White Scout Car Colours
 

Hello all,
After collecting & fabricating the majority of the parts needed to complete the restoration of my M3A1, it has come time to considering how to paint it - my least favourite part.
Period photos I've seen are black & white so I'm not sure what colours went into either a single solid colour or the Australian camo of the time.
Also, were the camo schemes sprayed or brushed?, or was this dependant on where they were field modified? (I have seen examples of both).
Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Robert Williams.

Army Museum Bandiana
 

Here is a pic of the Scout Car from the Bandiana Museum, taken back in 2007.
The restoration and painting was all sprayed, unsure of the colour names used at the time.

I would rather see and know it looked like that under the paint, then tons of fake metal and bondo!!! looking good.. :kangaroo

The colour scheme and colours will depend upon: what period you are trying to depict; what unit it is depicted as serving with, and where they were located at the time.

The Bandiana Museum image shows a gloss finish, dark green and near-white: hardly an approved WW2 scheme!

I see in part, the original US number: do you have the Aust number for the vehicle?

Mike C

Great looking example Robert. Are you painting the whole truck as it is or are you pulling it apart - (not a job for the feint hearted). Well done Warren.

Robert! What a fantastic collection. And I really like your technique and resto ideas. Yes - everything on the scout car is hernia encouraging - I can only imagine what it must be like to own a tank! I posted a while ago about my scout car...you've given me some ideas... :)

Great job!

Nicely done. What shade green did you end up using? As for one of your previous posts, wow you actually had found 6 or 7 parts cars for parts? seems scoutcars are pretty rare nowadays and most will not part them out

Andy

Here's the latest pic of mine... now registered and road legal - very nicely restored by a Willy Rouhalde in France.

Attachment 65459

Markings are next... have tracked down pics for most of them now, but dont want to start on that road until I have it right.

Paint - this is supposedly British SCC 15 - Dark Olive Drab.

If it's wrong... too damn late now!

Tim

We used Dark Olive Semi-Gloss, rather than matt which I was told was the closest to SCC15 - SCC15 being the British Army vehicle colour for Normandy Campaign - the idea I understand was to paint British Vehicles a similar colour to the American ones so they were less likely to be shot up!

Tim

Robert,

Nice job, it looks a picture.

I remember rows of White Scout Cars lined up in storage at Singleton when I was there in 1967 (along with Humber one tonners). They were all new or near to.

I suspect most Whites in Australia came from these stocks and were not used during WW2.

About 20 of them were driven out onto the bombing range at Singleton and basically blown to bits by the RAAF and the Army training with anti-tank weapons. They are probably still there. The rest were most likely auctioned off in the late 60's/early 70's.

From memory the colour scheme was the 1950's all-over bronze olive (dark green) not any WW2 colour or the Vietnam olive drab.

Lang

Lang,

I had the great enjoyment of driving many White Scout Cars from 3 BOD Seymour, Vic., to Singleton, NSW., in 1965/66. Unfortunately they were to be placed on the range as targets. It was sad to think that they would end up shot up, but that is what set me on the hunt later on to restore one. Mine was built up from 10 wrecks, each purchased at the right price, dragged home and the necessary parts taken off them, they were then passed on to other restorers for what it cost me to buy them and transport them home. I think that there are now 5 on the road as a result of the ones I dragged home.

We have traveled more than 100,00km. since 1986 in our White. My paint is Maribyrnong Ordnance Factory, Deep Bronze Green from 1966.

BTW. Robert, Looking good, well done.


Regards Rick.

I don't think British vehicles of US origin were repainted unless there was a need for it. Painting a White Scout Car in SCC15 so that it was a similar colour to US olive drab would be pointless if it were already olive drab!

Yup - true - but in 1943, many WSC werent Olive Drab - they'd already been repainted for their theatre of operations.

This, whilst a B/w pic, is UK and I think 1943.

Attachment 65472

The paint variation/camo scheme is visible, but by May 44, the only pics I can find are single colour - though in B/W this is obviously hard to confirm what... would be great to see these accurately colourised.

However, if they were repainted (same as Jeep in "mickey mouse") in 43, they would then have been repainted in 44.

If straight off the boat from USA, then obviously no point repainting... but Phantom had their WSC from late 43 into early 44 depending on the squadron... so it is likely that many were repainted before war mobilisation orders came through.


Tim

That's true Tim and would be the 'need for it'. I too had similar thoughts with mine and still have not decided on the final coat!

Adrian

In the above pic, you can see the British Mods clearly... of these mods, I want to find the following:

• Right turn indicator arm and mount
• Right side Wing Mirror arm

Do you have either on your WSC which you'd be able to send me very clear photos of... or know anyone with a vehicle with them?

Cheers

Tim

I have the mirror arms, though only my manufacture scaled from that and other photos. However, the arms are not really long enough. You can see if something is alongside you but you cannot see down the side of the vehicle.

The trafficator arms, I have not gone for. I am not aware of any original items on restored vehicles.