The 1/48 scale Tamiya model, as well as Eduard aftermarket seatbelts were used to produce the "White 86". The first step in the painting process is priming. I have no knowledge how accurate they are, but those are nominally the colors MMP thinks are correct. Flying from USS Badoeng Strait and USS Boxer, the Black Sheep completed two . It would be like my own little Vought assembly line! Dear customers, if you do not have a registration at the new e-shop, you need to register again. Guns, Cars, Planes, Making a good skin for the community Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. The model represents a plane from VMF-214 Black Sheep squadron in July 1951. AS8 for the upper side (US Navy Blue) and AS19 (Intermediate Blue) for the sides but there are nowhere any FS numbers to be found for these paints AND comparing some pics (I know its on a monitor so it can be very unclear) intermediate or navy blue doesn't look like their counterparts in other brands. There are Radar Altimeter Antennae fitted to the fuselage keel as well as a transponder antenna (not visible). Change). F4U-1A Corsair. You can see the resultsblotches/tonal differences, etc. There is the question of the actual hue of 603. Chipping was a new technique I learned when I came back to the hobby. This custom-made Vought F4U-1 Corsair "Movie Devotion" model aircraft is an exquisite and detailed replica. His plane looked a little something like this, Corsairs # 10, #9, and #11 aboard USS Intrepid. What i really notice here is too much "wear" (most will be hidden so I'm not going to "un-wear") and how the paint wears off the hard edges as we handle our models. By signing up you may also receive reader surveys and occasional special offers. A white halo and the star is slightly crooked and does not hit the point-edge of the bars. 15 'Daphne C', flown by Capt. For the F4U-1 Birdcage Corsairs, photos taken at the time show the cockpits being a very dark colour, most probably black. (N)-101 aircraft display this very high degree of blending between colours. I used acrylic paints to paint the cockpit and the seat, followed by washes of thinned oil paint, with dry brushing with enamel base color and highlighted the details with colors. I built it during the first few months of the Covid-19 Pandemic when working from home (still am as of August 20th, 2020). F4U Corsair Wheel Well Question - HyperScale Forums - Tapatalk U.S. warplanes would retain this marking until 1947. For the F4U-1 Birdcage Corsairs, photos taken at the time show the cockpits being a very dark colour, most probably black. Techmod decals Decals Vought F4U-1 Corsair with 1001hobbies (#72161) Yes, there's photos of an AU-1 that was painted in a gull grey and white scheme during the sixties, I believe. My personal opinion is that the fuselage sides were repainted in some shade of Sea Blue, and definitely not black as some researchers and authors have proposed. Corsair F4U-4 paint????? For the varnish, I used VMS Matte varnish. We are an authorized Harder & Steenbeck reseller. Since the EPA deemed this paint too dangerous to be used in the USA, supplies of this stuff dried up. HyperScale Forums-Corsair interior colours (That pesky salmon) (LogOut/ This was probably the first Corsair captured by the Germans. Tamiya seems to me to be far darker and closer to black than the Model Masters which leans more towards blue. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Getting the theme of this build so far? The F4U-2 arrived at a time of transition within the Navy to what is generally referred to as the Graded 4 Tone Scheme, consisting of Non Specular Sea Blue, Intermediate Blue, Semi Gloss Sea Blue, and White. NOTE: Getting all the salt off the plane was difficult at best and I still find salt crystals in some of the extremities. I also used the same spray technique above on the exhaust running down the fuselagebut with darker paint and less thinner. Not only were the fumes bad, but having to let the gas come out by constantly stirring the stanky paint made me feel like a mad scientist who didnt give up glue smelling this week. So my question remains the same: I'm planing on building VF-17 and VMF-111. He is the Founder and Editor of The Aviation Geek Club one of the worlds most read military aviation blogs. All right! It just sucks you in to some imaginary place where youre the pilot and the clouds await your arrival (dreamerI know). Quick delivery of your "Vought F4U-4B Corsair" airplane model kit at the price of 14.99 GBP with 1001hobbies, the Italeri specialist. View our, http://s37.photobucket.com/user/kg4kpg/library/Planes?sort=3&page=1. 