Cockpit colors (C)F-18 mismatch with Quinta decals?

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

Maybe the knowledgeable people of this forum can give me informed advice.

 

I just got a set of Quinta 3D cockpit panels for the F/A-18(A) today and started my next Kinetic CF-188.

After doing some research, I am thinking that they got the color wrong on their decals, as all sources I find, claim that the F-18 (and most other US jets) have their cockpits painted in FS36231 (which was also the color, I used in my first CF-188). The Quinta panels look way too light for that, closer to FS36375 to my eye.

So, I am inclined to paint the rest of the cockpit in 36375, to match the decals but it goes against my accuracy grain (apart from the color issue, the decals are fantastic). Have a look at the image and let me know what you think, the color representation in the photo is pretty spot on.

 

Cheers, Sebastian

 

Color comparison

 

(The 36375 is MRP and the 36231 is Gunze H317, btw)

 

 

 

Edited September 26, 2020 by Tinhead_Ausf_B

[airmechaja]

In my opinion, the color IS 36231. Has been for a long time in the USAF.

[okthree]

Sebastian,

Link to the color comparison is a dead link for me.

 

I too purchased a Quinta set for a USMC F/A-18A+ that I’m building. While the 3D decals are simply eye watering in their detail and a quantum leap forward, I agree with you that the grey they used does not match dark gull grey or FS36231. My plan is to paint to match, I just need to find a grey paint in my inventory to use.  
 

On a side note I have read that their Russian cockpit blue/green is a good match for the Akan paint, so maybe that’s what they used for FS36231.

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

Thanks for letting me know about the link, hadn't used Google Photos before. I updated the link, maybe let me know if it works now for you.

I am also inclined to paint to match, as I think if I tried to paint the Quinta decals in 36231, I could also throw them directly into the garbage... 😉

MRP-038 Light Ghost Grey seemed to be a pretty good match to me but looking at it again, I think its blue tone is not enough (same for Gunze 308).

Edited September 26, 2020 by Tinhead_Ausf_B

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

This is Quinta's reply to the issue:

 

Quote

We do not recommend a specific paint, because we make up colors based on photos and FS color tables. We try to give all or almost all the panels, so that the Modeler does not have to mix the appropriate color. On the other hand, even on the same plane in the same cabin, you can see the panel effect with different shades of interior color (since each contractor has its own color). Therefore, we do not give recommendations on the manufacturer or the recipe for mixing paint, this part of creativity remains your (Modeler's) choice.

 

Don't really know what do with that... Probably have to mix something up half-way between the decals and 36231.

[flybywire]

I think Quinta should stick with the standard used. If it's 36231 then it should be 36231. it's doesn't have to be affected by sunlight, contractor, panel shades/effects and fading etc. etc. It's up to the modelers to do the fading and other effects by themselves.

Edited September 26, 2020 by flybywire

[okthree]

5 hours ago, Tinhead_Ausf_B said:

Thanks for letting me know about the link, hadn't used Google Photos before. I updated the link, maybe let me know if it works now for you.

I am also inclined to paint to match, as I think if I tried to paint the Quinta decals in 36231, I could also throw them directly into the garbage... 😉

MRP-038 Light Ghost Grey seemed to be a pretty good match to me but looking at it again, I think its blue tone is not enough (same for Gunze 308).

Link works for me now.  Thank you for fixing.

 

The MRP LGG, even though the wrong color, looks like a close match.  

 

The Gunze looks very dark to be 36231.

 

The answer you got from Quinta doesn't surprise me.  I hope for future releases for U.S. cockpits they can get the color closer to a proper FS36231, dark gull grey.  I think they have a great product and plan to use more.  If you're brave enough you could always try to brush paint over the grey areas and around details. 

 

 

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

29 minutes ago, okthree said:

The Gunze looks very dark to be 36231.

Aye, it is what they sell as 36231 (H317) but on another CF-188, I built, it looks pretty close to photos I looked at.

 

Quote

The answer you got from Quinta doesn't surprise me.  I hope for future releases for U.S. cockpits they can get the color closer to a proper FS36231, dark gull grey.  I think they have a great product and plan to use more.  If you're brave enough you could always try to brush paint over the grey areas and around details. 

Well, I am a bit surprised, since the research to find out that the US use 36231, mostly, is not that hard to find and everybody can see the colors differ a lot. In regard to painting over the panels - I have to see if I muster the courage. If so, will post here if I succeeded and also if the paint dissolved the decals... 😉

[Spruemeister]

Sadly, there seems to be a lot of trouble producing a color instrument panel that matches actual cockpit colors.  I have an Eduard Look panel for the Kinetic F-104G kit that appears to have the background printed in light blue by a 80s dot matrix printer set on lowest resolution.  Horrible quality for the money.  I will need to attempt to repaint it if I use it.  Can't be this hard for manufacturers to get it right.

 

Rick L.

[CreepyGuy]

90% of the people looking will never notice a shade difference and will not likely look at it with paint samples in their hand.  I have 20 different aircraft in my office and no one has ever looked into the cockpits.. .I do strive for accuracy, but will not worry about a shade difference on the interior... The exterior is a different thing.  Just my two cents

[phantom]

Just mix a little white in there to get close to the decals. The Cockpit in a CF-18 is getting near 40 years old. Have to expect a little sun fading over time.

 

[BaconRaygun]

...cant be any worse than Eduard's offerings... those look like.... just what supermeister said.   Color waaay off and looks like the same quality as what you see on a milk carton. Sorry, Eduard, but just calling it as I see it.   

