A Fokker by Any Other Color, or . . .

[FinnN]

I think those fabric samples begin to show some of the variation you can get. I've finally had a chance to dig out a colour postcard. I'm not suggesting anyone tries to extract Methuen colours from this - but the rendition of the aircraft colours isn't unique to this card:



Note that I also have ones showing a clearly more yellow colour - the point is that unbleached linen varies considerably.

Have fun
Finn

Good evening, Finn--

A very beautiful and interesting card, new to me. *I have also recently taken an interest in such items, which I think are useful in giving us a better sense of what things looked like--despite that some will object that artistic "license" makes such imagery useless for historical research. *I don't believe that, since such documents have to capture at least the ring of truth for those who were actually there.

That being said, I think one must still have an open mind about whether the gray shown here is intended to represent clear-doped linen or something else. *I think its worth considering whether it too isn't a form of camouflage. *

But getting back to where this all started for me, it only affirms, in my mind, that the conventional depiction, apparently longstanding, of the Eindeckers as some variant of light yellowish (unbleached) linen requires reconsideration. *I will be content with my work if people begin thinking about them, profiling them, and modeling them as golden brown or gray--whether the reason is that they were covered in an unbleached linen similar to that shown by Slot or finished with a pigmented dope.

Thanks again,
Stefen

PS. Have Rimell & company made just the slightest concession to rethinking this issue?

Good evening, Finn--

As once good turn deserves another, what is to be made of the following period representation of a Fokker?



Best to all,
Stefen

PS. Can you ID the right-hand a/c in your pc?

[AchimEngels]

StefenK.,

For me this is going to be a very interesting thread.

I have something here that might also be of interest to you. A piece of unbleached linen that was used by my Grandma. It is very semiliar to this aircraft covering linen of which I have seen pieces.

It is almost identical to the linen that was used to print the "Udet" fragments.

I could cut away a piece for you. This one is pure unbleached - and of course undoped - linen. Let me know and I can send it to you.

By the way, this one was used by my Grandma some 90 years ago, thus it may come close to the fabric used to cover the aircraft.

Best wishes!

Achim

[GrzeM]

IMHO Kesta 4 E.IV is in camouflage, maybe even in 3 colours!!!!

BTW, topic is fascinating!!!!

Greetings!!!
Grzegorz

Good evening, Grzegorz--

Thanks for the post. *I have also thought this a possibility. *I'm glad someoneelse else has also given it some consideration. *It furthers the hypothesis that Fokker was experimenting with a variety of schemes. *More later.

Best to all,
Stefen

[AchimEngels]

StefenK,

The linen cloth is on its way to you. I sent it as a letter by airmail so you should receive it in a few days. I should point out again that this piece might not be of aircraft production standards, but it is origin, 90 years of age, undoped and unbleached natural linen, so when it comes down to color, this might well represent how that aircraft fabric looked like (taking the influence of aging into account, of course).

I have not been able to locate the box that contains that 1912 monoplane doped fabric sample I mentioned to you in time to include it with the mail. I am sure I can send it to you next time, too.

As you might have learned in the thread I have initiated on the "Bau- und Liefervorschriften für Heeresflugzeuge" I have not succeeded so far in locating a copy of it and Dan-San, too, is not cooperative in this issue so far, but I will forward a copy of the relevant portions you asked me about to you, once I have located another copy of it.

Best
Achim