pretty easy to come by.

3. Max himself says that Basara is the better pilot of the two.

4. It depends on what type of mission you need it for.

[GundamSFS]

Correct me if I'm wrong as I haven't watched M7 yet, but I thought Basara only fights using his song?

[JB0]

I thought Max said Basara was ALMOST as good as him.

Either way, it's close.

Unless we consider teamwork to be a part of skill.

[azrael]

Correct me if I'm wrong as I haven't watched M7 yet, but I thought Basara only fights using his song?

Basara pilots his VF, performing high-G maneuvers, while singing. And he does it almost effortlessly. You may want to watch M7 as this point is mentioned several times.

[Gubaba]

Basara pilots his VF, performing high-G maneuvers, while singing. And he does it almost effortlessly. You may want to watch M7 as this point is mentioned several times.

He's also an excellent shot.

[GundamSFS]

Basara pilots his VF, performing high-G maneuvers, while singing. And he does it almost effortlessly. You may want to watch M7 as this point is mentioned several times.

Now that you mention it, I get why Basara's badass lol.

[Seto Kaiba]

1. Is there a reason behind YF-29 and Alto having golden aura in Sayonara no Tsubasa?

I don't think anything has been definitively identified as the reason... but the most likely culprit is the fighter's fold wave system.

2. Is Richard Birler (owner of SMS) connected with the SDF-1 crew somehow, since he has a photo of Lynn Minmay in his ring and all?

Not directly, no... he's a Zentradi Minmay fan, and therefore likely a veteran of the first space war.

The novelization of Macross Frontier identifies Richard Birla as having originally been the commanding officer of one of the ships in Britai's forces during the first space war.

4. Which is the best fighter, performance wise?

That depends on what aspect of performance you want to look at.

If you're talking raw engine power or thrust-to-weight ratio, the YF-29 is the clear winner... with a net thrust of 7,150kN and a T/W ratio of 61.164 empty. The next nearest competitor is the YF-30, with 4,220kN and a T/W ratio of 53.085.

[GundamSFS]

That depends on what aspect of performance you want to look at.

If you're talking raw engine power or thrust-to-weight ratio, the YF-29 is the clear winner... with a net thrust of 7,150kN and a T/W ratio of 61.164 empty. The next nearest competitor is the YF-30, with 4,220kN and a T/W ratio of 53.085.

It's a shame that YF-29 was made for anti-Vajra use :/. Then, for versatility the VF-25 takes the cake? Was wondering if YF-29 can still put up a fight in a battle not involiving Vajra, like battling VF-25 for example...

[Seto Kaiba]

It's a shame that YF-29 was made for anti-Vajra use :/. Then, for versatility the VF-25 takes the cake? Was wondering if YF-29 can still put up a fight in a battle not involiving Vajra, like battling VF-25 for example...

The VF-25 is a solid multi-role fighter, yeah... though the VF-171 Nightmare Plus is no slouch in that regard either. Both are very versatile platforms and have special-purpose variants for things like AEW/AWACS, UCAV control, designated marksmen, etc., but the VF-25 wins hands-down in terms of performance.

IMO, it's relatively safe to say that the YF-29 could hold its own in a fight against enemies other than the Vajra. In Macross 30: Voices Across the Galaxy, the (rogue) New UN Spacy special forces unit "Havamal" issued their elite pilots an improved YF-29 designated YF-29B Percival, which was more than capable of going toe-to-toe with the VF-25, VF-27, YF-29, and YF-30.

[azrael]

But keep in mind it's all relative. Miriya mopped the floor with technologically more advanced Fz-109s in her ancient VF-1. Or Isamu fighting in the more technologically incremental YF-19 versus Guld in a more technologically advanced YF-21. Or in Vanquish races, racers use sometimes inferior VFs in competition compared to racers who use more advanced VFs. While racers may modify their VFs to compete with, older VFs lack some of the built-in technological advances of newer VFs, making the older VFs more temperamental to changes made to bring them up to competition.

[Gerli]

Guys, I need help with something... where is the landing light on the VF-1 front landing gear? Is this circular thing?

Because the reference that i'm using don't have it.

