A Fokker by Any Other Color, or . . .

[StefenK]

A Fokker by Any Other Color, or Streaky Eindeckers Redux

The thread “More Streaky Fokkers” went its way to dusty death a month or so ago. *It is, I know, hubris to disturb the rest of the departed, but the secondary question raised then of just what the actual factory finish of Fokker Eindeckers was—putting aside the issue of streaking—will not quite go gentle into that good night. *Revisiting David Johnson’s reborn Web site gave the question a new lease on life with some images that, if new to me, are doubtless as old as Methuselah to many. *











In contrast to the image originally posted by Peter L. at the head of the earlier thread, these photographs are of factory new machines where the confounding influence of staining and weathering is minimized if not eliminated altogether. *Even so, the supposition that oil staining could be responsible for darkening a CDL finish might need to be reconsidered—at least regarding external surfaces—in light of the photograph below, where the hot escaping exhaust actually scours the existing camouflage.



Nor should the tonality of the Eindeckers be explained as a photographic artifact due to the limitations of orthochromatic film to reproduce yellow, an oft-repeated but nonetheless mistaken claim about the color sensitivity of these emulsions.

Previously I had suggested that it might be that “Fokker covering and finishing practices—fabric type and dope and/or varnish composition—varied across the production run” of Eindeckers. *Comparison of the E-series machines with the Doppeldeckers that followed them, where it is much clearer that a factory camouflage was applied, certainly presents a tonal family resemblance, and must, consequently,
suggest the possibility that the practice was experimented with on the earlier type.





A view of E.IVs under construction on the Fokker factory floor presents an interesting problem of understanding the tonal difference between the darker horizontal tails and the much lighter covered fuselages in the foreground. *



It would be easy to dismiss the problem as the result of differences in the illumination falling on the two components—and one often sees remarkable tonal differences in photographs that can be so explained. *However, the fact that the elevators of the various machines are deflected at different angles but nonetheless retain their relative tonal identity, none of which correspond to the “color” identity of the fuselages (which also show differential illumination) suggests the difference is real. *An explanation that would conform to an aircraft assembly-line work-flow practice that persisted at least through the next war is that the tails are finished units, whereas the fuselages are not, and that whatever finish has been applied to the former has yet to be applied to the latter: in my view, some camouflage finish.

Regards to all,
Stefen

c 2002

[Brad]

Ok, I'll bite on this one.

2 pictures there stand out in my mind as giving good examples to get an approximate shade from...

One is the captured Eindecker being inspected by the French troops. Compare the relative shade of the fuselage to the relative shade of the French uniforms, and you will see that the fuselage is considerably lighter. Now compare that to the KNOWN French uniform colors, and it should give a pretty fair estimate. In my (admittedly inexperienced) eye, I would say it approximates the "varnished cdl finish" that is commonly accepted as the color of the Eindecker.

The second is the factory picture, and I am seeing the same thing that you are seeing on the fuselage and horizontal tail surfaces. The thing that I am ALSO considering, is the close resemblence between the KNOWN TO BE white rudders, and the shade of the fuselage... as well as the (probably white) shirt of the factory worker. Very similar. Unbleached, unfinished linen would be much like the tone relatively displayed by the fuselage when compared to the WHITE rudder. The darker horizontal tail surfaces would indeed be explained by them being already finished, giving them a bit more color and a glossier tone. Clear dope and varnish would explain that as well.

In short, I think this series of pictures (and a FINE set it is, thanks for posting them! Lots of good info there for my project!) reinforces the accepted description of the finish on the Eindecker series.

Also the aircraft waiting for delivery gives a pretty good example of the finish when new... and how it compares to white. Thanks again for the nice pics, very enjoyable!

Brad

To had a little more confusion

French reports on captured aircraft:

E III 210/16 shot down 8 april 1916 near Renescure
E III 1916 shot down 15 april 1916 near Courmelois
E I 327/15 forced to land 20 october 1916 at Plessis-Belleville, etc...

states that the linen color was "generally" beige.

Now, we do have quite a bit of original samples from diff. aircraft (camouflaged and clear dopped) and most of them can be called beige, but what a difference in hue :-/

So what kind of beige were they talking about ???

Regards

[Dan_San_Abbott]

StefenK:
* * *Fokker Flugzeugwerke use unbleached linen to cover their aircraft. *When the clear dope and varnosh have been applied the result was a beige color.
* * *The Fok.E.III have had their covers attached to the fuselages, they were laced on and were completely removeable. *The rudders and elevators have been finished, doped and varnished. *After the work was completed in the Assembly Hall the fuselages would be taken to the dopeing hall were the fuselage would be finished. *Dopeing was never allowed in an assembly or erection halls, it could be only done in the ventilated dopeing room. *
* * *The photos of the Fok.D.I and D.II show the olive green and rust brown camouflage on top and side surfaces of the D.I and only the top surfaces of the D.II
* * * Photo no.17, identified as a Fok. M.14, E.II, is in fact Fok. E.II 26/15 w.n.273.
* * *Stefen , from what book did you get these photos?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Blue skies,
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Dan-San

[FinnN]

I'm not seeing anything that isn't inconsistent with unbleached linen (especially when combined with the vagueries of early photography and general weathering). I have several WW1 coloured postcards (either paintings or overprinted photo collages) showing planes covered in fabric, some are a straw yellow and some are grey. Unbleached linen can vary quite a lot in colour depending on how it's been processed, I'd suspect that the beige colour referred to is probably a grey looking like the scans of bookbinding tape that was shown in the previous thread on this subject.

