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  #91  
Old 30-08-14, 23:25
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Tony Wheeler Tony Wheeler is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gina Vampire View Post
There are no unit signs so it could be either the 2/4 or the 13th tanks.
What about 2/8th tanks Gina? This unit served with 3rd Armd Div from Nov '42 through April '43, before relieving 2/6th in NG. Presumably they would have left their Grants behind...?

I believe these Grants seen at Homebush are in their original camo. Much the same pattern seen below in Jan '43. I wonder if 13 in the formation sign position is significant.

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  #92  
Old 31-08-14, 02:18
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Only the war diaries could resolve that I think.

the 2/8 were detached from the 3rd early in 1943 so I wonder at the division insignia still on the vehicles.

The AWM say this

"In April 1943, after over 18 months of training, the 2/8th was sent to New Guinea, where it became part of New Guinea Force, to relieve the 2/6th Armoured Regiment. This was the 2/8th’s only operational deployment. Using M3 Stuart light and M3 Grant medium tanks, the 2/8th’s main role was to defend Allied airfields against possible attack by Japanese paratroopers. The regiment was headquartered at Port Moresby, where it also had one of its tank squadrons, while the other squadron’s were at Milne Bay and Buna. The regiment also carried out joint training exercises to improve tank and infantry co-operation in jungle warfare. The regiment returned to Australia in February 1944."

If only one squadron was a Moresby then at least one squadron of Grants would have been deployed to Milne .....I would like to see a photo of that !! ( three squadrons A B and C one of Stuarts two of Grants.)

Wiki says: From 15 November 1942 the 2nd Armoured Brigade and the 2/8th Armoured Regiment formed part of the 3rd Armoured Division.[3] The regiment was separated from its brigade in April 1943 and deployed to New Guinea where it took over the 2/6th Armoured Regiment's tanks.[4] The regiment's role was confined to infantry co-operation training and static defence of major Australian bases. As a result it did not see any action. Squadrons were stationed at Port Moresby, Milne Bay and Buna.[2][3] Which Makes more sense and discounts those on the Train at Homebush being 2/8

There are no photos of them in PNG in Grants ands Stuarts I can find it is also inconsistent with the story I have been told that Grants and Stuarts were not deployed overseas post Buna. The Wiki article makes more sense than the AWM one.

So Tony if they were posted with Grants and Stuarts then Maybe but if not the insignia is consistent with the 13th tanks returning post disbandment.

Last edited by Mrs Vampire; 31-08-14 at 03:28.
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  #93  
Old 31-08-14, 03:20
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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This from the Camouflage Committee july 1942.

Australian Archives C1903 whole series.
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  #94  
Old 31-08-14, 04:10
Lynn Eades Lynn Eades is offline
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This is a very interesting and detailed thread. Here is a paint chart for British std paint colours. it is dated 2004. The last 8 have been added since 1931.
(it says so in the bottom r.h. corner)
I imagine that as the ebbs and flows of the war changed, so the availability of pigments (along with what ever else goes in paint)did as well, and this would have had significant influence on the consistency of colour and also the resultant dried paint.
I have a project coming up, and it appears that the base colour is #22 Light Bronze Green. A friend advises thatwe ( N.Z.) followed the Brits. in military vehicle painting, in 1941.
According to this chart, this colour has been around since 1931 and is to British standard BSc 318 C (what ever that means)
How consistent is this going to be? Will I be able to go to a paint supplier and trust that what he mixes will be correct. Will Dulux, or Altex, or Spartan paint be the same? (somehow I doubt it)
There is a lot to painting, (Iam definately a newby here) and almost every aspect affects the resultant finish.
How many times do we ever see two military vehicles side by side, the same colour? Is "never" a reasonable answer?
There are many other inconsistencies in how the job was done at the time I see as an example in the photos of the White Scout cars,
one carrying a jerry can holder on the side, and so it's diamond marking (excuse my ignorance) is back behind the door unlike the others, which are forward of the door.
G&T This is the most in depth thread I have seen on this topic. Keep up the good work.
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Last edited by Lynn Eades; 31-08-14 at 07:26.
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  #95  
Old 31-08-14, 05:34
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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For what its worth this is the AWMs version of 1942/43 Khaki Green. Given it should be white inside I am unsure how much effort they put into getting this right.

