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my DC-8 Project

Would you like me too...

  • Release the DC8 series in sequence with no VC, only wing views; then the VC comes as an update.

    Votes: 10 47.6%

  • Keep working until the VCs are complete, this may take a very long time!!

    Votes: 11 52.4%
  • Total voters
    21
Alright what a head ache with the engines. Working from many, many photographs I created the engines as best as I could, only the nacelles since I didn't want to risk it, the engines need massive work done.

In the following pictures, the engine that is different in color from the rest is the engine that is NOT mirrored, that's only to help me.

2zoddgx.png


I did the best job I could with the engines nacelles, the wing root seems to be spot on based on photographs.

k6hl5.png


I also did NOT have ground clearance data for this engine type, so I pretty much had to eye ball the distance from the surface :-/

The wings also appear to change shap at the leading edge, so they will have to be modified.

Progress will be super slow now, it will remain in this state, until I complete the tail section, nose section, engine pylons, blah blah...

Thanks for reading guys, all I have for today. The focus right now is to continue to work on the engines.

EDIT: oops, forgot the last picture!!

6gk6xg.png


This is a closer look at the mesh for the wing root and engines. All this was the work of splines. The wing root was made from splines and then skinned using planes. The
engines themselves where splines and skinned with planes as well ... I'm rather liking the technique of skinning with planes ... surface doesn't always work the way you
want it too and planes give you 100% control of the mesh skin.
 
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Alright, I am so tired I don't have the energy to keep working on this tonight. I normally work night shifts so I stay awake all night long working on the DC-8 (when I'm not working that is) but today, I am very tired.

This is your chance for you guys to participate, they say more heads are better than one and I can't seem to tell if these engines are too big or to small? or located at the wrong locations ... yawwwwnwnnnnn.

Here are some photos...zZZ

2iw582h.png

left view, are the engines too big, too close to the wing? Arrhhghg !%%!#!!

25yyann.png

They look big or maybe it's just my eyes, very tired and sleepy here.

By the way the MSFX stands for Mr.FaosFX this way people will refer to it as the MSFX DC8 to avoid confusion with other add-ons.

I ended up redesigning part of the wing to get an effect right and then realised that the DC8 nose gear is lower than the landing gear which is what makes the effect visible. Oh brother, what a night...

I'm going to bed. :whiteflag
 
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they say more heads are better than one
Click to expand...

I have made you a png with your screen shots overlayed on the DC-8-73.
This is a large print and can be used in Gmax.

http://www.flysim.us/help/boeing-dc-8-73.png

sample1.jpg


The front gear does not sit as low as the rear gear. So make sure you follow this print on the gear placement. Then you can adjust the config because this baby or fuselage sits nose low.

The side view is very very close. Nice job!!!

DG:rolleyes:
 
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WOW it's 90% on par with the views, that is amazing!! Thanks for these man, this is what I had planned to do but I was so tired, now I should get to work and correct the engine sizes, I knew they were too big!
 
Using Lionhearts tutorial for fuselage with splines. I made this in 20 minutes.
My first commercial jet, fuselage. The Boeing 717.

b717.bmp


DG:stirthepo
 
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Alright, using your views delivery_guy, I managed to make some corrections. However, the front view some how does not match with the top view? I corrected the engine size and shape on the front view and then when I went and scaled it and positioned it over the top view the engines were in a different location and different positions ... what the H!? So I used the top view and sort of eye balled the adjustments, I am not sure the results where accurate tho, it appears to look ok but I am having doubts ... now the engines appear to look to small I think.

2n0it7q.png

Left view side appears to look ok, I compared with some photographs and the engine size appears to look right.

33oqf08.png

You'll find that if you do what you did with the pictures like before, the top view will match but for some reason, the front view 'might' not according to engine positioning and size, perhaps the 3 views aren't to correct dimensions.

2dawrp1.png

Here is the top view.

331fudc.png


Here the overall look of the aircraft and engines appears to look right, altho, I think engines are still a tad too small.

I've been searching for dimensions of the CFM engines on the DC8 but nothing comes up and most of the drawings are just of the insides.

I'll keep searching for better engine pictures left and front views. If I can find really big ones, that would help me a lot.

The last thing I noticed was that my wing camber on the bottom is too big which is what makes the wings look fat in these pictures, I'll correct this at some point.
 
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i found the problem. Your wings are too short in overall length.
Use the prints length and match this in gmax using the tape measure.
Do not scale the fuselage, just stretch the wing using poly's. Or add a new part since the wing tip shape does not match.

In the front view near the bottom you need to adjust the fuselage.

In the front view you need to curve the wing too.

Get this perfect and then place the engines.
Now the engine will be bigger.

i placed the overlays in this updated version so you can see why it's short.
http://www.flysim.us/help/boeing-dc-8-73 updated.png

sample%204.jpg


DG:stirthepo:stirthepo
 
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Well of course they are short, I have not modeled in the wing tips yet, LOL. Did you take that into account? But I am sorry, you probably thought they where the full wing size. Yes I do need to adjust the wing near the bottom fuselage, the camber at the bottom is a little too much, I saw that in the pictures. I'll get right to work on this all night long, thanks a lot for helping delivery_guy, you've been a life saver bud! :)
 
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I did not take that into account, I thought that was the whole wing.
But i had no top view the first time too. That helped me align the front
closer. But with out the overall length finished it's hard to set the front view.

