mighty gorgon Posted July 11, 2004 Author Posted July 11, 2004 (edited) Started some work in the nose (cockpit, thrust nozzles). The seat & pilot are lifted from the VF-4. I should update them... Also modified the radius of the wheel hub, as suggested by Chronocidal. Regds, G Edited July 11, 2004 by mighty gorgon Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 11, 2004 Author Posted July 11, 2004 Landing at dusk... ok, not really. Underside shot to show wing lights, some details in the fuselage and flap hinges. Regds, G Quote
Valkyrie Nut Posted July 11, 2004 Posted July 11, 2004 Getting better all the time Gorgon! The finished product will be most impressive Quote
Angel's Fury Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Getting better all the time Gorgon! The finished product will be most impressive Ditto!!! Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Agreed! Can't wait to see how it turns out... frankly, at the moment, I envy you... the VF-11's landing gear actually have room to retract... not so with the YF-21. I had to make the wing about 3 times as thick as it should be to allow them room to retract. Quote
mechaninac Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 That looks outstanding. I do have one bit of criticism, however, there is an odd pinching on the leg; see circled area. I'd try to spline-cage a new section to achieve a smoother transition. Other than that...beautiful! Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 12, 2004 Author Posted July 12, 2004 That looks outstanding. I do have one bit of criticism, however, there is an odd pinching on the leg; see circled area. I'd try to spline-cage a new section to achieve a smoother transition. Other than that...beautiful! You're right. The leg has actually two problems. The pinch you remarked and a vertical "crease" towards the feet (just aft of the "Y" of SPACY). I could not remove them from the model earlier and I had the secret hope that once textured they would not be so evident. BTW, there is any good reference for the location of all the small assemblies, vernier thrusters, sensors, etc? I started the detailing, but the little info of the MDW is in japanese, and the Macross Compendium page, even if lists many details, has little info on where they are. Thnx in advance G. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 12, 2004 Author Posted July 12, 2004 Agreed! Can't wait to see how it turns out... frankly, at the moment, I envy you... the VF-11's landing gear actually have room to retract... not so with the YF-21. I had to make the wing about 3 times as thick as it should be to allow them room to retract. How's the Hasegawa model? They cannot "retract" the wheels in the fuselage? Sometimes I hate anime magic!!! And sometimes also plastic magic!!! I remember a kit with "half wheels" (it was a BF-109), to make them into the wings. Going to the references... I assembled a series of images of the MDW with some indications in japanese... By any chance, does anybody here knows what they indicate? There is aslo a prominent "?" sign for the "thingie-in-the-wheel-door". I guess it is a venier, but it also could be a landing light! Any help appreciated! Regds, G Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Well, based on the trends started with the VF-1, I'd say those are definitely landing lights. It wouldn't work to have a vernier in there, since the door has to move, and there's no room for exhaust vents in the gear well. Personally, I think I'd remodel the lower leg from scratch, if you haven't done too much work already. I don't think it made the transition from low to high poly mesh very well, and still looks really blocky. Now, I could be wrong, maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.. but the legs on the VF-11 always seemed much more rounded to me. Btw, it may very well be plastic magic.... Actually, I think it's just the liberties Hasegawa took when making the kit. They went strictly with the aircraft look, and made the wings thin like modern aircraft, not realizing that the wing root on the YF-21 is pretty thick. The wing looks like it actually gets really thick toward the mounting point in the anime, but they didn't do that on the kit. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 13, 2004 Author Posted July 13, 2004 Personally, I think I'd remodel the lower leg from scratch, if you haven't done too much work already. I don't think it made the transition from low to high poly mesh very well, and still looks really blocky. Now, I could be wrong, maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.. but the legs on the VF-11 always seemed much more rounded to me. Argh! I know you're right... I did the leg 2 or 3 times and still I can't get the proper shape... It did not go gracefully from low-poly to high-poly. My last hope was to modify it while doing the infamous leg door, but I guess I'll go back to the modeller and to a low poly version. Fortunately I still have all the intermediate files (83 files so far). Ah! BTW, regarding the "-21" you are right. I assembled a comparison between the Hase model (as posted in starshipmodeller) and the drawings from here and I posted it in an old webpage of mine (it is at the end, after some VF-4 sketchs). Even if they do not match completely, the drawing shows a different, thicker wing root. Hope it helps, Regds, G. Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 15, 2004 Posted July 15, 2004 (edited) Thanks, that looks more like what was in the anime.. I was able to get the gear to fit, but just barely... I think Hasegawa changed the landing gear slightly from the original.. in the anime, the plane looks like it has much thinner landing gear, with the tire in-line with the strut, mounted like the front wheel, with shocks on the front edge, etc.. Hasegawa's kit on the other hand looks like it pulled the landing gear straight out of an F-14.. they retract exactly the same way, and look almost identical... they're just way too beefy to fit in the wing. Btw, it might not be that hard to fix the lower leg.. It looks like the right shape overall, just kind of square. Maybe if you beveled the edges some... dunno.. This plane and the YF-19 have the most complex lower leg designs ever. They're just nasty to duplicate. Edited July 15, 2004 by Chronocidal Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 19, 2004 Author Posted July 19, 2004 No luck yet with the legs ... I've tried a couple of things, but they have not worked as intended. So far I keep the old legs. In the meantime I have added the wing glove sensors, corrected the rotation of the landing gear doors, added the air intake doors (o dark in the image) and added the gunpod. This last one looks a bit small to me... don't know really... Regds, G p.d.: ah! and finally got the subtitles for Episode 4 of Macross Zero. Quote
