Jarink

There's exactly 2 P-63 skins in the IL2 download section here. I did a bare metal template (so you can make your own) and a couple skins for the IL2 P-63 a while back. They can be found at Flying-Legends.net.

It's not on your list, but I'd love to see an F4D Skyray. It set 5 time-to-height world records and equipped the only US Navy squadron ever assigned to the North American Air Defense Command.

Hey, now, let's not all get upset! I do not have a copy of whatever license agreement there was between capun and Anders, but since this was brought up by Anders in a public forum... On your site, on the Ja-37 page: Since this texture is included with the rest of the model, I assume it falls under the same terms as the rest of the license agreement. Does that it license specifically allow for redistribution of the skins or does it not since you're providing a template? If not, that might be something you'd want to consider changing. I'm just trying to make sure all the facts are known before anyone starts pointing fingers or getting all ticked off at each other. For my two cents, things like this are usually better resolved in private anyhow. Since you're the original modeller, let me say my hat's off to you for a nice Viggen. (Pitot tubes notwithstanding)

Download the SFP1_design package. Included in it is a very good tutorial of the decals system used in SF/WoV/WoE. Basically, decals are .tga files that can be placed over the skins of the aircraft (just like on plastic models). The advantages are that it's easier to show small details like names and warning placards since they can be scaled (for example, a 256x256 pixel tga that has legible text can be scaled to half or even 1/3 that size and still be read, which would be impossible on a 512x512 or 1024x1024 pixel skin) Another neat thing is that they can be used to change tail munbers (or nose, or serial numbers, pilot names, etc., etc.) so you can have one skin used by an entire squadron and each plane will be individualized.

Look into using decals. They can solve a lot of problems with warping and such. The hardest part of using (for me, at least) is getting them to blend with the rest of the skin, especially if it's weathered.

This thread is making me salivate. It looks awesome, Gux.

The Marine Corps grey digital camo from VMFA-314? That'll be cool! I'll warn you in advance, there is a lot of texture warping around the nose and the mid- and rear-fuselage. The fuselage warping isn't too bad; it's mostly just stretching along one axis. The nose warping is pretty much all over the place (look at the panel lines on the in front of the intakes on one of my F-18 skins. They're striaght on the .bmp, but go up and down in-game). That's the main reason I haven't tried doing this bird yet. Good luck! BTW, if you pick up my F-18 template from here, it doesn't include the redone intakes. Feel free to copy them from any of my latter skins.

I like them. So far my only suggestion would be to categorize the packs into WWII, US/NATO and Soviet/WP packs.

Why limit the Paran's aircraft to ex-Soviet piston planes? Give them some ex-western stuff, too. We dumped them all over the world, even to countries that later 'turned against us'. Maybe give Dhimar only ex-USAF equipment while the Parani's use a combo of older RAF (Hurricanes?, Spitfires, a few Meteors) and newer Soviet planes (La-11s, Mig-15s, some Mig-17s).

The Mig-27 is currently only available in Wings Over Europe (TW = Third Wire) No reasons I know of why it wouldn't work in SF or WoV, but you'd still need to purchase WoE to get it.

File Name: F/A-18A Hornet Loading screen pack File Submitter: Jarink File Submitted: 25 Aug 2006 File Category: SF Hanger/Menu Screens This is a set of alternative loading screens for the F/A-18A Hornet add-on from the Mirage Factory and Flying Toaster. All pictures used in this pack are from official US Navy sources and are publicly available. *************** * N O T I C E * *************** ** BACK UP YOUR ORIGINAL FILES! ** In order to minimize the size of the download package, I have converted all the pictures to JPEG format. ** YOU WILL NEED TO CONVERT THEM TO BITMAP (.bmp) BEFORE THE GAME CAN USE THEM!** There are many free programs that can do this, such as IrfanView. ** YOU WILL NEED TO RENAME THE FILES TO REMOVE THE ENDING "_#"!** (Example: "FA-18A_LOADING_7.bmp" will need the "_7" removed so it becomes "FA-18A_LOADING.bmp") Once converted and renamed, simply copy the desired file to the \Objects\Aircraft\FA-18A folder. JARink Click here to download this file