2003. After seeing two recently published videos on Youtube (courtesy of Plasmo and Scale-a-ton) I was destined to use some methods of theirs, and also make a pretty beat up looking bird. Involved in anti-submarine patrol from HMS Formidable enroute to Scapa after Operation Mascot against the German Battleship Tirpitz, in company with Barracuda of Wing Leader Lt Cdr RS Baker-Falkner. on Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all Modelers Everywhere!! After careful consideration, i decided Id build an F4U-2 for him. Theyre incredibly easy to use and add an incredible amount of detail to the interior. on NorthWest Scale Modelers Show Version-2023: Come on Down! Unknown to Boyington, some of his pilots jumped into the Corsair for their own hero shots. For many years, the photos remained hidden, but eventually they revealed the truth. Maybe just dark blue over white or over grey? Many readers of will also have not seen some of the more standard schemes where there are irregular transitions between the colors especially the Intermediate and Sea Blues. Well Done, 6 stars & bars . Quick nationwide delivery of your "F4U-1 Corsair Early" airplane model kit at the price of 39.16 USD with 1001hobbies, the Hobby Boss specialist. In 1943, the U.S. ditched the yellow outline and introduced solid white bars to either side of the insignia. Tape was laid around them, then they were removed. Top left is where I chipped off some panel lines and other itemsand although in the picture this is hard to pick this up, you could see a really thick problem w/paint. Tamiya 1/48 F4U-1A Corsair flown by Major "Pappy" Boyington VMF-214 F4U Corsairs 1944 Published at 800 993 px. Copyright 2023 Model Paint Solutions. the subject of my Tamiya Corsair in the Corsairs GB. There is definitely a change in colour between the flanks of the fuselage and the spine of the fuselage and people have differing opinions what may cause this. It makes other good kits look decent at best. F4U CORSAIR - The Bent Wing Bird plane site / F4U-1D Corsair - jdsf4u F4U colors for Royal Navy - Props - ARC Discussion Forums Aircraft deployed in the Atlantic had only black numbers above their gray-white paint scheme and were therefore easily recognized as such. Oops. Then, blend everything together with the final color that is intended for the scheme. . and others for oil lines and other bits to attach and it ended up at 96 total drill points. Tamiya did a great job on the P&W engine. F4U-1A Cockpit Quinta. Detail Set Reviews - 1/48. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all Modelers Everywhere!! Once I was satisfied with the primer coverage on both models, I let them sit for approx. I used my fingers and a soft pen cap and other items to make sure the vinyl was connected to the plastic. I had to go back several times to get rid of a little over spray between the colors. And then you have foreign users Fleet Air Arm Corsairs were Slate Greyand Dark Sea Grey over Sky, a very good looking scheme. Dozens of artists, model makers, die-cast companies, and custom decal printers issued innumerable renditions of Boyington's F4U. The two-color scheme was blue-gray over light gray. PEACHTREE CITY, GA. (March 1, 2023) - A World War II-era Corsair fighter based at Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Airbase Georgia in Peachtree City has a new coat of navy-blue paint, courtesy of PPG and employee volunteers at the Delta Air Lines Technical Operations Center in Atlanta. Top RC Model reproduces the F4U Corsair legend in a 93" scale ARF that's packed with realism. Scale Model Paint Matching - Details In Comments : r/modelmakers - Reddit I am looking to tfigure out the best way to match colors for airbrushing for flat aircraft colors. I don't recall seeing the F4U in an Atlantic I or II scheme, but it's possible. F4U-1A Exterior Details Eduard. 0.03 oz. All trademarks, logos and brand names are the property of their respective owners. To see more of Mats work, check out his Tamiya/Italeri Ju-87 Stuka, Trumpeter Me-109F, Tamiya F-51D, Hasegawa c.202 Folgore, Academy P-47, Trumpeter P-40B, or my personal favorite, FJ-4B Fury.). PEDDINGHAUS 1/32 F4U-1A Corsair Markings Gregory Boyington Black Sheep Sq. Kit: Tamiya 1/32 F4U-1A Corsair (60325) . Now that I know that is is common practice amongst us to have more than one type of aircraft I was wondering haow many different paint schemes the F4U Corsair had? Id sent him some pics of my 72nd, 48th and 32nd scale Corsairs and he was pretty impressed. The squadron embarked on the USS Gilbert Islands in March 1945 and the EE markings survived at most a few . Landing