Photo : Remnant of M3 Stuart recovered from Buna Campaign. Repainted ?? photographed 2014
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  #96  
Old 31-08-14, 08:22
Big D Big D is offline
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I endorse what Lynn said. Tony and Gina - a great thread and very interesting.

You got me thinking about original paint on my scout car so I put the gallows mount project down for the afternoon (your plans are bang-on Gina) and got some wet and dry out and hit a couple of panels that I hoped still had original paint on them.

Like many of these things I am a novice, and the first attempt I think I went a bit hard and what I think was the original light earth seemed oh so thin as it disappeared pretty quickly.

The second shot is my second attempt which I am still working on slowly. I am using 400 grade wet and dry but maybe I need to go even finer?

Bear in mind this was in the garage and I had to use the flash otherwise the pictures came out too dark.

Does what I have unearthed give any clues? I think I see the remnants of pre-1942 khaki green in the first picture and it is slowly coming out in the second attempt.
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  #97  
Old 31-08-14, 10:36
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Hi Darryl

Interesting stuff.

I found that I could not get the smooth finish Tony achieved with mine . I think on two counts , the armour is not such a smooth surface as Tony's door and my Stuart has been more exposed to the weather over the years so not as much is left. (though the runs in the light stone are good and thick) . I also found the 1942 Khaki layer applied at the time of modifications in Melbourne very thin and fragile.

I also found 600 too coarse and use 1000 and spend lots of time. Like you I have not been able to get a direct light shot just yet. But its still an indication.
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  #98  
Old 31-08-14, 17:17
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The same thought occurred to me concerning armour plate Gina. I've never inspected it closely but I wouldn't expect it to be smooth like sheetmetal, and that will make it impossible to isolate the factory paint layers cleanly, because they're only a few microns thick. It may help to rub back very small areas and take extreme close ups for analysis on screen. This can be a useful method for revealing very thin paint layers, as seen below. Weathering is a problem too of course. The FGT door has several layers of protective paint, including full gloss DBG, and it was removed from the vehicle and stored in a container for decades. It's not often we get such a good sample of wartime colours to work with, esp. Light Stone.

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Darryl, your technique is fine, although 400 is a bit coarse as you say. I use 800 grade myself, with very gentle pressure, more like polishing than rubbing. Always wet of course, and pausing frequently to wipe off and inspect. However I suspect you've done as well as possible with armour surface. I'm puzzled by the photo, as I don't see any primer coat. Looks like green directly onto metal, with rust discoloration as a result. I don't recognize the brownish colour - is it wartime paint, and is the vehicle single colour or camouflaged? More pics needed, preferably in natural light if possible, and photographed wet for colour rendition. Also do you have any history on the vehicle?
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  #99  
Old 31-08-14, 17:56
Mike Cecil Mike Cecil is offline
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Gina,

The conservators often take a different approach: with a scalpel, chip off a small piece of undisturbed paint to the metal, so you have a chip with all paint layers in-tact.

Mount this vertically in resin, then sand across it to expose the edge. Look at this under a microscope and the sequence of layers will be revealed in one go.

This is usually done in multiple places to ensure that the whole 'picture' can be worked out.

Just a thought....

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  #100  
Old 02-09-14, 02:24
Big D Big D is offline
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Tony - I know a little about this vehicle’s history but not much. I know it has some original panels but also some reproduction ones. There are still some US markings on the vehicle (numbering etc).

A question for all, and apologies if it has been answered before, but would these vehicles have been completely painted in the khaki green of the time and then the disruptive light earth/light stone applied over the top, or was it the other way around?

Alternatively, were the patterns just painted individually?
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  #101  
Old 02-09-14, 03:47
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Good Questions Darryl

For me no simple answer. Depending where the vehicles were made, when they went into service and where they served it seems.

The Stuarts were painted by the Australian Army when they went through the modification program in Melbourne. Physical evidence and the photos say they were painted disruptive in the field. My Stuart by brush . Not all Stuarts were were issued some remained in their export colours and went directly into storage.

I feel quite confident the Stuarts...all of them except maybe the first shipment were, on arrival in Australia, painted British green in accordance with the lend lease contract . ( Ill modify that to say all of the M3s ex us army that arrived prior to around feb 1942 appear to have arrived US Lusterless olive drab and had W numbers as well as T numbers)

I exclude the first shipments because they were used Stuarts.. each had miles on the clock and different equipment on board. I am unsure but think one of two possibilities....they were an emergency cargo of tanks taken from American units and shipped to us...or they were used tanks surplussed as obsolete by the US and shipped to the Dutch and landed in Australia as a refugee cargo .... those I suppose were painted Lusterless Olive Drab on arrival and then 1942 green when they were modified which the archives show they certainly were.

