SBD Dauntless Color Question

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
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Can someone help me with a question about the color schemes of the SBD Dauntless during the campaign in the Pacific?

To the best of my knowledge there were two different color schemes to these planes. One was the two color scheme of Light gray belly’s with a blue/gray topside, Red/white rudder and the “STAR” with a red center no bars.

The other is the three tone color scheme, Light gray belly, blue/gray middle and a dark blue top with the STARS and BARS on the side.

Did the color scheme depend on the carrier they were attached to or specific years? I’m trying to nail down the SBD’s color of those on the USS Yorktown during the Battle of the Coral Sea

Lastly what are the actual colors?

Thanks in advance.

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The color scheme thing was primarily time-frame dependent. During the Coral Sea time frame the aircraft would have been Blue-Gray over Light Gray. I used Modelmaster USN Blue Gray and Light Gull Gray on my Tamiya F4U-2.

I don’t recall when the colors changed to the tricolor scheme (Sea Blue, Intermediate Blue and White), someone here will be able to give you the correct dates.

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In actuality there was a “third” one also, such as at Midway, where the USN literally pianted over the red and white striped rudders, as well as the red “meatball” in the center of the stars. If you carefully look at period photos, the red and white stripes tended to “bleed” through the dark blue paint, making the rudder to have subdued stripes of faded blue and dark blue/violet. I use a Russian camo color for that effect.

Then you have the weather factor, where sitting out on carrier decks in the bright Pacific sun, the paints faded into all sorts of shades. One color I found matched the USN faded blue was actually a shade of grey for miniture fugures.

This is what I used for my Midway Avenger:

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I have actual WWII color footage showing a Hellcat with different color elevators, one blue and the other all white, as it apparently had one side replaced, but they did’t take the time to paint it blue after repairs. Also the paint is faded to a near-white overall, so I am considering building a cheap Arii kit and trying this rugged scheme.

Then there came the later war scheme of dark blue all over with stars and bars.

Meanwhile, there were the USMC varients, that also had the red-bordered stars and bars.

Now as for the Battle of Coral Sea, the illustrations I have seen show the red and white striped rudders along with the red “meatball” in the center of the typical USN “no-bar” stars. I do not see any with a tri-color scheme overall, so I would tend to “back-date” the typical Midway two-tone scheme with the typical striped rudder and meatballs in the stars.

Apparently, it was between Coral Sea and Midway when the USN chose to paint over the rudder stripes and meatballs.

So what I do is find a color illustration I like the most and use it, preferring to match actual photograph colors over “official” paint spec’s.

OK?

Tom T [C):-)]

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I’m not an expert in this area but I have seen very few, if any, refs of US SBD’s in a tri-color scheme…I have seen some ANZAC ones in their three-color scheme…

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The italeri 1/48 scale kit has one painting option as a tri-color scheme, U.S. Navy VMSB-231 Maj. Elmer Glidden Marshall Islands 1944.

Michael

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Are these the birds you are refering to?

these are at Midway but you still get a good idea of paint and weathering.

Look though all the pix.

You can even see the mentioned faded stripes on the tails.

Eric…

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For Coral Sea, you are looking for Non Specular Blue Gray (never assigned and ANA number and pre FS#) over Non Specular Light Gray (which is close to modern FS 36440) Polly Scale and Testors make both these colors in their paint lines. National insignia would be the six position stars with red centers and the red/white rudder stripes. This was changed a few weeks later. Squadron/plane numbers would be black for Yorktown Air Group, per official orders, although Lexington’s Air Group used white.

For wartime service, SBDs started in this scheme, and later ones were produced in either the Tri color scheme you mentioned or in the Atlantic/ASW scheme of Dark Gull Gray over White. Final production SBDs could be seen in the late war overall Sea Blue scheme. National insigina depended upon the time and to some extent, location/theater. I have lots of pics of SBDs in my reference library. Marine SBDs stationed on Oahu on Dec 7th were still in the pre war overall light gray scheme.

