US Navy colour scheme MS 21

Foute Man

Foute Man

Charter Member
Have been painting some US ships today (and last week) I'm a little confused about the colourscheme MS 21. I've read in literature about WW2 ship camouflage schemes 5N Navy Blue is more like purple then blue

pic 1: WW2 colour picture
ms21_drayton.jpg


For the Royal Navy/RAF and Luftwaffe standalones I made I've used the palet (colour values) that can be found on this site http://www.jpsmodell.de/dc/index.htm but looking at the 5N Navy Blue it appears really purple: my question is how purple was the 5N Navy Blue.

The big advantage of the Don Color palet is the samples are in one color, where on other sites the samples are scanned pieces of painted paper, with a lot of differences in color value when measuring the picture

As a sample I give you the USS Boston (Baltimore Class Cruiser) in the old 5N colour I had to make up myself (after measuring a scanned paintchip) and USS Walker (Fletcher Class Destroyer) with the "new" 5N value. What is the correct colour?

Regarding the 20B Deck Blue I think I'm wrong in case of the USS Boston

I've also read that the Aussies used a colour named "Chicago Blue" for some of their ships, like HMAS Canberra, which was more on the grey side of blue and based on a color blue worn by USS Chicago in 1942 when attached to Australian units. Literature says this blue was a variation on 5N Navy blue
 
NachtPiloten said:
From these screen shots it appears that the difference is virtually nonexistent.
Click to expand...

This should give a better impression, although I'm really confused if I look at the "old" 5N Navy blue and the new 20B Deck Blue....

The palet based on scanned paint chips:

USNchip2.jpg


The colour 5N navy blue on Don Color

usn5_n.jpg


Also attached USS Boston in "old" colors and "new" colors
 
I've seen actual film of WW2 ships in camo and all looked more like the Sea Blue which is lighter than the 5N Navy Blue.Not all decks were Blue or Blue-Gray,some were teak.The paint schemes also have to do with the time period also,1942 was basically all blue while late 1942 into 1943 it was blue up to the deck than haze gray upper surfaces.Later there were splinter schemes of grays on hull and upper surfaces.

The paint chips are not always accurate and will look darker in the sim.


Talon
 
Larger and older units (CV, CA, CL) had teak decks some of them, some were replaced because of splinter danger. Most more modern units had the painted steel decks with sand in the paint for traction, while some allied ships tried linoleum until they found the fire danger...

paint wise, as Talon says. And lighter is better re using colors on sim models as many colors look too dark. Dark seems useful unless you want to fade with distance view on the horizon. Some of the dazzle schemes and the block of dark color on the hull varied with command areas and ships, I have seen a wide variety in pics, but ships at sea at war start were often caught in peacetime gray (blue), pale, not too dark but it does have some purple in it chromatically, neutral. Subs were dark, tho, almost black until later on. Camoflage started coming across the Atlantic from the UK where it was pioneered, tho we had some pretty wild schemes in WWI.

By 1944, new construction was painted with Measure 32/22D camouflage which consisted in splashes of three colors bands freeform over gray hull colour, applied all along the ship. In 1945, this was change to Measure 22 camouflage which consisted of dark (blue) gray for almost all the hull and light gray for the remaining vertical surfaces. The theory was that the dark band along the hull would confuse optical gun sighting by the enemy.
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-p/ap37.htm
DD and USS Wasp CV-7 and AO in plain Gray in Pacific August 42
WWII Data Base
http://ww2db.com/ship_spec.php?ship_id=452
US Naval Historical Center
http://www.history.navy.mil/
photos
http://www.history.navy.mil/branches/org11-2.htm
BuC& R (USN Bureau of Construction and Repair)
Offical Chips:
http://www.steelnavy.com/usnchips.htm

Ship Model Forum
http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/index.php

Modelling US Navy Ship Colours
http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=25124
http://www.paint4models.com/
 
Actually Measure 21 & 22 were used in June 1942.

Measure 21-Navy Blue on all Vertical surfaces

Measure 22-Navy Blue up to lowest point of main deck,upper edge horizontal,remaining vertical surfaces haze gray.


Talon
 
Good to know, my knowledge of that area is sketchy indeed, and it helps to know more. thanks for that. Sure was a lot of work for the hands, the changes over those years. :)
 
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