F14 Skinners thread (Paintkit in 1st post)

[Tomcatter87]

16 hours ago, Reflected said:

 

Awaiting approval in the user files section

 

Oh, that looks gorgeous, you're the man. Cant wait to replicate that famous picture of the inverted formation - not the one with the black F-5, the real one

[Moorhuhn]

Please dont forget to submit all your liveries to the skin contest.

 

Specially the VF-84 with Jolly Rogers History on the tail.

It looks awesome.

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by Moorhuhn

[CanopyJettison]

vor 6 Stunden schrieb Moorhuhn:

Please dont forget to submit all your liveries to the skin contest.

 

Specially the VF-84 with Jolly Rogers History on the tail.

It looks awesome.

 

yes please.

submit, submit, submit

[ben_der]

 

Lantirn got some love.
Next up is the Nose Art and some minor details.

[captain_dalan]

I'm surprised to see no love for the 1977 VF-213 here. Does no one like the Black Lions anymore?

[Uxi]

2 minutes ago, captain_dalan said:

I'm surprised to see no love for the 1977 VF-213 here. Does no one like the Black Lions anymore?

 

That's gonna open up the F-14D thing again.

[isoko]

here's some updates.

Edited December 5, 2020 by isoko

[Uxi]

Those first three are epic!  Amazing weathering.

Edited December 5, 2020 by Uxi

[CanopyJettison]

Again, dont forget to submit your work to the skin contest.

[Tomcatter87]

As I'm diving into a early-80s-scenario for the Syrian/Lebanon map: A VF-11 red rippers skin from that era would be perfect to accompany the wonderful Tomcatters livery

Edited December 7, 2020 by Tomcatter87

[catchforusthefoxes]

On 12/4/2020 at 10:35 PM, isoko said:

here's some updates.

these look awesome!! cant wait!! 

[Tomcatter87]

On 12/5/2020 at 5:20 AM, captain_dalan said:

I'm surprised to see no love for the 1977 VF-213 here. Does no one like the Black Lions anymore?

Since I somehow associated the Black Lions mostly with the Super Tomcat, I wasn much into them. But right now I stumbled across that F-14A CAG bird from 1995 - holy cow (lion?), what a beauty!

[Swordsman422]

Oh, man, my favorite VF-213 liveries for the A were the ODS and mid-90's paints. These understated schemes just scream "I work for a living" to me, and I love that. Plus they work for the late 135-GR.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[CheckGear]

8 hours ago, Tomcatter87 said:

Since I somehow associated the Black Lions mostly with the Super Tomcat, I wasn much into them. But right now I stumbled across that F-14A CAG bird from 1995 - holy cow (lion?), what a beauty!

 

Yes! I'm so happy I'm not the only one who thinks VF-213's mid-1990s livery was awesome! I'd love to have both the CAG and toned-down versions available!

[LanceCriminal86]

Progress on VF-201's final CAG bird continues, despite it needing the not yet released bullet fairing, HGU-55s, and RWR blisters.

 

I believe I may need to make the tails and strakes glossy, based on a couple photos they seem flat but then in another couple photos they seem very glossy. May just offer two different roughmets to solve that issue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The backlot of 201 that need to get updated/fixed/revised with correct A model stencils and some other revisions.

 

 

[Uxi]

 

On 12/10/2020 at 1:01 AM, LanceCriminal86 said:

 

 

 

How did you line them up like that behind the JBD? 

 

[LanceCriminal86]

6 hours ago, Uxi said:

 

 

How did you line them up like that behind the JBD? 

 

Statics, just set them all up there for screenshots. Then by delaying my player craft a little it spawned me on the stern. That meant I could good around and good with the camera and get a group shot.

 

No, Supercarrier AI and all that jazz is not fixed not has had anything done since release.

[CheckGear]

Anybody up for creating these skins?

[Swordsman422]

I'm waiting for the -135-GR Early and -95-GR to tackle any gull grey schemes, but I really like that 1978 VF-142. 1st Tamiya 1/48 F-14A I built was in that livery. I might have to take it.

[CheckGear]

Same here. Really like that tail insignia!

[LanceCriminal86]

Just do the schemes now, you're going to need the time to get them right. There's a TON that has to be redone to get A model skins right.

 

 

Stencils, stencils, stencils gentlemen. There are some glaring differences and attention to detail there will go a long way.

