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[WxTech]

UPDATE: July 21, 2022
Reworked the textures so as to reduce the tonal gradient at the scale of a PCP plank length, as well as to address a number of locally darker areas that contributed to a repetitive tiling effect.






Get it here:

https://www.mediafire.com/file/vszqn3g4eq7u0ji/WxTech_Marsten_mat_%2528PCP_runway%2529_4096px.7z/file


From the included readme file:


UPDATE: July 21, 2022
Reworked the textures so as to reduce the tonal gradient at the scale of a PCP plank length, as well as to address a number of locally darker areas that contributed to a repetitive tiling effect.



This mod provides 4096-pixel textures for the two PCP (Marsten mat) type runways; The general PCP and the PCP provided for the NGNB (New Guinea New Britain) map. All files are included (.msh, .mat., .tga). The textures have far more detailed textures than the others until now.

Such a large texture as 4096 pixels requires the appropriate high resolution dll's.

===================================================================

If you already have another mod containing folder path

  3do/Airfield/

you can place the "NGNB_PCP" and "PCP" folders inside the "Airfield" folder. This will keep from adding yet another folder to your MODS, #SAS or #WAW3 folders. Otherwise, copy this "WxTech Marsten mat (PCP runway) 4096px" folder to whatever is your mods folder.

===================================================================

All .mat files have

  Specular 0.1

which adds a bit of glare to suggects the partial 'shininess' of the steel planks. If you don't like this you can make the value 0.0 for no specularity at all, or between 0.0 and 0.1 for less than current specularity, or greater than 0.1 for even more specularity (1.0 is the maximum).

===================================================================

This work is offered for use by any and all, for any purpose, without restriction.


WxTech
April 9, 2022

[genXgamer]

G'day WxTech

Any chance of reducing the prominence of the lines running down the length of the runway?

 

[WxTech]

Can do.

[Griffon_301]

you know that these Marsten Mats did not come as a unified plain surface but more as a rag tag collection of plates that varied in surface quality....?
I think the way it looks in the screenshot is quite ok...

[genXgamer]

G'day Griffon_301

Yes, the steel planks were overlapped like brickwork.
So I fail to see how you could get such regular lines.
Anyhow that's just my thoughts.

[Griffon_301]

well, depends on which pictures you take as reference... I have read somewhere that it depended on the CBs who laid them if they were laid in overlapping elements or in straight lines like in the screenshot... the reason seems to have been that with overlaps, there was a chance that wear and tear made the corners of the mats bend up and damage or blow tyres as you could always zig-zag around such areas during high speed taxying or take off and landing...straight lines avoided that problem to a large degree... maybe WX could could help out in creating some more irregularly looking textures for the Marsten Mats though for more variety...

[WxTech]

Am working on it!

[WxTech]

I've updated the archive to reduce the prominence of systematic gradients and locally sharp tonal irregularities. There will still be present the darker lineaments at the scale of the length of a plank. I hope this is a satisfactory improvement!

[genXgamer]

Thanks mate

I've just downloaded and will test out after work.

My preference would be for something more toned down or similar to the below picture where you can see there is no difference in colour.

Anyone interested here's some reading.
https://www.mediafire.com/file/8cmw6qph4wxaf27/0489marston.pdf/file

[WxTech]

The base unit for the 4096 pixel texture is 256 pixels. You could grab the 256x256 upper left corner, work on it to your heart's content, then tile that to fill the 4096 panel as appropriate.

The lower left area is a 2048x1024 section taken from the upper left, rotated 90 degrees CCW.

The downside would be missing out on the subtle random pattern I use to further add some non-repeating variation. If you wish, I could supply the .PSD file, if you have Photoshop or an app that can read it.

[genXgamer]

Thanks Glenn

As I have many missions using the New Guinea and other Pacific maps, PCP runways are very important to me.

I can say I'm happy with the newly updated versions more subtle appearance.
Easily a big improvement over the other PCP options available.

In the end I may have been talking out of my ass, as the lines are created simply from the pattern on the planks and therefore are unavoidable.

[WxTech]

Indeed, the fact of a different tone between steel and holes will do this. Only if the hole spacing everywhere was uniform could the effect of the line patterning be avoided. Or if the tone (and to an extent, color) of plank and hole were pretty much the same.

Glad you like the updated look! I prefer it too, and thank you for inspiring me to work on it.

By the way, what to you think of the specularity? I'm not aware of anyone else thinking to apply this characteristic to Marsten mat, in spite of its unfinished steel surface having some degree of 'flatness' and reflectivit--when not all rusted from disuse. I've seen this matting in use at Arctic DewLine stations as flooring inside hangars (where I worked for 7 years.)