Green Zinc Chromate...???

Tamiya doesn't have colors for either GZC or IG. Both have to be mixed. Model Masters has both a GZC and IG in their enamel line, but only IG in their Acryl line.

I was recently inside a B-17. It had both GZC and IG in the interior. IG was used in the crew area, while the bomb bay was in GZC.

It might be that when people are comparing GZC and IG they are comparing the same thing and thinking that they are comparing the two.

If I remember correctly, zinc chromate isn't a particular color - it's a protective coating, and it tends to be a yellowish green. It would probably be considered too bright and too yellow for occupied interior spaces, but it doesn't make sense to apply a coat of paint over protective coating in some instances. So a color was created in 1951 for zinc chromate when used in occupied spaces of military aircraft, nonspecular Interior Green, Federal Standard 595a 34151, which basically means adding black to zinc chromate, making it darker and greener.

I posted this formula for "USN Interior Green" using Tamiya acrylics some time back. The feed back I got was "a touch of black" helped.

XF3 - Flat Yellow (2 parts) + XF5 - Flat Green (1 part).

Here's a link to a Tamiya paint chart - http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/colorcharts/stuff_eng_colorcharts_tamiya.htm

QUOTE: About 10% of the male population has some trouble distinguishing between shades of green or shades of red.

That's interesting. I didn't know that, and I must be one of them Both "Interior Green" and "Green Zinc Chromate" look very, very similar to me. I have a Spitfire painted with GZC and a P-40 with IG and I can't see a nickel's worth of difference between them.

Now that I think about it, the GZC is Model Master Acryl and (I think) the IG is Tamiya. Maybe that's part of it to.

QUOTE: And another .0001% (That's ME!) doesn't know what the hud Zinc Green Chromate even was used for! You see it on all WWII aircraft interiors it seems...was it an anti-corrosive agent? That's the best guess I can make. You don't see it on any modern aircraft to speak of so I assume they've come up with either a different plan of painting or perhaps better more corrosion resistant alloys?

You're absolutely right. Zinc chromate was and is used as a corrosion inhibiting paint. If I remember correctly, the military specification (MILSPEC) calls for a paint that can withstand a minimum of 1,000 hours in a salt bath without any appreciable corrosion evident. For years, ZC filled that requirement. Unfortunately, ZC is now a recognized carcinogen, and is being replaced. Some paints now contain strontium chromate as the inhibiting agent, while others are chrome-free. In addition, much of the aluminum on aircraft is being treated with a chemical conversion coating that contains some concentrations of chromic acid (such as Alodine); this also helps inhibit the oxidation process prior to any primer being applied.

Gip Winecoff

And another .0001% (That's ME!) doesn't know what the hud Zinc Green Chromate even was used for! You see it on all WWII aircraft interiors it seems...was it an anti-corrosive agent? That's the best guess I can make. You don't see it on any modern aircraft to speak of so I assume they've come up with either a different plan of painting or perhaps better more corrosion resistant alloys?

I can see a huge difference between green zinc chromate and interior green. One is much brighter and greener looking than the other which is more yellowish towards a little orange/brown and duller. I think Humbrol has a color that is a good match to green zinc chromate, but I don't have my binder with me. It is one of the higher numbered paints i think.

About 10% of the male population has some trouble distinguishing between shades of green or shades of red.

Thanks, I'll get some 151when the shop opens.

If you can find the FS number for it, here is a cross reference that shows some of the mixes:
http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/colorcharts/stuff_eng_colorcharts_fs.htm

I have some ModelMaster GZC and I really can't see any difference between it and "Interior Green". The link above shows that FS34151 is "Interior Green" and corresponds to Humbrol 151. You might take a look at that.