bar side Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 Hi Not strictly aircraft, but what colour are US base pickups painted these days. In the 80s they were all olive drab, but these days I have seen more blue about. Is there a fixed scheme? Would be for an airfield diorama so more aircraft than vehicle related honest! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelldoc Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 The (old) Hasegawa Set say blue too: https://www.flickr.com/photos/21603181@N08/50620687992/in/dateposted/ modelldoc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 Thanks @modelldoc wasn’t sure if it’s just security in blue or what. Got a nice 1/46 die cast so trying to match it in for 1/48 ground crew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheyJammedKenny! Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 It depends on whether you're depicting a vehicle that's deployed to the Middle East, or CONUS. In the Middle East, everything is painted in a desert pink, which can flake off in spots. For CONUS-based units, the pick-ups and other "commercial vehicles," like vans ("blue stealies") are normally blue, as shown above, but other ramp equipment, such as tugs, refuelers, and such, are in an overall dark green color--perhaps NATO green. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 Thanks @TheyJammedKenny! I think that confirms that the blue paint comes out tomorrow. I am going for the Spangdahlem/ Lakenheath look really. This is the pickup in primer grey today, hiding the original red with flashes paint scheme I have another Harlan tug to make & that one will go green 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheyJammedKenny! Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 Nice job and great scene, above! All of our tugs were basically converted pick-up trucks with a shortened body--kind of what you'd get if you combined the cab/nose of the pick-up, above, and the rear of the tug in place of the truck's bed. They were heavy, slow, and not designed for off-roading. Sorry to say I don't have pictures, but they were painted in the same green color as the other AGE you've depicted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 A bit like this one @TheyJammedKenny! at the BCWM I have been after a 1/48 ish Jeep to make a bobtail from. I will get one eventually 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbuoy Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 I've been using Humbrol 15 gloss midnight blue for mine. The actual dark blue USAF shade is Stratos blue. There are a lot of modern pickups, particularly security police which are a lighter, metallic blue, the exact shade I've not been able to figure out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f111guru Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 Combination of a small USAF owned pick up. Painted USAF blue or insignia FS35044. The tow tug is painted OD FS34087. Have not been able to find a Humvee in any of my pictures so far. Have also not confirmed that OD is used or some other color close to the same hue. I've lost most if not all my contacts out at the base. Heavy duty tow tug. After my time and do not know what designation it is but is painted OD. These trailers are also painted Air Force Blue or insignia blue. So, if anybody out there in BM land that has more up to date information please chime in. I'm working of information that dates back to 1993 and or the physical photos I've taken. If I find somewhere in my photo directories additional vehicle images I'll post. As always thanks for viewing. All the Best, Ron VanDerwarker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 Looks like my die cast truck is a Ford F-Series from about 92 - 97 so don’t know if that changes the colours. I had though green in vehicles in UK bases had tended to die out but looking at the FB pages of Mildenhall & Lakenheath there are still green pickups to be seen. So bit of a coin toss between blue & green Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheyJammedKenny! Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 I think you're safe with either green or blue on the truck. I never saw one of the yellow-painted tugs, but I'm sure they existed somewhere, albeit years before. The tugs we had were used to drive AGE and other equipment around, like the LightAll unit you have in your picture above, as well as push A-10s / F-16s into mx hangars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
e8n2 Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 (edited) AF TO 36-1-3 covers the paint job on AF vehicles. Do a search on it in your favorite search engine and you should be able to find a free download of it. Mind you though that nowadays a lot of the staff cars and such do not follow the prescribed paint scheme, probably to save money and maybe also for security reasons. Stratus Blue is FS 15045. Support equipment went over to, IIRC, FS 14052 about 40+ years ago. Later, Dave Edited January 29, 2021 by e8n2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbuoy Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 Personally, for the era of the truck, I'd go for the dark blue. Although there were still some green trucks about into the 90s, I'd say that with the end of the Cold War, there was less need to camouflage things like pickups, so far more would have been blue. Having been to Lakenheath and Mildenhall several times over the last few years, all the pickups were either the dark (Stratos) blue, the lighter metallic blue that I mentioned in my earlier post, or in some cases, white. The only green vehicles these days seem to be fuel trucks and tow tractors. Are you doing the Ford F150 as a normal pickup? It would look great as a Security Police truck with a lightbar. sp truck by Dan Hardy, on Flickr This is obviously a slightly later F150, and is also sporting the newer metallic blue. Its also clearly a US based vehicle. SP trucks over here only seem to have the Security Police badge on the doors and sometimes "Security Forces" in black along the side of the truck bed, but no large "POLICE" signs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 29, 2021 Author Share Posted January 29, 2021 Cheers guys. Think I am sold on the blue & have found a Humbrol rattle can of French Blue 14 that might fit the bill. I will spray it on & let you see how it goes. I do like the idea of a light bar... