SR 71 Blackbird - doubts!

[Marcelo_P51D]

Dear guys.

It's a pleasure to be here again with all of you. Well, i'm searching my "Century Fighters", my last aquisition was a F100 monogram 1/48 with some resin parts and photoetcheds, pics later!

But now i readed a little article in the Webkit's forum about the the Lockheed SR71 Blackbird!

/

Many questions came but one doesn't have a answer: WHAT IS THE CORRECT COLOR FOR THE SR71? Because, the plane turned in flat black after the first flight with high temperatures etc...

Many years a go, someone told me that's the correct color is a dark blue...

So, anyone have a clor pic of this aircraft in dark blue?

Thanks a lot,

Marcelo

[caudleryan]

I'd be safe to assume that you can paint it black.

RYAN.

[Berkut]

I have never seen Sr-71 up close, but dark blue sounds very wrong judging by the pictures. Light black or very very very dark grey is more correct. On some pictures you seen blueish tint, but that is due to the heat the airframe is exposed to, and that tint is minimal.

[FAR148]

Dude, it's Flat Black.

[Marcelo_P51D]

Guys,

I know that the color is flat black but the original color before the first flight was other one probably dark blue...

I have a old pic here but i don't know where is it....

So...anyone hava a different pic from a Sr17 please post here....

Thanks guys....

Marcelo

[RedHeadKevin]

I want to see you paint it, paint it black. Black as night, black as coal. I want to see you paint it paint it paint it, paint it black.

Yeah.

[fasteagle12]

The Bravo is in the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. I've seen it up close....it's about as flat black as you can get (makes for crappy photos in the low light of the museum)

[MiG31]

The A-12 made its initial flights in bare titanium. Later on the heat-resistant composite sections (chines, wing edges) were painted black, which was done to the M-21 and YF-12. These were later painted all-black. The SR-71, on the other hand, has always been painted all-over flat black. Claims that the color is a shade of dark blue are false, as you can get that effect from color cast.

[Tomcat27]

Here are a few pic's from the National Air and Space Museum it looks black to me

I have more if u want more

Andrew

[big fatty]

I would go cockpit black.

[frankv74]

Dear guys.

It's a pleasure to be here again with all of you. Well, i'm searching my "Century Fighters", my last aquisition was a F100 monogram 1/48 with some resin parts and photoetcheds, pics later!

But now i readed a little article in the Webkit's forum about the the Lockheed SR71 Blackbird!

/

Many questions came but one doesn't have a answer: WHAT IS THE CORRECT COLOR FOR THE SR71? Because, the plane turned in flat black after the first flight with high temperatures etc...

My Friend ,

I have a big book on Black jet put out by Airtime Publishing. And after looking through it. The Blackbird has ever had only two colors Silver?/Titainum or Black. Their has never been a Blue BlackBird. You can by the Book for the Publishing company https://airti2.sslcert19.com/template2.php?...ET&type=boo

[Av8fan]

This may be a good place to look.

Maybe this is why someone thought Blue?

Habu Site

[Marcelo_P51D]

Well guys,

I'm waiting for my SR71 BlackBird 1/48 from testors. And i'll painting it in BLACK!!! ALL FLAT BIG BLACKBIRD

Change the subject:

What can i do to detailing more the kit?

Thanks a lot, MArcelo

[Av8fan]

I did a search in the WIP section using black bird.

Some nice work there.

blackbird wip

[Marcelo_P51D]

Thanks my friend!!!!

Marcelo

[C-130CrewChief]

Some color references from my trip to Pima.

I know this doesn't answer the interesting blue color question, but i hope it helps. I have several more pics if interested.

Curt

[Marcelo_P51D]

Some color references from my trip to Pima.

I know this doesn't answer the interesting blue color question, but i hope it helps. I have several more pics if interested.

Curt

Curt

Thanks anyway. Well can you send me the pics of the blackbird?

My email address is: marcelopdecampos@yahoo.com.br

Thanks again, MArcelo

[Netz]

Black, I do recall the story of them being painted a dark blue, but they sure are black.

This is one in Palmdale, it's been sitting in the sun for quite a few years now and it's still Black, not faded Black but just Black.

Curt

[mhoupt]

The Blackbirds were in fact blue - that looked black.

Here is a statement from http://www.unrealaircraft.com/gravity/sr71.php "The aircraft would also be painted in a highly-emissive dark blue paint (almost black) to emit heat 2.5 times faster than unpainted titanium."

The color was actually Indigo Blue and was more of an application than a paint. The "paint" also contained thousands of little iron balls that helped to dissipate the heat.

[MiG31]

I am curious about the source of that site's text. While I have read that the color is blue-black, this seems contradicted by observations of the real thing. Likewise for the X-15, which I have read was also supposedly painted dark blue.

[David Hingtgen]

Exactly---I've read that exact quote many times. Never heard any source to prove it. If it is blue, then it's far, far more black than 35044 or 35042---which themselves are often hard to tell from black even in pure sun.

Frankly---if it was dark dark dark dark dark blue, the ones exposed to sun should have faded to navy blue by now. But they haven't. They're all still black.

[mhoupt]

Okay - here is more documented evidence on it being Indigo Blue (I know, it looks as black as black can be). Maybe it was a typo somewhere and it should be FS35042, which is a charcoal black. It could have happened been reported as Indigo Blue many many years ago as a mistake, kind of like LBJ misspoke and the RS-71 was transformed to the SR-71 (another true story).

Boys Life - June 1989: http://books.google.com/books?id=xWYEAAAAM...lue&f=false

The Squadron "In Action" books says it is FS 35402 Indigo Blue.

"The SR-71 is actually painted FS 35402 Indigo Blue, even though it looks black." (SR-71.org)

[C-130CrewChief]

This is so strange! I wonder if we have any structures people on here that worked Blackbirds? They would know for sure!

Curt

[David Hingtgen]

35402 would be a medium-light blue according to the FS standard. If it's a typo, it'd be 35042---and 35042 is a well-known FS color, and many modelers could identify it, especially faded. It's neither 35402 or 35042, IMHO.

(and I'm even a vehement "that's not PURE white" or "PURE black" guy---I consider most "whites" as a very pale grey, and most "blacks" as very dark grey or dark blue--and even I don't accept the Blackbird as blue)

IIRC, some guys a few years ago tried to settle the infamous "dark blue" theory, and took an actual FS595 deck to a Blackbird---and it was black. Not any of the super-dark blues that exist.

Edited May 4, 2010 by David Hingtgen

[CF104]

I am curious about the source of that site's text. While I have read that the color is blue-black, this seems contradicted by observations of the real thing. Likewise for the X-15, which I have read was also supposedly painted dark blue.

The X-15 was never painted. It was left in its natural metal, Inconel-X, which has a dark bluish/black color. The only coating applied to an X-15 was on the X-15A-2 which had an ablative coating applied for its last two flights.

BTW, the X-15 was a hypersonic research vehicle and paint coatings at that time could not stand up to the localized heating experienced on these flights. Even the painted on markings had to be reapplied several times during the X-15 program.

Cheers,

John