Mickey Mouse Paint Scheme

[gordon]

I always consider this to be early WW2 and pretty much gone by D-Day, but does anyone have a date range for MME camoflage please? Just tyring to answer a question on the WW2 Dodge Forum.

Gordon

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

I am at our new house and playing with our new BB connection and daughter's laptop...from memory the earliest Michael Mouse cammo I have come across in photos of assembly plants in England was 1942. I know this has been discussed previously.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally posted by gordon
I always consider this to be early WW2 and pretty much gone by D-Day, but does anyone have a date range for MME camoflage please?

AFAIK, it came in use in 1942 and continued to be an official scheme until 1944. Vehicles without a need for repaint could be seen in that scheme at least until war's end.

Here's the pitch from experts Mike Starmer and Mike Cooper:

1942- 44 – M.T.P. 46/4A introduce new toned schemes aimed primarily against aerial observation, usually using the BS.987C browns as laid down in A.C.I. 1160 of May 1942. The most common versions were variants of the ‘Foliage’ pattern and the ‘Mickey Mouse’ variant of the ‘Dapple’ pattern. Vehicles continued to be delivered and used in plain S.C.C. 2 following A.C.I. 1160 which gave S.C.C. 2 as “Basic Paint”. In October 1943 A.C.I. 1496 authorised S.C.C. 14 (black) as the main shade over S.C.C. 2. For illustrations of this and M.T.P. 20 schemes see http://milfax2003.tripod.com

Note: that last URL should read http://milifax2003.tripod.com/home03.html


Also see paint schemes for CMP trucks for further info and related links.

HTH,
Hanno

[gordon]

Will circulate the info

g

[Mark Mackenzie]

I can't comment of the European colour schemes. However the pre-El Alamein middle-east camouflage schemes described on MAFVA are inaccurate and unnecessarily complex, though the colour matches are correct.

The only accurate description on the web so far is at:

http://www.geocities.com/redironbark/summary.htm

which is a word by word copy of a report by Geoffrey Barkas, Head of M.E. Camouflage – the chap who was there at the time.

HTH
Mark Mackenzie

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

A question regards the application of a WW2-era Mickey Mouse scheme...how was it applied? If sprayed, how was it (or what would be a good way) to mask it? If applied by brush, why does it always look so neat? Surely those painting the thousands of vehicles were neither artists nor had the time to be perfectionists.

Second, I have a photo of a Fox with the RCD's in about 1943. The black/grey mickey mouse seems to have been applied such that the entire turret is black. Is this precedented?

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Using a brush was one method . . . note this is a task where female precision is of the utmost importance . . . .

[peter simundson]

Bruce. We've talked about this before. You forgot what we agreed. They used MOPS! Long handled mops.

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

So, to be strictly authentic, I have to give my wife a gallon of paint and a mop and have her go at it?

Great picture Hanno!! What is your best guess what that dark colour is, black or dark grey?

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Originally posted by Bruce Parker
So, to be strictly authentic, I have to give my wife a gallon of paint and a mop and have her go at it?

LMAO!!!!!! I'd like to be a fly on the wall for that exchange...

Great picture Hanno!! What is your best guess what that dark colour is, black or dark grey?

I remember a thin little British pam, dated '42 I think, which stated black and did show that all top surfaces were painted thus in addition to the side pattern. I imagine that there was some variation at the local level, though, so improvising your own scheme is probably apropos.

[Phil Waterman]

After I tried to pressure, wash my HUP and blew the paint off in places figured Mickey Mouse Camo would be a quick fix. So I needed a way to apply and mask quickly, took a bunch of refrigerator magnet cards laid them out and put tape on the back then cut out curved patterns of different sizes. Then took the sheets of magnet curves and put them on the HUP lightly spray with flat black move the patterns around and result instant Mickey Mouse. Strange it is hard to photograph the camo it just sort of blends in with any shadows. If the temperature is reasonably warm the magnet sheet section curve to the sheet metal very well.

[Jordan Baker]

Hi Bruce

Here are some shots from the Imperial War Museum photo site. They are part of their colour transparency series.

Anyway they are really good at showing what the colours should be.

The main colour is SCC2 and the darker is SCC14

Hope this helps.

For anyone who wants to get all the colour pictures just do a search for TR in the photo # section.

[fv1620]

I remember a thin little British pam, dated '42 I think, which stated black and did show that all top surfaces were painted thus in addition to the side pattern. I imagine that there was some variation at the local level, though, so improvising your own scheme is probably apropos.

Yes I have just found it in 26/GS Publications/644 issued Nov 1941. As you say upturned surfaces were to be painted dark entirely. This is in contrast with 26/GS Publications/70 June 1939 which required a disruptive pattern all over.

There would of course be local variation in painting but both regulations stress that there should be no repitition of patterns between vehicles.

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

"There would of course be local variation in painting but both regulations stress that there should be no repitition of patterns between vehicles."

Wow, that makes it easy and explains the zero progess I had finding a systematic pattern between any two vehicles. There are, on occasion, mickey mouse 'flowers' in odd places that I think were inventive ways of covering up an accidetal drip.

[Jordan Baker]

Hi Bruce

I found these on the British Pathe site.

They are supposedly taken in Normandy somewhere around Caen.

[fv1620]

Further to 26/GS Publications/644 1941 these are the three patterns it describes.



Dry Brush Pattern




Dappled Pattern




Foliage Pattern