I am soon going to start building a Hobby2000 TBM-3E torpedo bomber model. The instructions call for ANA623 Glossy Blue, but that seems to be just a designation for an “official” colour used by the U.S. Navy during the Second World War.
I prefer to use Tamiya acrylics and TS rattle cans for model painting (I don’t have an airbrush, and cannot use one conveniently in my small apartment). Tamiya doesn’t have any paint that seems to be equivalent to ANA623 Glossy Blue.
I can live with a slightly “off” Navy blue colour, but I’d like it to be reasonably close to ANA623.
Bob
Take a look at Tamiya AS-8, which is a rattle can in their newer line of aircraft colors. It’s supposedly tailored to meet ANA 623 standards, but it might just fit that ‘slightly off, but reasonably close’ criteria you’ve mentioned. It’s decent stuff for a rattle can - covers well, levels decently, hugs the details, and flashes over (dries to the touch) relatively quickly.
My wife doesn’t care for the smell of the paint while it gases out and cures, but if you’re already experienced with the TS line of rattle cans, you probably won’t have a problem with this because you already have an idea of what to expect.
Thank you! It turns out that my current favourite supplier, Sunward Hobbies in Toronto, has Tamiya AS-8 in stock; the sample colour swatch they provide seems spot on for my needs. I have ordered two rattle cans, along with some other goodies, including some brass toothpicks! I’ve found that cocktail toothpicks — recommended by another Finescale member, make great miniature “paint brushes,” so brass ones should be that much better, right?
My TBM project will be a “sister ship” to my current, nearly finished TBM project, using the same model kit but kitbashed as tanker that was used in fire suppression by the U.S. Forest Service. I thought it would be neat to build an “out of the box” TBM torpedo-bomber kit to show the many conversions that were made to repurpose an old warbird.
Bob