Glad i was some help. This way the engines will be perfect aligned as well as other views.
can't wait to see an update when it's aligned. Post a pic like i did when it's all aligned.

DG:twocents:
 
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I found the same exact views you are using at Boeing but the format is .DWG ... I wanted to convert it to a format I can use with gmax so that I don't have to use bitmaps.

I'm trying to convert to .DXF at the moment ... I'm running out of options.

I really don't need the 3 views I was working with any longer and since these are native DC8-73 views, I want to use them the ones I'm using are for the DC8-62 so you can imagine...I had the stretch the fuselage at the right sections and make required modifications here and there to achieve what I have right now.

I can also take the png views and just spline all over the drawings with lines and i'll achieve what I'm trying to do, this would incur and added delay but I would have nice splines I can freeze up and work with and i'll have much more accuracy ... do you have a blank copy of those DC8 views?
 
Ok I managed to convert it with a program I found, I double checked it with a .DXF viewer and they look good however, in gmax when imported, they import with parts missing...arrgghgh.

EDIT: Alright I've done it now!! I'll begin setting up my scene to work with this and then I shall mess with the engines and show you the new results.
 
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Alright it's 1:50 am in the morning and I'm up lol. I finally got the views into the gmax scene and scaled properly to dimensions, the results show exactly what your pictures show delivery_guy, here is a big picture of the setup.

2a0nosg.png


The engines have NOT been re-located and adjusted YET!!!

The "Oh oh!" indicate areas were I need to make corrections, obviously major work is required around the nose area, I don't mind redoing it, it has to look good!!

My other "Oh oh!" is the size of the wing root and wing camber at the bottom, overall it looks pretty accurate.

The tail section also looks like it could use a little bit of work but I may not touch it as the deviations from the 3 views are very very small.

I'm going to take a breather and get to work now, adust the engines and complete the engine work, go back to the nose area and fix the errors, re-mesh the wing root and wing and then what ever comes next, I'll show a picture when the engines are relocated after that no more pictures of this beast until the nose is fixed and the wing root and wings are fixed.

Later folks.
 
Like did Liberty1?:D, anyway I wouldn't notice those things, that "is" a great aiplane yet, How many people say here, the aircraft modeler are the masters. :cool:
 
Tejal Bernardo said:
Like did Liberty1?:D, anyway I wouldn't notice those things, that "is" a great aiplane yet, How many people say here, the aircraft modeler are the masters. :cool:
Click to expand...

We are no masters, the real masters are those who can work as a team to get something achieved.

I know most people don't notice those things but I will fix it anyway, because it brings me satisfaction :-] to know it is correct.

One of the things I've had to learn about building real aircraft with this project is that you have to loose the notion of thinking you can model the aircraft 100% to accuracy, you have to be willing to accept something that looks satisfactory or you may go crazy and give up because you can't achieve perfection.

So, I've learned to get to look as close as possible but if its something that I have a "doubt" about, I'm going to work on it a little harder.

Anyway, I just found out that the wing root and wing profile is actually correct ... but this is where it gets weird with Douglas and this airplane ... they used 3 different air foils for the wings !! One at the root, the second at the first engine pylons and then the last at the tip ... the reason for this was to create a wing that creates turbulence further aft the wing!?!? Because of lack of vortex generators .. i have no idea what vortex generators are but all I know is my wing is messed up if I don't put these three different air foils in there ... I've also noticed the curvature of the wing at the first engine pylon it curves down sharply and becomes almost a flat wing profile towards the wing tip ... what in the world was Douglas smoking when they were on this!
 
The front gear doors will be near level after the oh no lines are flat there.
This will help later on!

The png is the original as long as you remove the other 2 layers.
Glad you got yours converted.

DG:D
 
Alright last update for the week because I am taking a good break from this, need to clear my mind or i'll burn out.

Thanks to delivery_guy I've managed to get very far with the engine work. Bud, I don't know what I would have done with out ya, consider your name engraved in the list thanks!

24ysknb.png

Much better now!! Rock and roll!

2zfvlg6.png

I want to paint this already!! In Air Transport International, L.L.C livery!! Oh I can't wait for when that time comes!! :-]

2hq72pi.png

The front view.

16ibk84.png


A couple of things to point out.

1. The engines aren't final yet, they still need work.
2. The engine pylons aren't final yet, they still need work.

When I start work on the DC8 again, it will be to correct the observed errors. The biggest milestone has been reached, now I shall continue to refine the model adding detail as I go.

I'll post weekly updates from now on, later guys!
 
Do NOT rely a 100% on 3-views!

I've learned that the hard way. The model looked fine on the blueprints, but FSX and a comparison with photos begged to differ.
 
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