Modeling around the Pip-Boy

[Omny]

I'm working on a new set of armor for Fallout: New Vegas and right now I'm stuck. I've managed to import the meshes for the body as well as the pip-boy from the game. The body is fine, but the pip-boy won't cooperate once I try to import it into 3DS Max. Unlike other armors that are line up with the body mesh just fine once imported, if I try to import the Pip-Boy it's just sitting at the body mesh's feet instead of being wrapped around the forearm like it should be. I want it to line up with the body just as it is in the game so that I can model around it without having to guess.

 

Can anyone help me? Am I using the wrong model file? Please note that I am using 3DS Max and I'm still pretty new to the whole modding scene, so please be sure to be thorough when explaining.

[Nimboss]

It is some time I messed with the pipboy but what I recal it is not handled like clothes. There is a mount point in the skeleton arm it is attached to and follow that point when arm is moving. Also there is some "auto" magic in standard Bethesda armor in the mesh layout so when pipboy is mounted some mesh vertices on the arm close to the pipboy is scaled to zero. You can notice this if you unmount pipboy with console command in 3rd view and look on left arm, looks silly.

 

If not anyone have a smarter solution I would try to locate the mount point position in the skeleton and try to import or set the origo position for pipboy at this point on the body mesh. You maybe still need to rotate and align the pipboy but you will be a lot closer than pure guess work.

 

Hope this helps a least a bit

[nivea]

What I do to make pipboy compatible clothing is to take a vanilla armor/clothing similar in size to your outfit you are making, and load that in blender instead of the pipboy and then fit my outfit around it.