So, I'm making this cowboy/western/gunslinger character, and I realised I've never truly modelled a gun, properly, ever -- so why not do it right, huh?

I do some generic research on the gun in question (in this case a Walker Colt 1847). Google, Google images, then I slip into Wikipedia and realise, "what the hell, this gun doesn't work at all the way I thought," and go back and remodel large chunks just so the mechanisms of it will work properly.

Then I go on YouTube and look at people firing this thing, and I never knew just how fucking slow this thing was to reload since it's not a cartridge based revolver; it's a front loaded one where you add the gunpowder and bullets separately and use a lever to push them into the cylinder.

A lever which is mounted underneath the barrel, and when loaded with enough gunpowder and fired, would drop almost at each shot, forcing the user to raise it back up before being able to re-cock the hammer.

Apparently the solution to this was to tie it up with a piece of leather string, to keep it from dropping.. Another detail I'm going to use just to give my character and his gun a bit more.. character.

So my question is, how much time do you guys usually spend on research, and do you ever get to the point where things get so interesting that it becomes almost obsessive? Right now I'd really like to try firing this thing in real life, but I think that might be taking it a tad too far.. :P

Why not shoot one in real life, it'd only help. I've heard of artists taking "field trips" for references.

I don't think I could here in the UK. Would probably have to head to a former Soviet underling state, and even so I think it would be difficult to find a Walker Colt 1847 - even one of those Uberti-made replicas.

When it comes to weapons, everyone else on the internet is sooooooooooo obsessive that you really don't have much of a choice. If you have a single curve that's so much as 1mm off someone will point it out. Becoming either equally obsessive yourself, or just not giving a shit at all, is the only way to preserve your sanity when showing gun models. Even cars and women don't get anywhere remotely near the same level of obsession as guns.

Proceed at your own risk!

I think that's a good thing acc; maximum accuracy or bust!

You should always research and not rely on what you think you know.

Originally Posted by acc

When it comes to weapons, everyone else on the internet is sooooooooooo obsessive that you really don't have much of a choice. If you have a single curve that's so much as 1mm off someone will point it out. Becoming either equally obsessive yourself, or just not giving a shit at all, is the only way to preserve your sanity when showing gun models. Even cars and women don't get anywhere remotely near the same level of obsession as guns.

Proceed at your own risk!

Honestly i think the only sensible option is to be moderate about the whole thing. Sure some gun nuts will be on your case if you make some small errors, but its really not worth the amount of time to make sure that every little screw is modeled correctly or the internals are all modeled and working, when nobody will actually see the detail you've put into it in game.

Accuracy in guns is wonderful if it is actually adding to the quality of the asset, when you get to the point where it is a major detriment to the process, that is when you need to worry about going overboard.

On the other hand, being lazy with research and missing key things that are easily recognizable isnt a good option either. So no, i think you need a balance, neither OMG ITS PERFECT or OH JUST FUCK IT are ever good options.

Now for someone who is just starting to get into doing weapons, i think any and all research is great, and that you can't really do too much. As you do more and more you'll find a balance and get in a grove as far as what needs to be correct to sell the "feel" of the asset, because in the end that is all that matters. You can have a perfectly modeled, perfectly accurate gun, but if it looks boring in game because you failed to exaggerate proportions or key details its a lost cause to me.

Things like flipping a weapon so that the "interesting" side is not facing away from the player in FPV, bulking up some of the forms to make it appear more threatening, or designing extra detail into the FPV even if being totally functional isnt the main goal, are very import to the end visual result, and each decrease the "accuracy" of the weapon.

I've spent portions of several nights over the past week researching bird wing anatomy and function so I can make a high tech mechanical version thereof. It doesn't mirror the anatomy exactly and look is more important than physical accuracy, but it needs to do a few things a bird wing can.

An upshot of the research time spent is it gave me more ideas on structural forms to make the end piece more interesting, as well as give me more ideas of how to animate it.


In short: EQ's statment "can't do too much" is right, right up until it starts to become detrimental to your work.

Animal anatomy is something you should always research. So many people get it wrong. Everquest put out screenshots for one their expansions a while ago and the horses had and extra joint in their front leg (which seems to have been done in the new XBL Avatar pets too, along with cats that have hooves...).
The Dicovery Channel and History Channel devote hour long specials to the question of "What kind of anatomy would a real dragon have?" You can spend 5 minutes on Google and Wikipedia looking up animal skeletons for reference.

Originally Posted by East

I don't think I could here in the UK. Would probably have to head to a former Soviet underling state, and even so I think it would be difficult to find a Walker Colt 1847 - even one of those Uberti-made replicas.

Im sure they'd have a few over in moss side.