This is my 3d model

[Jefuemon]

Guys, I need help with something... where is the landing light on the VF-1 front landing gear? Is this circular thing?

Because the reference that i'm using don't have it.

This is my 3d model

I believe the landing light is actually on the gear bay door, not the gear itself.

[Gerli]

So is that circular thing on the bay door, copy that!

[sketchley]

So is that circular thing on the bay door, copy that!

Just looked through a couple of books on it, and there's nothing that indicates that the circular thing is not the light (nor that it is the light).

However, the model builders in the VFMF series put the light there.

[Gerli]

Thanks Sketchley, seems like a logical place to put the lights

[Jefuemon]

However, the model builders in the VFMF series put the light there.

That's why I assume it's the light. Hasegawa instructions say to paint silver in the hole, then you put a clear piece over it.

[Nekko Basara]

Yeah, likewise the recent transformable Bandai kit has a reflective decal for that spot. I can't imagine what that would represent if not the light.

[Nekko Basara]

That reminds me of another question about the landing gear doors:

On the VF-1, the larger portion of the landing gear bay doors (both nose and main) are shaped such that they can be closed with the gear deployed. On real aircraft with this feature, the doors are typically closed for aerodynamic reasons, but at least some representations of the VF-1 (such as the original SDFM opening) show these doors open with the gear deployed. Is there an "official" answer on what position the doors should be in when the gear are deployed?

[Mr March]

For the next update to my site I did fresh new scans of the VF-1 landing gear. I'm not sure if the information you're all looking for is in the line art, but here is the best version I was able to create (built from individual pieces taken from both TIAS Vol. 1, TIAS Macross Plus and Macross Perfect Memory).

[Gerli]

For the next update to my site I did fresh new scans of the VF-1 landing gear. I'm not sure if the information you're all looking for is in the line art, but here is the best version I was able to create (built from individual pieces taken from both TIAS Vol. 1, TIAS Macross Plus and Macross Perfect Memory).

Awesome detail! Thanks for the images!

[Mr March]

My pleasure. I also own many of the Master File books, so if you need a better version of a specific image, just let me know and I'll help.

[Gerli]

Another mechanical question guys... the VF-1 engines... I have pretty cool images for refrences but... it seems like the engines are a little "short" for the legs. It's some part that I am missing between the air intake and the exaust?

[mickyg]

If you have access to some of the cutaway VF-1 views out there (there are a few), you'll note there appear to be two engines per leg. A short one, right up near the intake, and the longer one (that you're currently trying to locate in the legs) that connects up to the "feet" exhausts.

Move the engine you're playing with way back so it's attached to the feet like in the diagram you first posted, and then the smaller one, when you can find/make a model for it, will sit up front.

[Gerli]

Thanks Mickyg!

[mickyg]

No problem! I can't find any clear drawings but check this site out for a few of the cutaway drawings that sort of show this "second" engine a bit better:

http://www.tapeheads.net/showthread.php?t=1915

[azrael]

It's not really an engine but part of the air intake system. It's a secondary turbofan. It's described as

Superconducting ram-air pre-compressors in forward engine nacelles and main compressors to the fore of thermonuclear reactors.

The forward fans suck in air, compress it, then transfer it to the engine's compressors, which then gets heated and pushed out the other end. So it's helping it suck in more air for the engines. So the engines portrayed in the Master File are the engines. The fan-looking thing at the mouth of the intakes are just another set of fans to help suck in more air for the engines. It's not a secondary engine.

[Gerli]

Got it

[vsim]

Yeah, if I had to guess, the compressor would be in the upper leg section and the combustion chamber (or equivalent), bypass, and turbine would be in the lower section.

Of course that leads to interesting questions about how the compressor section is driven...probably electrically driven or something. Normal mechanical would just seem like a nightmare with that knee joint in the way. Not impossible of course. Anything is possible with science!

Edited January 13, 2015 by vsim

[Gerli]

Looks like this is the best image of the Compressor

[mickyg]

There you go! I've looked at that image many times and kept looking in the valk - totally missed it sitting on its own.

And yes, compressor is a better description I suppose. But the purpose of any jet engine is to compress (and heat) air, so in some ways, compressor and engine are similar.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!