Firefox MIG-31 movie aircraft

Nwerke said:
* on the nacelle outer side walls, is there a facet demarcation at the level of the wing, which carries aft?
* or is that only a panel line and change in the line of the sweep of the trailing edge of the nacelle?

If I have the right part you are talking about there are various small changes in angle, if you can mark the bit you mean I can answer better.

Nwerke said:
* do you need to move the leading edge of your lower main intakes forward a little, possibly?

I think it's because the angle is a little off in my view, and the hero is mostly in shadow there, I looked at that area against a number of shots right back at the beginning, I have a side on shot to compare too, if it is off I will show and fix it.

Nwerke said:
* I think you need more of a 'step' back to the main nacelle at the lower edge of the nozzle shrouds.

Ok that bit lost me, lol, can you point it out?

Nwerke said:
Overall, mindblowingly close to perfect.

Thanks, makes the insane amount of time I have spent on this worth it.

Jon
 
OK, marked up both pics. Yeah, I didn't describe the 'step' thing well. It's just perspective - the shrouds seem like they could maybe use a tiny bit more sweep-back, low down? In the photo there's a gap vs. the triple rocket booster bit, which doesn't appear on the render. Hopefully the marked up pic explains what I'm rambling on about. :)
 

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That whole section has a lot of small angle changes, a rear parallel projection view shows it best, pretty much none of it is straight.
Firefox rear parallel.jpg

The triple booster bit - TBH I wasn't 100% on that part, but I think I have worked out what it is, so thanks for the poke. Will have a go at it later.

I don't think they were thinking that technical about the booster jets, but if it "was" a real Mach 6 plane, the main turbofans would be near useless above mach 4-ish. Actually people talk about being able to see the engines from the front, you actually never would as there would have to be a mechanism like the SR-71 Blackbird to slow down the incoming air to below the speed of sound other wise you get a shockwave inside the engine = REALLY not good.
So I "think" the boosters would be ramjets/pulsejets fed air by the big underwing intakes, basically just compressing the air by reducing the volume it passes through and throwing fuel in. This is what the classified Aurora aircraft is said to use.
 
That just doesn't look right somehow... too short or wrong proportions? (the kit noted in prior post, not the work being done here...)
R/ Robert
 
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I don't have enough time this evening/weekend to describe how wrong that one is, that makes the Studio 2 one look like a masterpiece, LOL

Actually it looks more like one of the prototype models before they got to the final design, maybe that's what they were aiming for...
 
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Well, if even a non-guru like me can *see* there is a problem, then it is pretty far off from accurate. It is recognizable in a distorted lens kind of way, granted. Good enough for the unwashed masses, perhaps...

R/ Robert
 
Certainly looks more like the Firefox design prototype, but doubt if that was intended!

Firefox prototype.jpg

Have spent all evening scanning and cleaning up the whole Cinefex article uploaded here

 
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The main thing with the MIG-31 in the movie that drove me nuts was the complete lack of any markings. Like all jet fighter planes, Russian planes are covered with small markings, showing lift points, latches, instructions on what to do or not to do, where not to step, stuff like that...
 
The main thing with the MIG-31 in the movie that drove me nuts was the complete lack of any markings. Like all jet fighter planes, Russian planes are covered with small markings, showing lift points, latches, instructions on what to do or not to do, where not to step, stuff like that...

Well not "complete lack of any markings", because it did have the Soviet stars on the vertical stabilizers and the wings. But don't forget that this was supposed to be an aircraft invisible to radar, so the writers wanted it to be differentiated from regular aircraft where every surface has some sort of marking. In the original movie and book, they never really suggested what caused the radar invisibility, but in the book Firefox Down they did hint at it being the coating, if I recall correctly. Then you may ask "Why then do they have the Soviet stars?". I would think 'pride' comes into effect as well as ensuring the civilian population doesn't think they are being attacked by an unmarked aircraft from an unfriendly nation. If you saw a strange aircraft fly over your house, you would be a little more comforted by knowing it had your country's markings on it.

