I’m building Dogglas Bader Mk II Spit and need some clarification…the underside color on one of my references said its sky blue; on another one it mentions “sky type s” color (or duck egg green in british references). I know they’re different and I know they uesd them on the underside of the Hurricane Mk I, but which is the correct one for my Spit? Any help from Spit experts will be greatly appreciated.
I can be e-mailed at odaniel830@aol.com
I understand that Duck egg blue/green, sky type s were the early underside colors for the RAF. If it’s the Spit mk II probably it’s the sky blue already. Not sure, just my opinion. Let’s hear from the experts.
Sky is a Flat finish. Type S is a Gloss finish commonly called “Duck Egg Blue”
All are basicly the same color but different sheens. This is how it was explained to me by my Uncle years ago who was a Polish Ground Crew Chief in the RAF. He also told me that “Sky” had several different shades depending on paint lots and fadeing of paint on Aircraft etc. This is why the ID bands often appear to be a different “Sky” color than the undersides…
Yeah, from the chips I’ve seen of Sky Type S, it appears more green than blue, and when I get a brand whose Sky is a blue color, I don’t use it. But, as said above, it probably varied plenty from lot to lot.
Sky Blue is colser to azzure blue or correct me if I am wrong…
Sky blue and Sky ‘S’ are different colours. Humbrol Duck Egg Blue 23 is a good match for Sky Blue, Humbrol Beige Green 90 for Sky ‘S’.
Sky Blue was used as an undersurface colour on a few fighters in early-mid 1940, but Sky ‘S’ was the standard RAF fighter/ day bomber undersurface colour from mid 1940 to mid 1941, when it was replaced with Medium Sea Grey. It was also used as a fuselage side and undersurface colour by the Fleet Air Arm from the mid-late 1940s to the late 1950s. It was also used for aircraft codes and fuselage ID bands.
Both colours were matt, though Sky ‘S’ sometimes had a slight sheen, which wouldn’t show in 1/48 and 1/72, though maybe in 1/32.
Sky ‘S’ was notorious for fading and varying between batches. When the order was given to paint the Sky ‘S’ ID bands on RAF fighters, many already had Sky ‘S’ undersurfaces which were beginning to fade; hence the two different shades of Sky ‘S’ often noted in photographs.
Hope this helps,
Chris.