What is the trick to buff gunnery?

[DmdNexus]

When I'm manning the guns in a buff I can't seem to hit doodle.

But when I'm attacking a buff they ping me from 1.2k yards out and this while, I'm weaving and rolling and jinking around.

How do they do it?

What's the lead on a shot like that?

What's the trick - I gots to know.

DmdNexus

[MrLars]

You must be missing the most important piece of equipment that an ackstar needs to be truly dweebish...

[K West]

lol Lars. I'm saving that

Most of the trick to gunning on a bomber is to simply lead the target.  Take into accoutn thier closure rate and firing ahead of them. For further distance arc the stream more.

 Westy

[Broes]

Usually you can see them coming from a distance. This is often enough space to point your tail at them... 4 out of 5 people will come straight at your 6.... just watch them burn

Broesy

[Red Tail 444]

Sorry, youcan actually arc your bullets in here too? Sorry, I'm new, and I must not have read that...and I read a lot!

[K West]

Yes.  In the sense that gravity is working on the bullets (part of the ballistics) as they travel from your gun to your target. For example if you want to hit an enemy plane at 1k range on your "6" you need to fire a bit above them so the rounds leave your gun, arc up and then come down to where the bogy is you are trying to hit.

 Imagine trying to hit a frisbee, or a coffe cup, on a spot of  grass ten feet away away with the water from a garden hose. Now try it when the frisbee or cup is fifty feet away. You have to manipulate the direction the hose is pointed in for the stream of water to impact on the frisbee/cup. Never will the hose be pointed directly at the frisbee or cup itself - unless they were only a foot or two away from the end of the hose

 Now have the frisbee/cup move towards you from different angles and at varying speeds. Not only do you need to make the water curve correctly to hit the target but to keep the water "on" it you need to move the hose itself faster in more than one axis to maintain water contact on the bogy.

 So consider not only effects from gravity but also the closing angles and speeds when you fire.  

  Westy

[Tumor]

Originally posted by K West
lol Lars. I'm saving that

Most of the trick to gunning on a bomber is to simply lead the target.  Take into accoutn thier closure rate and firing ahead of them. For further distance arc the stream more.

 Westy

.. ...but never never NEVER CROSS the streams!!

[Tac]

Spray in a small circular motion in front of the target's nose. The faster he's coming at you, aim further ahead.

Remember, you got turbolasers, they only have .50 cals or short range cannons at best. So spray, get the 1 or 2 pings needed to kill con, be happy.

[Red Tail 444]

Originally posted by Tac
Spray in a small circular motion in front of the target's nose. The faster he's coming at you, aim further ahead.

Remember, you got turbolasers, they only have .50 cals or short range cannons at best. So spray, get the 1 or 2 pings needed to kill con, be happy.

Thanks for the advice, although I rarely gun....define turbolasers?

[Wotan]

spray and pray

[hitech]

Tac:

Once again you keep on harping on somthing that you are incorrect on, ive said it multiple times the buf guns are the same as the fighter guns, now get over it, or move on. When some one ask a simple question and you acctualy feel the need to put your own little whinie in the response you are realy damaging to aces high. You will either change this or I will change it for you.

Buff guns have dispersion. Test it with .target
Buff guns lethality is exactly the same as the guns on the fighters.
Buff guns do NOT have a convergance.

[Max]

Originally posted by hitech


Buff guns do NOT have a convergance.

So it doesn't make any difference what range they're set to?

DmdMax <--same feeling about buff guns as Nexus points out

[CptTrips]

Hitech,

I think Tac overstates his case, but its not a sentiment completely unshared by others in the arena.

I don't think its off by much, but sometimes they seem a little overly lethal.  

Do the buff guns have the exact same range as the fifties on fighters?

Also, in real life seldom would all the guns within angle be shooting at the target at the exact same range with the exact same precision.  IMHO.  Someone would be watching another plane, someone may be putting in another belt of ammo.  One gunner may consistantly lead too much, another too little.  I think there'd be a little more dispersion, not on each guns stream, but on the convergence of the various gun positions collectively.

Also, those fifties buck like jack-hammers.  How about adding a little shake and wiggle.  Those gun positions now slew smooth as silk almost like electrically controled B-29 guns.


I wouldn't say its off by an order of magnitude, but it feels like it could be tweaked a bit.


Regards,
Wab

[Karnak]

Having spent most of my bomber time in Lancs I can definately attest to the fact that 1 or 2 pings do basically nothing to a fighter.  To stop a fighter from killing my Lanc it has to attack from the tail and I have to drill it with a very sustained burst.  Fighters almost always survive to break off and try a smarter approach that ends up killing me.

AKWabbit,

Keep in mind that the turrets on the B-17 and Lanc are electricly powered and as stabel as those on the B-29.  The turet on the Ki-67 is probably the same.  I don't know about the half-arc turret on the TBM.

[CptTrips]

>Keep in mind that the turrets on the B-17 and Lanc are electricly
>powered

Sounds reasonable.   So on a B17 you're talking the belly turret.  What about the tail, waist, cheek ect?  But a Jack-hammer shake on any position not electrically controlled.

Actually I think it'd look cool.  Ejecting brass animation would be ducky too.

Regards,
Wab