F-4 phantom colors SEA

i believe you're talking about a USN or marine bird? if so, your looking at gull gray over insignia white.

Sorry  I should have been more specific USAF

USAF Birds originally went to Vietnam in 1965 in the same scheme as their Navy/Marine Corps cousins, Gull Gray over White. Soon they were starting to receive a camo scheme of Dark Green 34079, Medium Green 34103, and Tan 30219 0ver Lght Gray 36622. That was the standard scehem from late '65 until the withdrawl of US forces. A few F-4s had the light gray bottom painted black for night operations.

USAF camo would be

-camouflage gray FS36622

-dark tan  FS30219

-dark green

-medium green FS34102

Thanks I might have found the problem I use MM paints and I have all the colors listed the problem is some sites are calling the 34079 field green not dark green  Field green is listed as 34097 medium green 34102, dark tan 30219,and the  gray is called camo gray 36622  

i think some numbers changed over time.

More to the point color names mean squat in paint

urich

Thanks I might have found the problem I use MM paints and I have all the colors listed the problem is some sites are calling the 34079 field green not dark green  Field green is listed as 34097 medium green 34102, dark tan 30219,and the  gray is called camo gray 36622  

Rely on the FS numbers and not the paint names. It sounds like they were mis identified. Field Green is usually listed as 34097, which is not a clor commonly used by the Air Force in that time period. And yes another name for Gray 36622 is Camouflage Gray.

This site has an excellent database on aircraft color schemes. Click on the appropriate letter such as "F" for the F-4 Phantom and then click on F-4 Phatom when it appears in the drop down menu. In the "colors and markings" section on that menu, the various paint schemes with their FS numbers and patterns are listed.

http://www.cybermodeler.com/resource1.shtml

Stikpusher you just became my hero. Great site will use it alot Thanks.

Aw shucks... I know I just spend too much time online...

I will be following up on this post. I am also building an F4-C/D for the GB. It is getting more confusing by the posts coming in.

These colors are about right, I recon:

Actually it would be more brown than tan so either Tamiya Nato brown or even Model Master Earth brown would work.

I am working on a Hasegawa 1/72 F-4E right now that is going to be in SEA camoflage and right now I started on the Stabilators and have all the colors on but only have 2 of the colors pictured since I shot the brown color on a couple minutes ago and will get a pic of that when it dries.

Stabilator with NMF added

BTW there was a goof on the upper portion that I fixed prior to adding the faded olive drab which is my medium green portion of the camoflage.

Stabilator with Model Master Faded olive drab color.

Stabilator with Tamiya Nato Green added as the second shade.

I am trying to get as close to the camoflage pattern as I can on the stabilators as these will be added last so I can add them to the plane when I finish assembling and painting the rest of the kit to avoid ruining things.

randypandy831

USAF camo would be

-camouflage gray FS36622

-dark tan  FS30219

-dark green

-medium green FS34102

So the Spookies did have slime lights in Nam so I don't have to eliminate the slime lights from my build.

Manstein's revenge

These colors are about right, I recon:

 

 

The slime lights were on F-4s at the time of the Linebacker campaigns in 1972. For a Rolling Thunder Phantom ('65-'68) slime lights are a no go.

Just curious, but why are you going with faded OD and NATO Green when the Vietnam colors are so widely available?

constructor

I will be following up on this post. I am also building an F4-C/D for the GB. It is getting more confusing by the posts coming in.

What are you confused about there constructor?

Here are a few of the real birds from that era to look at for reference

and in the beginning

I don't understand any confusion about SEA colors

all four are listed on this page, and they are the same 4 used for any USAF aircraft painted after the initial deployments of various gray aircraft (the gray aircraft could be considered confusing, some were Naval gray instead of USAF colors)

www.cybermodeler.com/.../f-4_profile02.shtml

Rex

I used Nato Green and Faded Olive Drab as that is what I have available and they actually do match up to the pictures color wise  I just need to grab the right brown as the Nato brown actually looks more like Vietnam earth than anything else.

stikpusher

Here are a few of the real birds from that era to look at for reference

 

 

 

 

In theTamiya line I would suggest their Flat Earth. It is reasonably close (just a tad bit dark to my eye) to DarkTan 30219.

I definitely have that color in stock. Makes you wonder why MacNamara ok'd the SEA paint scheme when that scheme worked everywhere else except Vietnam with its red ground. A fighter with light brown/tan in it's camo pattern would stick out like a sore thumb if spotted from up high by a Mig. I guess it is sort of like that discussion in the Figures section about the Chocolate Chip pattern Camo fatigues it worked everywhere else except Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

stikpusher

In theTamiya line I would suggest their Flat Earth. It is reasonably close (just a tad bit dark to my eye) to DarkTan 30219.

Actually from what I have read, the SEA camo was fairly effective at low altitude in the hazy weather conditions that were prevelant there. And the soild does actually vary in tone from sand to brown to red,depending upon the area. The Dark Tan was probably the best middle gound color. I beleive that it would have been Air Force brass and not MacNamara who ok'd the camo scheme. No need for that decision to have been made that high up the food chain.

As a side note on the Chocolate Chips, they were designed when the most likely Desert/Middle East area of intervention was going to be Iran. Which is a much rockier desert in many areas. Not the dune seas of Saudi The main scenario of those days was a Soviet drive to get a arm water port on the Persian Gulf or the Arabian Sea. That's when the whole RDF (Rapid Deployment Force) concept came about with XVIII Airborne Corps and certain Marine units designated for first response to that part of the world. The pre positioned equipment at Diego Garcia was for this scenario.

www.f-100.org/hun003.shtml

Different airplane- same colors.

stikpusher

As a side note on the Chocolate Chips, they were designed when the most likely Desert/Middle East area of intervention was going to be Iran. Which is a much rockier desert in many areas. Not the dune seas of Saudi The main scenario of those days was a Soviet drive to get a arm water port on the Persian Gulf or the Arabian Sea. That's when the whole RDF (Rapid Deployment Force) concept came about with XVIII Airborne Corps and certain Marine units designated for first response to that part of the world. The pre positioned equipment at Diego Garcia was for this scenario.

Thanks for that most interesting information stik.  Cool stuff to know.

Gary

Urich,

 Heres a great referance for USAF Colors up until 1990's, Google this USAF T.O. 1-1-4 and down load (might need to download Adobe to see it) it will cover most colors of USAF Aircraft from Vietnam to mid 90's