gear: Light Gray or Aluminum Lacquer. But every so often, a build comes along thats more than that. Use Model Master Teal or Boyd Chezoom Teal for the paint match. Now you can buy specialty products that do the same thing (at a much higher cost per oz/gram of course) BTWthe H&S Evolution I'm working with is excellent but at some point yesterday I tipped the bowl over far enough and a lot of paint ran down the front of the brush into the nozzle area. Academy Minicraft Vought Corsair F4U-4 Kit 1656 NO BOX 1/48 Boyington had appointed Lucy as the executor of an allotment for his children from a previous marriage, and by 1945 the deposits added up to some $15,000. If youre interested, heres the formula: I lightened by Blue Gray with some white and then went to town, painting in my usual manner of tight, random marbling followed by more general blending coats. Additional clipped wing F4U-1B Royal Navy external model included Six authentic paint schemes: - No. Paint Schemes and Camouflage Checkers "530" F4U-1D Corsair Checkers "530" F4U-1D Corsair Skin model By PuFFie, June 26, 2014 in Paint Schemes and Camouflage Share Followers 0 PuFFie Member 1 8 posts Gender: Male Location: Bangkok, Thailand Interests: Guns, Cars, Planes, Making a good skin for the community Video editor, Motion Graphics, Sound en. The few photos I have seen of VF(N)-101 aircraft display this very high degree of blending between colours. The plug wires are copper wires I cut from an old led light set that had been hanging out back for years. Boeing and Read More, I will say this - and I know a lot of other Navy guys that Read More, The Defense Security Cooperation Agency has not specified whether the weapons are intended for Taiwans Read More, Swashbucklers and Black Sheep: A Pictorial History of Marine Fighting Squadron 214 in World War II, Flying Tigers (1st American Volunteer Group), Naval Aviator explains why Russian 4th Gen Fighter Jets dont have a chance against US 4th Gen Fighter Jets, Air Mobility Command Planes Are Now Operating Without Tail Numbers, Most Markings (And Are Alarming Government Watchdogs), Boeing, US Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters Achieve 5 Million Flight Hours, Equivalent to Flying nonstop for more than 208,333 Days or 570 Years and Nine Months, US Navy Nuclear Propulsion Plant Operator explains when a submarine reactor can be run at higher than 100% (and why the 105% on the reactor ordered in The Hunt for Red October movie would not be worth any risk to the ship and crew), Former US Navy F/A-18 pilot explains why although during his era the Hornet was the best airplane on the carrier his fun meter was most pegged flying the A-4 Skyhawk, Taiwan to get 100 AGM-88B HARM missiles and 200 AIM-120C-8 missiles for its F-16 fleet. Analysis of some crashed examples of F4U-1s indicates black, while the factory Erection & Maintenance Instructions called for Dull . When I built the 1/48 Corsair I decanted the exact spray Tamiya instructed us to use and that wasinterestingto say the least. At first, the new brand featured a thin red outline, but by the end of the year, the outer edge was repainted blue. (Vought had an exemption - they applied the first coat, then stamped it with a black marking if a second coat was to be applied. The squadron didnt do a whole bunch of night flying to start with (ENTERPRISE was not yet at this time a dedicated night operations carrier), and operational attrition reduced the number of serviceable aircraft to a low number rather quickly. They still hold up in terms of quality and ease of build when compared to newer tooled kits. The three color scheme was dark sea blue and intermediate blue over white. Add in holes for the distribution ring (?) See the Montex mask above? One of the useful aspects of the Vought F4U Corsair's long career is that it can be used to illustrate three decades of U.S. Navy color schemes and markings. Proper colors for Corsair 3 tone paint scheme - RCU Forums If youve not used these yet, I highly recommend them. I think its partially more art-form than coloring in-between-the-lines work. Vought F4U Corsair. The first step I took and this was another departure from my normal process was to spray the national insignia. Does anyone else remember that? About his model, this is the first thread in a forum. Marketplace The engine was painted in Alcad Silver and I washed the cylinders (and engine body) in Tamiyas Black panel liner (liberally). The appearance of U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, Department of Defense, or NASA imagery or art does not constitute an endorsement nor is Cybermodeler