Blue Paint Help

[Vraciu]

Am I screwing this blue up somehow?  Should I flatten it?

For the life of me I can't decide if it is the engine or something I'm doing wrong.   Heck, maybe this is how it is supposed to look.   This skin is in the very early stages so don't be too judgmental just yet--I've not bothered to trim the blue to blend at the seams for example.   Sorry for the fuzzy images, I didn't zoom in enough when I took the shots I guess.

[Devil 505]

I'd have to see the reference photos to even venture a guess.

[oboe]

It looks like the right shade of blue to me, IIRC the pictures of plastic models of Virginia Marie.  It just looks too shiny in the area where antiglare paint is usually applied.   The spinners for example, look about right.

Maybe try reducing the power and spec values that cover the area where antiglare paint is applied on nose and booms?

[Vraciu]

Thanks,  Oboe.   I feel like I'm going to have to make it VERY flat to get rid of that pearlescent effect which is what you are saying I think.

Devil, ask the reference photos are bkack and white. 


https://www.largescaleplanes.com/reviews/review.php?rid=503

[Greebo]

The blue looks fine to me.

[Devil 505]

I think the blue is over-saturated.

Try my version of True Blue that I used on my 49th FG P-40N



RGB 69,96,115

and the base level sheen was made using RGB 64,64,64 on both the S and P maps

[Vraciu]

Any better?  I'm still not hitting Devil's color but this looks like a lot of the models I've seen.   I'm wondering how we can find out for sure just what it was...

[Vraciu]

Accidental extra post.

[Devil 505]

It's definitely better, but to me the color itself is too teal. I know most artwork shows it like that but it just looks very wrong to me.

If the blue I suggested earlier looks too light to you try the blue you used on your 21FG/46FS D-Pony.

[Vraciu]

Can you upload a color square for me to grab?   I'll paste it directly on the skin and see how it looks.

[Devil 505]

Here you go.

[Vraciu]

 

[oboe]

I would call the color more of an aqua or turquoise than teal, but it looks pretty good and I agree it seems to match most models I've seen of Virginia Marie.

For comparison, here is a decal set I found:


In a post about building a plastic model of "Virginia Marie", I found this comment:

For the blue color (the stripes) the kit comes with decals to be applied, but after thinking about the idea to do it in that way I decided to mask it and paint it. It took time but finally looks really nice. That specific blue was something really hard to find. Digging on the Net I found the Large Scale Planes Forum web site where the member dmthamade, builted a 1/32 Virginia Marie like mine, and he said he used the MiG Ammo Dark Grey Blue MiG-229. He said this was a color recommended on another site, and looks like a great match. I followed his advice and this color really match with the blue used in the decals.

https://imodeler.com/2022/03/hasegawa-p-38j-lightning-virginia-marie-1-48/

Here is a sample of that color:


With AH's intense sun though, maybe a darker color like Devil's True Blue would be better.

[Devil 505]

Yeah, that paint example is going to be way too bright in game.

I still question where that turquoise blue originated from. I'm sure if you trace it back, it's probably an artist's representation in a book from the 1950's or 60's. Just like the red cowled 109F.

This plane was painted in the field, so what are the usual suspects for getting a light blue paint on an island near New Ginuea?

USAAC True Blue - most likely given that it's an Army Air Corps color.
RNZAF Roundel Blue - is plausible if units from New Zealand were based on the same island.
USN Intermediate Blue - is plausible if the Navy also had aircraft based on the same island. Least likely based on the time frame.



 

[whiteman]

Yeah, that paint example is going to be way too bright in game.

I still question where that turquoise blue originated from. I'm sure if you trace it back, it's probably an artist's representation in a book from the 1950's or 60's. Just like the red cowled 109F.

This plane was painted in the field, so what are the usual suspects for getting a light blue paint on an island near New Ginuea?

USAAC True Blue - most likely given that it's an Army Air Corps color.
RNZAF Roundel Blue - is plausible if units from New Zealand were based on the same island.
USN Intermediate Blue - is plausible if the Navy also had aircraft based on the same island. Least likely based on the time frame.



 

Any possibility they went the Richard Petty route and mixed what paint they had in bucket and came up with a color?