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The paint schemes had several subtle changes throughout the war. And will vary according to which variant of the SBD you build.

If you build a -2, or -3 variant it will need to be in the blue grey over light grey. The markings through the time period from 12/41 through 5/42 would include red and white rudder stripes, and the red disk in the star’s center. The size of the stars can vary too. Please scroll back a few pages. I posted some photos of an AM 1/48 SBD-3 I built recently in a early '42 look.

After Coral Sea and before Midway, in June, the rudder stripes and the red disks were deleted and the stars were only 4 place.

If you are building a -5, then you’ll paint it in NS Sea Blue over Intermediate Blue over white. The aircraft will have only 4 place stars and bars and could be with a red border or a blue one. The change to the tri scheme occurred in spring of '43. At that time all markings were bordered in red, regardless of service. The border switched to blue later that year for USN, USMC.

So check your time and your variant then have fun.

Mike

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I’d like to thank everyone for all the information. I was building an SBD Dauntless for the “War in the Pacific” Group build. I was unable to find a good topic to model so It was going to be a generic build until I stumbled upon the story of capt s. w. vejtasa.

Capt S. W. Vejtasa flew a SBD Dauntless from the Yorktown where he earned his second Navy Cross when he got involved in a Dogfight and shot down four enemy Zeros.

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take a look here

http://www.clubhyper.com/reference/coralseadk_1.htm

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OUTSTANDING!!! Thank you

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I recreated that fight as a stand-alone mission in MS Combat Flight Simulator II and I gotta admit, Swede was a better stick than I am ever gonna be… Those Zekes wax my azz every time, lol… I can get a couple though…

Here’s some screenshots from the mission:

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Hey Hans,

Ever start on your AM SBD?

Mike

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Nope, not yet… Got an AM Doolittle B-25 in front of it, as well as a Monogram SBD, along with severall Revell 1/32 birds that’re going on dioramas soon… The Revell planes are the Lysander, Corsair, and an RAF Mustang Mk III… I gotta get those 1/32 scale jobs done before I start on 1/48th again…, sincce two are for Group Builds( “10000 roadwheels” gets the Mustang, the “Lizzy” is going on a “Secret mission” dio, dropping an agent in France at night to link up with the Maquis…OR, the Maquis have captured a Kraut General and are putting the unconcious Offizier in back of the Lizzy)

Also got a few 1/48th builds going on at the same time, lol… The “Ralston” SNJ (need hardstand and finish the nose castors) and F-86 (Gotta do a bunch of PSP/Marston Matting) are waiting patiently for me to finish them… Also got a multi-scale forced perspective shadow box under constrction for the “Hollywood at War” build (a scene from “The Blue Max” where Stachel is shot down and crash-lands his Phalz D-III while saving Von Richtoffen’s life…) It’s consisting of a 1/28th “Stachel” figure, an 1/48th Phalz, and a 1/72 Dr-1… Much as I hate to do it, I have to order some lozenge camoflage decals for the Phalz… I just don’t feel like painting it by hand, lol…

Don’t see the SBD getting started before the New Year, nope…

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Here are a few period color shots of SBDs in the various camo schemes worn

First the overall lt gray worn by Marine SBDs on Dec 7th

Next, the early war blue gray over lt gray with the initial markings worn up thru Coral Sea in May 1942. After Mid May, the red center and rudder stripes were deleted.

Next is the Atlantic/ASW sceme of Dk Gull Gray over White

And finally, the mid-late war Tri Color scheme of Sea Blue aand Intermediate Blue over White.

The colors on these scans are not quite as vivid as they are in the book Carrier Air War in Original WWII Color.

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Keep in mind that the red-bordered Star & Bars insignia was pretty short-lived, about 3 months or so, from June 43 until September of 43 when the red border was ordered to be replaced by the blue… This particular insignia can really narrow down the “When” question, much the same as the yellow-bordered Circle & Star insignia for Operation Torch in November of 42.

Personally, I like the red-bordered insignia the best…

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Silkpusher

Those are some great photos. Thanks