Info needed: correct colours for WWII Aust vehicles

[Mrs Vampire]

so this from the archives .

Australian camouflage information can be had at the Australian archives. Look for MP222/1 series
so MP222/1 13D part 1
then 13 A, B, C, D, E, F, G,
then MP222/1 part 2 , 3 and 4

That covers the information for pre 1942 , 1942 two tone disruptive and 1943 three tone disruptive . The files speak of types of paint problems with application and orders as to who should apply it.

http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/search/index.aspx

go to advanced search and put in the numbers

[Mrs Vampire]

I am all miserable again.

O ordered the humbrol paints as listed earlier in this thread and in other places in MLU.

I mixed them up using measure then using weight.

The green pre 1942 is reminiscent of the colour on the Vickers Mk IV B so I think that is OK but its very dark.

Both the Stuart and the FGT are clearly not that colour. But the mix for the post 1942 green is way too dark. I have some places in the FGT that are pristine ( the lockers in the back and places like that ) and on the Stuart under some of the fittings I have unbolted.

Both the FGT and the Stuart seem to be the same base green colour though the Stuart even when rubbed back is clearly faded tending to whiten off .

The Vietnam era green is closer than the mix of humbrol paints I made for the post 1942 green. So now I guess I have to do a colour match on the pristine parts of the FGT...so I will remove a door and see if I can get a formula for that colour and use that as my base green for both vehicles.

Mikes formula for the light stone is crisper than the colour on the tank but it seems about right given the Tank has faded. I am happy to go with it... I think

Trouble is of all the events I have been to and all the museums visited I have never seen tanks painted in the schemes I will use I have only seen old B&W photos ... maybe I will paint up a model or something but it seems they will they look quite startling.

[cliff]

Originally Posted by Gina Vampire

maybe I will paint up a model or something but it seems they will they look quite startling.

really. here are two of mine...pre and Post 1942. I think it looks correct.

[Mrs Vampire]

I mixed exact amounts according to the formula and mine are much much darker than your mix.

The Vickers that I owned was a much darker green than that on your first truck . The FGT has a more green colour. Closer to vietnam era jungle green but brighter.

http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P08521.005

My feeling is my green is greener and my light stone is paler, greyer and lighter than the formulas produce. The Humbrol Pale Stone 121 is very close to the pale colour on the Stuart and the green start colour 159 is closer to the green than the mixed colour.

The Vickers was painted very much the same as the one at Pucka which I took to be the dark pre 1942 green .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_Tank_Mk_VI

[cliff]

Vickers is a later dark green and Not WW2 in my Opinion. A lot of the colours were different from unit to unit due to the way they were mixed and applied. Sun faded everything anyway so I will still do my models to the paint formulas I have.

Your FGT may also have had a full army rebuild later in it's life with the old paint being removed and a different green added but who really knows as the vehicles are older then a lot of their owners

[Jacques Reed]

Hi Gina,

There has been volumes written on the subject so I am posting this purely as a matter of interest and not as any attempt at a definitive answer on matching WW2 Australian Army vehicle colour. The only way that could be done with certainty is to find the original Australian Standards paint chips of WW2 era.
I have tried over the years to find a copy of them through Standards Australia and contacting paint manufacturers but to no avail. I believe the AWM has a copy but doubt a mere enthusiast like me would be allowed to borrow it.

The attached photo of paint samples, needless to say, are for comparison purposes only.

Last year out of curiosity I mixed the Humbrol paints as mentioned here in this post and airbrushed a test card of the colour on a grey primer base.

The attached photo shows the Humbrol test card at the top.

The middle sample is the voltage regulator C/B panel from inside the cowl of my Blitz and therefore less faded than an exposed part of the vehicle in what I assume is an original WW2 colour.

The bottom piece is my .303 holder painted in current Australian Army Camouflage Green (Olive Drab). The paint was obtained from Wattyl from stock prepared for the Army. My research shows it complies with APAS 0154 (Australian Paint Approval Scheme) which specifies Camouflage Green (Olive Drab) as matching US Federal Standards 595B, colour 34088.

As can be seen there is quite a variation between the three colours.
So when it comes to colours I think the old model maker's saying "If it looks right, it is right" applies even to full size vehicles. I have yet to see a gathering of military vehicles with all of them painted the same colour but in the end if they are all well-preserved and look the part that is the most important thing.

So unless I can find the correct WW2 paint chip I am happy to leave my truck in current Australian Army Olive Drab and viewing other vehicles on this forum it appears a few others are painted the same colour.

Cheers,

[Keith Webb]

If you are taking a cab off a chassis, the inside of the cab mounts when unbolted from the chassis have usually been completely shielded from light and grime.