Inter-War US Aircraft Colours

I'm looking for information on colours applied to pre-WW2 US aircraft and would be grateful for any help that anyone could offer. I want to start work on a series of 1/72 scale kits including the Boeing P-12e and P-26, Curtiss P-6e, Boeing F4B-4 and Curtiss F11C-2. The main stumbling block is finding details of the colours used. The Olive Drab used on Army aircraft fuselages often looks like a brown hue in colour artwork and I've read that early 1920's aircraft used an Olive Drab that matched British PC10 dope which certainly had a brown cast. Does anyone know of a suitable model paint or paint mix for the 1930's OD?
Similarly, does anyone have any suggestions for the bright blue that replaced OD on the fuselages of Army aircraft? Finally, I gather that US Navy aircraft of the period had grey fuselages. Again, any suggestions?
Gordon McLaughlin

Look for the following:
Air Force Colors, Vol 1 1926-1942 by Dana Bell, Squadron/Signal, ISBN 0-89747-091-5
USAAC Camouflage & Markings 1926-1941, Aviatik Camouflage File No 1 by Seweryn M. Fliescher, Aviatik, ISBN 83-89532-00-8
The Official Monogram US Army Air Service & Air Corps Color Guide, Vol 1 1908-1941 by Robert D. Archer, Monogram ISBN 0-914144-46-4

Thanks for the information. I'll try to find the books through the libraries here. I have the Dana Bell book but hadn't heard of the other two.
Your help is much appreciated.
Gordon McLaughlin
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Seweryn

Springfield OH

Thanks for the suggestion.
The kits I intend to use are the Monogram P-6e, F11C-2 and F4B-4, the Revell P-26 and the Matchbox P-12e. I also have the Williams Bros. B-10 as a longer term project but the recent comments on the kit in this newsgroup leave me in no hurry to start on it!
Later on, I'd like to convert the Airfix DH4 to an American DH4B so the 1920's OD is also of interest. It's pity that there aren't more kits of this period.
Gordon McLaughlin
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Try not to use artwork for color matching specifics. The vagaries of the printing process make true color matches an impossibility.
The Dana Bell books are a good resource. hth The Keeper (of too much crap!)

Thanks for your message.
I don't use artwork or colour photographs for paint matching for the very reason that you give. I'd noticed, though, that many colour profiles showed a brownish colour and thought that it might indicate a concensus based on information that I hadn't come across.
Dana Bell's book is very good and I've been re-reading it over the week-end. Unfortunately, it doesn't really give me a clear idea of what colour the 1920/30s OD was as I don't have access to FS595a to which he refers in his descriptions.
That is why I was hoping that someone could give me a paint mix or colour for each of the three fuselage colours. I use Humbrol and Xtracolour enamels and a mix using these would be ideal.
Nevertheless, you make a valuable point about the unreliable nature of colour printing. It's unfortunate that FS595a and BS381c (for British colours) are so expensive.
Thanks again,
Gordon McLaughlin
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Gordon McLaughlin wrote:
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Gordo!
    Olive Drab is a sort of long story. I have somewhere an article that I did for a local IPMS pub which addressed several problematic U.S. Colors. It was essentially a combination of other published data along with some stuff from D. Bell and an English author who has done a lot of research on the subject. I will forward it as soon as I can dig it out of my filebin.
                            Bill Shuey

"William H. Shuey" wrote:
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I'll bet you the other fellow is Ian Huntley. I've read a lot of his work in the past 20 years and it has been illuminating on the subject of paint. I used to wonder what there was so much of to write about. I'll grant you sometimes even now it gets tedious but the end result is a better understanding.
Bill Banaszak, MFE

Mad-Modeller wrote:
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Right on! I am starting to get Model Aircraft Monthly magazine since I discovered he is starting to write for them now.
                            Bill Shuey

Bill,
Thanks for your offer of a copy of your article. I'd be very interested to see it. Years ago, I thought that OD was just another dark green!
Gordon McLaughlin
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concensus based on information that I hadn't come across.
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