Cold war paint (day glo) chat

[Keith Gaff]

If you can get hold of a copy of the book; Edwards Air Force Base: Open House at the USAF Flight Test Centre 1957-1966 by Robert Archer and published by Schiffer you will see Day Glo paint all over the place.

[Fouga23]

Please, explain why you think otherwise. Maybe it's day glo red.

Well, I've sprayed dayglo on aircraft. It's a real pain. First you need a white base coat and then the dayglo. Its a thick paint and it fades quite rapidly in the sun. It has a very distinct fading process. The aircraft in your picture is faded, but not like dayglo does. It's some kind of orange or red paint.
Here's an example of real dayglo fading:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Belgium- ... 0382807/L/
I believe it's also not used any more for environmental reasons.

[b29flteng]

Please, explain why you think otherwise. Maybe it's day glo red.

Well, I've sprayed dayglo on aircraft. It's a real pain. First you need a white base coat and then the dayglo. Its a thick paint and it fades quite rapidly in the sun. It has a very distinct fading process. The aircraft in your picture is faded, but not like dayglo does. It's some kind of orange or red paint.
Here's an example of real dayglo fading:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Belgium- ... 0382807/L/
I believe it's also not used any more for environmental reasons.

So what I saw as faded dayglo over yellow is actually white? I want to do a C-97A model and get it just right, thanks.

[JBoyle]

So what I saw as faded dayglo over yellow is actually white? I want to do a C-97A model and get it just right, thanks.

With certain camera filters, day-glo looks white in B&W prints.
Dig out your copy of U.S. Military Aircraft since 1909 by Swanborough & Bowers. (If you don't have a copy...well you need one, it's by far the most valuable book in my library. Get one ...now!)

The shot of the T-37 on page 164 of the 1989 edition clearly shows it and is noted as such.

[Fouga23]

So what I saw as faded dayglo over yellow is actually white? I want to do a C-97A model and get it just right, thanks.

If you mean the base coat underneath the dayglo,yes. It fades to a orange/yellow shine and then white. You can see the different hues on the seaking photo link I posted.

[JDK]

People often lump colours like International Orange and other rescue / high-viz colours as Day Glo, not realising that Day Glo is a specialist item, not a generic, and that there are several other similar use (if not hue and reflectivity / florescence) colours out there.

[Chief]

Nathan,
When I arrived at Dover, we had 85 C-124's of the 52 and 53 series. The paint scheme was the white tops with red paint on the vertical and horizontal stabilizers, top and bottom of the outer wing panels, tail cones and heater pods.

In 1958, we began removing the red paint. We painted International Orange on the nose, heater pods and a wide band around the aft fuselage. We didn't refer to it as Day-Glo. We kept the white top because of time constraints.

In 1959, the white tops began to be removed as the planes started going through (Air Mod) depot maintenance. Therefore, for a period of time we had three paint schemes. We called them: Red tails with white tops, International Orange with white tops and "Skin Brightened with International Orange. By 1960 all the red paint was removed.

In October 1962, during the "Cuban Missile Crisis", we had a rush project to remove all the paint, including the International Orange paint. Since we had so many planes, we still had planes in late 1963 (towards the end of the Congo Airlift) that still had the International Orange paint.

[jdvoss]

Here are a few photos I took of USN aircraft sporting Day-Glo paint

C-54P at NAS Kwajalein, Marshall Islands (1963)


HU-16C at Ponape, E. Caroline Islands (1964)


EC-121 at NAS Kwajalein, Marshall Islands (1964)


C-121J at NAS Kwajalein, Islands (1964)

[Brad]

People often lump colours like International Orange and other rescue / high-viz colours as Day Glo, not realising that Day Glo is a specialist item, not a generic, and that there are several other similar use (if not hue and reflectivity / florescence) colours out there.

James,

Somewhere among the hundreds of airplane and helicopter manuals in this office of mine,(42 binders on the shelf in front of me) or in the garage, or in the barn, I've got several manuals that refer to dayglo orange. It's seems to me that the word was used in the generic sense. Most of the time, as I recall, it concerned exterior paint and markings, and usually in reference to what is known as high viz or international orange.

I've also seen Plexiglas spelled plexiglass in some of these same manuals. Much like Q-tips and bandaids, I think most of the proprietary terms have slipped into common usage. Even in military manuals.

[Nathan]

This is a super cool thread. Thanks guys. I cant really say way I like the high viz paint scheme. I think it's because in the book "50 years of the Desert Boneyard" one of the pages shows a C-97 and a KB-50 int he background sporting the "Day glo" and I guess that picture just inspired my interest in that color. I find it attractive.

Thanks,
Nathan

[b29flteng]

This is a super cool thread. Thanks guys. I cant really say way I like the high viz paint scheme. I think it's because in the book "50 years of the Desert Boneyard" one of the pages shows a C-97 and a KB-50 int he background sporting the "Day glo" and I guess that picture just inspired my interest in that color. I find it attractive.

Thanks,
Nathan

I agree!

[Nathan]

I am glad others like it too. The NMF, the day glo, the white tops, the big stick radials, jets, B-36's, weiner looking C-133's, B-58's! What a time I missed! I was born in 86. To little too late.

[JBoyle]

...weiner looking C-133's, B-58's! What a time I missed! I was born in 86. To little too late.

I was born a little before you and grew up on USAF bases...and I never saw a B-58 or C-133 flying. They were rare birds even then.

[The Inspector]

Nathan,

Have you checked out Dave Smiths Prestwick picture post taken around Britian in the 50's and 60's? It's currently 2 posts below this one, plenty of aircraft even in B&W that illustrate DayGlow schemes and some British jets in one of the albums in color of how the RAF and RN applied Day Glow paint.

[jdvoss]

I have a FANTASTIC hardbound book titled "Aircraft of the Military Air Transport Service" by N. Williams 192 pages (all glossy paper). Absolutely great color photos of Day-Glo paint schemes of the 50's thru 70's including a B-47 with a dazzeling day-glo paint plus many, many more. This book a must for any WIX'er bookshelf!!