The A2A Simulations Community

have you ever had to polish a whole aircraft ? That is the answer plain and simple much less work to keep her looking nice.

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i've heard several times its a harder paint, so less likely to chip off, rust, easier to just wipe etc etc

They used flat paint during war because it's lighter, quicker application, and easy to blend colors in after repairing damage. They use gloss now because, frankly, it looks muhc nicer. It's really the paint scheme that matters, rather than the sheen and quality of the paint.

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© 2011 Peter J. Carlson, All Rights Reserved
"O! for a horse with wings!" -William Shakespeare

Glass paint is also easier to clean because it is clear coated. You will notice on aircraft with tactical paint schemes that dirt/exhaust stains get embedded in the paint, and the only way to get rid of them is to sand them down & paint them over! I know this all to well being a painter in the Navy. Just look at one of our H-60's compared to the Coast Guard's/Homeland Securities with their fancy gloss paint jobs and you will see.

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S Jordan
Milviz Staff Member
AM; United States Navy
FSX Hours: 2000 and counting

Roadburner,

Not wanting to get off topic but...I've always been told that "glossy"(metallic) fighters can be spotted from far, giving away the element of surprise.

Or is it the other way round: to intentionally attrack attention?

What you say?

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Matte paint is a tactical consideration, yes. I've never polished an entire aircraft (just parts of them, as part of a team of doing it... to make it look nice for display) but have painted tanks and Land Rovers matte green and black for exactly the anti-reflection reason stated.

If you read historical accounts of some of the most famous "detections" in aviation history, the aircraft was usually spotted by some form of reflection, usually off the canopy, which is kind of hard to stop being reflective. However tactical paint is always going to be matte specifically to reduce the amount of reflection and hence visibility in combat. That doesn't apply to display aircraft, where a photo of a wing or canopy glinting in the summer sunshine can be the perfect photo for an enthusiast to buy - or a pro photographer to sell.

I certainly wouldn't say that gloss takes less maintenance - although it definitely does reduce the amount of marking and staining from oils and general grime. To keep a display aircraft in perfect condition takes a heck of a lot of effort by a heck of a lot of people. However sorry Peter, weight and ease of "blending" have nothing to do with matte paint being applied to combat aircraft. Matte surfaces are about visibility. Avoiding detection until the last possible second is critical in a combat environment. Read the number of descriptions about the fact that the aircraft you don't see is the one that shoots you down.

A display aircraft, on the other hand, is designed to be seen, designed to look good. Gloss looks better than matte on camera and to the eye of joe public.

Ian P.

WOW!!!!I just watch videos and read all about this project and Im so impressed!!!
You do some amazing things continue like that!
I'll buy it for sure!!

Quality over quantity. You know they're doing it right.

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AMD Phenom II X6 1100T 3.7GHZ Socket AM3
8 Gigs DDR3 Gskill Ram
Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H
EVGA e-GeForce GTX 570 HD Classified 1280MB
EVGA e-GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB Physx Card
Windows 7 Pro 64bit

the matte grey being the hardest to spot.

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AMD Phenom II X6 1100T 3.7GHZ Socket AM3
8 Gigs DDR3 Gskill Ram
Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H
EVGA e-GeForce GTX 570 HD Classified 1280MB
EVGA e-GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB Physx Card
Windows 7 Pro 64bit

Quality?OVER quality you mean!!!
It's amazing to see what they can do for FSX!!It's like a whole new simulator!
I just download the P 51 Pilot's manual and all what is explained in, seems to be simulated in their Accu sim...
There is such a gap between all addons I have tried and this accu-simed plane.
At least, we can fail an engine run up, all failures can come if we don't properly manage the plane....sooo good!!
Don't listen to poeple who can't wait, just make it perfect, take the time it should take to get it high!!!

........but I waaaant it neeeoowww

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No whining!

It will be ready when it is ready!!!

So why isn't it ready????

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i5-2600K SB, 8GB Mushkin Redline, ASUS P8Z68-V Pro, GTX 560 2GB, Saitek X52. Etch-A-Sketch hard wired to Speak-N-Spell backup system. Everything maxed and I see it ALL!

Because it isn't ready.

It'll be ready when it's ready when they are ready for it to be ready after the testers say it's ready for the rest of us that are ready for it to be ready.

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Real Life: Airman First Class (E-3) 140th AMXS; Buckley AFB, CO

I want the WoP3 Mustang now. I want Iran to stop developing nuclear technology, our troops to come home, politicians to stop lying, aaaaaand... if "Two and A Half Men" would hire Charlie back that would be cool too.

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i7 2600, 8GB, Nvidia 420, 1.5TB, W7, TrackIR-5

Oh boy, can't wait for this one!! Can you post a few more screenies, please?

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"If you want to fly, you have to give up the things that weigh you down."