Back to deck colours of RN Destoyers in WWII.

[glen44444]

Back to deck colours for RN Destroyers in WWII.Without quoting ship, camo. scheme or date, were there standard deck colours for destroyers in say, the Atlantic, Arctic, Med. or tropics wether the ship was in cammouflage or not and what colours were things like Semtex etc.
I have several kits such as Tamiya "O" class, which I would like to convert to HMAS Nestor, and HMAS Qality, White Ensign "Kelly", to build as is plus Tamiya HMAS Vampire and "E" class, all in 1/700th scale.

[John Snyder]

Basically, no.

[glen44444]

OK, I'll try another tack. If I'm building a Destroyer kit and no-one knows the deck colour, what colour should I use?

[ar]

OK, I'll try another tack. If I'm building a Destroyer kit and no-one knows the deck colour, what colour should I use?

That depends on several things.

[mike mccabe]

This could be fun...

Mike

[Tracy White]

Would you be OK with, "there is no simple answer?"

[glen44444]

So, May-be you could give me a range of colours that RN Destroyer's decks were painted during the war? I kneed some kind of answer, I cant just leave the deck unpainted.

[John Snyder]

G'day Glen,

How is the rest of the ship painted?

Cheers,
John Snyder

"And the band played Waltzing Matilda, as the ship pulled away from the quay,
And amid all the cheers, the flag-waving and tears, we sailed off for Gallipoli."

(Not bad for a Yank, eh?)

[Anthony P]

Should we renew the discussion on the various hue of Semptex???

[dick]

Glen,

This questions you have asked do not have a simple answer. But they have been asked before and answered on this site in many threads over the course of many years.

I suggest you use this site's search facility. Put the word "Semtex" in and I think you will find it takes you to answers to most of your questions about deck colours.

Best wishes.

[glen444444]

John,

Wow, I have'nt actually started any of the models yet but am trying to asertain what deck colours I need (Spelt it correctly this time).
Nester will be in, I think, dark lower hull light upper, Quality in a scheme from one of AR's books which includes pictures. I have'nt decided on colours for the Tamiya V&W and E class as I have'nt decided which ships to do. Kelly will be done as in the kit but there appears to be some question about the colour of Semtex in it. Obviously, you are a folk fan or you would'nt have known that chorus line. I don't meet many with that interest. Good to see.

I did a search using Semtex and got hundreds of replys so I'll do another using Semtex Colour and see what hapens.

Yes, It's the same glen44444, but the site rejected it, said it was already being used. Doh!

[John Snyder]

Yep, Caroline and I are both unreformed folkies--sea shanties, American, Brit, Scots, Napoleonics, etc.

Semtex/Cemtex right out of the can was grey--use Colourcoats M 16 or ACUS 02. Early war Semtex was pale buff (use ACSM 10), while late war Semtex was green (use M 19). Mid war? We just specify grey, as above. When did the change occur? Dunno--Alan Raven (who supplied the samples to Randy Short and me) never told us that....

Cheers,
John

"Did they beat the drum slowly, did they play the fife lowly,
Did the rifles fire o'er you as they lowered you down?"

[glen44444]

Thanks John,

I've saved all of the above. I was just about to give up. That Semtex/Cemtex bit was most of what I was looking for. Can I assume that all RN Destroyers were fitted with it?

That piece rings a bell. Its it from "No Mans Land"?

[John Snyder]

Hi Glen,

"No Man's Land" is correct.

I can't say for sure that all RN destroyers wore Semtex, but it certainly appears to be the case.

"Up the narrow street he stepped, smiling proud and young,
About the hemp rope on his neck, the golden ringlets clung,"

[ar]

[quote="glen44444"]I've saved all of the above. I was just about to give up. That Semtex/Cemtex bit was most of what I was looking for. Can I assume that all RN Destroyers were fitted with it?[/quote]

NO!

[Michael Riddell]

I've saved all of the above. I was just about to give up. That Semtex/Cemtex bit was most of what I was looking for. Can I assume that all RN Destroyers were fitted with it?

Semtex was probably fairly common, but not universal. Some ships had corticene - a linoleum which had a reddish brown colour to it. Some had something called "Wundergrip" - no idea what colour that was!

The only thing that appears to be a constant would be the steel decks - invariably painted in a dark colour akin to AP507A or equivalent.

If you can, get yourself a copy of "The Kelly's" by Christopher Langtree - it has a chapter on camouflage which includes details on deck coverings, but it's not comprehensive and should be viewed as a guide only.

General rule of thumb would be try and get info on the specific ship at the specific time you wish to model her.

You can't make a generalisation unfortunately.

Mike.

[glen44444]

Thanks Guys,

Michael, Your bit added to Johns is most interesting. When I start building one of the kits, I'll ask again for some more specific info.

John, you got me. That one I've never heard before, sounds Irish. Yum!

[John Snyder]

Hi Glen,

Roddy McCorley.

[phil gollin]

Also, please this thread on this board (posts 4 to 13) ;

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=34467&start=0

[mike mccabe]

Wondergrip? Isn't that the stuff used to keep false teeth in place?

From a modellers perspective and one who does a lot of RN destroyers, I tend to go with time period I am modelling as the best rough guide. RN camouflage is a very complex subject, made more complex by the limited photographs available of the period, especially early war. Even when you do find a photo odds on it won't show the decks, so again speaking as a modeller and not one wanting to spend too much time researching, informed guesswork is generally the order of the day.

Early war, 39 to 40 corticene was common, or strips of it over steel painted grey. Later on when the corticene was found to wear and break up under harsh conditions, it seems some decks were merely painted steel before semtex was introduced, see John's reply for the colour of that although it varied greatly. Later on mainly darker grey depending on the scheme used.

RN ships of WW2, especially destroyers, is in no way and exact science, it seems as though no one ship was ever exactly like any other in the same class, although later in the war things become a little easier.

Of course when you have decided on the colour, there is the effect of weathering, especially those serving in areas of strong sunlight.

So to sum up, and I am speaking as a modeller and preparing myself to be shot down in flames, you have quite a bit of latitude around the base colours, stick to the basic principles I have just mentioned according to the period and you won't go far wrong. At least it will be pretty difficult for anyone to prove you are!

Mike