I have photos of Gun Tractors made in Australia that are painted disruptive at the factory and likewise with Carriers. It would seem logical the Dept of Supply would have far greater control of the colours and schemes on vehicles manufactured in Australia and that they were appropriately camouflaged before issuing to units. Thats not to say the units didn't dabble or that orders did not subsequently direct changes.

Working out colours from B&W photos is fraught. The only real factual evidence has to come from the artifact at hand. (why Tonys door is such a treasure....ever think of clear coating it and displaying your vehicle that way Tony ???)

Patient research using the tips and tricks here ...and whatever else the brains trust gives us will make the case for individual vehicles.

From my point of view the more I look into it the more uncertain and diverse the answer. The Stuarts from Buna to The battle of bald Hill to Murgon to Maroochydore to disposal show a wide range of patterns and unknown colours on the Stuarts. The Grants are worse The deployments to WA and use into the fifties reveal and even greater diversity of patterns and colours.

One semi constant though is the paint colours. I agree with Tony's contention that they were standard. I hear Mikes knowledge that Local procurement was allowed but I cant find evidence of that being a wide scale thing.

I am aware that Camouflage of civilian installations, vehicles, and so on was handled very differently to the Military. The Military refused to be directed by the Camouflage Committee where Civilians were required to follow their directions.

The Military had their own people and their own ideas. Units were instructed to adapt the camouflage to suit the local environment and the Army had specialised units to help with this.

Localised purchase by the military for the application of disruptive colours doesn't make sense because of their remote locations at the time of application. For instance where would the 1st Armoured Div find enough paint to splash on their approximately 600 armoured vehicles ( 2/5.6/7/8/9/&10 ) plus the 2/11 armoured cars then the 17 motor regiment , the anti tank regiment and the field artillery regiment, when they undertook the exercises around the Battle of Bald Hill way out at Wee Waa ??? ( and the photos of that exercise show quite unusual schemes) ( as an aside I think this might be the largest exercise of armoured vehicles in Australian history...still looking at the records)

It only makes sense that the Army supply chain could manage this and I think from the artifacts I have seen the evidence supports that.

What records I have read indicate paint chips were regularly looked at and approved. Standards Australia and the likes of BALM paints involved along with other large manufacturers.

I think the units would use what they were sent and what they were sent was a standardised product from the paint factories. How they decided to splash it onto the vehicles, I suspect, depended on who was the boss and who was doing the splashing.
For a restorer of an artifact with remnant paint diligent pre-restoration inquiry may reveal the pattern of camouflage and give indications of colour. For a restored who has none of that then an accurate colour palate and selection from photographic record of a representative vehicle is the other option.

The Color palate used at the time is key and , I think, is a matter of finding an accurate mix that replicates extant paint chip-sets and is confirmed by comparison to artifacts.

Tony's quest to establish a reliable repeatable mix would resolve the mater of colour for us all. Your efforts to establish colour and pattern from remnants on your vehicle is an important part of that process.

Mike setting a chip in resin is a great idea ( I have the resin and the microscope) ...getting a chip big enough from the Stuart is the problem for me...any clues???

Last edited by Mrs Vampire; 04-09-14 at 02:01.
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  #102  
Old 02-09-14, 03:59
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Default Another consideration

Once the paint colours have been established and are repeatable the next question is what type of paint are people considering using?

A common cheap paint seems to be a spraying enamel. When a flattening agent is added to this it very quickly goes chalky and looks terrible.

WW2 paints were of different types, a common one being lead based enamel which I think discolours more slowly than modern spraying enamel.

For paint application the gun tractor pics you're referring to Gina were sprayed with the disruptive pattern while in-field efforts were often with a brush and rough as guts as you've seen on your Stuart.
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  #103  
Old 02-09-14, 04:14
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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I agree keith all of the vehicles I have seen ex factory are sprayed as were those ex the large Army overhaul units.

So far as type of paint I am unhappy with two pack because it is difficult to touch up and because it traps moisture in lap joints etc... Never liked it for restoration.

Acrylic ( Nitrocellulose replacement ) is too easily damaged, I like it for aeroplanes ( along with Butyl Nitrate) but not Military vehicles.

