"Salmon Color" on early F4U's

[Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy]

Anyone have a paint chip of something close to the legendary Salmon Primer of early F4U's? It's apparently somewhere between FS 32276 and FS 32356.

I've read, read, and read all about how it's mixed for years, now, and am NOT repeat NOT looking for that info; just looking for a paint chip to try to match.

Thanks!!!

[don f]

Are you asking for someone with an actual sample of the primer to match the color to a commercially available paint? If you've been reading all about, then you surely must have read this from William Reece:

F4U-1 Birdcage Corsair. Cockpit: Well this is tricky. The best evidence is black. Photos of F4U-1s taken at the time show the cockpits as being a very dark color. The F4U-1 E & M manual calls for Dull Dark Green. Photos and some wrecks show flat black. A photo of 'Pappy" Boyington in Bruce Gamble's book, The Black Sheep, shows him sitting in a Birdcage with a black armor plate and upper seat. This a/c also has no headrest. All other areas of the F4U-1 Birdcage Corsair would normally be 'Salmon'. Salmon is a pale pinkish/brown primer made by mixing Indian Red pigment with Zinc Chromate Yellow. The closest Munsell match is 2.5 YR 6/8 or between FS 32276 and FS 32356. This color was applied to the whole F4U before the final camo finish. The landing gear bays were this color. The insides of the main gear doors were Light Gray. Sometimes this was only overspray over the Salmon. Note: there were canvas covers on the inner and outer wheel bays that were either Olive Drab or Light Gray. The closest paint that I have found to the Salmon samples in my possession is PollyScale Railroad, Southern Pacific Daylight Orange. The wheelbays, engine cowling and accessory cowlings were painted in Non-Specular Light Gray to match the underside of the aircraft

[Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy]

Oh, yes, I've read that many times...very, very educational!

I think it would be awfully lucky to find an actual sample of the primer...I meant if some of the pple in here who are good at hunting FS paint chips down (computer-graphic color rectangles, mind you, not a REAL "paint chip") would happen to be able to post a color or colors fitting the range between FS32276 and FS32356.

[don f]

Oh. Gotcha! Here's a one version:

http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/colorserver/s...?fs=32276,32356

Take it with a grain of salt. Unknown original color match, under what lighting conditions, possible bias in visual matching to FS-595 sample, calibration of author's monitor, calibration of your monitor, etc., etc.

Don

[Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy]

Sweet! My sincerest thanks!!

[otis252]

Andrew D,

My father was in USMC Corsair squadrons on Green Island and Munda in WW2 and we've had this conversation several times. He can not recall ever seeing a -1, -1A, -1D, or -2 Corsairs with this Salmon colored wheel wells. He remembers zinc cromate,both yellow and green, as the wheel well colors. However, he does say that there's "no telling what color they were when they left the factory". As far as interior colors, he says he's flown -1, 1A,and 1D that were Green,Black and even some Blue. I guess in the field they were painted with what ever they had. He did say that the area around the headrest and armour plating was painted black alot of times. Bottom line-who knows and what ever goes.

Chuck

[Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy]

Fantastic...I definitely appreciate that as well, Chuck!