Paint mixes for Zero. Mitsubishi vs Nakajimia types by Greg Springer

Below is Greg's mixes.  I have read that are  spot on when he published the  information in 2009

Mitsubishi Airframe Paint mix:

XF-2 (White) 100 drops

XF-8 (Yellow) 24 drops

XF-1 (Black) 11 drops

XF-7 (Red) 7 drops

You'll have to multiply the formula by 3 or 4 to get enough to airbrush the entire airframe (minus the control surfaces)

Mitsubishi Cloth Covered Control Surfaces:

XF-19 (Sky Grey) 105 drops

XF-49 (Khaki) 20 drops

XF-25 (Lt. Sea Grey) 15 drops

The formula above will yield enough paint to spray the cloth covered control surfaces the correct color.

The cowl on Mitsubishi aircraft will be a blue-black color, not X-18 as called out in the instructions.

CAVEAT: These colors are only for a Mitsubishi built aircraft and are not valid for a Nakajima built A6M2 Model 21.

Here goes. These are taken from a Word document that I hand out when I give a PowerPoint presentation of Japanese Naval Aircraft colors.

Paint mixes for some Japanese aircraft colors

All mixes are covered with gloss clear coats
.
Mixes matched to the coating on the metal portions of the airframe of the Mitsubishi-built Zero flown by Lt. Fusata Iida to his death at Kaneohe NAS and to Zero AI-154 that crashed at Fort Kamehameha, Pearl Harbor on December 7 1941.

Mix 1M(odelMaster enamels)
100 drops "SAC Bomber Tan" FS 34201
64 drops Flat White FS 37875

Mix 1T(amiya)
100 drops IJA Grey XF-14
40 drops Khaki XF-49
4 drops Neutral Grey XF-53

Mix matched to a cloth artifact from Zero BII-120, landed on Niihau Island, Dec. 7, 1942. Likely also to match cloth on control surfaces of AI-154 shot down at Ft. Kamehameha and BI-151 crashed at Kaneohe NAS the same day.

Mix 2T
105 drops Sky Grey XF-19
15 drops Lt. Sea Grey XF-25
20 drops Khaki XF-49

Mixes matched to the overall metal surfaces of the Nakajima-built Zero shot down on Midway Island, June 4, 1942. This color would be found on all metal surfaces of the airframe, except the cowling. This color also found on some Vals at Pearl Harbor.

Mix 2M
100 drops "Field Drab" FS 30118
42 drops "Flat White" FS 37875
8 drops "Insignia Yellow" FS 33538

Mix 3T
100 drops Khaki XF-49
35 drops White XF-2
6 Orange X-6

Mixes matched to a fabric surface taken from the same Zero. This gray color would be found on all fabric-covered control surfaces.

Mix 3M
100 parts "Light Sea Gray" FS 36307
14 parts "Aggressor Gray" FS 36251
1 part Insignia Red FS 31136

Mix 4T
50 drops Medium Grey XF-20
7 drops Sky Grey XF-19
5 drops Neutral Grey XF-53

Mix for the gray-green base coat found on the Nakajima Type 97 "Kate" attack plane that crashed at the Navy hospital at Pearl Harbor.

Mix 4M
40 parts "Faded Olive Drab"
28 parts "Armor Sand" FS 30277
26 parts Flat White FS 37875
1 part Black

Brush-applied yellowish-khaki coat over natural metal on Type 99 Val shot down in Middle Loch, Pearl Harbor. Tail code AII-251.

Humbrol 187 "Dark Stone" (recent production)

Mix 1H for 1/48 scale
50 drops Dark Stone187
10 drops Flat White 34
3 drops Yellow 154

Early and late Zero cockpit color is FS 34095 made only by Model Master as enamel
"Medium Field Green".

Mid war Nakajima cockpit gray-green.

Mix 5M for both enamels and MM acrylics
5 parts Pale Green FS 34227
4 parts Sky type S
1 part O. D. FS34087

To simulate the aotake translucent interior coat for areas outside the cockpit, spray the areas with an aluminum finish. I like to use Alclad II White Aluminum. Then make a mix of:
11 parts Tamiya Smoke X-19
10 parts Clear Blue X-23
1 part Clear Green X-25

This will yield a primarily blue color with a slight green tint. Spray on with a light color feed and stop when you are satisfied with the color. You can experiment with different mixes. Green has a very strong chroma so very little is needed. The Smoke is used to tone down the clear colors as otherwise they will give a bright "candy apple" phony look.

Mitsubishi-built Zeros have their landing gear bays and doors painted inside and out in the exterior gray-green-khaki color.

Early Nakajima Zeros have their landing gear bays in aotake. The doors are the underside color except for the interior surface of the central 'butterfly' doors that are coated in aotake.

Cowlings, the areas of the fuselage beneath the canopy in front of and behind the pilot as well as the inner surfaces of the canopy frames are blue-black on Mitsubishi Zeros and black on Nakajima Zeros.

Links:

Summer-san's Kakiri 117 blog:

http://plaza.rakuten.co.jp/zerosenochibo/d...d=0&ctgy=30

www.j-aircraft.com

Bear in mind that all of these mixes were matched to extant artifacts. Have they changed in 70 years? Yes, but they are from protected areas or were souvenired and stored away from direct light since the war. In service, all coatings weather rapidly. I am providing you with a starting point. If you don't like the appearance of a mix, modify it until it suits you. After all, you are building the model to please yourself.

Cheers!

Greg

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