I have aeveral kits that could be painted in the yellow wings prewar scheme.
what paint and colors would you guys suggest? What brands would lend themselves to these colors/
I recently completed the old Monogram F4F-4 Wildcat kit backdates to a yellow wings F4F-3 Wildcat.
The paint I used for the wings was Model Master Enamel RAF Trainer Yellow. I did a side-by-side comparison of that paint against Model Master Enamel Chrome Yellow; the RAF Trainer Yellow seemed more accurate to my eyes but I think either would work just fine.
Thanks Aggieman–
There is a movie called “Dive Bomber” that is all in color showing the navy yellow wings planes. The colors are great and seem really vibrant—I wonder if they were that intense in real life. It was filmed in 1941.
“Dive Bomber” was filmed in Technicolor, a process that would enhance how color appears on a movie screen. Just like “The Wizard of Oz”, or “Gone With the Wind”. Compare those mental images to the 16mm film in use for documentary films such as “Memphis Belle”, or “The Fighting Lady”. The reality is somewhere between the two.
Exact Match?
The USN shipped the paint in bags. On base the the paint would be mixed: just add avgas, or automotive gasoline, or diesel fuel. Its unheard of today, but common practice back then.
I have the AM Dauntless to build in the silver/yellow scheme. I assume the fuselages on these aircraft aboard carriers would have the fuselages painted and not bare matal?
Theuns
I use Mr color 58 yellow orange.
Movie film was not the only thing that changed colors. No photographic film by itself maintains a really accurate color rendition. And printed pictures (printed with a printing press, as in books and magazines) is even worse. The color would very from copy to copy, depending on how and when the press was inked.
Further, in that golden age, the paints were not very stable- the outdoor, sunshine environment was very harsh on them. So even good color chips would ony represent the color on the day it rolled out of the factory. So, we just do the best we can.
Hey Seasick–
Thanks for the info on the gasoline paint.
My dad flew Helldivers in 1946. Of the planes he flew (he never was issued the same plane twice), they look repainted from the 3 color WWII paint scheme (blue, light blue, white). In the photos, the top blue color was left intact, but the light blue and white look like they are spray painted out with Dark Sea Blue.
Were you part of a maintenace crew where they still used the gasoline paint? Thanks for the info!
Thanks Don—
Good reminder about the paint!
Theuns—
I am sure the Navy stuff was all painted silver as bare aluminum would quickly be a corroded mess in salt air!
In 1953-54, when I was a kid at Dallas NAS, they were expeimenting with bare aluminum Navy F7Us—this proved to be a distaster! Boy were they shiny at first!
(Seems in the early 50s lots of crazy things were done to planes----which seemed really stupid----Project Tomtom, F7U, Thunderscreech, X-3, XFY Pogo, etc,etc!!!)
Yes. Aluminum lacquer was the norm.
Great,thanx
Theuns
Here is a photo from Life magazine of the Northrop BT-1 on the Enterprise. The BT-1 became the SBD. The silver lacquer seems very evident. The framework of the N3N was painted with silver lacquer and was nearly impossible to remove. Don’t know if it was the same formula.
look at these for a good idea
Beatcha, Stick! [:D]
Great pics guys! That yellow even looks faded!
[:'(]
[snStpd]
[;)]
Professional painters in the family. Learned about it when I was a kid. Paint before the 1970s really stank. Paint is a pigment, a sealer, and a medium. At the factory or depot a more conventional medium was used. Paint today grips on to the surface its painted to far better than anything back then. Shipping the dry materials for the paint and mixing with gasoline out in the field was done to save weight. Fly by night painters still used gasoline as paint thinner in the 1970s. Paints today have a different chemistry. I painted my mother’s house three years ago and it is still in good shape. The old stuff would be peeling by now.
Then why do the new car paints suck so bad? We have cars at work the look like Japanese aircraft in the South Pacific their paint flakes so bad… 20 years ago you never saw that…