Online affiliated with these organizations. More resultsalthough the little white lines are me messing up (wiped off w/wet paper towel. Item No 06405 Item Name F4U-4 CORSAIR(Pre-painted) Bar Code 9580208064055 Scale 1:350 Item Type Plastic Model Aircraft Kit Model Brief Length: mm Width: mm Height: mm Released Date 2019-09 More Features 4 airplane included,two of them are folding wing Short version of the story is, one of the position lights on the wings was burned out, giving the LSO an erroneous indication of the planes lateral orientation. This was then subjecting to the same chipping procedure, but far more carefully. Celebrating 23 years of hobby news and reviews. Heres what we know. F4U-1A Interior Details Eduard. Hi Colin, This rather bent RNZAF F4U-1A Corsair (Stock USN Colours) shows quite well, the Wheel wells/Wheel well doors (given B/W Photo) which look to be white. It's been a joy to work w/this oneeven the small bits are perfectly set and I have not had to remove much flash at all. As stated above the final scheme worn in US service was Light Gull Gray over White. There is a photo of that plane in CV archives. F4U1-A Corsair FuzzDad's Models (Editors Note: Mat Mottle Man Mathis is back with not 1 but 2 (II, two) 1/48 Tamiya Corsairs; each sporting a very attractive but seldom seen scheme. 866.580.8727 +1 602.748.4565. You need to be a member in order to leave a comment. Why not, since they are the same kit? Ive used Oramask on every one of my builds where Ive painted markings, thus far, and have not seen this issue before. 20112022 Gaijin Games Kft. This allowed me to place the mask, place the frame, and spray very quickly. With each new build, I try to push myself outside of my comfort zone (RELATED: Where the Magic Happens) in at least one area. More information More like this Model Airplanes Kit Model Planes F4u Corsair Wwii Plane Military Diorama Revell Aircraft Modeling Plastic Models Fighter Jets Large Scale Planes, the home of large scale aircraft modeling. He was captured by a Japanese submarine crew and was held as a prisoner of war for more than a year and a half. Well, its been a fair bit of time since my last article, but that doesnt mean things havent been churning their way off my bench top! The possible exceptions to this are the very late F4U-2s (which may have arrived for conversion already in the now-fully-defined Corsair paint scheme we all are familiar with), the 2 -2 conversions that were done in-theatre with F4U-1A airframes, and the very first F4U-2. They are Tamiya kits, albeit from nearly 30 years ago. Dave Hansen told me I could use what he wrote me. I settled on these main parts as shown. First, I laid down my bare metal. Maybe your best yet? This was true well into the F4U-4 production. But people like Bob are perishing fast. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. It's easy. Some have said that the -1D was the high point of the Corsair's development as a true fighter bomber. The paints still a little too thick but I was OK w/it. Hello! As I build I like to take telephoto shots and really zoom in and use a bright flash to pickup details I otherwise miss. project-catalog recreate-history-f4u-1-corsair - testors Ive parsed as best as I could and ultimately went with what seemed both possible and most visually interesting. In 1976, NBC launched a weekly action-adventure series called Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, loosely based on Greg Boyingtons autobiography of the same name. many color photos, the early marks were painted with USN Blue Gray and olive drab, with Sky below, or light gray, though Sky is more likely, and born out by those same color photos. Checkers "530" F4U-1D Corsair - Paint Schemes and Camouflage - War List of surviving Vought F4U Corsairs - Wikipedia They are: On the Corsiar -1 Birdcage the interior color of the tail wheel section and most of the interior section forward of the cockpit were painted in a pinkish color called Salmon Pink. Peddinghaus 1/32 F4U-1A Corsair Markings Gregory Boyington Black Sheep I'm planing to build the F4U-1 as VF-17 and Tamiya says i have to use AS-8, AS-19 and AS-20 . Heres the Corsair after all the painting, as well as a gloss coat and a few decals. AS-20 = Light Gull Grey FS 36440 (MMP-063) or Light Gull Grey FS16440 (MMP-069) OR Light Grey FS 36495 ? Start with This Link to see some of his kick ass work!!! When I built the 1/48 Corsair I decanted the exact spray Tamiya instructed us to use and that . Boyingtons deeds in the Southwest Pacific were inspired by Lucy Malcolmson, a former showgirl he met aboard the SS Brazil in 1942. This is for