Fairey Gannet AS.1/6 COD.4 W.I.P.

[Techy111]

I found this piccy (Bring back memories Dave? )

http://www.abpic.co.uk/photo/1045078/

The blue in this piccy is quite vivid but i am still not convinced after looking at your scanned in piccy of the COD blue....

Techy

[DaveB]

Hi Techy

Now then.. is that or is that not the same colour as the COD Gannet shot you found off Air Britain (make allowances for daylight). The one on Norfolk was similar but without the large dayglo Rescue bit on the tail.. like this in fact..


This is off HMS Antrim and the red circles (in case you're wondering) are highlighting holes from machine gun fire :o She picked these up in the Falklands!!

This same blue/grey seems to be the same colour as the upper surfaces of the Seafire seen in my 'Culdrose 60th Anniversary Air Day' thread plus.. it looks like the same blue/grey seen running along the top of non-COD Gannets!! As Andy said earlier, he couldn't imagine the RN using a different colour paint when there was so much of one particular colour around and I have to agree

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[nazca_steve]

Nice one Dave.

The plot thickens...if that is the same colour as the Gannet upper surfaces on non COD birds, it should be Dark Sea Grey, right? That shade is clearly lighter than some of the other COD Gannet shots we've seen, but I agree, seems a lot like the Wessex colour here. Confusing. So either they were Blue Grey or Dark Sea Grey...this is what we need to confirm (unless it did vary depending on what paint was available at the time?)

[Techy111]

Blimey !!! Swiss cheese on the Wessex comes to mind :o And yes i would agree that the blues/greys are the same on the wessex's.... so i reckon the colour we are looking for is === dark sea blue/grey/grey sea blue/grey/blue sea green watery blue *deep breath* am i right?

Techy

[DaveB]

Yo Pop-PIckers

Wish I'd known about the shade of Dark blue/grey before the weekend so I've had to fire another question off which'll take another day to sort :roll: I think we're there on the colour though as we have that Air Britain shot and the Yeovilton Wessex which I'd class as both being blue/grey Definative answer tomorrow

Ref the FOAC lettering and Admirals pennant shown in Warpaint.. my source has never seen any COD Gannet painted thus on the Ark. However, there is a shot (B&W) of one taken in Malta wearing those exact markings from 1965 :o Just to add to the mud, during the course of my investigations, I've also seen a COD Gannet wearing the normal dark grey/sky paint with FOAC on the tail. Can't remember where I saw it now :brick: There's only one thing thats certain about this entire affair.. NOTHING!

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[Techy111]

I found these serial numbers and from the large list i typed these ------

F9351 XG783 Gannet AS4 d/d 04/01/1957, sold as scrap 30/11/1961 at Abbotsinch to J Connell Ltd, Coatbridge
F9352 XG784 Gannet AS1 d/d 28/11/1957 to RAN, sold as scrap 30/03/1967
F9353 XG785 Gannet AS1 d/d 28/11/1957 to RAN, sold as scrap 30/03/1967
F9354 XG786 Gannet COD4 d/d 04/01/1957, b/u for spares 03/02/1969 at Brawdy
F9355 XG787 Gannet AS1 d/d 09/01/1958 to RAN, wfu 15/08/1967, to Nowra fire dump, since perished
F9356 XG788 Gannet AS4 d/d 08/02/1957, sold as scrap 18/10/1963 at Abbotsinch to J Connell Ltd, Coatbridge
F9357 XG789 Gannet AS1 d/d 06/02/1958 to RAN, sold 13/03/1970, Pres Moorabbin, Victoria, Australia
F9358 XG790 Gannet COD4 d/d 06/02/1957, broken up as spares and produce 1978 at Lossiemouth, remains to Tain Ranges 18/09/1978, since destroyed

Only 2 listed as Cod4's...... is that right ? Only 2?

And found this good decals picture...

It lists for painting purposes to use RAF Blue/Grey BS361C 633...... Mean anything? Hmmm me thinks its a modellers colour chart?

http://www.hannants.co.uk/search/?FULL=X72070

Techy

[DaveB]

Ola mon ami

The info I have says 6 in total..
XA430, XA454, XA466, XA470, XG786 and XG790.

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[Techy111]

Ahhh got you i was on listing for XG not XA

F9300 XA430 Gannet COD4 d/d 22/09/1956, broken up as spares 19/11/1976 at Lossiemouth, remains to the fire dump, since perished
F9307 XA454 Gannet COD4 d/d 29/11/1956, to Yeovilton 22/06/1970 for gate guard duties, relegated to the fire dump during 1979, perished by 1980
F9319 XA466 Gannet COD4 d/d 05/03/1957, s.o.c 12/01/1979, to FAAM Yeovilton 12/12/1978, stored Cobham Hall, Yeovilton
F9323 XA470 Gannet COD4 d/d 28/11/1956 s.o.c 17/05/1977 at Lossiemouth, scrapped 07/1978


Techy

[DaveB]

I didn't see that little tinker at Yeovilton a fortnight ago! :@ Poo, Poo and more poo!!

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[nazca_steve]

Techy,

after further investigation, the RAF Blue/Grey quoted in Dave's Warpaint and the Xtra Decal sheet, is also listed as BS 633, part of the BS381C family of British Standards Institute colours. Here is a link to some swatches that show it something in between the various versions we've seen so far:

http://www.unitedcomposites.net/jointpa ... olours.htm

I'll await Dave's source on this though, plus the other source I have at work on it, and see what they say. It probably is officially RAF Blue/Grey, but who the heck knows! As Dave said, nothing is for sure. Keep up the investigations, chaps. :brick:

**EDIT** By the way, on further review, I don't know how much to trust those swatches, as their 'Light State Grey' seems decidedly 'green' to me...I think that's why I trust SImmers Paint Shop the most - their swatches seem to match real life photos (in all their glorious light level differences!) the most, and on that note, their Blue/Grey seems to be darker, and thus closer (IMHO) to the pics we've seen.