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I am always puzzled when I see an impeccable reconstruction of a WW2 airplane with a glossy finish, even though the majority of RAF, USAF, RLM, and other air forces painted their planes in flat paint so they would not reflect sunlight that could be spotted from air or ground. Since these restorers take such painstaking measures for accuracy, I have to assume the glossy finish they use is somehow easier to maintain? Any thoughts?
I don't know about high gloss but a lot of the A/C from the era were painted in at least a satin finish.
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I think that was more the exception than the rule, e.g., the three-color white, light blue-gray, and sea blue colors were flat for the first two and glossy for the dark blue. And all the color swatches I have in authoritative books are definitely flat.
Sorry, I was referring to the tri-color paint jobs of US Navy planes like the Avenger, Helldiver, and Hellcat during WW2. Towards the war's end, the Hellcats got a glossy dark blue over all surfaces.
most aircraft, today's aircraft, are painted using gloss paint in order to reduce the amount of drag the aircraft produces during flight. a flat paint surface, when looking at it magnified, produces a rugged surface and interrupts smooth airflow over the aircraft's surface. the same thing happens when an aircraft is extremely dirty or has frost covering the wings.
i don't know if this is a major factor in their decision making, but it certainly does make sense. the smoother the airflow around the aircraft, the less fuel will be consumed during flight, thus allowing for the aircraft to fly for longer periods of time (endurance).
like i said, i don't know if it's in their reasoning for doing it, but it makes sense that they would. hope it helps!
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Hercmech I don't know about high gloss but a lot of the A/C from the era were painted in at least a satin finish.
How do you achieve a satin finish? i know tamiya has flat and gloss but is there a satin version readily available?
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Microscale does a satin finish clear coat. I think most manufacturers do.
The thing with paint is even when the real aircraft is painted matt, its becomes semigloss after a few flights because of air friction buffing the paint. Also they discovered matte black flouressed(SP?) under search lights, but gloss almost disappeared
(apologize for the atrocious spelling in this post, my spell check isnt working for me today and im tired lol).
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MiG-29 How do you achieve a satin finish? i know tamiya has flat and gloss but is there a satin version readily available?
If satin isn't available you could mix flat & gloss until you came to the desired finish, Tamiya X-21 Flat Base can also be added to gloss finishes (including clears) to flatten them down, but X-21 is an additive - not a coating as such & is only added in small % ratios.
Many artists acrylic clears, like Liquitex are available in satin & can be used straight from the tin for brushing or airbrushing.
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