Working with the Carenado 227 paint kit. Am having problems matching up the side stripes with the back engine cowling, which is a separate piece in the paint kit. The cowling is angled. Aside from trial and error is there another way to continue a side stipe around the back end of a plane. Any help would really be appreciated.

Regards
Kenml

Welcome to the wonderful world of FS repainting.

Trial and error (and patience) are many times required to make something on a flat sheet look good when it is wrapped around a Coke bottle.

This is a tutorial on using the Panelfinder- http://www.simmerspaintshop.com/forums/f34-general-tutorials/using-panel-finder-tool-456/

Panelfinder can be downloaded from that site.

Maybe it can help you.

cheers,
Joe

kenml wrote on Feb 14^th, 2012 at 12:50pm:

Working with the Carenado 227 paint kit. Am having problems matching up the side stripes with the back engine cowling, which is a separate piece in the paint kit. The cowling is angled. Aside from trial and error is there another way to continue a side stipe around the back end of a plane. Any help would really be appreciated. Regards Kenml

I had the same problems when I first started doing repaints on the Cessnas, Bell 206B, and other aircraft. Two things you can try that have worked for me are:

1) Look for any panel lines that line up between the two sections and use them as a reference as to where to place the stripes or graphics on each one.

2) If you are working from blank textures, try making a master reference by placing evenly spaced alignment marks along the edges where the sections meet. Call the aircraft up in the sim aircraft diectory and make a close examination to determine where things line up. Make a copy of the reference textures, erase any of the marks you don't need, and go from there.

lastly, save as you go, so you don't have to go back to the begining if something is not right. I do this a lot, keeping a copy of each step, so I can go back to just before where  the problem cropped up. (Example: keeping  a copy of the main texture for one of the Cessnas in the sim with the tail boom blank in case a body side graphic doesn't line up between it and the main part of the fuselage.

I hope this is of some help to you ;)

Don

I have the same problem with this kit.

I'm still as green as a golf course at the re-painting, but I'm finding some tricks that help me along the way. The advice of saving each good file and copying it to work the next sections is very necessary. At first, just to learn what was where on the craft after paint, I'd take a plain white paint, or whatever works, and place a multitude of different numbers and letters in various spots. This sort of helped me orientate where I was going on the texture. After figuring out who over-lapped what, I would use a simple line and keep tryin to get the line to line up across the various parts. Once I had that, it gave me a good idea where the markings could go to try and line up, but again most of what I have done so far was trial and error.

I did a DC3, in the old RCAF camo for the 436Sq from WW2, Canucks Unlimited. That took a number of hours, I lost track but it was again lots of trying, lots of failing and lots of trying again. The Bell 206 I did from the default white is a copy of the local police service chopper here where I live. That was probaly ten or so hours of trying and failing and trying again, and so on.

Believe me, it is very worth the effort after you go through the bumps and baloney of figuring them out. Nothing else like seeing your craft done the way you wanted.

I'll post some pics of the Canucks Unlimted daks, and of the police bird too. Even though they aren't quite perfect, they sure make me smile when I think of what I went through to get them done.

This is the only reason I like the Abacus FSRepaint program... the 3D preview model helps a LOT with matching stripes and other images that cross over to another piece.  The built-in editor is awful, you need to back up your chrome dds file because it might turn black, and it can't open all texture types... but the preview model is really useful.

Okay....here goes an attempt at uploading the photo of the 206....if it works, hope you like. If it doesn't work, that thumping sound is me banging me head of the wall.

http://www.simviation.com/phpupload/uploads/1361153902.jpg

Well the link worked.... 'scuse me while I do a happy dance.

;D