The instructions say that the upper part of the wings and the fuselage is “blue gray” and the lower part is “gray” but nothing specific. Using Tamiya colours, which “blue gray” and which “gray” would be appropriate?
Many thanks
This is always a toss-up. I faced the same question for a P-38 I’m working on now. I found, in the “Mr. Color” paint line-up, a blue-gray and a grayish blue, according to the label. They look quite different. I chose the blue-gray, since it just looked better to me. There are so many “grays” out there, that I think all we can do is go with personal preference.
“Close enough, for goverment work.”
Pulled up the instructions for the Tamiya Wildcat-figured the blue grey & grey should be close-looks like some mixing of Tamiya colors to get the desired results-I remember using Model Master acrylics instead. Anyway, here is the link for the instructions:
It depends on when your SBD is in service. From the infomation give in your instructions it would be pre 1943, the two color scheme! The instructions for a three color Wild Cat would be incorrect.
For your two color SBD, This is the brake down.
UPPER - FS 35189 Non-specular Blue-Grey
Tamiya XF-18 Medium Blue: 3, XF-2 Flat White: 1
Lower - FS 36440 Light Gull Grey
Tamiya XF-19 Sky Grey:2, XF-2 Flat White: 1
Thanks Shipwreck, this is helpful. The aircraft in question is the Midway version.
Cheers…
At Midway, the colors of the aircraft would be Blue Gray over Light Gray.
XF-18 seems to be a decent match for the top color.
BTW the FS color system came about post-war, so anyb FS spec. for this aircraft is a equivalent.
Bill
Yeah, I’ve used the XF-18 for the blue grey, lightened with a drop or two of white.
I like Tamiya’s rattlecan aircraft colors, too, and from that range, I have used AS-19 Intermediate Blue (USN), but AS-2, Light Gray (USAF). With weathering, they look good enough to my eye, so I’m happy with them.
The Dauntless I did last year was also a Midway version, the SBD-3. I didn’t like the idea of mixing paints as you will have to do with Tamiya. I ended up using the paints included in Vallejo’s US Navy & USMC Colors 1940 - 1945. M-485 for the blue-grey, and M-495 for the light grey.
This was the 1/32 Trumpeter kit. Research I did at the time indicated the Vallejo colors were correct for the time period.
As you can see, the color weathered quite a bit under tropical ocean conditions.
I have a Dauntless in the stash. Stik that is a great picture. When I start mine I’ll try and replicate that fading of paint.