Union Pacific FEF-3 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotive, by Smokebox

[BNSFdude]

Welp, I'm done modeling locomotives now. I look like a scrub now.

[CSX2057]

There's still a long way to go, but now that I'm on it 7 days a week (more or less), there'll be some progress every day, so I hope I'm on track for having it ready for Christmas (famous last words?).

Got time for that!

[1225fan5358]

There's still a long way to go, but now that I'm on it 7 days a week (more or less), there'll be some progress every day, so I hope I'm on track for having it ready for Christmas (famous last words?).

Then in that case can I make a order for $20 right now? Better sooner than later!

[mrennie]

This is how it looks in the game now ...

2013-06-11_00001.jpg

2013-06-11_00004.jpg

2013-06-11_00007.jpg

[mrennie]

Those reflections just don't look right for some reason...wish we could make a real reflection in this sim

??

The reflections are taken from a photo of the reflections on the cylinder caps of the real UP 844. I even did a bit of photoshopping to get the reflection of the front screw to align perfectly with the actual 3D screw that sticks out, so that it won't look as though it's floating in the air. If you look closely, you can see the reflection of the engine truck wheels.

[mrennie]

Yes but as you move a real reflection moves, this will stay in one place witch would bug my OCD and rivet counters so bad. I think a standard silver texture that appears very shiny would look good there instead. Just my opinion though, I don't mean to bash your work at all, this is looking rely good

When you see it in the game and move the camera around, it does actually look right. You have to imagine it with the parts that aren't yet on the model but are reflected in the caps now. I think it looks better than a plain shiny texture (like I did on the Connie).

[GLRX12]

Yes but as you move a real reflection moves, this will stay in one place witch would bug my OCD and rivet counters so bad. I think a standard silver texture that appears very shiny would look good there instead. Just my opinion though, I don't mean to bash your work at all, this is looking rely good

Then don't buy the engine if it bugs you, go make your own!


The Caps on 844 are NOT silver, they are polished Chrome, I've seen them myself last month in Cheyenne on the floor. Doing a solid silver texture without attempting a reflection would RUIN the look of the engine.

Also, the was out plug caps are all stainless steel and polished, that's not the right term for the part, FourEightFour may know the right term, but you all know what I am talking about. Funny enough, they are stainless steel dog dishes.

Looking great Mike! And since you read my little story in The Jungle...I have no idea when I can get video of 9's brake cylinders in action....I should have just put air on the tank today when I was working on staybolts, but I was too busy dealing with 24 leaking crown stay's to think of much of anything else!

[FourEightFour]

Hate to point this out, but on the real thing, viewing angle/movement does not really matter, as illustrated in the following photographs. The cylinder head/valve head caps are close enough to the engine truck that axle No. 1 is all you see.

[buzz456]

We need so badly?????

[bpetit]

I think the cylinder texture is fine no one is going to see it..well maybe some rivet counters.

[mrennie]

Hate to point this out, but on the real thing, viewing angle/movement does not really matter, as illustrated in the following photographs. The cylinder head/valve head caps are close enough to the engine truck that axle No. 1 is all you see.

Thanks Justin ... that's exactly what I was going to reply last night before I decided I was too tired and ought to go to bed As you say, the reflection is virtually static and you always see the engine truck wheel in the cylinder cap and the right hand side cross compressor in the valve chest cap. The only part of the reflection that might move is the ground, but that's virtually the same all the time too.

In any case, when the camera moves, there is some "movement" in the reflection, because it uses the specular shader, and that plays with the lighting to simulate a shiny surface when you move the viewpoint around.

But, if anyone prefers a different texture for the caps, they can easily customise it by editing the texture file containing the mapping for the caps, Personally though, I like it the way it is - it's part of the character of the modern day UP844, along with the highly polished rods.

[mrennie]

Yes, when we look at the mirrors on the side of locomotives (looking from the cab) we can't even see behind us, just grey or whatever texture happens to fall there. It bothers me than no one pays attention to this

Yep, that one bugs me too. Flight simulators have had working mirrors for years (think IL2, Black Shark et al).

Also would be nice to see a real reflection in a shiny locomotive like this. They have reflections in the water, I cant imagine it being much harder to put it on a loco...would this be asking for trouble (lag) or just something we probably wont see because it's not top priority?

However, MS Flight Simulator had (has) one the most advanced graphics engines (even my trusty old FS9 with specular shine) but they also use a single, static image (something nondescript like a hill or cloud) for the reflection. Then it's simply distorted in various ways to give the impression of a reflection, but it's not reflecting what's genuinely out there.

I'll have to investigate a bit to see how they do the water reflections. I'm curious too as to whether it could be used on the locos.

[mrennie]

I think the cylinder texture is fine no one is going to see it..well maybe some rivet counters.

Personally, I think it's pretty cool that these reflections are in fact showing a true reflection of what's just ahead of the caps, on the loco. I think it would look strange if there was nothing at all being reflected in them. That would be a hundred times worse than seeing gravel instead of sand or whatever in the reflection of the ground. I got away with it on the Connie because the caps weren't polished chrome (they were plain, dirty steel).

[mrennie]

I should mention that the purpose of these latest screenshots was to show the frames, including the shoulders I've managed to put on so far ... the cylinder caps seem to have distracted us a bit

[johnmckenzie]

Looking magnificent, Mike