k_sonn

My Feedback: (32)

Tom:
If you are going to do a paint scheme for competition then getting the correct color is paramount to a high static score. Frank Tiano sells a color chip book that has been approved for competition. The name of the book is M+M / FTE Color Chip Book. It has actual color chips organized by country and area from WWII through today. The countries included are the U.S, Britain, Japan, Germany, and Russia. To see it, go to www.franktiano.com/store/index.htm. It is at the top right hand side of the page.

NE0

My Feedback: (9)

KS,

Thanks, I've seen that book... I'm sure I'll go that route. I just don't understand why the overwhelming majority of both RC and full-scale "restored" planes are going with tri-colors that are so much "bluer/colorful" than the FS color chips. Especially the restored full-scale, you'd think that they would want to be dead accurate just like competition RC builders.

Tom

Tmoth4

My Feedback: (1)

Tom,

I agree with k-sonn that you should go with accepted standards if you're competing. I'm not that interested in competing so I'm just guesstimating the colors. If you use B&W photos from WW2 for your documentation, the judges will rely on your Federal Standard chips. However, if you pick a restored plane to copy, then make sure the colors match the pictures of it.

The primer I use is a laquer-based filler type primer. It gets thinned down quite a bit and most of it gets sanded off. After all the colors and a clearcoat are on the gas doesn't get to it. I've finished several gas powered planes this way and flown them a lot with no problems other than once when I tried Minwax water-based clear, which wasn't gas-proof.

Jim

AirRayInc

My Feedback: (7)

Just another .02 cents, I too go with the paint chips, M. and M. has been a staple for me for a long time. That and Model Master fs numbered paints keep a project on the right color track.

Ray

chuck l

My Feedback: (17)

When you use windshield washer fluid, what happens to the blue color in the fluid. Doesn't it impact the color of the latex? I know in the deep of winter when the car doesn't get washed much, there is a lot of blue on the windshield and top of the car.

Cold in Minnesota, is spring here yet?

branded

My Feedback: (9)

Chuck I:

The color is so mild that it matters not, particularly when the mix is about 1:4 to thin the latex.......

To all else:

By the way, all the talk about Model Master colors, etc. are interesting but the "real" colors of Warbirds need to be "scaled" properly for color......

You cannot simply match colors from Frank Tiano's color chips and expect to score high in competition. The color match must be appropriately matched to scale.

This is a method, and "art" that's best descrbed by the experts, plastic modelers at sites such as HYPERSCALE and others, and is very much subjective, and so exact matches are irrelevant.... The overall appearance, and realism of the airplane is what's important in scale competition....

I think Mr.Scale hisself, Dave Platt, spent alot of time explaining the phenomena of "color to scale" in his video series.......

Anyway, the point is this, matching to chips is not "scale"......

The color white on a full scale airplane appears very much different to the human eye as the exact same color would on a model.
Hence, we as modelers are supposed to be skilled enough to adjust the color to the scale of the airplane, and hence GAIN points in competition, not lose them.

Scale color chips are simply a good starting point, but shouldn't be considered the correct scale match....... and one last word, the Model Master paints aren't that close to the chips in a lot of cases either......

They look okay on plastic models of 1/48th, etc.....They appear to be very different on larger models...
This is a well known fact amongst experienced Scale RC'ers....

paulfromero

My Feedback: (4)

Hi,

This is a newbie with an itching to paint my new lil Cap with house paint.

Can we not brush on the semi-gloss latex house paint and produce satisfactory results?

Will a clear coat of Nelson clear coat or equiv. make it glow fuel proof?

What about using dark/ light Blues and Greys? Will these colors be visible when the plane is flying?

Tmoth4

My Feedback: (1)

You can brush it on if you thin it down quite a bit and do 3 or 4 coats using a good quality brush for latexes. You'll still see a little bit of brush strokes but if you spray a clear over it that should even it out some. It would be better to spray everything though.

Blues and grays will be a little harder to see in the air, just don't let the plane get too far away. Since the CAP will have contrasting stripes that should help with visibility.

I haven't used Nelson paints but from what I've read you have to add a special catalyst for glo fuel.