Hi Everyone. Ok, I’m just a bit frustrated here. I am building the Monogram Pro Modeler 1/48 Cat and I am doing the early version. I will be using blue-grey for upper surfaces and light grey for the underside. I’m trying to determine the interior colors and not getting much help from the instructions. Rather than try to rehash all the conflicting info I’ve found online, I’ll just ask you folks, because you all seem very knowledgeable of such things. I have 3 bottles of MRP paint (see photo) to choose from. As you probably know, some of the plane’s interior will be viewable, so I need to know if “one size fits all”, or should I be using different colors for crewed areas vs bulkheads, etc. Do I even have the correct colors? My wife would tell me I’m just overthinking this, but I’m trying to be as true to the original as I’m capable of (low bar in my case). Anyway, thank you in advance.
Guessing interior green. There’s pics around of restoring birds like this
Prewar, it was a mix of colors, most probably Zinc Chromate Green cause it was a flying boat having to deal with water all the time… Specifications for specific anti corrosion treatments didn’t come out of the pentagon until late late '41… so the manufacturers used whatever they could obtain… This is why on early war birds there is such a plethora of colors you could use…
But since it is a US Navy Flying boat, ZC Green is the most likely color… It’s what the Navy preferred prewar…
Thank you Egilman, I’m still trying to sort through all the confusing information I’m finding. I know the folks who made those decisions had a lot on their plates in those early days, so I don’t hold anything against them.
I concur that the green zinc chromate is a great choice.
So I just spent a considerable amount of time trying to locate ZCG made by quality manufacturers such as AK, or Mr Hobby Mr Color, to no avail; at least in the US. They can be had elsewhere, but shipping costs are too high and the lead time is forever. So I found a post in modelers social club in which a fellow had made a comprehensive list of formulas for colors using Tamiya acrylics. Here is the link:
There is one for ZCG, which I have already mixed. It looks great to my eye. So thanks to everyone here, and thanks, especially, to TJ at modelers social club. That list had to take quite a bit of time to compile.