Fokker E.V - D.VIII wing camouflage

[Langdon]

Originally posted by Rob_Owens@Mar 3 2004, 11:36 AM
[b] Having taken a closer look a the photo of Stec's machine in "The Fokker D.VIII Profile" it's tantalizing to imagine a color demarcation line on the wing which seems to correspond almost exactly to the one in Dan-San's plan view of the E.V. Perhaps even the "Polish Olive Wing" is someone's extrapolation/imagination?

Yes Rob I agree with you, the photo at the bottom of page 13 definitely has a dark colour (probably brown) starting half way along the port side span, it also looks as though the starboard side is painted in a similar way. I have a drawing that Dan-San kindly sent me recently, possibly it is the one you have but on Stec's aircraft the outer colour starts approximately two to three rib bays inboard of the aileron rather than at the aileron as shown in Dan-San's drawing, from memory I think the Factory photos I posted at the beginning of this discussion also show the demarcation the way it is on Stec's aircraft.

All olive wings are the product of someones imagination and lack of information, or research, none were ever done that way.

For those people interested in painting their aircraft with the original pigments you will remember the problems we were experiencing with fading due to UV light, well we have conducted tests using UV resistent varnish and they have shown very good results.

Langdon

[Rob_Owens]

I realize that this isn't the "Models" Forum, but for those whose interest is the "scale replica, " opportunity my have just collided with preparation here. I just bought my first Basic Colors Vallejo Acrylic Set (suitable for brush painting as well as airbrushing, as it was originally marketed to for figures modelers) and intend to try the traditional Fokker Streaked Green Scheme technique to the E.V/D.VIII wing in 1/48, using Dan-San's 3-view and my own approximations of the colors depicted above. Gotta be better than Olive Green, right?

[Langdon]

It does have to be better than olive but why airbrush the wing when you want to produce a brush stroke effect?

Langdon

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Gentlemen:
In my study of the Fok.E.V camouflage pattern, I have found the follow patterns. Symbols: ( left wing tip, ) ; Center section cutout,^;right wing tip,)
Color separation and / or \; grn=green; brn=brown.
on the bottom surface, the blue matches the green and
the violet matches brown location and slopes.
Fok.E.V 149/18; ( brn / grn ^ /brn /grn ). Jasta 1.

Fok.E.V 153/18; (brn/ grn /brn^ / grn / brn ). Jasta 6.

Fok.E.V 1xx/18; ( Grn / brn ^/ grn ). Jasta 24s, Altemier.

Fok.E.V 1xx/18; ( brn\ grn \ ^ brn \ grn ). Jasta 36.

Fok.E.V 138/18; (grn/brn/grn/ brn^/ grn./brn/grn). MFJI.

Fok. E.V 137/18; ( brn / grn ^/ brn / grn ). MFJ 2.

These six pattern I have identified, and there may be more.

Blue skies,
Dan-San

[Rob_Owens]

Dan-San,
WAY cool!!! One question: do you reackon the undersurface patterns just "wrapped around" the wing, or were they "mirrored" (opposite direction)?

Langdon,
I intend to "hair-brush" the colors. What I was trying to convey was that the Vallejo acrylics can be airbrushed, and that's why their popularity has moved into the "vehicles" modeling community, when they had originally been developed for "figures."

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Rob_Owens:
In the photographs that I studied the upper and lower colors matched at the leading ane trailing edges. The violet on the bottom matches the brown on the leading and trailing edges. The same for the blue on the bottom and the green on the top surface. The stains were not applied solid but as streaking as on the Fok.DR.I. There are areas were the stain is dark and some streaks are light. I had the feeling that it was applied with a wall paper brush.
Blue skies,
Dan-San

[Langdon]

Originally posted by Rob_Owens@Mar 3 2004, 12:46 PM
[b] I realize that this isn't the "Models" Forum, but for those whose interest is the "scale replica, " opportunity my have just collided with preparation here.

Rob,

It doesn't matter if you are building big ones or small ones or even talking about them, we all get enjoyment from this interest. I will have to wait for a while before I see my aircraft in its livery but if there are any model builders out there who have adopted this controversial, but correct way, to paint their aircraft then I would love to see some photos posted here.

Langdon

[Rob_Owens]

Langdon,
Even if I got it "right the first try," unfortunately, I've no digicam or access to one. I am, however, tremendously excited about first trying it in 1/48, and saving my 1/32 kite for semi-mastery of shades & technique. Needless to say, it's going to cause a colorful "splash" in the modeling community!
As an aside, I seem to recall that the USAAC used violet and blue distemper for undersurface colors in a temporary Wargame's Camo for the B-17 or B-18. It makes one wonder where they got the idea.

Dan-San,
I'm trying to puzzle out the color separation areas. Being hand-brushed, I assume they wouldn't use masks. Would simply stopping and using the "other color"create a thin "hard/dark edge" where the colors overlapped?

[Langdon]

Originally posted by Rob_Owens@Mar 5 2004, 10:10 AM
[b]
I'm trying to puzzle out the color separation areas. Being hand-brushed, I assume they wouldn't use masks. Would simply stopping and using the "other color"create a thin "hard/dark edge" where the colors overlapped?

Rob,

Certainly they didn't use masking of any kind. If brown follows green then imagine a fully charged brush of green being painted out, so that by the end of its coverage area it is very lightly applied, this is not to suggest that only one charge was used per colour block but when the change of colour occurs it would normally go from a light application to an initially heavier one of the new colour, probably with a small amount of over-painting of the previous colour.

Langdon

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Rob_Owen:
The technique described by Langdon is correct. This is the technique that I used in my paintings of the Fok.E.V machines. I suggest you practice the technique before you commit it to your E.V wing.
Blue skies,
Dan-san