My next project is the F4F Wildcat. I’m hoping to do a 3 coler scheme and have found 2 of the colors I want, but I need help finding the 3rd.
The schem will be in Light Gull Grey, Navy Blue-Gray and the upper section in the official “non-specular blue”.
So far, I am most comfortable using acrylics and have found the grey and blue-gray in the model master Acrl series, but the best I’ve found for a non-specular blue is Polyscale’s “intermediate blue”.
Any recommendations? Also, who generally has the most accurate military aircraft finish colors? SO far, I am biased towards polyscale, but that is just personal preference, nothing measurable.
The 3 tone scheme is non specular sea blue, intermediate blue, and white on the bottom. Blue gray over light gray was the preceeding camo scheme. Accuracy gets a lot of debate here, because of different manufacturers, different batches, weathering, etc. Most people here will tell you to use the colors that look best to you.
Most Wildcats saw service in the overall Blue-Grey (FS35189) top sides with Light Grey ( FS36440 ) undersides. Most had been replaced by the time the Tri-color scheme was adopted, although there are certainly several examples of Wildcats painted in that scheme. Tri-color scheme was Dark Sea Blue (FS34042) over Intermediate Blue ( FS35164) on topsides & Insignia White (FS37875) undersurfaces. Intermediate Blue & Blue-Grey are obviously not the same color.
toward late 1945 or so I believe the Navy started going to an all over Non Spec Sea Blue (Also called Navy Blue in the MM acryl line I believe)
mid war was the three tone paint job
early was was the navy blue grey MM Enamel #2055 with light grey underside.
also early in the war were some I’ve seen pics of painted all over grey (not sure the shade used). I remember pictures of an early Corsair squadron done in that… also an OS2U. might want to research that before taking my word for it… might have been an exception versus a rule thing…
—edit— got to squadron.com, and acrylicosvallejos.com if you type in the names on squadron it should bring it up in acrylic and enamel. on vallejos site you owuld have to browse it… if you are using an airbrush you’d like the vallejos paints… make sure you get the ones for aibrushing though… they come in several types… for brushing, for airbrushing etc…
Most Wildcats wore the blue-grey over light grey scheme. This was the standard Navy scheme at the beginning of the war. In early 1943 this was changed to the tri-colour scheme. It consisted of Non-specular sea blue, intermediate blue and white. Some wildcats wore this scheme but they were going out of service when this scheme was introduced. The overall gloss sea blue scheme is irrelevant for the wildcat as it was introduced a long time after wildcats went out of service.
These colours should be available in most paint ranges. Use a flat white for the under surfaces, the pollyscale intermediate blue would be good for the sides of the fuselage, and non-specular sea blue should be available from either Pollyscale, Modelmaster or Gunze-Sangyo. It might be called US Navy blue or Dark sea blue.
Or if you want to do the two colour scheme, lght grey and US Navy Blue-grey would be perfect.
I like the two color scheme myself for the F4F… the tri color schme is a bit overdone… I usually do the two color if the model was active in the time period… just for that reason…
The FM-2 version of the Wildcat did in fact operate in the Gloss Sea Blue scheme as it continued to be operated off of CVEs and CVLs in the Pacific combat zones until the end of the war. The smaller carriers could carry more FM-2s than either of the other operational Navy fighters, the F6F or the F4U. They were perfect for use in ASW, convoy operations and close air support during invasions, normaly operating in composite squadrons of FM-3 and TBMs. Operated in support of the Iwo and Okinawa invasions and air strikes on the Japanese home islands
Thanks to all for your ideas, knowledge and insight. AS I have yet to do a multiple color exterior, I will stick with the two color (blue-grey over light grey). This should be good practice.
Since subscribing to FSM and joinging the forum a few months back, I am amazed and overwhelemd at the quantity and quality of the resources available from the forum participants. This alone is worth the price of a subscription.
Just to add another Wildcat scheme to the mix, don’t forget the Atlantic scheme 'cats operating in the Atlantic to hunt U-boats. They were usually in two-tone Dk Gull Gray over white.
I have both Tamiya’s acrylic non-spec (flat) sea blue as well as an enamel from I forget who, but the point is, hell will no doubt freeze over before I ever use them, since you will no doubt need to put decals (stencils or small markings at the very least) on that blue, so it’ll need to be shiny at some point. Why add an extra coat of clear and just use gloss sea blue, then dull that part. That three-tone scheme was used by the Marine Corps PBJ-1s, even the late H and J models, right up to the final couple of months of the war, and it looks great on the big planes. My question is, does anyone know a good medium blue-gray I can use on the early PBJ-1D I’m building? The photos of the ship I’m building show it distinctly sun-bleached on the upper surfaces, gradually darkening toward the white underbelly (it looks white, and I hope it’s not a light gray. The TO calls for white on the PBJs, but it may have been different early on). Since in 1/48, this is going to be one big area of blue-gray, I want the best looking paint and shade I can get (plus, it has to stand up to closeup photography), so I’m open to any suggestions.
Tom