I recently used some Coulthard's Aklyd and it was the best enamel I have used. A little hardener I hope will resolve the chalky scraping problem...but I want a bit of that anyway. I want my vehicles to look used. .

If the paint is easy to apply a touch up every ten years or so shouldn't be a problem for me. ( I will be long gone by touch up number two, )
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  #104  
Old 02-09-14, 06:34
Big D Big D is offline
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Gina – it certainly has got me thinking.

I’ve been playing around with this some more with 600 grit wet and dry. I didn’t have anything finer here so thought I would try that.

These photos were taken of the surface I’ve been working on, with the surface wet. I’ve taken some close-up photos as well and apologies; some aren’t that great. The armour feels reasonably smooth but the paint itself (all coats) strikes me as really thin.

The two areas I am examining are on the panel between the rear wheel and the commander’s door. According to every period scout car photo I’ve seen the two areas should show the contrast in the disruptive pattern. That is, one spot should be the khaki green, the other the light earth/light stone.

To add to my confusion however, I am seeing this reddish brown paint in both areas. I would describe as almost being clay-like in colour.

It doesn’t look like a primer to my untrained eye but I could be wrong. There are some spots where you can clearly see the darker green (post war?) so I am wondering if a lot of that was stripped back at some stage judging by the pieces that are left. That might explain why the paint appears very thin.

You can also see some darker areas again which are the rust spots.

I will persevere with this and I probably need to continue over a wider area to see if I can identify the places in the disruptive pattern (if there is one there) where the different colours meet.

At this stage I have a few theories:

* The reddish brown paint I am seeing is the original primer (bugger!)
* The reddish brown paint I am seeing is the light earth (Could it be? It doesn’t look like the light stone to me) and the vehicle was painted with that colour first and then the khaki green went over the top
* I have completely got the pattern wrong from photos and will need to sample another area
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1941 Willys MBT Trailer
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1943 White M3A1AOP Scout Car
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car
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  #105  
Old 02-09-14, 06:36
Big D Big D is offline
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More photos:
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1941 Willys MBT Trailer
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1943 White M3A1AOP Scout Car
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car
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  #106  
Old 03-09-14, 23:01
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Big D View Post
There are some spots where you can clearly see the darker green (post war?) so I am wondering if a lot of that was stripped back at some stage judging by the pieces that are left.

That's my conclusion too Darryl. The impression I get from your photos is a panel which has been stripped back to bare metal using paint stripper, with stubborn areas attacked with a paint scraper leaving the odd fragment here and there. I suspect these fragments are the only original paint we're seeing, and if you work very carefully on them you may find other paint layers underneath, including primer.

Having been stripped back to bare metal it appears to have been repainted without primer, causing extensive rust formation due to extremely thin coat of porous matt paint. I agree the reddish colour does not look like primer, and it's also contiguous with the darker rust patches. Rust forms a variety of compounds in a range of colours depending on oxygen concentration and the presence of other elements, including chemicals in paint stripper if not washed off immediately and thoroughly. I think rust is a more likely interpretation of this colour than red primer, and the proof will be change in colour now that it's fully exposed to air and moisture.

At some later stage the vehicle appears to have undergone a second repaint consisting of grey primer followed by olive drab of some kind.

If the vehicle has indeed been stripped back to bare metal as I suspect, then the key to identifying original paintwork lies entirely in the tiny surviving fragments. That's where I'd start looking myself, and provided there are enough of them sufficiently dispersed it should be possible to confirm camo if present. I'd also give serious thought to Mike's suggested technique in this case, as it requires only the tiniest fragment to provide full paint history. The difficulty of course will be chipping it off the granular armour plate surface, which I expect would provide far greater adhesion than sheet metal. It may be worth trying to soften with paint stripper first, allowing it plenty time to penetrate. Whatever technique is employed it's clear that a forensic approach is required here.

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  #107  
Old 03-09-14, 23:25
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Evidence suggests Light Earth was introduced in production for armoured vehicles only, and where seen on softskins it has been applied in the field.
I should qualify that statement in respect of softskin tactical vehicles, for which evidence of Light Earth in production most definitely exists.

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  #108  
Old 04-09-14, 04:49
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Hi Tony,

I thought you might say that…..thanks for your expert analysis.

The more I have looked at it, the more I see bare metal in the right light around that reddish colour, and I think you are right. It is rust on the surface.

