Elm City Hobbies
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- May 7, 2009
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I painted mine in Pastel Green, (which some of them were that color) the blue color being referred to was actually an anti-corrosion coating they put on all the inside parts, wheel wells, cockpit, etc, etc.
It is my understanding that only the Navy Zeros got this treatment, and the Airforce ones didn't, as they weren't out to sea other than to be transported from base to base if it was too far to fly. The coating was actually transparent, and made with Zinc, which apparently turned the carrier for the anti-corrosion blue, and once applied over the interior green (which I believe is supposed to be the Tamiya Mitsubishi Green, or Vallejo Pastel Green is a dead on match) to the turquoise blue color you see on some of them.
If a kit called for "Brilliant Metallic Blue" that is likely the closest color to replicate it, however it would be inaccurate. It did have a metallic sheen to it, but the color would be too blue, as the real color had quite a bit of green in it from the original interior color before the corrosion protection was added to it. As well, the metallic sheen in a 1:1 example, was pretty fine....once transferred down to a 1/48 kit, it would be even finer, and almost non-existent at that scale....as well probably at 1/32.
It is my understanding that only the Navy Zeros got this treatment, and the Airforce ones didn't, as they weren't out to sea other than to be transported from base to base if it was too far to fly. The coating was actually transparent, and made with Zinc, which apparently turned the carrier for the anti-corrosion blue, and once applied over the interior green (which I believe is supposed to be the Tamiya Mitsubishi Green, or Vallejo Pastel Green is a dead on match) to the turquoise blue color you see on some of them.
If a kit called for "Brilliant Metallic Blue" that is likely the closest color to replicate it, however it would be inaccurate. It did have a metallic sheen to it, but the color would be too blue, as the real color had quite a bit of green in it from the original interior color before the corrosion protection was added to it. As well, the metallic sheen in a 1:1 example, was pretty fine....once transferred down to a 1/48 kit, it would be even finer, and almost non-existent at that scale....as well probably at 1/32.