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Runway surface on Tinian Island

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  • Member since
    January 2007
  • From: Glue and paint smeared bench, in La La Land
Posted by dahut on Saturday, February 17, 2007 9:21 AM
Sounds good. Besides, in the end, whose gonna know besides, you, we and God?
Cheers, David
  • Member since
    January 2006
  • From: Pineapple Country, Queensland, Australia
Posted by Wirraway on Saturday, February 17, 2007 6:47 AM
Thanks guys.  I settled for beach sand sprinkled over Elmers glue and when that was dry, two coats of decking oil, which made the sand grains clump together and made them look less like sand - it came out a tan colour.  Posting pics in the "size matters" GB just as soon as I mask off that Censored [censored] B29   canopy !

"Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional"

" A hobby should pass the time - not fill it"  -Norman Bates

 

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  • Member since
    October 2005
  • From: Yuma, Arizona
Posted by Brumbles on Friday, February 16, 2007 12:44 PM
The oil would have been intended to keep the dust down, and I assume they used oil rather than water because it would tend to be slightly more weather resistant. 
  • Member since
    January 2007
  • From: Glue and paint smeared bench, in La La Land
Posted by dahut on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 4:19 PM

Have you ever seen a sanddollar, fresh from the sea? It is sort of a greyish color with fuzzy stuff growing on it right?

Have you ever seen one after only a short time out of the water? They turn whitish grey within days and eventually near white. Corals are the same way.

The lovely, vivid colors you see in photos of undersea corals are correct - I used to dive in the FL Keys when I was stationed there in the Navy. However, give them only a short time out of the water and they turn dingy and soon whitish-grey.

Im certain they didnt use the coral fresh from the sea to pave Tinian, but rather something like excavated deposits. All in all, the color would be pretty much the same either way...greyish white. 

Cheers, David
  • Member since
    June 2006
  • From: Michigan
Posted by ps1scw on Monday, January 22, 2007 12:16 PM

I didn't have much time to research, but I'll be that there is some sort of after action report that details what color the fresh coral was.

 

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  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: Seattle, WA
Posted by RonUSMC on Monday, January 22, 2007 2:59 AM
Dahut is right on. Bleached out grey. I have been there.
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  • Member since
    January 2007
  • From: Glue and paint smeared bench, in La La Land
Posted by dahut on Friday, January 19, 2007 7:36 AM

They would have looked like, well, crushed coral. Coral is a calciate compound and any that has been more than three days in the fierce tropical sunlight begins to bleach out. It eventually turns near white. Add to that the rain which is a conmmon occurence in the tropics and the motor oil would surely have begun to leach off.

I'd suggest that they would appear in scale as a lightly textured surface, tinted very light greyish tan.

Cheers, David
  • Member since
    January 2006
  • From: Pineapple Country, Queensland, Australia
Runway surface on Tinian Island
Posted by Wirraway on Wednesday, January 17, 2007 4:20 AM
Can anyone shed light on what colour it would be ?  The old diorama booklet that came with theMonogram B-29 kit stated that the runway surface was pulverised coral soaked in engine oil.  Certainly Navy seabees crushed hundreds of tons of coral to make what was (at the time) the longest runway in the world.  I just cant find any other references which mention the oil coating.  The recent colour photos of runway Able and Baker just show them looking like, well, crushed coral.

"Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional"

" A hobby should pass the time - not fill it"  -Norman Bates

 

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