I cleaned back the paint on another part of the body (the area in front of the windshield) which should be completely original to this vehicle (that is, not an armoured panel that could have been added post-war) where the disruptive would have been on an AOP. Again, the same pattern of green and that primer, along with the red colour (rust) below as what I had found on the other areas.

It is interesting as I had located the white US star further back on the side panels, and always assumed they were original. However, I sanded through the white paint on the star today and it revealed the same pattern of paint that I had seen in the other areas, albeit without the reddish rust colour. There were some areas of darker rust right underneath it though where I rubbed it back.

There was no sign of any original US paint under it, nor any primer and I think the stars and probably the numbers in white paint I’ve found on the hood were added in at some stage previously when the whole vehicle was stripped of its paint.

Gina – hope you didn’t think I was taking over your thread. I thought this might have helped to ‘paint’ the picture on the disruptive paint aspect but alas it looks like this scout car cannot contribute anymore unless I get some paint chips off like you say Tony!
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1941 Willys MBT Trailer
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1943 White M3A1AOP Scout Car
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
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  #109  
Old 04-09-14, 05:08
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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OH not at all Darryl

The more the merrier...its a learning exercise for me the more people add the more I learn
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  #110  
Old 04-09-14, 08:14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Keith Webb View Post
Once the paint colours have been established and are repeatable the next question is what type of paint are people considering using?

A common cheap paint seems to be a spraying enamel. When a flattening agent is added to this it very quickly goes chalky and looks terrible.

I suspect that's probably the first question Keith, as we need to specify the paint type at the time of colour matching.

Tony Baker provides much valuable information and advice concerning paint types on page 1 of this thread. I've since dealt with a few paint suppliers and each one has strongly recommended acrylic paint for matt applications. The reason they give is the far lower percentage of flattener required to achieve full matt finish. Flattener is bad stuff in any paint and the less used the better, as it results in loss of durability. Tony explains this well on page 1. In Tony's case he opted for low sheen or lustreless finish, whereas for camo vehicles I believe full matt finish is essential, which would require even more flattener, causing further loss of durability. This can be offset to some extent by the use of hardener, which Tony strongly recommends for all enamel applications, but given the inordinate amount of flattener required to produce full matt finish with enamel paint I'm worried about opacity problems, ie. the chalky appearance you mention Keith. Therefore I suspect acrylic is probably the way to go for our purposes. Enamel is cheaper but it's false economy if it requires regular repainting.

Any thoughts on the subject would be most welcome. I used some full matt acrylic myself last year and I'm 100% happy with the result. Plenty of colour depth and a year out in the weather hasn't changed that in the slightest. It's also extremely hard, unlike the chalky enamel repaint on the vehicle! Another consideration may be user friendliness, and everyone tells me acrylic wins hands down in this respect, including Tony on page 1. It so happens I've never used anything BUT acrylic on vehicles, which is probably just as well for an amateur like me! I used two-pack on a plywood boat once and it's certainly marvellous stuff, but definitely not suited to MV resto work IMO. Anyway it's probably impossible to flatten, judging by Tony's experiments with two-pack initially.
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  #111  
Old 06-09-14, 01:23
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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And then the question will be who is going to get the colours right?

A first go by me . Getting paint matched to artifacts or chips its all the same .

Three hero sized chips from paint supplied to match samples provided.

The first is industrial enamel matched by the supplier of paints to the smash repair folks around Bankstown. The eye matcher has a reputation for being one of the best. MY score...within a bulls roar...if you can hear the bull from the next village. The paint is industrial enamel 10% gloss (dead flat) covers grey primer in two coats by brush ..application ...moderate.

The second is White Knight matched using their computer gadget at Bunnings... The match can't be detected when dry paint as a small swipe applied to the artifact.(that is its just about perfect) It is semigloss so 60% gloss but I can get flattening agent to dull that down. The White Knight paint is horrible...takes three coats to cover grey primer lots of brush strokes stay evident and difficult to apply .Bunnings give you the formula it is repeatable.

The final one is the Coultards Alkyd paint from the seventies...just to try it out. Application is easy covers in one coat and leaves little by way of brush strokes.

The colour is going to differ depending on the kind of paint used , acrylic, two pack ,enamel oil based, enamel Alkyd...amount of flatting. They were painted with an early version of Alkyd enamel during the war and look to be dead flat. (10% or so) as noted earlier the pigments are different so they will look different in different lights. I found the less ambient light the more they looked the same until in the absence of any light they looked identical.!!! true.

