Motley,
Best of luck on skinning! I am not a skinner but I can provide some critique if you would like.
A few things I am noticing on your skin thus far:
-Panel lines and rivets on the wings appear to have the same opacity/transparency.
-Stars and bars are not quite accurate. The blue outline around the white bar needs to be thicker. Also double check the blue circle field where the white bars connect. The borders don't line up correctly.
-Spinner isn't correctly colored. (oboe mentions this)
-Oil stains from engine exhaust does not extend far enough down the fuselage.
-Specularity on the OD covering needs to be turned down. The OD paint is too shiny.
-The "Silver Streak" noseart is too faint. I would recommend making the noseart look like it is freshly painted (within 1-2 weeks) by turning down the opacity/transparency so that it looks more vibrant.
-The blue and white stripes around the spinner does not look consistent. Perhaps posting a few pictures of this profile would help us point out more details that are missing.
Your bare metal finish effects appear to be coming to life. I would look at some of the bare metal skins that Fester, Cactus, and Greebo made. These should give a clearer idea of how to simulate metal stress, fatigue, and general wear and tear. I wouldn't overdo the "wear and tear" details too much, as that might detract from the immersion of the skin itself. Remember that the typical AH gamer will be in the MAs flying from within the cockpit. I would add subtle details around the wingroots and flaps to give the pilot something to look at while he/she is flying. This ups the immersion factor by a little bit as well.
Just food for thought.
Looking forward to more progress!