Have fun
Finn

[StefenK]

KATHARINA
Then, God be bless'd, it is the blessed sun:
But sun it is not, when you say it is not;
And the moon changes even as your mind.
What you will have it named, even that it is;
And so it shall be so for Katharina.
—The Taming of the Shrew


Gentlemen,
As I have written previously, I agree with Brad that photographs often provide useful reference objects of known or approximately known colors with which to gauge an unknown ‘target’ object. *The image of the Frenchmen examining one of the example Eindeckers is one such. *However, the judgment of the viewer stills plays its part in the interpretation, and *perhaps not surprisingly, I draw somewhat different conclusions. *First, if the officer on the other side of the aircraft is in a tunic of bleu d’horizon, then the officer with his back toward us is in what color tunic? *Second, *computer graphics sampling and side-by-side comparisons of various areas of the fuselage and this officer’s tunic where it under the same illumination along the center of his back indicates an essential tonal identity—not a lighter fuselage.

If we are going to make comparisons with other known, or approximately known, objects in the photographs, then does not the tone of the fuselage of E.I 58, above, require to be understood in relation to the wooden building in the background? *If seems likely to me that this some ‘barn gray brown.’ *While the tonality that they share does not mean that the fuselage was the same hue, it suggests to me that the fuselage was darker than the conventional “accepted description” of a light, yellowish off-white, as in the following example:



To my eye, this represents a minor variation on the theme of clear-doped linen, as in the following examples:





As Finn indicates these renditions are in line with representations of CDL aircraft in period postcards, but the problem remains, quite clearly in my view, that the photographic appearance of Eindeckers differs materially from that of almost all other aircraft that can be identified as being covered in CDL. *To wit:



It may be objected that the comparison between the bleached linen of the Pfalz Eindeckers and the unbleached linen of the Fokker is unfair, but a comparison between the fuselage at the Fokker Werke and that of Tabloids under under construction suggests that the two types of fabric are—sans some other reason—photographically indistinguishable.



If Fokker’s subsequent Doppeldeckers continued the use of the same unbleached linen, then the appearance of these machines only further emphasizes the point, as it is of a sufficiently light color that many, if not most, of the early D-series machines finished in CDL do not seem to have required a white cross field—in analogy with the Pfalz fabric-covered Eindeckers.



Fokker were clearly experimenting with various camouflage schemes during production of the early D-series: 2- and possibly 3-tone sprayed disruptive patterns as well as the streaked finish that was to become their hallmark. *On the basis of the photographic record, the question begs asking whether some of this experimentation did not commence with the earlier monoplanes. *In the following photo of Kesta 4 with both types of machines on display, the fuselage of the E.IV easily matches the lighter areas mid-fuselage of the camouflaged D.IIs and IIIs.



The photographs suggest that the final finish on the Eindeckers was a pigmented dope, or paint, and that it is this that accounts for the tonal difference in the factory photograph between the finished elevators and the uncompleted fuselage covering, as well as for the likeness between the the E-series fuselages and areas of painted camouflage on D-series machines as compared with areas that are patently CDL—see especially the next-to-last image in the initial post—not to speak of *the overwhelmingly common difference of Fokker Eindeckers with their other CDL brethren, whether German or Allied. *I will willing put aside this hobby horse if someone can post a series of 4 photographs of Aviatiks, Bristols, Morances, Nieuports, Schuckerts, or Sopwiths, whose CDL skins present as dark as the four Fokkers above.

Best to all,
Sstefen

c 2002

[Rick]

Stefen K,

"Kesta 4 " (probably Kasta 4) COOL photograph. Any names of the men pictured attached. I'd love to have them (and a date!!) Rick

[wings]

Stefen,

What is the source for these photos?

[StefenK]

Good evening, Rick & Wings,

Almost all the larger scans are linked from David Johnson's terrific compendium (newly updated) at:

http://pilots-n-planes-ww1.com/index.htm

Others from here and there around the Web, since I don't have a site of my own.

Many of the images can also be found in Squadron and Albatros publications. For example, the Kesta 4 image can be found in the latter's Fokker D.I-IV Datafile. The caption in that publication does not name the unit's personnel, but I would put money down that other Forum members can name each and every one. Dan-San, are you listening?
Best,
Stefen

[FinnN]

It really does just look like greyish unbleached linen. Linen colour varies considerably depending on how it's been processed. I'll see if I can dig out a postcard showing a grey finish that's considerably different from the yellow tones above and some samples of linen thread (I may not have any anymore, but I'll have a look). If you're unfamiliar with what unbleached linen can like you might be suprised how much the colour varies. The Fokkers just look like unbleached 'crudely' processed linen to me...

Have fun
Finn