I may be in the process of abandoning my quest for perfection....

I to match original Australian oil filter bracket off CMP late 1942/43 green . 2 of NOS CMP door hinge early 1942 green.

3 is Coultards 1970s Khaki as applied to Ackos.
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  #112  
Old 06-09-14, 16:18
Hanno Spoelstra's Avatar
Hanno Spoelstra Hanno Spoelstra is online now
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Very interesting thread indeed!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony Wheeler View Post
I suspect that's probably the first question Keith, as we need to specify the paint type at the time of colour matching.

[snip]

Any thoughts on the subject would be most welcome.
I have been trying to get useful information from other restorers, but most of the replies I got imply that most don't know what type of paint they use. Many of them just buy the colour they need - most often OD - off the shelf from many of the dealers stocking just as many brands and types of paint.

The problem today seems that car paint suppliers these days focus on high-gloss paint, which needs to be applied in professional spray booths and need to dry quickly.

A better source seems to be the industrial equipment industry, although they seem to use 2-pack paint predominantly, which is very hard wearing but less easy to apply by the hobbyist.

For now I have decided to go for an alkyd-based paint, as this seems to give the best result between durability and easy of application by brush & roller.

Anyone care to comment on this?

Hanno
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  #113  
Old 07-09-14, 00:20
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Hanno

I am looking at Alkyd too. It is a current Australian Army preference and truck I have seen with original coats from the seventies seem to endure very well.

Likewise found it easy to use apply and so on.
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  #114  
Old 07-09-14, 02:11
Lynn Eades Lynn Eades is offline
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Gina, does it work if i want to apply touch up coats, or paint bolt heads after assembly, or to add another colour on top in the case of a camo scheme?
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  #115  
Old 07-09-14, 02:59
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Lynn ...yes it is easily touch up able and can be painted over. painting over old coats only needs prep wash to arrive at good adhesion.

Brushing on a bit here and there over sprayed coats are nearly undetectable.

The military enamels used in Australia have to be able to be used in the field with primitive equipment by untrained troops. That is about the same as the requirement during WWII.
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  #116  
Old 09-09-14, 13:14
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Values for British Standards WWII paint from BS987C 1942

L* a* b* R G B
SCC 1A 24 3 5 64 55 50
SCC 2 22 24 12 89 37 37
SCC 4 44 17 17 140 94 77
SCC 5 62 2 22 166 147 111
SCC 7 34 1 11 89 80 63
SCC 10 37 30 25 140 65 48
SCC 11 25 .-1 10 64 59 44
SCC 11A 37 52 40 166 35 23
SCC 15 32 0 27 89 75 32
SCC 16 22 2 16 64 52 30
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  #117  
Old 10-09-14, 16:01
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Another discovery today on the rear armour of the Stuart. Nice blue stencils for the equipment . This one for the AXE

The stencil is under the Light Stone paint but above the Green .

All other stencils I have found so far have been black
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  #118  
Old 13-09-14, 03:35
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Reading the documents I came acros this by the Inspector general of Munitions October 1943.

I completely substantiates Mike Cecils position on the local purchase and mixing of camouflage paints and the paucity of information supplied to those applying it.

This from one of Australia's primary Ordinance Workshops in our largest manufacturing centre within a stones throw of the paint manufacturer and twenty kilometers from the Camouflage Establishment at North Head.

If it ain't possible to get it right in those circumstances ..it just ain't possible to get it right.

The paint referred to B.A.L.M 369 is one of the Alkyd enamel lines ( spraying superseded by 388 and 393 in the fifties) the Nitrocellulose line was 200 series paint.
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  #119  
Old 13-09-14, 05:44
Mrs Vampire Mrs Vampire is offline
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Then this on Khaki Green N0 3 for which I cannot find a paint chip but is apparently close to one on the War memorials samples.
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  #120  
Old 13-09-14, 08:01
Big D Big D is offline
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Hi Gina,

Good on you for keeping this interesting thread going.

What do you think would be the best photographic example right now of a restored aussie vehicle with the disruptive khaki green and light earth combination. Do you have any links or pictures?

I am going to try my luck in mixing up the Humbrol colour combinations suggested so that I can pass onto my paint supplier:

http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...hlight=humbrol

http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...hlight=humbrol

Some photos along with the Humbrol paint mix are probably going to be as close as I can get to the real thing.
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