CoryHolmes Posted July 19, 2004 Posted July 19, 2004 You're right about that gunpod, it does seem small. Maybe increasing the diameter might help. However, that is one gorgeous looking plane. It's three-form or fighter only? Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 19, 2004 Author Posted July 19, 2004 ...It's three-form or fighter only? Fighter only!.. I can barely make the landing gear doors open (forget the full LG)!!! Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 19, 2004 Posted July 19, 2004 Hmmm... I forget, what are you working in? Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 20, 2004 Author Posted July 20, 2004 Uh! ...you mean... working professionally? Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 20, 2004 Posted July 20, 2004 Ooops... should have been more specific.. I meant to ask what program you are modeling this in. Some have more user-friendly animation setups than others... I know 3ds Max or Gmax make gear animations pretty simple. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 20, 2004 Author Posted July 20, 2004 Sorry, I am working in Lightwave 7.5. Don't know about the other programs... I am not too much in animation but rather into modelling and rendering. Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 21, 2004 Posted July 21, 2004 Same here, although I've had to dabble into animation to make the control surfaces and gear work on my Flight Sim planes. I only really know the basics, but I will tell you two things that are of utmost importance in animation of landing gear: 1. Make sure the center of rotation of the gear is where you want it, and 2. Linking parts together (in Max it's called "parenting", I'm sure Lightwave wil lhave an equivalent) will save you from many hours of frustration. Basically, link the lower parts of the gear to the upper parts, so they inherit the motion and rotation of the upper gear, ie, if the upper gear rotates back to retract, the lower gear parts will follow as if they are glued together. Also, if you're animating a hydraulic piston, set the rotation points for the two halves separately, where you want them anchored, then align them later. It's a complex process, but it'll come with a little practice. I'm sure there are probably tutorials online for that sort of thing. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 22, 2004 Author Posted July 22, 2004 Same here, although I've had to dabble into animation to make the control surfaces and gear work on my Flight Sim planes. I only really know the basics, but I will tell you two things that are of utmost importance in animation of landing gear:... I had ALMOST no problems with a simpler landing gear (see photos of a Mig 3 system). I could define a rotation point and even define a sequence of opening and closing the doors. The problem with the -11 are the hydraulic pistons... I guess I'll have to use some "morphing" (ANIME MAGIC!!!!) Regds & Thnx, G Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 24, 2004 Author Posted July 24, 2004 (edited) Some new image from the upper side. I reworked the wings (they were too thick) and added some details here and there... not too much really. I guess I'll have some time adjusting small details (and maybe redoing the legs) and then... surfacing (just mentioning it gives me the creeps!). Regds, G. (edit: updated the image) Edited July 24, 2004 by mighty gorgon Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 25, 2004 Author Posted July 25, 2004 And now... for something completely different , the VF-11 with a sketch of the FFR-31, from Yukikaze (the mesh is based on the one developed for the YSFS simulator) G. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 26, 2004 Author Posted July 26, 2004 Last post today... I just redid the legs from scratch. Only the wheel wells and doors are missing. BTW, what the heck is that rhomboidal shape on the lower legs... Navigation lights? Veniers? any help will be appreciated. Regds, G. Quote
Chronocidal Posted July 26, 2004 Posted July 26, 2004 Hmm.... I'm thinking the ones near the feet are verniers. The ones on the gear doors are probably lights like on the VF-1 though. Quote
Stamen0083 Posted July 27, 2004 Posted July 27, 2004 I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. A virtual model may be enough to tide me over until then. Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 27, 2004 Author Posted July 27, 2004 (edited) Hmm.... I'm thinking the ones near the feet are verniers. The ones on the gear doors are probably lights like on the VF-1 though. Yes... the one near the feet. For the other (near the doors) I assume they are landing lights. The fun thing is that the image below explains it... but in Japanese!!! I need a translation!!! Regds & Thnx G. Edited July 27, 2004 by mighty gorgon Quote
mighty gorgon Posted July 27, 2004 Author Posted July 27, 2004 I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11.I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. I want a Hasegawa VF-11. A virtual model may be enough to tide me over until then. Me too... me too... me too... Quote
crisp Posted July 28, 2004 Posted July 28, 2004 That model looks awesome - keep it up. I want to see this Babe in Action (starting, landing, transformin in all 3 modes) one day! Quote
mighty gorgon Posted August 1, 2004 Author Posted August 1, 2004 (edited) No much updates in the last days... I've been fine tuning the legs and started the awful process of texturing . In the "Arlequin patchwork" image below you see the first proposal for surfaces partition. I am not completely happy with this one... For the next days I'll be working on getting the proper "patchwork" to surface the model. The only other (mesh) upgrade is a redesigned leg end (compare the images posted before and the MDW detail). Ah! in the "movies and tv series" forum, Graham, Maxjenius81 and Nanashi indicated that those are chaff/flare launchers. Regds, G. (edit, late evening: updated patchwork) Edited August 2, 2004 by mighty gorgon Quote
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