Color Help - Trumpeter 1:350 Arleigh Burke and Iwo Jima

Trumpy paint instructions appear to involve either a dart or a ouija board for selection.

A lot of people have reported being happy using NATO Black for fresh flight deck surfaces.

(Medium Gray for verticals, Gunship for horizonstals.)

USN flight deck finish weathers to a gray appearance  to a mottled appearance resembling asphalt with tan/beige material in it.  That allter effect is something you can see while standing next to it, just not at 350 (meters/feet/whatever) away. 

If you do an image search of USN vessels with flight decks, the photos all vary, which has a lot to do with local light conditions, and camera set up, and the like.

The real key appears to be find a happy "medium" that you like, and model that.

Thank you Capn....   I like the ouija comment.  I thought it was just me!  I've put down xf63 German Gray for the flight deck and like it.  I prefer the "fresher" darker look because it adds a nice contrast to the lighter gray vertical surfaces. 

USS Nitze while undergoing builders trials, so pretty much brand new... 

vertical surfaces Haze Gray, Horizontal surfaces Deck Gray- standard USN practice since after WWII. 

So, World War 2 and post World War 2 Haze Gray are different colors.

Just be aware of that when you choose paint. 

5-H is the earlier color.

I like testors Dark Gunship Gray for deck gray, but that's mostly because it comes in a can.

Build carriers; love it.

As our legendary Captain states, it's all about the way it looks to you.

Bill

Another point for those who've never been aboard an American naval vessel, there is deck gray, and there is regular grade 'non-skid' which is slightly darker in color. These are what is used on most weatherdeck areas. Then, there is the carrier deck non-skid. It is quite a bit heavier and in fact, when new you can't even walk barefoot on it, its too sharp. It stays darker longer too.

GMorrison

So, World War 2 and post World War 2 Haze Gray are different colors.

Just be aware of that when you choose paint. 

5-H is the earlier color.

I like testors Dark Gunship Gray for deck gray, but that's mostly because it comes in a can.

Build carriers; love it.

As our legendary Captain states, it's all about the way it looks to you.

 

Bill

 

Id be willing to bet that WWII 5-H Haze Gray was used for quite some years after the war until stocks were depleted even after the “new” color was introduced. 

WWII paints were certainly no longer in use into the 50s, and this question is about very modern ships.  The code for modern Haze gray is FS36270 on the shipyard's prints.  That translates to different names in every manufacturer's lines, but in Testors Modelmaster line, it is called Neutral Gray. 

As CapnMac said above though, flight deck surfaces area really, really tough to describe.  Absolutely fresh paint is black, impregnated with gritty non-skid.  But as soon as aircraft start using the deck, it quickly accumulates salt, rubber, hydraulic fluid, lube oil, etc and gets to a difficult color to pin down, and the angle and amount of sunlight just add more complication.  My personal choice in 1/700 scale is a dark greyish green that Testors labels as Euro I Green (a name that is meaningful for USAF modelers, but just a label to the ret of us)

My main goal is to make it look different from the other decks that are not flight decks. (where I agree that Modelmaster Gunship Grey is best).  I'd suggest that you try a couple of shades and see what looks best to you.

Good luck,
Rick

stikpusher

 

Id be willing to bet that WWII 5-H Haze Gray was used for quite some years after the war until stocks were depleted even after the “new” color was introduced. 

 

Both Ed and Stik bring up good points.

On average, ships were getting returned to base for four to two times a year.  They would get repainted when every they were in still, protected water.  And, you do not want to have a bunch of paint stowed i nthe paint locker.

So, without combing the archives to see what expeditures were spent stocking paint, I'm guessing the depletion rate was pretty high.

And, ships were all supposed to shange from Measures 21 & 22 into 23. 

I have this nagging memory that there was a blue tint shortage, too, that there was an all-gray scheme or three right during 45.  But, I could be remembering that wrong.

stikpusher

 

 

GMorrison

So, World War 2 and post World War 2 Haze Gray are different colors.

Just be aware of that when you choose paint. 

5-H is the earlier color.

I like testors Dark Gunship Gray for deck gray, but that's mostly because it comes in a can.

Build carriers; love it.

As our legendary Captain states, it's all about the way it looks to you.

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

Id be willing to bet that WWII 5-H Haze Gray was used for quite some years after the war until stocks were depleted even after the “new” color was introduced. 

 

Hah! As long as a small amount was in use somewhere worldwide it counts. Odds are that some of the far flung bases received the new paint quite some time after it was fielded. And they should have used up old stock. 

Of course knowing the disposal procedures of that era... bury it or dump it....

Reverse engineer that- The Jeremiah O'Brien folks keep her painted with whatever current shade of gray the Navy sends their way.

That's a great pic, stikpusher.  Thanks for posting.  After some consideration, I feel the color I went with istoo dark and will go a bit lighter.

The new pre-catalyzed paints in USN use give a lot of leeway for finish.
And, photo references can want a grain of salt.
Here's another photo of USS Nitze

And another for comparison

And another, showing how little contrast the flight deck can have with the regular deck

This is an exceellent image that shows the difference between the new ship and an older Spru-Can

Note how the Aegis arrays play peek-a-boo, they are a very subtle shade different than the superstructure.

In one of those "up close" obsrvations, the "lids" on the VLS cells are a very subtle shade lighter than the frame, which is in the superstructure color.  Trumpy, among others calls out (occasionally) the radome tops as white.  And, in arm's reach, they are.  But, as the photos show, really they render as a very pale gray.

Here's a detail of the Mk 45 mount that's going to be very hard to replicate in model form

That chorme end is going to shine way too much in model form.

And, here's a photo where the deck color is all washed out

(I was so happy when we phased out those silly nukee suits as "fatigue" wear.)

Super valuable thread guys! I tossed back these pics and the deck info for when I build one.