NEVER KNEW IT EXISTED!!

[Kelley]

When I was but a pup, I was an avid reader of Air Trails magazine. Their premier artist was Douglas Rolf. Rolf drew with a very fine, almost fragile line [no color, minimal shadows] but very, very precise. His stuff was beautiful.

 

Recently I went through years of morgue files culling out the chaff, and found a stack of xeroxes of his work. Among those drawings [just as good as I remember] was this plane: an Art Deco gem designed by Hugo Junkers somewhere in the mid-30's. It never got beyond blueprints and a scale model. But what a plane!

 

I googled it, and even on Google, it's rare. There is a seaplane version that I'll play with next week. [on the trailing edge of the wing, those are tail wheels. No idea as to what the main landing gear might have looked like.]

[KenH]

Nice! So you made it in AM? Recently? For a particular project?

[Kelley]

Nice! So you made it in AM? Recently? For a particular project?

 

Thanks Ken. Yes, it's all A:M. Started yesterday afternoon, Finished this morning. Biggest time-sucker was cutting out sections for ailerons and horizontal tail surfaces. [gotta learn booleans a la A:M] Really winging it on colors. Couldn't find a color pic. of Lufthansa 1930's paint scheme.

 

No project in mind. Just had to have one. I'll be sending it on to Steve at Hash.

 

My biggest satisfaction was the cabin windows. I sliced off the bottom of a sphere-cum-ellipsoid, copied out a section 3 CP's high by 6 wide and pasted that into a New Model_01. Then I copied each spline individually and pasted it into a New Model_02. As each came in [neatly in place] I extruded it sideways, then extruded both backwads. Now I had a single rib [square cross-section] of window frame. Do that for each spline, texture and copy _02 back into _01. Use _01 as the glass and assign transparency.

 

Looking at it more closely now, I'd make them fatter, but as a initial try it'll do to be going on with.

[brainmuffin]

[gotta learn booleans a la A:M]

 

Kelley,

 

There aren't any modeling booleans in A:M. Only render time booleans. Meaning, boolean operations don't change the geometry, only the render.

[Kelley]

There aren't any modeling booleans in A:M. Only render time booleans.

 

Yeah, thanks. I recalled reading that booleans are post effects. Probably that's why I've overlooked them. 'Have any opinions on them? Do they, in the end, look as good as those done in polygons?

[Kelley]

Forgot to mention: having problems with bump maps. There's a bump map on the J-1000, much like the black & white stripes on the center section. This is to create the corrugated iron skin look common to 30's Junkers aircraft.

 

I selected the 'Images' folder under 'Decals' and changed 'Color' to 'Bump' in the Properties and set, and re-set, until it was 444%...and nothing is showing. Is there another place that needs setting?

[KenH]

Try a higher value such as 44400 and see if you get anything. What version are you using?

[Kelley]

Try a higher value such as 44400 and see if you get anything. What version are you using?

 

Ken: Drove it up to 444000, and 'no go'. I'm using v.11, but just bought my upgrade this morning.

[KenH]

Weird. I don't recall such a problem with v11.1. Do other bumps work? Maybe it's the model. If you want to send it to me I can test it out.

[robcat2075]

Cool plane. I see a collision with the Hindenburg in it's future. Oh the humanity!

 

I recall a magazine cartoon of a plane that looked similar. It had people at tables on the wings with waiters walking around serving dinner.

[Kelley]

Weird. I don't recall such a problem with v11.1. Do other bumps work? Maybe it's the model. If you want to send it to me I can test it out.

 

Thanks. Here we go...

JUNKERS_J_1000.zip

[KenH]

There's your problem right there. There's no stamp for that image! You must have deleted it accidentally. I was trying to find the image on the plane, but it's not there as it's not stamped on.

[peter ledger]

Hi Robert,

 

Is this the same plane?

 

http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%...ing%20Wings.htm

 

It seems to have fins on the wing though.

 

Good model.

 

Peter

 

PS Look down the page

[Kelley]

Is this the same plane?

 

Peter: BINGO!...and Thank-You. Now I know what the landing gear looks like. My plane does have the vertical stabilizers out near the wingtips, they're just in the darker section of the pic.

 

Robcat: I too, have seen many variations on the theme you mentioned. This plane had all that, but it was inside the central wing section. Like other Junker giants [G38] even the engines could be serviced in flight....also with some of the Russian monsters like the Antonov-20bis [Maxim Gorky] The nearest anyone got to your cartoon [i think...] was Igor Sikorsky's multi-engine "Ilya Mouremetz". The fuselage was square cross-sectioned, and rear of the wings, there was a waist-high railing that ran around the afterdeck. There's a picture of one of these about to touch down. Three Russian officers are out there casually enjoying the view. No safety tethers are in evidence.

 

KenH: Check the picture. I am now convinced that my wierd problems are due to the video card overheating. [...with the exception of those times when I simply put my foot in it.] This test was done early this morning. Worked like a charm. On Saturday I went and bought a new computer that will be dedicated to A:M, Photoshop and Premier. A laptop with a desk stand and fan to keep it cool. With that, and a firm resolve to turn it off more often when I leave the room, I hope to see the end of these strange 'burbles' in the program. Thanks for your help.