As I mentioned in a previous post, I have begun a B-29 project for an old friend who flew on one in WWII. I am a recent returnee to modelling, and there have been a few changes made since I last built in the late 1990’s. One thing that appears to me to be new is the line of Alclad 2 paints to simulate polished metal on aircraft. I have done some online research and got some of the basics down, but am wondering about the colors.
What Alclad 2 color does your collective wisdom recommend for a B-29 on Tinian in 1945? If you recommend multiple shades to highlight panesl, what do you think would be best where? I saw a beautiful B-29 done on the Forum not long ago but didn’t see any info about which paints were used then.
As long as I am asking questions, any good recommendations for masking the curved glass canopy and painting the window frames on a B-29? That is obviously a highlight of the model.
In exchange for answering my dumb questions, I’ll post pics of my progress when I get the research finished and the build itself underway.
Bob, just study the photos carefully. There are some different metals that were used on the front of the cowls due to the heat buildup. In early June I saw FIFI do some nice photo passes at the WWII Weekend in Reading and you could clearly see a lighter colored area on top of the wing. There again study the photo references carefully. I am hoping that there will be some members out there who can post some good pictures of these areas. I also want to build the B-29 that’s in my stash so I will be taking notes. Good Luck. Bob H.
Here are some photos, the cockpit areas are of the B-29 at Travis AFB, to show the sealant, and the flat panes in many of the frames. The other photo is a color photo of B-29’s in WW II, I believe, which has nice tonality in the metal skin.
John: thanks for the photos, they are helpful. The color photo of the 4 aircraft in flight is uncanny; it is the same group that my friend served in (9th Bombardment Group), with the circle X on the tail. From the tail numbers it looks like these were 5th Squadron, while he was in 1st Squadron. The photos help a lot.
Thanks, Bob H. I noticed the lighter color patch on the top of the wings in the beautiful build I saw here in the forum. I will begin the build soon (my friend is 88 now; can’t waste much time!) and post pics along the way.
Few bombers in WW2 were actually polished. That would be an enormous job for a ground crew. Rather, they were left in mill finish aluminum. That is fairly shiny when the plane is new, but gradually weathers to a more matt finish. Alclad polished aluminum is REALLY glossy- almost like chrome plating, if applied over a gloss black. It is probably too shiny for a bomber, though I have seen some prototype fighters and restored fighters polished up. There are two other shades of Alclad that I think are more appropriate, just plain “aluminum” and a “white aluminum.” The plain aluminum is probably best for the appearance of mill finish, the white for a more weathered plane. A mix of the two, on various panels (some aluminum, others white aluminum) makes a very nice appearance. You can also affect the appearance of panels by using other than a gloss aluminum. Make some panels gloss gray or a semi-gloss black.
Don has you pretty well covered for advise. Check ref pics and use varied shade. The link below show what regular colors are available. I wouldn’t use the shiny or polished ones.
My only addition to the advise area would be a note on the prep work. Any surface imperfection will stick out like a sore thumb with any of the Alclads so surface prep is key. get the surface as smooth as you can and use a good primer as a base. regardless of what you may read the use of gloss black is not mandatory. That is only necessary for the polished colors and chrome. I use Mr. Surfacer 1200. Fix any blemishes and buff out the primer a little. You can use a coffee filter for that. Vary your panels but make sure one side mirrors the other as in using the same color for whatever panel on the left side again on the right.
one of my favorite masks for that type of "glass’ is Bare Metal Foil. A bit more expensive but it’s thinness allows the shape of the frame to show through very well making it easy to cut the excess away with a new #11 blade.
A book you might wanna pick up from Squadron/Signal(if you can find it), is written by Steve Birdsall on B-29s. I don’t remember the actual title. I’ll try to dig it out later.Tons of pictures,with a sections on color photos,interior,nose art…
Thanks. I have one Sqdn/Signal book, called B-29 Superfortress In Action, by Doyle. It is interesting because it has a photo of my friend’s actual aircraft (on Iwo, where they diverted one mission), which helped clear up some confusion on tail markings. I’ll look for the book by Birdsall.
I’ve found that a coat of Alclad Aluminum misted with Duraluminum makes a worn look.( A mist of white aluminum is an idea as well, though I’ve never tried that.) A coat of old silver floquil (or Tamiya AS-12 silver) with a mist of alclad aluminum is another technique. I read where floquil Platinum Mist is a good tone for the lacquered Aluminum painted areas. As for separate panels of alclad, I found that even Tamiya tape can peel up some alclad beneath it. I’d recommend putting a clear coat over areas to be taped for various panel shades, etc.
Wow the plane in the back ground when I zoom in looks like 52. My father inlaw was the crew chief. I got one shot of his plane on the ground but non in the air. Where did this photo come from?
