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Lockheed Lodestar WIP Thread

Tako_Kichi

Tako_Kichi

Administrator
Staff member
I mentioned recently that I was considering converting Milton's L-18 to P3D native with PBR textures. Today I started work after breakfast and 7 hours later I have four models converted (2 exterior, 2 interior) for the two different engine options and one texture set completed. I decided to start this thread to keep things clean and dedicated to the L-18 as I work my way though all the repaints that are likely to be in a release pack.

The first scheme is the one for American Airlines and this is how she currently looks.

L-18-AA_1.png
L-18-AA_2.png
L-18-AA_3.png

I may fine tune the textures a little bit but it is looking very good so far and things should get easier now that I only have to modify textures and not create new models.
 
HMMM...just looking at those screenshots again and there is something very much amiss with the upper side of the starboard wing! It looks like the underside textures are on the top! I will look at that tomorrow as it's bedtime here now!
 
It took me a couple of hours this morning to sort out the issues and boy did it cause some head scratching and cussing! :dizzy:

It turns out that multiple parameters in all the model files had not taken when I applied the changes to the various material settings and texture allocations in MCX. I had to go through every setting in every model and double check what was correct and what had reverted to the FSX standard instead of the P3D standard settings. I did finally get it sorted though and all models were re-exported and now look correct.

While I was testing the models I did get a chance to check out the second texture scheme I made last night before I noticed the model errors. This one is for Western Airlines and it's another scheme by 'Willy' (he's done a few for the Lodestar).

L-18-Western_1.png
L-18-Western_2.png
L-18-Western_3.png
 
After the debacle this morning I was able to knock another texture conversion out. It's a 'Willy' special again, this time it's the Santa Fe Skyways scheme. The company only operated from 1946 - 1948 before being forced out of the airlines/cargo business.

L-18-Santa_1.png
L-18-Santa_2.png
L-18-Santa_3.png
 
If you do a Pan Am scheme you have to do the South American arm too, right! Pan American - Grace Airways never actually operated the Lodestar but if they did it might have looked like this! Once again it is a 'Willy' masterpiece and this might be his last one for this release.

L-18-PanAm-Grace_1.pngL-18-PanAm-Grace_2.pngL-18-PanAm-Grace_3.png
 
Question: are these all the original repaints + PBR model and PBR textures? Or did you need modify the repaints done by others as well?
 
They are the original diffuse textures minus the original alpha channel as it is not required (the diffuse/albedo alpha is now pure white) and then they are saved with a new name to comply with the PBR naming convention ('diffuse' becomes 'albedo') as specified in the P3D materials options within MCX. In some cases (not all) I have re-worked things like small logos to improve the fine detail as some of these textures were originally made at 1024x1024 for FS9 and then up-sized to 2048x2048 for the FSX conversion and lost a lot of detail in the process.

The specular texture is deleted except for copying the specular alpha channel as this is used in the new 'metallic' texture required for the PBR format.

The 'metallic' texture is all new and requires me to create 'masks' on a layer where anything painted is pure black and anything bare metal is pure white. I also have to create a shading layer much like the way shading was done for FS9 repaints before we got active shadows in FSX. This helps reduce the metallic shine on normally shaded areas. The specular alpha is put onto a layer and modified to show painted areas similar to the 'mask' layer (in fact the black areas in the mask layer are used to fill the painted sections on the alpha layer). Once completed the alpha layer is then copied to a new layer and inverted in terms of light/dark to make a totally new version. All the layers are then copied into the red, green and blue 'channels' to create the new 'metallic' texture. Only the 'alpha' channel was used in FS9 or FSX but in a PBR texture ALL the channels are used.

The original 'bump map' texture is retained untouched but it is now known as a 'normal map'. Some models/conversions may rename the bump texture to something that contains the word 'normal' but I opted to retain the original name in the case of the Lodestar.

The above just covers the processes involved for the textures but I also have to convert all the models used too which is four in the case of the Lodestar (one internal and one external for each of the two engine types).

As I am re-using other texture artists work I have had to seek permission first because morally and legally I can't release another person's work without that permission. There are three schemes I wanted to convert but I have not yet received permission so while I may be able to convert them for personal use I can't release them to the public. One person has an email address that bounced back but as it was from 2015 it could well have changed since then and the other is a member here but a PM I sent to him has not been answered and he has not been seen on the forums since Sept. 25, 2024 so I hope everything is OK with him. I could of course use those textures as a 'guide layer' and then recreate the texture myself to get around that issue but I have lots of other things I could be doing instead!

I hope that answers your questions.
 
The P3d v4.5 version now looks like it will contain seven schemes as follows:

Paint Scheme​
Author​
Canadian PacificWilly
Western AirlinesWilly
Pan American AirwaysWilly
Pan American - Grace AirwaysWilly
Santa Fe SkywayWilly
Trans Canada Air LinesRallymodeler
American Airlinesedakridge
 
If anyone would like to see another scheme included post what it is and a possible link to the DL for the scheme and I will try my best to accommodate it. Bear in mind that partial bare metal textures seem to work better in PBR in my view. I will hold off on packing up the conversion until tomorrow just in case there are additions.
 
Tako_Kichi said:
If anyone would like to see another scheme included post what it is and a possible link to the DL for the scheme and I will try my best to accommodate it. Bear in mind that partial bare metal textures seem to work better in PBR in my view. I will hold off on packing up the conversion until tomorrow just in case there are additions.
Click to expand...

​

​

Lockheed R5O-5 Bu.No. 12488​

Can you include this one please?


Capture.jpg
 
Last edited:
Unfortunately Gray Eagle the R50-5 was not one of the models I converted. It had the troop interior with the longitudinal benches whereas I converted the civilian seat version.
 
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