F4U-1Ds only - Interior Green would be used in the cockpit only. As an anti-glare measure, all cockpit panels above the lower edge of the instrument panel were to be painted matt black. Gunze Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500, sprayed through an airbrush. He has reported from Europe and flown Super Puma and Cougar helicopters with the Swiss Air Force. The German authorities made attempts to get the pilot to explain how to fold the wings so as to transport the aircraft to Narvik. The hardest to obtain part of this build was the Tamiya Flat Clear paint. Over that went some Tamiya XF-4 Yellow Green, which does a great impression of yellow zinc chromate. Putting the pieces together wasnt difficult because everything fit wellalmost no seam work required. F4U-1A Corsair cockpit set for Trumpeter Number: 2021 Scale: 1:32 Type: Detail set Barcode: 8591150003710 (EAN) Topic: Vought F4U Corsair Propeller (Aircraft) Designed for. The French also operated Corsairs in a gloss blue gray scheme. This kit has been, hands down, the best Ive ever touched. In the years that followed, Boyington refused to acknowledge his former sweetheart. I painted the blue in over the white and as you can see in this top pictureits not good. get one of these books. I tried to spray the mix from a single direction to let some of the pre-shading to work. This diagram was adopted and sexed up with a colour version in Dana Bells book, but this is still the authoritative document: Definitely an interesting and thorough look at -2 colors. The one possible exception to this paint scheme is BuAer 02153. I detailed painted the bolts and dry-brushed silver on any black component. I'm a newbie here and this is my first skin that I was planted to 'Make" for myself because there's only '1' Skin for F4U-1D and I was too tired to pay for the Premium every every month so.. please check it out. Ive forgone it for the last several builds and have had great success. Is it not Green zinc chromate? The notes for this aircraft in the sheet instructions state that it is a Goodyear FG-1D and that I should paint the "Wheel hubs, gearlegs, and gearbays in GSB". In a lot of these shots youll see scuff marks on the wings/fuselagelike the Montex Mask overhead shot of the insignia. Corsair Markings and Nose Art of VMF-512. This is an acrylic based varnish so it is a good base for further weathering if youre going to use oils and odorless thinners. Photo Gallery Related posts: Focke-Wulf FW190A-5 "Green 13" Enjoy these model airplane photos of the F4U-1A Corsair flown by Marine Major Gregory "Pappy" Boyington. Special Paint Schemes Aircraft painted in beautiful and original liveries Airport Overviews . - FineScale Modeler - Essential magazine for scale model builders, model kit reviews, how-to scale modeling, and scale modeling products Login or Register PRODUCT INFO GALLERIES EXTRAS HOW TO VIDEOS COMMUNITY SHOP ABOUT US Home FineScale Modeler Forums Tools, Techniques, and Reference Materials This was achieved in the former by adding more white, and in the latter by just not lightening my base mix. Customer satisfaction 4,2/5. I found a list on cybermodeler for the 3-tone-scheme the Corsairs were painted but somehow it is very confusing with its differences in late and early ANA 601, 602 etc. As for JohnB.He has some really great Corsair builds on this site. After this it was time to start slinging colors! A Brief, F4U Corsair-oriented History of Navy Color Schemes and Markings It is the Corsair F4U -4 ( 1/48) from Revell dated 1963. (LogOut/ After the war, Lucy divorced her husband in order to marry Boyington, but at the proverbial last minute he dumped her in favor of a blond bombshell, Frances Baker. whole other level. In early 1943, he deployed to the South Pacific and began flying combat missions in the legendary F4U Corsair fighter. That kicks me into an entirely new level of modeling. The prototype XF4U-1 was silver with yellow wings. I need to look at the photos again, but Im not sure if it was re-painted in the three tone scheme or not. I did some wear and tear aging on the plane with a combination of silver prismatic pencil and alcad aluminum paint. I used combinations of rust-colored Tamiya Weathering Masters and Vallejo pigments to detail the exhaust stacks. I continued to weather the aircraft in spots as I finished it up.most notably from the top gas tank on the fuselage, tires, propeller (salt technique), etc. The majority of both kits were built straight out of the box, with the exception of adding Quinta Studios interior 3D decals. In time, engineers at Goodyear pushed development of an in-house