Kawasaki Ki 45 Colours

leyreynolds · February 28, 2018

I'm looking at building the venerable Revell kit of this type and am wondering about colour schemes. Many references show the type as overall natural metal with dark green blotches but some show an overall pale greenish-grey with same. Comments on the accuracy of these schemes would be most welcome, thanks.

Troy Smith · February 28, 2018

12 minutes ago, leyreynolds said:

I'm looking at building the venerable Revell kit of this type and am wondering about colour schemes. Many references show the type as overall natural metal with dark green blotches but some show an overall pale greenish-grey with same. Comments on the accuracy of these schemes would be most welcome, thanks.

I stuck Ki-45 into the search here

http://www.aviationofjapan.com/search?q=ki-45

Quote

Colours and Markings

The Ki-45 Kai was unusual for a fighter aircraft in that it was factory painted throughout the war. At a time when other single-engined fighters were leaving the factories unpainted and then being camouflaged at Depots or at unit level the Ki-45 was finished at the factory overall to JAAF paint colour standard # 1 Hairyokushoku (灰緑色 Ash green colour) over which a dark or olive green mottle was usually applied. This mottle was generally a "marbled" type with large carefully applied blotches creating narrow "veins" of the underlying paint but the study of photographs reveals variations in style and execution. The reason why the Ki-45 Kai was factory painted this way has not, AFAIK, been established. Props and spinners were finished in the dark brown paint common to other JAAF types.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawasaki_Ki-45

so.....maybe the natural metal is just the usual misinformation about Japanese colours.

I've not seem @Nick Millman post here for a while, but he'd be the chap for more info.

I'm personally not that up on Japanese colours, partly as I have found the names and paint designations confusing, and there is not a a modern guide available, infact I think the only guides are the Donald Thorpe books which are 50 and 41 years old years old, Nick said they are mostly good though.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Japanese-Force-Camouflage-Markings-World/dp/0816865795/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Japanese-Naval-Force-Camouflage-Markings/dp/0816865876/

amazon links so you can get the ISBN etc

the mid60's profile on the Ki-45 is here FWIW,

https://boxartden.com/gallery/index.php/Profiles/Aircraft-Profiles/Japan/Kawasaki-Ki-45-Toryu-Nick

none of the Japanese ones show bare metal

HTH

T