USN Colors help

I have a couple of paint cross reference charts but they do not cross reference naval colors very well.  I don't know of anyone who does acrylic naval colors.  I use White Ensign Models (WEM)paint but that's solvent based.  You may want to consider getting some paint chips from WEM and then matching them as best you can with Acrylics.

I looked over a 2nd cross reference that I have and they match the following...

5N = FS# 15042

5H = FS# 36375

20-B = FS# 36076

So I would try and find the correct FS number in your acrylic paints.  Keep in mind there are variations in FS numbers between brands.  I sitll recommend the paint chips to check.  The WEM paints are the best match you'll find.

Good luck

Dave 

Good luck

Dave

Thank you very much.

But is it "Camouflage of Ships at Sea(Reference #FS 003)" that you mean i should get?

/Christian

weebles wrote:

II looked over a 2nd cross reference that I have and they match the following... 5N = FS# 15042 5H = FS# 36375 20-B = FS# 36076 So I would try and find the correct FS number in your acrylic paints.  Keep in mind there are variations in FS numbers between brands.  I sitll recommend the paint chips to check.  The WEM paints are the best match you'll find.

An important thing to remember is that the Fed-Std color nomenclature system is a product of the 1950s.    The US Navy's WWII color standard is based on the 1929 Munsell Color System.   (The current Munsell designation does not match the 1929 system).  

The WWII naval purple/blue colors were officially discontinued in February, 1945.  Their use was allowed until the paint stocks were depleted.  

When the Fed-Std system was created the naval blues were not included -- they were obsolete.

Any contemporary correlation of WWII naval colors with the Fed-Std system is just someone's opinion. 

If your goal is to mix your own accurate representation of the colors then the Snyder & Short color chip set recommended above is a good one.  (see shipcamouflage.com for the chip sets).

Another choice might be to buy some of the White Ensign Colourcoat paints and use them as your standard.   Mix your acrylics to their colors.

Modelmaster used to make some acrylic versions of the WEM colors, but they are now out pf production.

The WEM chip sets are actual paint on a card and not printed from a computer.  You can buy them from WEM or Snyder & Short Enterprises.  From there you can mix your acrylic colors possibly with the FS numbers identified from cross references as a start.  The best results would come from using the WEM paint though. 

Good luck with your project.

Dave

The color schemes of WWII naval vessels are endlessly fascinating.  I have the greatest possible respect for the folks whose research into the subject has made such a fine contribution to our knowledge of it.  Long gone are the days when everybody, from movie directors to novelists to artists to modelers, assumed that warships were painted "battleship grey."

I do suggest, however, that anybody who's on the verge of getting obsessed with "accuracy" when it comes to WWII USN camouflage colors read this thread:  /forums/987682/ShowPost.aspx .

I said my piece about the subject in that thread (frankly I was a little surprised that nobody expressed any real disagreement), so I won't repeat those comment here.  I do hope that thread convinced some people, at least, that the concepts of "right" and "wrong" colors for warship models - or scale models of any sort - just isn't reasonable or useful.

Thank you very much for all the replies.

I think buying WEM colors and mixing my own with acrylics would be the best, I just have to mix enough paint as it would be sad to run empty half the way... Not easy to mix exact the same and end up repainting the whole modelwith the new mix.

One more question regarding what brand to use. I am a big fan of Tamiya colors but as you know they dont do good with a normal paintbrush.

I think it would be good to have the possibilty to paint some details with a brush instead of an airbrus. I am thinking of using the normal Vallejo model color (not the model air) for both airbrushing and paintbrushing. I have heard that it could spit when airbrushing. Anyone with that experience or does it work good in an airbrush to?

/Christian