Bbi Sakai Zero Review

Post by **aferguson** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 1:27 pm

i think the colour bbi chose is the best compromise between the familiar (but incorrect) light grey and the olive greens. It is lightish but greenish at the same time.

I find it hard to believe that the true shade was as dark as some of the choices presented. In black and white photos it never looks to be that dark of a colour. As presented by Tamiay it's a darker colour than the german light blue used on the undersides their aircraft in the first part of the war but in b&w photos looks lighter. So something doesn't add up.

Despite all the research the true colour will never be known; at least not without a time machine.

Paint is a chemical and like any chemical changes over time. It is very possible that as the paint aged it darkened or lightened or even changed in colour a bit. Older paints (eg from the 30's and 40's) are particularily susceptible to this, as they weren't as chemically stable as modern paints.

So, all the specualtion will be just that. Speculation. And it's up to the individual to decide what they see as most correct.

sicqnus · Post by **sicqnus** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 2:01 pm

--
There are in Japan a very few aircrafts which have been kept almost untouched since the end of the war. Most of them are in museums. Here are a few of them (restored and unrestored) :

D4-Y "Comet Judy" - Yasakuni Tokyo.

A6-M5 Zero (Mr Harada collection).

The guy also has several engines, many parts, a Betty tail can be seen on the back.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 2:08 pm

B&W photos have proven to be quite the conundrum when it comes to actual colors especially when consider a variance in light conditions when the pics where taken. Zero's on deck of the 6 prior to PH look pretty white in photo's, as most of these aircraft were factory fresh practically and with known artifact study dating back to 1942 with substantiated proof as to their olive-grey color, I gotta say is pretty forthright.

Post by **aferguson** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 2:46 pm

maybe when the paint was exposed to salt air it darkened? Thus the factory fresh planes looking especially light in colour. Anything is possible.

As a counter point. I've always wondered why the japanese would chose a light almost white colour to paint their carrier planes. It's not very good camouflage over water or over land or in the air.

A medium olive green colour would be better over water and over land. But it sure don't look as dark as a medium olive green in any photo i have ever seen.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 4:29 pm

"maybe when the paint was exposed to salt air it darkened?" Then that would mean as part of the initial painting process of an A6M2 it would have to be exposed to that before delivery? In fact it did over a substantial amount of time. This however is not what gave it a more green hue, time and the elements gave the colour a brownish - bronze hue as noted on several studied artifacts. Interestingly the major arguments over this particular colour are among modelers and has been for the better part of 30 yrs, especially the crowd that believes in the "add white to scale it down" theory, that, I personally don't agree with. Bbi apparantly does as that obviously exactly what they did with their pretty much "white" zero's. I trust the wartime registry, the manuals, and the evidence as provided by countless hours that researchers have dedicated to the subject.

Post by **aferguson** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 4:44 pm

Was a time when the experts said that late war german aircraft were all painted two shades of green. Then all of a sudden violet brown was 'discovered' to be one of the shades thought to be green.

Then several other shades of green were discovered. And a lighter, grey blue for the undersides. And a violet grey for the upper surfaces..

Point is 10 years from now it may be the case that the colour for zeros and other early war ijn planes is thought to be another shade altogether.

I've seen it happen over and over in my lifetime; enough to take everything with a bit of skepticism or at least acknowledgement that it may not be correct. That's why i've always thought it's better to talk about history more in generalities, rather than absolutes and exacts.

Because you can never, ever know exactly what it was like unless you were actually there. And even the people who were actually there don't know exactly what it was like. Memories fade and alter over time. And the people that were there only saw things from one narrow perspective, their own, rather than from a God's eye view, which is what is needed to really know how things were, exactly.

sicqnus · Post by **sicqnus** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 4:47 pm

Still Sense Harada's collection. A6-M2 Type 21. Light navy grey as seen on the kate, Val and Claude. The diorama was made from mr Harada's archives. It shows a Japanese airfield with GAM Betty, Zero fighters and two Officer's Zeros. Pretty interesting (The jakets are originals).

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 10:04 pm

"Because you can never, ever know exactly what it was like unless you were actually there. And even the people who were actually there don't know exactly what it was like (

). Memories fade and alter over time (the manuals however don't). And the people that were there only saw things from one narrow perspective, their own, (a rose by any other name...) rather than from a God's eye view, which is what is needed to really know how things were, exactly."

I'll continue to trust the data from actual research and the info they sneakily hid in manuals to draw my conclusions.