version intended for the low-altitude dogfighting role based on the F4U-1 - which it knew as the FG-1. After seeing two recently published videos on Youtube (courtesy of Plasmo and Scale-a-ton) I was destined to use some methods of theirs, and also make a pretty beat up looking bird. All-in-all, Im quite happy with how these builds turned out. Got all the numbers done in maybe an hour. Academy 1/48 F4U-4B Corsair by Emilio Diaz They were a departure from my normal process, which at the end of the day will make me a better modeler. Change). Vought F4U Corsair Tri-Color Scheme Color Profile and Paint Guide The appearance of U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, Department of Defense, or NASA imagery or art does not constitute an endorsement nor is Cybermodeler Online affiliated with these organizations. First, I placed the lines themselves, then I masked around them, and finally pulled them up. First, when Ive used it in the past, I would place the mask, spray, and remove it, all within the same hour. Later F4U-2s, such as those delivered to VMF(N)-532, seem to be a mix of Corsairs with the heavily blended fuselage sides, and some that had much broader (and much more clearly defined) swaths of Intermediate Blue on the fuselage flanks (Like Black George). Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. But dammit, I'll crawl like a Marine. (LogOut/ I applied the decals directly over my paint work without sealing the paint/spraying a gloss layer. One thing that is certain is the Darker Sea Blue extends very far down the fuselage sides and the intermediate blue region on the sides of the forward fuselage and engine cowling is very narrow, but its there. Let that dry and then remove the saltdamp cloth w/broad brush. For the rest of the weathering, I did some panel line work with thinned oils, along with a bit of additional streaking around hatches, etc. :Ps :Ps, You might want to consider putting your skins here aswell for quick feedback :http://live.warthunder.com/, You might want to consider putting your skins here aswell for quick feedback :http://live.warthunder.com, Thankyou for your advice! Which colors do i need in mentioned MRPaint or MMP range for the three tone schemes these 2 mashines had and if i can use Gunze H326 and their offwhite for spraying the markings? I plan on using the scheme from BarracudaCals' "F4U-1 Corsair Part 1" for the FG-1D from the USS Cape Gloucster. ChrisK89 (Probably RNZAF Official - Used for Illustration purposes only) Demand for the aircraft soon overwhelmed Vought's manufacturing capability resulting in production by Goodyear and Brewster. I did this not only for the national insignia, but also the plane ID markings as well. F4U Corsairs in the three-tone paint scheme - 1944 F4U-1D Paint Color - WW2Aircraft.net In September 1943, he took command of Marine fighter squadron VMF-214 (Black Sheep). for my corsairs i tend to use gunze and mrp colors, The MMP colors for the 3 color scheme are. View Account 0. You can actually decant the spray cans into your airbrush jars. That said, a lot of this scheme and whats going on is conjecture based on a few shitty photos. I still had a problem to fixmy top wing halofied stencil. I was trying to get some original aluminum and the anti-corrosion paint to show on the Corsair as weathering after I painted on the final color schemes. One-way pattern and you can get in a rhythm, Sprayed a Testors Clear Coat layer over the entire aircraft and then used a combination of Flory light and dark washesdepending on the part of the aircraft would be effected by either or both. The few photos I have seen of VF. Scroll down for a similar sequence of photographs for #831), (Editors Note: The following sequence of photographs show the stages of painting #831), 1) Pacific Profiles Volume 4: Allied Fighters: Vought F4U Corsair Series: Solomons Theatre 1943-1944 by Michael Claringbould (ISBN13:9780648926238), Scroll down for more pics of #18 and #831, on The Revell Land Rover Series lll 109 Long Wheelbase Station Wagon. I guess i'll try MMP-062, MMP-071 and MRP Insignia White then. All other areas of the F4U-1A were Zinc Chromate Yellow, FS 33481. The Post War U.S. insignia in colour and low visibility. After asking Bob about it, i believe the fuselage was re-painted in either one of two ways: 1) The fuselage sides were over-painted with semigloss sea blue (which is a darker colour than Non Spec Sea Blue) or a fresh batch of Non Spec Sea Blue which had not yet begun to chalk due to sun exposure. All told I think I cleared 60% of the original paint off this as I went through getting it where I wanted it.