Bruce. One more small rant.
I think you are right regarding the lower half wall painting. It showed up on a few boxes at Princess in a choice of ugly hospital green, bright blue or grey/black. Most boxes were still done in the original overall white, but I suspect as these vehicles became long in the tooth, rot became more and more evident in the lower wall sections. A darker paint to hide these stains was probably used at whatever unit level, to make do.
Interesting, the thought that went into the construction of the walls in these boxes. The inner ceiling was installed first, running fully side to side. The end and side walls went in next with a beaded gasket fitted to the top edges. This design meant that any water leaking into the roof would flow out past the top edges of the walls, and these edges would also be protected by the gasket. Water infiltration in the upper walls was thereby minimized. The walls were split at the midpoint horizontally and the seam covered by a trim strip. They probably expected any water getting in behind the walls would eventually accumulate at the floor level and cause problems in the lower portions. You will notice the lower wall sections of these boxes are basically solid. No fancy holes or cutouts. Nice and simple wood work if a lower wall section needed replacing. Remove the fiddly bits, unscrew the offending panel, cut and install a new piece of plywood. Paint it and reinstall the fiddly bits.
Done. Time for a drink.
David
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