I'm seeing a couple of potential problems here.  Changing the dimensions of a box, is like that for any object. You can adjust it's length/width/height, before it's made into something editable (mesh or poly), and after it's made editable, you can either re-scale it (uniform/non-uniform) or move vertices.

A calibration box need not fit a diagram. It's just a method for making sure the diagram is to scale, and only needs to reference one dimension.

If you're talking about the boxes (I prefer planes) in which you'll place the three-views.. the first step there, is to make sure all three views are to the same scale, and to make boxes(or planes) that are of exactly the same  width/height ratio.. For example; if your top view bitmap is 1000X900 pixels, the box(plane) that you'll place it upon needs to be a size ratio (WxL) of 10:9..  And if the side view is 1000X300, its box(plane) needs to have a LxH ratio of 10:3.

After  you gat all three views mapped and in place...THEN you scale everything so that the wingspan matches a "calibration box" that's exactly the wingspan in meters ..

Is this where you're struggling ?


When we say that it's a steep learning curve, that's an understatement.. Once you get into shaping fuselages and wings, and cutting control surfaces.. this stuff will look silly easy..  Just take your time, accept that at times it will feel like 2 steps forward, 3 steps back, and don't get aggravated. This is your first dive into it, and could very well be a year or more before you get a complete aircraft done.. Modeling is the tip of the iceberg.. then comes texturing, and then animating, and finally the flight-dynamics.

It's worth the effort and time... trust me  

Here's an example of what I'm talking about.. You make your backdrops (3-views) an actual part of the model...

If you're bound and determined to use the viewport background for your diagrams... just do it for this tutorial. The number of problems you'll face as the modeling progresses are many. The least of which are getting the the diagram to stay lined up with the model.. AND stay the same scale, as you zoom in and out doing the intricate stuff. Using viewport diagrams, for whatever reason, is a RAM gobbler. You'll be 3/4 of the way through solving a problem that's been keeping you up at night, and GMAX will crash.. even with a 4GB of RAM.

Anyway...  At first glance your numbers look right. The trick is that the viewport in which you create the box, determines the orientation for length/width/height. Delete that box and create a new box, and make sure you're doing it from the top viewport. And then continue the tutorial. I think you might have created the box in the wrong viewport. Or..  you can switch the numbers for your current box, until it's oriented properly. What you've got now is a combination problem of the mixing up of height/width/length... and different scales in each viewport. That's doubly confusing   

I'm trying to locate a good tutorial for setting up backdrops. If I can't find it, someone else here will 

Brett_Henderson wrote on Oct 25^th, 2007 at 6:41pm:

THAT would be very helpful ... I appreciate that! I warned you guys ... I am a "true" newbie at this stuff. It fascinates me though so I am determined to learn it!

I see your enthusiasm.. and see where you're just a, "light goes on over the head" away from grasping this.

What I'm trying to relate is dificult, because you're at the  "show me step by step"  phase. My advice will seem like leapfrogging over something you should be doing..  You'll learn that there is no step-by-step way to do this. It's a personal thing. Every one who finishes a model has adapted his style, and the way he visualizes this stuff. There are as many ways to make a wing, as there are modelers who've made one.

The only commonality is the tool set. "How do I taper AND bend this part ?"  is a question who's answer will involve both the bend and taper modifiers, but how one goes about using them is up to them.

GMAX is an incredibly powerful application. There are SO many tools in front of you... Uniform and non-uniform scaling... soft selecting vertices... taper, bend, twist, weld, merge.. and on and on and on 

What you'll get from the P-38 tutorial is a glimpse at basic shaping. What I did right after that, was to model a classic chess set. Pawns and Bishops offer certain problems... Rooks another, Kings and Queens another yet... and Knights wrap it up nicely...