I noticed an omission on the instructions as I get ready to build my Revell Stearman. The instructions point to the fuselage halves and say “blue”. But I think they mean only the exterior, here. The interior fabric (not part of the metal structure is not the exterior color, it is fabric. This fabric is doped and then painted with aluminum paint, and then the exterior color. The aluminum is very opaque and the exterior color will not show through. The fabric should be a very light, somewhat metallic gray. I have a shot I made of a stearman interior, but I hesitate to post it, because I cannot tell which is my shot and which are very similar shots I found on line. A google image search shows several such shots showing structue OD green or interior green, but gray, slightly metallic, for the covering material.
Hey Don.
If you are going for a WW2 PT 17 then I would think you are about right with the very light “silver” as the alluminium dope would show through the clear dope coats. The fabric will also not be totally white as with modern polliesters but ever so slightly off white if grade A cotton or Irish linnen was used.
With more modern dopes, the makers actually mix a light green tint into the clear dopes to make it easier to see where you spray the stuff, so it will also have a very light green tint to it. Maybe this is what Revell is trying to show??
Theuns
The Stearman had what was called a birdcage of aluminum formers that gave it the round shape and I’ve always seen that in aluminum. The interior fabric would be the usual off white and the fuselage tubing is zinc chromate or interior green.
Yes, I meant the structure to be green and the areas that represent the covering to be the off-white or light grey. There are some panels that are also green up near the forward edge of the front cockpit.