Ford F22 has desert paint ?

[Lauren Child]

Hiya,

I had some nasty patches of rust starting to bloom on the top of the cab roof, so today I broke out the sander to get rid of it (the cab roof paintwork is quite faded so I was going to strip back and repaint).

I'd assumed that when the vehicle was restored it was taken back to base metal, but the sander revealed some specks of yellow (the colour she was when Brian Nunn found her), grey primer, and then a desert colour with a green tinge. This looks to be the base colour, so presumably that's how she left the factory?

Photo's attached - do they match others?

I guess I'm going to have to be careful stripping from this point to see if I can find any markings.

[Phil Waterman]

Hi Lauren

I've found a layer of tan paint on some parts on my 1942 Pattern 13 C60S not as an overall paint that would indicate that the truck had been painted that color, but rather as individual parts painted with a layer of tan. See if you find the tan on several major body panels that would suggest an overall paint job.

There are several explanations for different parts having different color strata that may not match. Military over haul or repair work where parts are mixed from several vehicles. The second is that I have heard is that when painting/priming parts they used what ever paint was handy.

In the process of overhauling my HUP which never went through a military overhaul, because it was never issued to the military, I have still found a wide variety of colors as undercoat/primer. It is also clear that not all parts were painted with a primer at all. On the HUP I've found as the bottom layer of paint, Olive Drab (as in the greenish OD) Olive Drab (flat brownish OD), black, gray, and reddish (sometimes called Red Lead).

My C60S had clearly had at least two if not three complete overall paint jobs. The last looking like it had been done with a brush, on top of the top most layer was the NATO stenciling.

It will be interesting to hear what you find and where on the truck you find it.

[Lauren Child]

Thanks Phil,

The thing that has me wondering is the coat above it. It seems to go

Tan
Medium grey
Slightly lighter grey + yellow flecks (Yellow was her civvy colour)
darker green (Brian's restoration)
Grey
lighter green (later repaint)

I've not seen any sign of red lead, but the metalwork beneath the Tan has a dark finish which could be the remnants of an anti-corrosion finish (I've seen similar darkenned metal on other vehicles)

There's no layer for her in-service as I'd imagined, unless it was the tan or the medium grey (navy?).

I figured she'd have left the factory in SCC15 green but there's not a layer for that....

[Phil Waterman]

Hi Lauren

Seeing that you just responded to Eric's post (http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ad.php?t=18157 ) about his D15 is the color you are finding similar to the https://picasaweb.google.com/1097760...eat=directlink shown in his link?

This is very close to the color I found as under color on parts of my truck.

One thing that I had noted about the tan under coat is that it is hard to tell if it has the flattening compound but it doesn't look like it does.

Cheers Phil

[Lauren Child]

I'll have to admit to needing help here, as I'm colourblind. The strong (civvy) yellow is a very strong signal yellow (like modern bridging plates) so that's a way off.

The tan is not really a yellow. My partner (with good colour vision) tells me it's a very pale, slightly sandy green. It's a lot duller looking than the photo's of the D15, and is both very crumbly, and very matt.

[Stew Robertson]

Hi Lauren
Of the many vehicles I have done I think you will find that the yellow is acually the canadian or brit green faded out and when it is sanded it comes out a yellow colour I have found this even on early armour
Hope this helps, or it will really mess you up!
Stew

[Lauren Child]

Thanks Stew, that is a possibility, although the colour is very different to a normal green. Given that this is the roof if anywhere was to fade this would be it - I may have to try a small patch from underneath.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Lauren Child

It seems to go

Tan
Medium grey
Slightly lighter grey + yellow flecks (Yellow was her civvy colour)
darker green (Brian's restoration)
Grey
lighter green (later repaint)

I've not seen any sign of red lead, but the metalwork beneath the Tan has a dark finish which could be the remnants of an anti-corrosion finish (I've seen similar darkenned metal on other vehicles)

There's no layer for her in-service as I'd imagined, unless it was the tan or the medium grey (navy?).

I figured she'd have left the factory in SCC15 green but there's not a layer for that....

Lauren,

It could well have been painted "Light Stone" as it was officially known, or at least parts of the vehicle (as Phil noted). On this forum there are some pictures of trucks being assembled, e.g. green chassis with sand coloured cabs, only to be sprayed a uniform colour after final assembly and testing (see below).

My F15A also has a Light Stone base colour on at least the cab steps and tailgate where the later top layers have been chipped or worn off.

As your F22 was assembled in November 1945, chances are high the Ford factory used up any parts and paint they had in stock, rather than complying to contract specs and buying new paint. Seeing the late build date, I suspect your F22 was shipped to the UK and then re-assembled by a company like Pearson's. Surplus stocks of unused military vehicles were sold off to civilian users, often in (grey?) primer, ready for the new owner to apply their livery of choice.

Please keep recording the paint colours you come across, it's a vital part of "CMP archeology"

HTH,
Hanno


Linked from Ford Canada Factory....

[Lauren Child]

Aha, interesting stuff. Thanks Hanno!

I've just ordered a BS381 colour swatch card set so I can see if it looks like Light Stone.

I've also picked up Mike Starmer's colour guides, so hopefully between them we'll be able to identify the colour

[Lauren Child]

Today I got out there during a sunny patch and had another go. It looks like there is green under the sand after all, but it's a very very thin layer.

The sand colour itself is close to (post war) 361 light stone, but has a touch of green in it.

See the attached photos - the colour underneath is definitely SCC15 green, which makes sense.

I've also compared the desert colour to SCC15 (definitely not a faded version of this), light mud (similar, but it's much lighter) and wartime light stone (definitely not).

[Lauren Child]

A bit of moisture makes the colours a lot easier to see. Here the lower colour is definitely SCC15, and an overall comparison.

The lower colours seem very patchy, so I'm guessing she has been sanded down in the past.