TazMan2000
 
I think it was just the fact Clint just wanted a clean sleek looking plane with no "graphics", also more trouble to duplicate between the models and full size versions, plus could possibly have caused issues with the reverse bluescreen technique.
 
Firefox3D;3708224...plus could possibly have caused issues with the reverse bluescreen technique.[/QUOTE said:
That is unlikely, given that the reverse bluescreen process used phosphorescent blue dye, which would have illuminated well enough under UV light to pull a matte chemically. By the time I used the stuff, Apogee had adapted the red phosphor developed by Dreamquest, which was superior to the blue. I hated that stuff...
 
Ok it was just a thought, but you can see issues with parts of the plane disappearing when you go through the movie frame by frame. I think they mention it was an issue in the Cinefex article.
 
Fixed a multitude of small things and some bigger things. Corrected the triple booster section that NWerke pointed out, along with correcting a proportional error with the mid-rear section, pretty small but I could see it wasn't right.
Firefox 03-08-15 01.jpg
Reworked the the upper engines intake scoops as I could see they were a bit off which resulted in my re-doing the inner wing also. it's a really awkward piece of 3D geometry but it now looks right from all angles, it's gratifying to see it finally look right.
Firefox 03-08-15 02.jpg
I call this the "poster shot" as it's the pic that appeared in posters and reviews at the time, and I have a big photo quality poster of it :)
Also changed the contouring of the fuselage behind the cockpit using the panel lines as a guide. The fuselage has rounded peaks at the edges of the faceted front with a nearly flat top just behind the cockpit, the peaks narrow together and the cross sections turns more to a smooth arc before the wing roots, stays fairly similar to where the intake scoops start then the curvature gradually reduces to the point between the engine pods.

Discovered something interesting that fits with the hero mould being used for the RC versions. The anhedral wingtips are tilted forward when viewed from the side, it's around a 1.3 degrees rotation relative to the main wing such that the leading edge is lower than the trailing edge. I didn't know the term but it's called washout and prevents the wingtips from aerodynamically stalling before the rest of the wing, which can lead to spins (thanks NWerke)

Had a rethink on producing kits directly as 3D prints. After spending so much time on this getting it right, I would want the finished articles to be totally correct also. Due to limitations with home 3D printing I think printing and perfecting a 1/24th master then moulding it will be the way to go. This is also partly down to the estimated printing time which looks like around 5 days if all goes well, which it often doesn't...

Details like panel lines and small features get tricky at smaller scales like 1/48th (around 40cm or 16" long) but I looked into bureau printing and it's nowhere near as expensive as it used to be. So it might be feasible to get most of a 1/48th master bureau printed without breaking the bank. I have to finish and section the model before I can know for sure.
 
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I'm a 1/48 scale nut, so I may be looking for it from you in the future! Plus, you wouldn't have to make the landing gear - folks could just get a set of SAC (Scale Aircraft Conversions) metal gear if they wanted it...

Regards, Robert
 
Yeah there seem to be loads of detail parts at 1/48th as it's a popular scale for kits. Found a matching highly detailed ejector seat by Quickboost in 1/48th.
 
It was a coating on the aircraft that rendered it invisible to radar. If you read the sequel "Firefox down",after taking damage during the dogfight with the second firefox,Gant has to no choice but to land the aircraft. He puts it down on a frozen lake successfully,but the ice breaks and the plane sinks. When it's eventually recovered and flying again,it no longer has radar invisibility,as that coating has been washed away. Go get a copy on fleabay,it's a cracking read,following on where.the first finished.
 
I read the book a long time ago and don't remember that fact, it seems odd to me now as rain or moisture from clouds would effect it. Guess my mind wasn't so analytical back then...

I do remember thinking although there would be little of the plane in it, the story would make a better film than Firefox.
 

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