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbuoy Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 If you do go with a lightbar, I think for a UK or European base it should be all blue, rather than blue and red/all red. There may have been exceptions, but most of the photos I've seen at USAFE bases, be they police cars, SP pickups, ambulances etc, have all had blue light bars or beacons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slater Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 During the Vietnam era most airfield equipment, trailers, and vehicles (tugs, etc) were painted yellow. Fast forward to the late 1970's and things began to be more subdued, from vehicles being painted green to the stripes, tapes, and insignia on our uniforms going from bright colors to the "subdued" greens, browns and blacks. A-10's went from grey to "European 1". I think even some C-5's and C-141's went to Euro 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 29, 2021 Author Share Posted January 29, 2021 Realised why the Humbrol blue was at the back of the paint stash. Form some reason it’s an awful paint. I warmed it up, shook it well, applied it over primer & it formed puddles, blobbed everywhere & generally made a mess. And was far to light anyway. So now it’s in a ziploc bag with oven cleaner. And I have found some darker Revell blue spray. So try again tomorrow. My frame of reference is always the early 80s Mildenhall @Slater when everything was green with corner & edge visibility markings. Not sure how things were changing by the late 80s / early 90s hence the ask. But due seems to be the way to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
e8n2 Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 16 hours ago, Slater said: During the Vietnam era most airfield equipment, trailers, and vehicles (tugs, etc) were painted yellow. Fast forward to the late 1970's and things began to be more subdued, from vehicles being painted green to the stripes, tapes, and insignia on our uniforms going from bright colors to the "subdued" greens, browns and blacks. A-10's went from grey to "European 1". I think even some C-5's and C-141's went to Euro 1. C-141s, C-5s, C-130s, HH-53s, and a whole host of other USAF cargo and some specialist aircraft started transitioning to the Euro I scheme starting in the mid 80s. Then in the early 90s, after MAC became AMC, the cargo birds started going over to the AMC gray (FS 36173) finish. When I was stationed at RAF Woodbridge in the mid 70s, all of the AGE equipment and nearly all of the vehicles were in a dark green scheme. There were a few tractors and tugs still in yellow. Later, Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nebbor Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 This site has some great info: https://www.alternatewars.com/BBOW/Colors/USAF_Support_Colors.htm The blue is called Strata Blue, FS15045. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nebbor Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 On 28/01/2021 at 21:22, bar side said: I have been after a 1/48 ish Jeep to make a bobtail from. I will get one eventually FYI the Revell 1/48 CH53 kits all have a Jeep(ish) kit inside, even the the latest release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 Cheers @e8n2 to me they were always MAC colour secheme, although I do remember the C-141 looking cool in Euro One. And the Hercs were always camo. And a nice green pickup in the foreground. Awful camera but it was my first 110 pocket camera. Thanks @Nebbor I will check the strata blue against how my Revell can looks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 21 minutes ago, Nebbor said: FYI the Revell 1/48 CH53 kits all have a Jeep(ish) kit inside, even the the latest release. Thanks for that. I remember watching the Jolly Green Giant display at Mildenhall. Even a simulated refuelling run with a C-130. I saw their German re-release. Did the older ones have the Jeep too or is it just the new release? Trying to figure it out from scalemates & other sites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nebbor Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 1 minute ago, bar side said: Thanks for that. I remember watching the Jolly Green Giant display at Mildenhall. Even a simulated refuelling run with a C-130. I saw their German re-release. Did the older ones have the Jeep too or is it just the new release? Trying to figure it out from scalemates & other sites AFAIK all the kits (including the older ones) have it. Even the 105mm gun is still there, many moons later... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 That’s cool @Nebbor a re-release might mean a few old kits going cheap on ebay. Mind you £25 is bad for that much plastic anyway. Got to do some more helicopters. Have a Lynx and always wanted a Gazelle (new 1/48 on the way I think) but a CH-53 is a big one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janneman36 Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 6 minutes ago, bar side said: That’s cool @Nebbor a re-release might mean a few old kits going cheap on ebay. Mind you £25 is bad for that much plastic anyway. Got to do some more helicopters. Have a Lynx and always wanted a Gazelle (new 1/48 on the way I think) but a CH-53 is a big one About cheapness for these older CH-53’s I can say to you that these are only getting more expensive than a new one!! Don’t ask me why but I have the idea that everyone on the bay is thinking that every edition they see and isn’t available is rare for the particular decal version 🤪 You can get a new one in the UK for 28 pounds...and an older one for 44 or higher... cheers, Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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