i am makin my own texture from the lightwave insted of doin UV. i have a really cool dino skin i made by have a bump map wiv a gradient and sumin else but i 4got wot it was. lol
a way i have made mine better is play around wiv colours i think gettin the right colour is vital. im not sayin urs is bad but it helps 2 see other colours. one other thing i have a skin simlar 2 urs but as my skin goes down the body the scales get lesser and the colour changes wiv it. looks cool insted of havin the same texture all over the model.
hope that helped in any way.

nice work. gud luck.