BraggPeak Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 Hi everyone, in the progress of painting my Fine molds F-14. I got some confusing info about which color to use for F-14 low visibility scheme. The Fine molds instruction calls for FS35237 Grayish blue on the upper surface, and light ghost grey for the bottom half. But, in my opinion, FS35237 seems too dark (I used Vallejo paint) as compared to the reference photos as well as the stock photos of their own kits. The Great wall kit instruction calls for dark ghost grey for the upper surface, which seems agree with other F-14 paint scheme references. Presumably, the GWH instruction is correct and the Fine molds instruction is not correct, right ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BraggPeak Posted August 5, 2020 Author Share Posted August 5, 2020 This is the photo from anft.net, which is Dark ghost gray for top, light ghost grey for bottom, and FS35237 for the side of the front fuselage. Fine molds kit, FS35237 for top, light ghost for bottom and dark ghost grey for side of front fuselage. GWH, light ghost grey on bottom and dark ghost for top, with FS35237 near the cockpit. Oh, my gosh, they are all different ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
andrew.deboer Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 (edited) Official diagram is Lt. Ghost Gray on bottom, Dk. Ghost Gray on sides, and Medium Gray on tops. But you’re right - there were many variations. If you have a photo of the plane you’re doing, that’s helpful. Unless you’re going for a fresh paint job, and depending on the paint brand, I would mix the Medium Gray about 1:1 with Dk. Ghost Gray. It faded rapidly and can be pretty intense put on full strength. Edited August 5, 2020 by andrew.deboer Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sarathi S. Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 The official spec was for FS 35237 Medium Gray on the upper surfaces, FS 36320 Dark Compass Ghost Gray on the middle surfaces, and FS 36375 on the lower surfaces. However, squadrons had variations on the paint scheme , so check your references. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 Keep in mind the sea air, salt and sun bleached the TPS beyond belief, often to the point where it *almost* looked like one single shade of lightish gray overall. Suggestion, paint the actual colors straight up. Then take lighter shades, well-thinned, and bleach out each panel center (leaving a slightly darker outline to each panel). Goes quicker than it sounds. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
seawinder Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 From the diagrams it looks as if the outer surfaces of the vertical tails were also painted the middle color (officially 36320?), and I'm guessing the inner surfaces were the upper surface color (officially 35237?). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
picknpluck Posted August 6, 2020 Share Posted August 6, 2020 14 hours ago, seawinder said: From the diagrams it looks as if the outer surfaces of the vertical tails were also painted the middle color (officially 36320?), and I'm guessing the inner surfaces were the upper surface color (officially 35237?). No, both sides of the vertical stabilizers were 36320. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
zerosystem Posted August 7, 2020 Share Posted August 7, 2020 The Vallejo medium gray is much too dark for my liking. On my F-14s I toned it down a bit with the dark ghost grey until I was satisfied. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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