Viper MK2 Sharp Corners

[under9stars]

Originally Posted by D.M.J.

When I built mine, I started with NURBS for the main hull, it was a surface lofted over cross sections placed at logical locations (the tip of the nose, tip, that little ridge across the nose half way down, the cockpit etc.), then converted to a sufficiently dense poly object to add details. That way I got a really nice complex curve to the hull AND the arbitrary geometry advantage of polys.

If you're determined (or restricted through app) to use Sub-D, although I gave up after a while when I tried it, I got some mileage out of it by not trying to model that ridge that runs along most of the length of the top of the nose (aaaargh @ imprecise descriptions, these things have no proper name that I can think of...) instead I modelled the nose smooth and added that in with extrudes and bevels after converting to poly. Otherwise the mesh tended to pinch horribly where the ridge merged in to the hull because of all the points clumped together.

That's great info, David!!! I can't really tell you why I was trying to maintain a subD mesh, but I have definitely resolved to doing a poly mesh instead. It is extremely helpful to hear examples of people's processes, as you and Jeff confirmed: start with subD or NURBS object to get the smooth curved aspects, then convert to polys to created the finer details.

Anything else you can think of as I go along would be much appreciated.

BTW, do you have link to your viper?

thanks,
Jeremy

[backstept]

Originally Posted by under9stars

Sorry, Jeff. I am not quite sure what you were suggesting. Do you mind clarifying a bit more?

-Jeremy

3D WIPs - Scifi-Meshes.com
you can see the thread thumbnails here . . .

just click 'edit' on the first post in this thread , and click 'go advanced' and scroll down to 'manage attachments'

[Foehammer]

Great looking model. Mind telling me what modeler you're using currently?

[Lt. Cannonfodder]

That would Modo. Great app btw.

[D.M.J.]

Here's a pic of mine that I had uploaded to the SFM server (textures incomplete on this pic but the hull shape hasn't changed since I finished texturing it), you can see the nice curve I got on the hull, which is practically impossible to get from a pure poly object, especially one which goes from rounded trapezoid to lozenge in cross section along its length!

http://www.scifi-meshes.com/forums/a...r_test_074.jpg

One thing which may not be immediately apparent is that the cockpit window, frame, and the ridge which runs backwards from the cockpit is all part of the same poly extrusion that made the ridge down the nose.

Break your modelling down into chunks which suit each method of modelling, and if you ever find yourself screaming in frustration at a method's inability to efficiently do what you want it to, either convert now or add it to a list of things to do after you've converted later.

And the best advice I can give (even though it is obvious, it can never be stated enough) is to save regularly and keep multiple copies, ESPECIALLY before converting object type. You never want to have to redo an entire object from scratch just because you converted to poly before you had finished all the modifications you needed to do in NURBS or Sub-D! I may have over 20 variously-completed copies of my Viper (numerically named, all with thumbnails, and with a render of each one with the number marked on the image) on my hard drive but I'd rather sacrifice the HDD space than have to redo something from scratch.

I hope you're looking forward to the wings, they're a lot more complex than they look

Text block attack over.

[JeffrySG]

Yes, I also always do incremental saves on projects. For something like my viper I may end up with 50 to 100 different versions as I go along. And if I ever have to grab a part from an older version, I know I probably have it.

[under9stars]

Originally Posted by D.M.J.

Here's a pic of mine that I had uploaded to the SFM server (textures incomplete on this pic but the hull shape hasn't changed since I finished texturing it), you can see the nice curve I got on the hull, which is practically impossible to get from a pure poly object, especially one which goes from rounded trapezoid to lozenge in cross section along its length!

http://www.scifi-meshes.com/forums/a...r_test_074.jpg

One thing which may not be immediately apparent is that the cockpit window, frame, and the ridge which runs backwards from the cockpit is all part of the same poly extrusion that made the ridge down the nose.

Break your modelling down into chunks which suit each method of modelling, and if you ever find yourself screaming in frustration at a method's inability to efficiently do what you want it to, either convert now or add it to a list of things to do after you've converted later.

And the best advice I can give (even though it is obvious, it can never be stated enough) is to save regularly and keep multiple copies, ESPECIALLY before converting object type. You never want to have to redo an entire object from scratch just because you converted to poly before you had finished all the modifications you needed to do in NURBS or Sub-D! I may have over 20 variously-completed copies of my Viper (numerically named, all with thumbnails, and with a render of each one with the number marked on the image) on my hard drive but I'd rather sacrifice the HDD space than have to redo something from scratch.

I hope you're looking forward to the wings, they're a lot more complex than they look

Text block attack over.

Thanks, David. Awesome Viper!

It sounds like the challenge is knowing when to say when. I am sure I will hit some walls and dead ends along the way. I feel I have an adequate cage which was developed from Modo's curve and patch system. I already did a test run (not pictured) of subDing the cage with edge-weights in the appropriate places, and then freezing to polys.

I agree with the iteration saves. I am actually pretty good about doing that because of the exact reasons you stated. You forgot to mention saving regularly because of the inevitable app crashes and the resulting loss of hours of work.:-)

BTW, are you able to post some wires? Wire seem to be worth a thousand words.

Thanks again!

[under9stars]

Originally Posted by Foehammer

Great looking model. Mind telling me what modeler you're using currently?

Yes, Cameron, it is Modo 302 I am using. So far I am loving Modo. I have completed the Seahorse, the Tank, and the Lemans C9 series, all by Andy Brown and Modo is quickly becoming a warm and powerful home for me.

[under9stars]

Originally Posted by JeffrySG

Yes, I also always do incremental saves on projects. For something like my viper I may end up with 50 to 100 different versions as I go along. And if I ever have to grab a part from an older version, I know I probably have it.

Sounds like you have your own bonafide viper junkyard, Jeff. That could make a cool scene.

[under9stars]

Here are some different displays of the what I feel is my final (if one could ever say that) of the fuselage. I had reworked and tidied up my curves. I found some dreadful errors that I cleaned up as much as possible. I also forgot about the bottom "bump" that runs from the nose to the midsection. I figured I could just extrude or bevel after the conversion to polys, but I decided to just build the curves for it. Then I re-patched the whole fuselage. Next step should be to add edge weights and then convert. From there I suppose I can start with the nose geometry, then maybe the under belly bump. I have to say, it is a little flustering not knowing what order to do the details; not knowing if there is an order.