Krusty started a thread about P-38 nacelle mirrors, and since I have a WIP P-38J skin I thought I'd check out the functioning of the cowl-mounted mirrors on the inner side of the P-38s nacelles. So I modified the spec and environment map to simulate polished chrome and this is what I found:
Basically it works, and it looks pretty cool. Panning around the outside of the aircraft, you can see reflections of either the runway surface or the horizon & sky, depending on your angle to the mirror. Especially cool when you look at the inner cowl that is in shadow, because the mirror stays well lit.
However, when you are inside the cockpit and look down at one of the mirrors, what you see reflected in the mirror is the same view you would have of the opposite nacelle from your head position. E.g., if I'm in cockpit and look forward-left-down to view the mirror, what I see in the mirror is the view I would have of the opposite nacelle (just as if I had instead looked forward-right-down). I can see in the left hand mirror the right hand canopy frame and the indicator lights and control knob just forward of the control yoke found on the left inside of the cockpit.
Unfortunately, it doesn't work to view whether the nose gear is extended, which I understand was the function of those mirrors in real life. I don't know why it doesn't work the way the mirrors work in RL?
