Mustang III HB886 Colour Query

[johnd]

Hi all,

 

I'm just about to start painting up a Mustang III (HB886, TN), that of Group Captain Nowierski in August 1944. Would it have standard Ocean Grey, Dark Green and Medium Sea Grey or the ANA equivalents?

 

Thanks,

John.

[Dave Fleming]

Most likely Uk colours, I beleive these were repainted at depot before issue to the squadrons

[johnd]

On 08/04/2018 at 22:07, Dave Fleming said:

Most likely Uk colours, I beleive these were repainted at depot before issue to the squadrons

Do you know if the wheel bays, wheel hubs, undercarriage legs and/or gear door insides would have been done in medium sea grey at the same time as the repaint? Or do you reckon they'd be left in delivery colours, i.e. aluminium (I guess)?

 

Thanks,

John.

[72modeler]

4 hours ago, johnd said:

Do you know if the wheel bays, wheel hubs, undercarriage legs and/or gear door insides would have been done in medium sea grey at the same time as the repaint? Or do you reckon they'd be left in delivery colours, i.e. aluminium (I guess)?

 

Thanks,

John.

According to a discussion of this topic on the P-51 SIG, P-51B/C Mustang wheel bays had a zinc chromate mainspar/rear wheel bay wall, with the rest of the wheel bay and inner surface of the wheel doors in aluminum finish at the factory. Struts and wheel hubs would also be aluminum.  I would imagine, but it's just my opinion, that the wheel bays and inner surfaces of the doors were not painted when the aircraft were finished in either MAP approved ANA  equivalents or repainted after delivery and reassembly at Speke. I bet @Dana Bell or examining one of Dana's articles on the subject would be better.

Mike

Edited August 22, 2018 by 72modeler
added text

[johnd]

Thanks, Mike.

 

I have read about US Mustang inner surfaces, with Dana Bell prominent in discussions with painted aluminium, natural metal and which parts, if any, we're zinc chromate but none of it seemed relevant to how an RAF machine would appear in service. 

 

The particular aircraft I'm building is from 1944, and by then I believe aluminium would be running short. Natural metal would not be ideal in Europe, which is what prompted my question.

 

John

[rossm]

The back page of the old Ducimus Camouflage and Markings booklet on the Mustang has a section titled "Exterior/Interior Finishes" which covers this in some detail. If you can't find a download then PM me your email address for a scan.

 

Ross

[Max Headroom]

16 minutes ago, rossm said:

The back page of the old Ducimus Camouflage and Markings booklet on the Mustang has a section titled "Exterior/Interior Finishes" which covers this in some detail. If you can't find a download then PM me your email address for a scan.

 

Ross

This courtesy of Boxart Den

 

https://boxartden.com/reference/gallery/index.php/Modeling-References/Camoflage-Markings/02-North-American-Mustang

 

Trevor

[Graham Boak]

2 hours ago, johnd said:

 

The particular aircraft I'm building is from 1944, and by then I believe aluminium would be running short. Natural metal would not be ideal in Europe, which is what prompted my question.

 

Several interesting points here.

 1. I don't believe that there was any shortage of aluminium in 1944.  The only comment I recall seeing about material shortages (other than rubber in 1942) was the lack of the green pigment in paint, which was restricted to aircraft use.  Ships and military vehicles had to resort to new colours that did not include the specific pigment.  I'm sure that there are other examples of shortages, but not of aluminium (or even aluminum), as by then this was been handed over in large quantities to the Soviet Union under Lend Lease.

2. In the posting, I think the term "aluminium" didn't refer to the metal itself but the colour of the paint.  For specific known paints, it is common to use a capital letter (i.e. Aluminium in British use) to avoid confusion with a more generic term.  However, presumably the P-51 undercarriage was not painted in Ministry of Aircraft Production Aluminium paint anyway, so it's something of a moot point!

3. You may consider it less than ideal, but in 1944 the USAAF went over almost completely to bare metal, even in Europe.  The logic being that corrosion was a very slow process, and would not take effect in the expected lifetime of the aircraft, so the savings in production time and cost were significantly worthwhile.  The USAF were to continue with this policy even in peacetime, even in Europe, until undertaking massive operations in South-East Asia, where climatic conditions were clearly even worse.

[72modeler]

Yes, sir, Graham- that's why I said aluminum and not natural metal for the wheel bays; I guess I should have said aluminum paint to avoid confusion. I also agree with your third point, as IIRC, the basic life expectancy of an airplane was 30 days, and that late in the war, I'm sure a lot of primers and protective coatings were skipped in the interest of getting the aircraft out to the troops and saving materials and labor. (Martin, for example, did not paint zinc chromate primer on their camouflaged B-26 Marauders.)  I  would think, probably incorrectly, that the Merlin-powered Mustangs, which were lend-lease and not contracted like the Allison-powered versions, would have the interior surfaces  finished  as per USAAF requirements.

Mike