File Name: F/A-18A Hornet Hangar screen pack File Submitter: Jarink File Submitted: 25 Aug 2006 File Category: SF Hanger/Menu Screens This is a set of alternative hangar screens for the F/A-18A Hornet add-on from the Mirage Factory and Flying Toaster. All pictures used in this pack are from official US Navy sources and are publicly available. *************** * N O T I C E * *************** ** BACK UP YOUR ORIGINAL FILES! ** In order to minimize the size of the download package, I have converted all the pictures to JPEG format. ** YOU WILL NEED TO CONVERT THEM TO BITMAP (.bmp) BEFORE THE GAME CAN USE THEM!** There are many free programs that can do this, such as IrfanView. ** YOU WILL NEED TO RENAME THE FILES TO REMOVE THE ENDING "_#"!** (Example: "FA-18A_HANGAR_7.bmp" will need the "_7" removed so it becomes "FA-18A_HANGAR.bmp") Once converted and renamed, simply copy the desired file to the \Objects\Aircraft\FA-18A folder. JARink Click here to download this file

Kewl!

File Name: F/A-18A VMFA(AW)-242 "Bats" CAG File Submitter: Jarink File Submitted: 24 Aug 2006 File Category: SF F-18 Skins This skin is intended for use with the MDD F/A-18A add-on from the Mirage Factory and Flying Toaster. It is the CAG (Commander Air Group) colors for the VMFA(AW)-242 "Bats" squadron. The actual squadron really uses the F/A-18D two-seater "Night Hornet". Even though we don't currently have a twin-seat Hornet model, I decided the paint scheme was just too neat looking to wait! (when we do, I'll update this skin) Just drop the VMFA242CAG folder into your FA-18A folder and go flying! Jarink Click here to download this file

I wrote some tutorials for skinning in the IL-2 series a while back. They are available on FlightSimGuides.com. It appears they just reorganized the site, but if you look under "GIMP Tutorials" and "Skins and Repaints", you'll (hopefully) find some info that will help get you going. Even though I did all of them with GIMP, most of the skinning principles (such as how to work with layers) will hold true for Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro, though the details will be different.

Program(s) needed: Something that can use photoshop .psd files (if you want to use any of the available templates. Otherwise, any program that uses layers and can create .bmp files is fine. Technically, you could use MS Paint, but I'd recommend against it!). Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro and GIMP are the usual suspects. Tip #1 - Start by downloading some of the templates, even if there aren't any for aircraft that you want to skin. The idea here is to get used to using your skinning program and the skinning progress. Tip#2 - Look for and read all you can about skinning on the forums here, at ThirdWire and elsewhere. Learn from others' questions and/or mistakes. Tip #3 - Don't hesitate to ask if you have questions.

This also depends on the DecalLevel= line in the Decals.ini file. DecalLevel=0 -–> Nation ID DecalLevel=1 -–> Squadron ID DecalLevel=2 -–> Aircraft Number DecalLevel=3 -–> Kill Number So, if you want to be able to display the national insignia on a surface, you'd need an entry like this: [Decalxxx] MeshName=Nose DecalLevel=0 <--Specifies this decal changes according to selected nation FilenameFormat=Insignia <--Default name for national insignas. DecalFacing=RIGHT Position=4.707,-0.113 Rotation=0.0 Scale=1.7 DecalMaxLOD=4 The decals tutorial is in Word format as part of the SFP1_design package. It's really in-depth and very useful. A must-have for skinners!

File Name: F/A-18A VFA-131 "Wildcats" CAG File Submitter: Jarink File Submitted: 21 Aug 2006 File Category: SF F-18 Skins This skin is intended for use with the MDD F/A-18A add-on from the Mirage Factory and Flying Toaster. It is the CAG (Commander Air Group) colors for the VFA-131 "Wildcats" squadron. There are several variations of this paint scheme; this is the "blue" one. Just drop the VFA131CAG folder into your FA-18A folder and go flying! Jarink Click here to download this file

Download a program called Audacity; it's one of the best sound file editors around and not too hard to use. There's a selection in it to change the playback speed without affecting anything else.