Comments on Aviation of Japan 日本の航空史: Aotake - Part One

Thanks a million for the info, Ken. My Ki-46 is st...

2010-02-04T16:30:02.905Z

Thanks a million for the info, Ken.
My Ki-46 is still in the "to-do-pile" so I have some time before a final decision. Back to "Aotake".
The painting technique described in the post is something I have tried myself. Or better, I made som experiments on scrap plastic. Transparent hobby paints are, as you probably know, available from several manufactures but I also tested "Water Mixable Oil Colour" from Winsor & Newton. Several of their paints are transparent and if used over a silver/aluminium base it does not look bad at all.

Another interesting note concerning "Aotake" - type of paints is something I have seen on spareparts for commercial vehicles. More specific: brake drums for trucks & trailers. On a truck or trailer brake drums are made of cast iron and the inside and the wheel flange is machined. On many occasions I´ve seen the machined surfaces being coated with a transparent "paint", probably to prevent corrosion. The colour of this coating could be red, blue or green.

Best regards/Stefan Sjöberg

Thanks for making another fine and informative pos...

2010-02-04T14:27:25.354Z

Thanks for making another fine and informative posting Nick.

In reply to Stefan's inquiry regarding Ki.46 interior colors, the wheel wells of the Ki.46-III, now long on public display in England, were at one time mostly natural metal with bits and pieces here and there finished in what appears in photos to be some sort of a brown primer. The tail wheel strut and access foot step were also painted similarly, in what appears to be a 'Rust-o-leum' brown color. I can't be too certain about the appearance of the brown color, as my prints were made from old Kodak color negative film. It is my understanding that Kodak color films were biased towards brown hues and against green hues.

Whether the detail parts of the Ki.46-III were original IJA or factory applied colors, I can't say. The photo scans I have date from the mid 1980s, at least one restoration effort before the plane's current repaint job.

I am sure Stefan is more interested in the interior colors of the Ki.46 cockpits. The mid 1980s photos available to me show its cockpit interior had been repainted in what I have seen described as RAF interior green. I am not sure if the cockpits were repainted during the most recent restoration work on the exhibit. I would be surprised if the Ki.46-III cockpit factory paint job differed very much from the opaque yellow-green that is commonly termed Mitsubishi interior color in several hobby paint ranges now available.

Regards,
Ken Glass

Nick, A wonderful and informative post th...

2010-02-03T21:41:57.845Z

Nick,
A wonderful and informative post that leaves me feeling much more informed than before on the topic. Thanks as always....
Dan

Hello, interesting article. The painting procedur...

2010-02-03T08:38:41.059Z

Hello,

interesting article. The painting procedure for creating "Aotake" is not a bad idea. However, personally I will use #29 or #7 on my Ki-44´s. Probably leave the wheel wells in "natural aluminium". I´m not saying it´s correct but it´s my choice. What about Ki-46 interior colours? Could it have been #7? Keep up the good work Nick! Best regards from Stefan