The instructions on Tamiya kit says RLM Dark Gray for the cockpit…Is it correct? I researched but informations about this aircraft are hard to find.
Having built this kit sometime ago I used RLM 02 it was the closest colour for the cockpit on this bird, yes info is rare for this unique float plane.
Hope this helps a little
Oct/Nov 2001 issue of Air & Space has an article of their Seiran restoration,(which is now sitting in the Smithsonian Havar-Hazy Center). If you can’t get your hands on that issue , let me know. I may have the issue buried somewhere and can scan some pictures and email it to you.
I woudl also trust Tamiya’s insruction on this one, as they put up $80K US to restore the floats for this Seiran - the only surving example.
There was a prog on Discovery last night about the Seiran , the subs and the Panama Op.
Talk about taking the long way round!
It seemed strange to me because japanese cockpits during the WW2 were painted in a weird tone of blue or green as I heard…Well after all this investment on the floats I will consider to trust on Tamiya instructions…LOL
Here’s pictures of that very same seiran before restoration, with cockpit pictures. It does clearly show its dark gray. The j-aircraft site is a great resource for WWII Japanese aircraft by the way…
http://www.j-aircraft.com/walk/tim_hortman/timm6a1.htm
The blue/green color you speak of called Aodake, and is a transparent green/blue point over metal. I don’t believe that was used for cockpit interiors, they were used for wheel wells and other openings. Most cockpit interiros were green/olive, similiar to US interior Green.
Instruction of Hasegawa is stipulated for “Aichi D3A1” Cockpit Interior is Cockpit Green Mitsubishi. May be the al Aichi Birds used the same green with Mitsubishi Zero (Refer to the Hasegawa Instruction) Infact, I never seen the real cockpit before.
So, I have only Gunze Acrylic I painted my Val cockpit with same as Zero Green Cockpit interior. But for my Seiran I paint with RLM02. And you can check at the website which waikong posted you will see the Green inside and the panels is black or dark grey
I had seem this pictures before, but the doubt appeared because of the control stick…It is like the blue/green color we were talking…
Thanks Waikong and Narete for the help!