Japanese researcher Owaki-san has very kindly provided a measured Munsell value from another extant Ki-27 flap currently in the collection of Mr Kenzo Taniguchi in Japan.
The colour is a distinctly blueish grey. The closest FS595b match to Munsell 5 BG 6.5/1 is 36473 with a DE2000 difference calculation of 2.17 (2.0 or less = a close match) so it is a reasonable comparison.
Owaki-san also provided the Munsell measurement for the interior colour of this particular example which I shall post in due course.
2 comments:
This color chips are close to few of the mentioned colors used in camouflage colors of japanese airplanes. Did Mr. Owaki try to detect which is this color in regards to the official Japanese airplane painting chart? This is more important then the same Munsel translation. Munsel as well pantone is very good for artist but I would be happy to hear which is original color. This fade and washer original is for sure far from roiginal.
Very nice post- thank you for sharing :))
Cheers,
Srecko Bradic, Serbia
The colour is probably a variation of JAAF Hairyokushoku which has been described as sometimes more blueish, sometimes more greenish. I will be posting more about this in due course because I have re-calculated the Hess Ives values for the original colour standard.
The dichotomy between blueish-greys and the more brownish colours identified on examples owned by James F Lansdale is problematic. It is almost a USA vs Japan divide because the exhibits in the USA appear to show a predominantly olive/brown appearance whilst those in Japan are more towards the "traditional" greys and grey-greens!
In some cases Mr Lansdale has identified the blueish-grey as a "chalking" or oxidisation of the surface and when rubbed the artifacts reveal the more olive/brown appearance of what he believes is the original colour.
I do not know whether, if rubbed, the Japanese artifacts would exhibit the same underlying olive/brown appearance but no doubt we will learn more about this in due course.
There are two factors to take into consideration:
1. The known tendency of applied paint to "brown" and darken with age; this can be in opposite proportion to the fading and degradation caused by exposure to ultra-violet light during service life. In the case of Japanese paints the situation is complicated by the use of synthetic plant resins as a binder. These are know to "amber" the paint over time.
2. The predominance of the traditional blueish greys and grey-greens in contemporary Japanese artwork, such as magazine covers, etc.
I will be exploring the olive/brown colours in more detail later.
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