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Folland Gnat and Midge - Nordic Blue


viscount806x

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This has been up as a thread before but with inconclusive results. Now though I am about to build a Folland Midge and trying to get my ducks in a row. Could anyone out there give me a bit of help in pinning down Nordic Blue please, which was used on the Midge and some of the first Gnat F1s. Is there a close match in any of the model paint ranges?

Thanks, Nige

Edited by viscount806x
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Nordic Blue - isn't that a species of parrot? :banghead:

But seriously, Nige, have you seen this thread?

http://www.jetex.org/scripts/yabb2/nph-YaBB.pl?num=1170494769%3Bstart=all

There's a nice colour photo of the Gnat single-seater in the same Nordic Blue. Looks like a mid-blue, though what an exact match would be, I am not sure. I also have the Maintrack kit and it goes together pretty well.

My kit didn't have any decals, so it is stuck on the Shelf of Doom.....

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Nordic Blue - isn't that a species of parrot? :banghead:

But seriously, Nige, have you seen this thread?

http://www.jetex.org...94769;start=all

There's a nice colour photo of the Gnat single-seater in the same Nordic Blue. Looks like a mid-blue, though what an exact match would be, I am not sure. I also have the Maintrack kit and it goes together pretty well.

My kit didn't have any decals, so it is stuck on the Shelf of Doom.....

Thanks Paul, I looked at that thread but unfortunately it has not taken me nearer to nailing this 'Nordic Blue'. I have the same Charles E Brown colour photo of the Gnat in my Camera Above The Clouds Vol.3 (in Nordic Blue) and several monochrome images of the Midge in Spirit Of Hamble - Folland Aircraft but photo ink colours can be quite misleading. I may well just cuff it in the end and go for a likely shade if all else fails.

I have the very simple red ink decal sheet for the Maintrack Midge. If you want a scan of it, P.M. me with you e mail address. At least then you can print a set up for your model. The font might be difficult to replicate otherwise.

Cheers, Nige

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is it like ww2 photo recon blue?like the benson spitfires?

Not a million miles away from it judging by photos. I notice that there is a Ford Nordic Blue and also a Vauxhall one which Halfords do. Not sure if they are metallic (hope not) but I will check them out in the next day or two.

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I have the very simple red ink decal sheet for the Maintrack Midge. If you want a scan of it, P.M. me with you e mail address. At least then you can print a set up for your model. The font might be difficult to replicate otherwise.

Cheers, Nige

Many thanks - PM sent!!

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i just did a google image search for the midge.i got loads of the one with b class reg and the colour reproduction was different in everyone.

i checked humbrol for the PRU blue, link below, but its matt acrylic it looks close to a couple of photo's i found.seewhat you think.to be honest i could have matched half the blues to the photo's, they were that different!

http://www.humbrol.c...146=

Edited by bzn20
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Thanks guys for your input. I went up to Halfords today armed with all my colour charts. The Halfords Ford Nordic Blue wasn't at all what I expected. It was very close in shade to 'Aircraft Blue' Humbrol65 / Gunze H67 / Lifecolor UA062 / PolyScale 505051 / Revell 55 / Tamiya XF23 / XtraColour X202 (acrylic XA1202).

This shade is close to a too darkish SKY Type S and although photos are sometimes in error, this seems an awful long way off. matching the attached photo is easier and several close matches are available, notably Lifecolor Light Blue LC08 or 09, Humbrol 47, 'Sea Blue'.

In short, I just don't know but there must surely be someone out there who does.....

GnatNordicBlue001.jpg

Edited by viscount806x
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Hmm, colour balance looks a bit out of whack. Still, it does look a little lighter as you say.

I think that's the Supermarine 525 in the background, in which case it is a "deep cream" colour.

Tricky one isn't it? I have to say that this last one isn't too far in colour from the Ford Nordic Blue rattle can I found in Halfords. The monochrome photos in my book hint at a light shade too, much lighter than roundel blue for example. I'm just hoping someone pops up who actually saw the colour for real but they would be a very 'senior' modeller by now so it is an outside chance.

I wonder if there is a BS381C reference lurking in an archive somewhere, if only.......

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I would suggest looking into the vallejo range: they have a huge number of paints, there might be one that is close enough. Unfortunately the various conversion charts around are not too accurate, so the best option would be to head to a shop with a printed picture of the aircraft and check all the blues they have.

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I would suggest looking into the vallejo range: they have a huge number of paints, there might be one that is close enough. Unfortunately the various conversion charts around are not too accurate, so the best option would be to head to a shop with a printed picture of the aircraft and check all the blues they have.

Thanks Giorgio but the problem isn't matching the paint to a picture but finding the picture with the correct shade of blue, it would be fairly straightforward to find a blue thereafter to do the job.

If I could only get some idea of the approximation of the colour I might get somewhere with it.

Maybe one day but time marches on and I want to start the model soon. Sods Law will apply of course. No sooner will the decals set on the Midge than a bright spark will pop up with the required information. It is a given, of course, that the shade I choose will be wrong!

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  • 3 weeks later...

midge2.jpg

Still going on with this saga I'm afraid. I'm getting close to needing the Nordic Blue colour now so I am going to have to plump for what might be a reasonable match, using the Halfords Ford Nordic Blue as a starting point (not the above photo - which could be close in actual fact). I've had a look through what paint I have in my drawer and I reckon the colour is close to a Gloy RLM65 Hellblau (1938) but a bit darker perhaps, closer maybe to a Poly Scale RLM78 Himmelblau (late Hellblau) and this last is what I'm thinking of going with. Has anyone anything to add before I do? Of course, when I get my Midge all painted and decalled the true colour will be revealed by a punter coming late to this thread, I've assumed that as a given.....

Edited by viscount806x
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  • 1 month later...

Sorry no answers, I've just bought Whirlybird's new resin Midge and found this thread while searching for this mystical Nordic Blue.

This is another interesting image from the same time as the one above but the colours of much more saturated:

http://www.airteamimages.com/folland-midge_G-39-1_united-kingdom---royal-air-force_115085.html

Though completely unscientific I played around with the colour balance till it looked "better". I'm leaning towards a mid sky blue with a touch of grey, I may well mix something up to my own satisfaction. Paul's suggestion that it could be the same as the Canberra prototype blue.

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Sorry no answers, I've just bought Whirlybird's new resin Midge and found this thread while searching for this mystical Nordic Blue.

This is another interesting image from the same time as the one above but the colours of much more saturated:

http://www.airteamim...rce_115085.html

Though completely unscientific I played around with the colour balance till it looked "better". I'm leaning towards a mid sky blue with a touch of grey, I may well mix something up to my own satisfaction. Paul's suggestion that it could be the same as the Canberra prototype blue.

Thanks James, I have both models done now and went with a Luftwaffe shade, RLM78 Himmelblau which looks right. That photo you give the link to is from the same period as the one in my post above and you can see the differences in print using varying inks etc. I feel this one you have got is far too bold a shade, more of a washed out lighter shade is probably nearer.

Edited by viscount806x
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