 

[Jackjack171]

Forgive me for hijacking the thread but all this talk about painting has got me going. How do I get started painting? Where do you guys get the stencils and which program is better, GIMP or Photoshop? Are there any other programs that I need? 

[_YaeSakura_]

22 hours ago, CheckGear said:

Anybody up for creating these skins?

I actually did that VF-142 Ghostriders skin a while back. Not up to my current standards, but the files are still available for download. The 1975/76 VF-142 one, with a separate download of... 5 additional aircraft. It might be a decent substitute for now, as I plan to redo it sometime in the future.

[Swordsman422]

25 minutes ago, Jackjack171 said:

Forgive me for hijacking the thread but all this talk about painting has got me going. How do I get started painting? Where do you guys get the stencils and which program is better, GIMP or Photoshop? Are there any other programs that I need? 

I use Photoshop CC, which is the current version. It's ~$20/month but reads the HB paintkit better than anything else. For stenciling and markings, I fall back on my collection of 1/48 decal sheets and a scanner, and scan with high-resolution photo settings. More current companies like Furball Aero, Fightertown, Afterburner, DXM, and SBDecals can be relied upon to have accurate artwork. Older sets from Superscale, Eagle Strike, Aeromaster, CAM, and Yellowhammer are hit or miss. Regardless of the manufacturer, I always check photo references when I can find them, usually from Airfighters.com, airliners.net, and the F-14 Tomcat Association FB group. Another reference I always keep handy when working in photoshop is a US Navy Federal Standard color chart, which allows me to grab color samples in photoshop when I need them. Bear in mind that aircraft paint came in batches, and the varying dyes and age of the paint caused paint of the same color to vary visibly. If you're trying to get accurate BuNos and Modex numbers from a specific deployment, gonavy.jp often has these lists available.

 

I like to think of my work as a sort of medium-quality effort. I like to put out packs covering all or most of a squadron from a specific period or cruise, which means 10-12 aircraft. Aside from a few more obvious differences, I don't try to replicate each squadron aircraft in exacting detail. Doing so will probably be moot once Heatblur solves the dynamic modex issue, and will reduce the needed number of skins per squadron from a dozen to 2 or 3. I'll probably never release an F-14 skin that looks exactly as a particular plane looked on a particular date. I'm not as good as most others and it would prolong my projects beyond my energies to maintain them.

 

Once you get started, choose a process that's right for you and keep at it. I look forward to seeing what you turn out.

[Jackjack171]

2 hours ago, Swordsman422 said:

I use Photoshop CC, which is the current version. It's ~$20/month but reads the HB paintkit better than anything else. For stenciling and markings, I fall back on my collection of 1/48 decal sheets and a scanner, and scan with high-resolution photo settings. More current companies like Furball Aero, Fightertown, Afterburner, DXM, and SBDecals can be relied upon to have accurate artwork. Older sets from Superscale, Eagle Strike, Aeromaster, CAM, and Yellowhammer are hit or miss. Regardless of the manufacturer, I always check photo references when I can find them, usually from Airfighters.com, airliners.net, and the F-14 Tomcat Association FB group. Another reference I always keep handy when working in photoshop is a US Navy Federal Standard color chart, which allows me to grab color samples in photoshop when I need them. Bear in mind that aircraft paint came in batches, and the varying dyes and age of the paint caused paint of the same color to vary visibly. If you're trying to get accurate BuNos and Modex numbers from a specific deployment, gonavy.jp often has these lists available.

 

I like to think of my work as a sort of medium-quality effort. I like to put out packs covering all or most of a squadron from a specific period or cruise, which means 10-12 aircraft. Aside from a few more obvious differences, I don't try to replicate each squadron aircraft in exacting detail. Doing so will probably be moot once Heatblur solves the dynamic modex issue, and will reduce the needed number of skins per squadron from a dozen to 2 or 3. I'll probably never release an F-14 skin that looks exactly as a particular plane looked on a particular date. I'm not as good as most others and it would prolong my projects beyond my energies to maintain them.

 

Once you get started, choose a process that's right for you and keep at it. I look forward to seeing what you turn out.

Thank you for the reply. I figure it will take some time to learn this process. It's a good thing that I have nothing but that! I have your -102 and -41 livery packs. They rock!