USAAF colors conundrum

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
1

Hi

I’ve found out that while Cockpit Green was the color called for in the specs for most US built aircraft, not all the Cockpit Greens were alike.

Curtiss Cockpit Green had a browner shade, allegedly similar to RLM Green 63, while Bell’s Cockpit Green has been described as having a distinct blue tone, allegedly “similar to the contemporary Euro 1 Green”.

Does anybody have a list - or knows where I can find one - of all these Cockpit Green and their FS595 Equivalents?

Another color whose shade and exact denomination I find confusing is the “Pearl Grey” used on Lockheed XP-80As,YP-80As and other, first generation U.S. jets.

A color profile of one of the two YP-80As sent to Italy at the end of WW2 can be found on page 80 of “Air Force Colors, Vol.2 ETO & MTO 1942-45” by Dana Bell, Squadron Signal Pub.
The accompaning caption states “YP-80, Project Extraversion, Italy, April 1945. Aircraft Grey”.

All I know of this color is that it was ment to keep the airflow on the airframe as smooth as possible and, to that effect, it was polished to a high gloss.
As the extra manhour required to its maintenance did not offset the gain in performance it afforded, it was done away with in later aircraft which were left in Natural Metal.

The F-80R preserved in one of the U.S. museums should still be painted “Pearl Grey”, has anybody happened to have checked the FS595 equivalent?

Thanks

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Despite my feelings about the man himself, Dave Klaus’ IPMS Color Cross reference Guide seems to be an excellent reference work on the subject of color reference. It’s quite complete, seemingly authoritative, mostly accurate and, unfortunately, typical of material published by most of the old-school IPMS NMSCSSSOB’s. (This is a family rag, so I won’t elaborate further on this acronym other than to say that it means Narrow-Minded-Self-Centered-Self-Serving-Sons-of- [censored] [:p])

Anyhoo, even though it’s an excellent reference, it doesn’t have the exact kind of comparison of colors that you’re looking for. It’s also not the last word and undoubtedly contains errors. After all, no one has all the answers and no one is 100% correct all the time.

BUT it’s an internationally recognized and credible reference work on aircraft colors of 63 nations from all eras. And it’s been quite invaluable to me, having been my prime starting point for much research over the years and it’s never led me in the wrong direction. (This means alot coming from a guy who has an intense dislike for the author of the work in question!)

I dunno if it’s still in print; my current copy was printed in 1993. Seeing as Dave Klaus is Mr. Meteor Productions you may be able to contact Meteor and find out if it’s available.

If you can find one, grab it.

Now, in the words of Bill Cosby: I told you that story so I could tell you this one… [:p]

As to the question of ‘Pearl Gray’ the nearest equiv in the book is given as being slightly darker than FS 16492. Some have likened the color to FS 16440 which probably wouldn’t be too bad, although it’s more than just slightly darker than the former.

In any event, you’re quite right about the feasibility of applying the paint, negligible performance gains, etc. But another point against using the Pearl Gray, which I’ve never been able to totally confirm, is that the paint was special in and of itself; being an enamel that was ‘baked’ on. (?) Such an elaborate method of application of a coating is bound to be rather expensive as opposed to simply spraying it which further tips the scales in favor of ditching the paint job. Hence one more nail in the coffin, so to speak.

Again, I dunno if all of this is accurate or not; I’ve never really bothered to do much research on the subject.

I’ve been trying to upload a photo that I wanted to post with this bit, but my host is giving me fits all of a sudden. Grrrrr… It’s a damn nice image too. Oh well, hopefully they’ll get their act together soon and allow me to get this thing posted. It’s a gorgeous image…

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