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

13 minutes ago, BaconRaygun said:

...cant be any worse than Eduard's offerings... those look like.... just what supermeister said.   Color waaay off and looks like the same quality as what you see on a milk carton. Sorry, Eduard, but just calling it as I see it.   

 

I agree.

In regards to the Quinta decals, it comes down to the floor and lower tub sidewalls, that show my paint job. The rest is covered by the (too light) decals. On a sidenote: Gunzes 307 (Dark Ghost Grey) is a very close match.

If they survive weathering, which probably takes the edge off a bit, I will post a photo update maybe this weekend. If you go very close to those decals, you will also see the limits of their printers resolution but the overall impact is quite nice, still.

 

Thanks for all your input.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Tinhead_Ausf_B

[ESzczesniak]

This has been a chronic problem of any type of prepainted parts. The Quinta stuff is not as eye wateringly bad as Eduard prepainted photoetch. But it’s still not really close at all. I agree it looks somewhere between LGG and DGG. 
 

I’m working with their F-16 set, not the F/A-18, but the issue seems the same. The cockpit looked comical painted in a paint the matched the Quinta parts. So I painted the cockpit in 36231, applied the decals, and painted the gray parts in 36231. It was fairly quick and easy, and the end result looks great. But the color match is off just like all of Eduard’s prepainted parts. 

[BaconRaygun]

But are the colors at least solid?  Eduard's colors are grainy as hell...  Like I wish they would just offer the option of un-painted PE with a decal instead of pre-painted. 

 

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

7 minutes ago, BaconRaygun said:

But are the colors at least solid?  Eduard's colors are grainy as hell...  Like I wish they would just offer the option of un-painted PE with a decal instead of pre-painted. 

 

Judge for yourself: https://photos.app.goo.gl/3v11dSRWnm54tKS66

(Let me know if I mucked up the link again)

[ESzczesniak]

14 minutes ago, BaconRaygun said:

But are the colors at least solid?  Eduard's colors are grainy as hell...  Like I wish they would just offer the option of un-painted PE with a decal instead of pre-painted. 

 

The base gray is pretty grainy, but the black panels, switches, etc, look good. 

[BaconRaygun]

Hmm, definitely still grainy, but looks less grainy than Eduard.  I guess I'll just have to wait until I get my hands on a set. 

 

[paulsbrown]

To match the colors and get rid of the graininess I always use some very thinned down cockpit color and let the 'capillary' action run it around the (in this case Eduard prepainted etch) detail.

I haven't tried Quinta yet but I when I do I will use the same method. Even just coloring the larger areas makes a big difference if you don't wanna go too close to the details.

 

This is alcohol thinned AKAN used to better match the color on a MiG-21.

[BaconRaygun]

Yeh I had to get creative too... but that's my point, we are paying extra for that to already be done, and then still having to fuss with it... and it will never look as good as it should. 

 

I feel it would look better if we were able to paint our own color, and then lay a decal over to fill the finer details. PE detail should take a decal much better than a molded out of the box cockpit (which still tend to take decals just fine). 

 

 

[paulsbrown]

2 hours ago, BaconRaygun said:

I feel it would look better if we were able to paint our own color, and then lay a decal over to fill the finer details. PE detail should take a decal much better than a molded out of the box cockpit (which still tend to take decals just fine).

Yeah, I hear you on that. But as nice as the Quinta stuff is- for something like the new GWH Su-27UB ,the kit's cockpit and in particular the instrument panels are so nice I would rather paint them by hand and give the kit decals a try before considering an aftermarket product. 

[andrew.deboer]

Yeah, they didn’t get very close to Dark Gull Gray, but when I applied the Quinta panels to my Tamiya F-14 cockpit I found I didn’t care. The thing I did fix was the edges of some of the panels. In this photo you can see that the tops of the breaker panels have a very noticeable white edge. I touched them up with 36231. Go ahead and apply all of the decals, then test fit the cockpit in the fuselage and see what you think. I love these things.

 

[AlienFrogModeller]

Confirmed the interior color of the CF188 is:

36231

1. Inst panel
2. Consoles
3. Floors
4. Walls
5. Floor Pedals
6. Control Column

37038

1. Canopy sills
2. Glare shield
3. Inner surface of windshield and canopy frames
4. Upper Inst panel
5. Canopy deck and equipment tunnel

 

Hope that helps.

 

AFM

[Tinhead_Ausf_B]

12 hours ago, AlienFrogModeller said:

Confirmed the interior color of the CF188 is:

36231

1. Inst panel
2. Consoles
3. Floors
4. Walls
5. Floor Pedals
6. Control Column

37038

1. Canopy sills
2. Glare shield
3. Inner surface of windshield and canopy frames
4. Upper Inst panel
5. Canopy deck and equipment tunnel

 

Hope that helps.

 

AFM

 

NICE! Good stuff. Thank you.

[BaconRaygun]

On 10/1/2020 at 12:02 PM, paulsbrown said:

Yeah, I hear you on that. But as nice as the Quinta stuff is- for something like the new GWH Su-27UB ,the kit's cockpit and in particular the instrument panels are so nice I would rather paint them by hand and give the kit decals a try before considering an aftermarket product. 

I believe you on this 100%.  I built their Su-35 and used the kit cockpit, and it looks damn fine.  I can only assume the Su-27UB cockpit is at least as good, and probably even better.  

 

I'm more interested in these Quinta products for other builds, where the in box cockpit may leave something to be desired.   These would have been killer in my Eduard Mig-21sm build from last summer (though I see they do not yet have one). I'll probably use these when I take a stab at re-creating the MiG-21I Analog with the use of an Eduard MiG-21 kit, if they come out with an appropriate cockpit by that time.  Maybe I'll even pick one up for that P-38 build I've been contemplating.