How were complex camouflage patterns transferred from design/plan to ship?

[Richard502]

As in Prince of Wales in December 1941, Sheffield Sept. 1941, USS Alabama in Dec. 1942, Richelieu in Sept. 1943 etc. Did the camouflage design serve as a general idea only and the painters freehanded it, trying to get close to the design, or was the design transferred "perfectly" to the ship? If the latter, how?

[foeth]

WOMEN WORKING IN A DOCKYARD. JULY 1941. WOMEN IN WARTIME TAKE UP MEN'S WORK IN THE NATIONAL EFFORT. SOME OF THE MANY JOBS UNDERTAKEN BY WOMEN IN THE DOCKYARDS.. © IWM (A 4513) IWM Non Commercial License

 

Nice example of a Dido where the camo pattern is clearly marked (and the colour is B5). This pattern was applied to three Dido's and while there are a few differences, it is remarkably similar on all three. Other example is the KGV-class, Howe and Anson having sort-of the same 1943 pattern. Suggests it certainly not random and patterns were issued (even though documentation of some patterns seems to have been lost).

[Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies]

We know for certain that designs were requested for most ship classes around 1941. We know the Job Number for HMS Prince of Wales (and many others) for the camouflage design drawn by the Naval Section at Leamington Spa. Publications like CAFO679/42 and CB3098/43 were intended to offload the requests for designs for dozens of smaller ships by providing standard designs for those to choose from from a catalogue. Cruisers and larger classes were still given camouflage designs produced by Leamington Spa. Sometimes these were unique, and sometimes they were class designs.

 

It would take a braver person than I to use the word "exact" here, and there are certainly examples of massive screw-ups in lining out camouflage designs on the ship. There are many, many examples of subtle differences in shape of colour panels from designs as applied to real ships.

 

Generally though it wasn't chaos either. The ship was marked out in chalk as EJ shows above and the painting crews painted by numbers within the lines. The lining out was done "reasonably" in accordance with the drawings but they were probably never exactly as per the drawings, not did they need to be exactly as per the drawings.

 

Here's another photo posted by @dickrd on modelwarships.com showing another examples of chalk lines to paint to.

http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/download/file.php?id=122385&mode=view

 

[foeth]

The Outside Viewing-tank : Directorate of Camouflage, Naval Section. © IWM (Art.IWM ART LD 2759) IWM Non Commercial License

[Richard502]

Thank you foeth & Jamie! Your answers do satisfy my curiosity.