Wildcat
Major
Gents, what is the correct colour for olive drab?? My recently built B-25 (Tamiya spray can) is more of a green compared to my P-40 (Humbrol enamel) which is more brownish. Which is more accurate??
Olive drab!
- Thread starter Wildcat
- Start date
Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules
To add to the mix my Vallejo paint for Olive Drab is quite a bit "browner" than your P-40 Andy !
Used it here on the rear fuselage of this Dora.
Glad my B-26 is going to be NMF !
Used it here on the rear fuselage of this Dora.
Glad my B-26 is going to be NMF !
Airframes
Benevolens Magister
They're both more or less correct, although the B-25 looks more towards Forest Green (Foliage Green ?).
Depending on how 'new' the paint was, it could be anything from a dark green with a brown tinge, through brownish green to almost purple, as it faded and weathered quickly.
Here's a couple of examples, on the C-47 at Duxford, and the B-17g at Duxford. The latter had just been re-painted, and had looked more like the C-47 in tone.
Depending on how 'new' the paint was, it could be anything from a dark green with a brown tinge, through brownish green to almost purple, as it faded and weathered quickly.
Here's a couple of examples, on the C-47 at Duxford, and the B-17g at Duxford. The latter had just been re-painted, and had looked more like the C-47 in tone.
fubar57
General
Have fun....
Shades of O.D. & Neutral Gray by David Rapasi
Plane Talking - HyperScale's Aircraft Scale Model Discussion Forum: USAAF Olive Drab
AeroScale :: Olive Drab, WWII, USAAF History
Best USAAF Olive Drab? - FineScale Modeler - Essential magazine for scale model builders, model kit reviews, how-to scale modeling, and scale modeling products
Geo
Shades of O.D. & Neutral Gray by David Rapasi
Plane Talking - HyperScale's Aircraft Scale Model Discussion Forum: USAAF Olive Drab
AeroScale :: Olive Drab, WWII, USAAF History
Best USAAF Olive Drab? - FineScale Modeler - Essential magazine for scale model builders, model kit reviews, how-to scale modeling, and scale modeling products
Geo
Crimea_River
Marshal
Yep, I don't get too fussed about the "correct" colour for OD as I've read that it weathers quite a bit and can range from a light brown/green to a much darker shade. FWIW, here's my Aussie P-40:
Hhmmm.
My vallejo might not be far off then !
My vallejo might not be far off then !
mikewint
Captain
The problem with any and all forum discussions about color and posting of pictures is simply that the picture itself is NOT the color it is a representation of the color whose trueness to the actual color depends on the camera settings. Then those pictures are posted to the forum and are viewed by you on a color monitor which also has its own color settings and manufacture limitations. Throw into the mix that your eyes are not mine or anyone else's, i.e. none of us really "knows" what the other is actually seeing. At some point in time someone pointed to an object and told you, "that's RED". From that point on every time you saw that you said "RED". Even more subjective is language:
Olive drab is variously described as a "dull olive-green color" (Oxford English Dictionary);"a shade of greenish-brown" (Webster's New World Dictionary); "a dark gray-green" (MacMillan English dictionary); "a grayish olive to dark olive brown or olive gray (American Heritage Dictionary); or "A dull but fairly strong gray-green color" (Collins English Dictionary).
What does "more brownish" or "more greenish" mean to you.
In the US, contractors obtain official Federal Standard "chips" (595C 3X5 cards) and the color is matched using a spectrophotometer to actually measure the wavelength of the light reflected by the paint. The type of light falling on the paint also determines what is reflected. Go to any good paint store and you can view their paint chips under several different types of lighting and observe the way the color changes.
Olive drab is variously described as a "dull olive-green color" (Oxford English Dictionary);"a shade of greenish-brown" (Webster's New World Dictionary); "a dark gray-green" (MacMillan English dictionary); "a grayish olive to dark olive brown or olive gray (American Heritage Dictionary); or "A dull but fairly strong gray-green color" (Collins English Dictionary).
What does "more brownish" or "more greenish" mean to you.
In the US, contractors obtain official Federal Standard "chips" (595C 3X5 cards) and the color is matched using a spectrophotometer to actually measure the wavelength of the light reflected by the paint. The type of light falling on the paint also determines what is reflected. Go to any good paint store and you can view their paint chips under several different types of lighting and observe the way the color changes.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Exactly!
From what I've read and heard, the OD paint (and most other paint) faded quickly in the tropical or desert sun.
in my personal experiences, the non-glossy or primer types will fade very quickly (oxidize) so the appearances of OD aircraft in theater could vary depending on the length of time they've been there.
If you look closely at the old color photos of assembled P-40s, like on the flightline for example, in the PTO, they weren't all the same shade of OD.
- Thread starter
- #10
Wildcat
Major
Hmm, thanks for the reply's guys. Seeing as there is no "right" answer, I shall continue to use the Tamiya spray can version!
mikewint
Captain
Just be aware that when the Model Aircraft Police come a-knocking with their Official Federal Standard chips and spectrophotometer you could be found in non-compliance and fined or worse!
- Thread starter
- #12
Wildcat
Major
Bring em on. They'll have to pry my spray cans from my cold dead hands!
Olive Drab.....now there's a can of worms to open....
Crimea_River
Marshal
...to which the answer should always be: "Show me your proof that I am wrong".
Is that another way of saying F' off....
Airframes
Benevolens Magister
I think that was the 'sand' coloured paint that faded to pink.
N4521U
Colonel
When I worked for Kaiser many moons ago.
Kaiser sand and gravel cement trucks, two colors of pink.
Titty Pink and Pecker Red
Kaiser sand and gravel cement trucks, two colors of pink.
Titty Pink and Pecker Red
special ed
1st Sergeant
- 4,857
- May 13, 2018
In my experience, real olive drab, depending on manufacturer, starts out more green than brown and fades brown in sunlight. I built a control line flying model and aged the fresh olive drab under direct florescent light for four months simulating sunlight. I had seen this effect on my plastic models years earlier, because of a glass wall shelf set with florescent lighting. When brought in for static judging, the P-40 brought many questions about how I shaded brown to green with no visible changes. I commented that it was from my years of building plastic models.
N4521U
Colonel
I once painted a sign background brown by mixing red and green.
Two months later it was green!
Two months later it was green!
