I still find it hard to believe that the costume department back in the day went ahead and mixed all their colours, they hardly have the time or money to go that route. Must have been old stock regular tins that they used and that have since changed formula, like we found out with Bess Brown.

But your mixture looks really good, Burner, especially that green. Compared to that one picture you used as reference at least (lighting and all), and there is the next and main (and oldest) problem for us prop replicators: all we can ever do is find one picture of one set of armour that we individually think is representative of the screen used paint mixture and try to come as close to that as possible.

We really need to bring all our painted armours to Harry's future exhibit and snap loads of pictures next to his real Hudson (if that's okay with Harry, of course). Only then can we be sure we nailed one or the other hue, but never just with photos.

Of course! We'll have to find a quiet spot at some point to do this but I'm happy to help!

Harry

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http://www.facebook.com/TheHHACA - @TheHHACA

Great! It's gonna be awesome, I really hope I can join my fellow German marines on that trip.

Yes...you should never paint your armour by using just one picture as reverence! I collected over years all pictures I could find and get from the Internet and compared all the colors and all I can say is that the green is not a yellow green - it is more a pretrol green and it looks like the current Humbrol 30 Acrylic Spray but with a touch of Humbrol 101 - I also compared the other colours like the brown and I am sure that the German Red Brown used today is too red and the chocolate brown is too grey - this is why you have to mix the colours to get what you want! To understand what I mean and to understand what i did you have to look at the picture below. Imagine if you could take with a pipette from every green 20% - than throw it in your mind into a glass - mix it and you'll have the right colour - than buy all humbrol greens and follow your heart and feeling and you will get the right green or brown or yellow!

If you look at the pictures you will find in the internet than go and check the light and lighting...if white elements appear to be yellow or with a yellow touch than you know that all colors, also the green and brown are having a yellow touch! Many people used pictures of an armour with yellow lighting as a reference for their painting and are sad about having wrong colors on their armour....

And the most important fact is...that you wear the armour over your BDU - so the colours of your BDU have to harmonize with the colours on your armour!

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If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

My tuppence worth,

All the photos have been taken under different lighting.
So along with those that may have a yellow tint you will also get some with a blue tint, from Fluorescents for example, that will affect the colours in the photos.

Only lighting that should show the correct colours is natural daylight.
Are there many taken in that?

Does the photography development process actually show the correct colours? (polaroids as an example I'm sure won't)

Now onto comparing with screen used armour today.
Will 30 year old paint be the same colour as it was when painted?
I very much doubt it and that's what you'll be comparing yours with.

So I doubt anyone will ever get it completely correct to the real screen used colours, unless they have a time machine.

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Martin 'Victim' Victory
A86/TQ3.4.49421E3
UKCM 13th Regt. 1st Batt. Freebooters


you can't take the PUNK outa Spunkmeyer

Good points there Martin.

There's also the fact that probably all our display screens (unless they're calibrated) are all slightly different in the way they show colours etc.

Harry

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http://www.facebook.com/TheHHACA - @TheHHACA

well... Just in case it helps anyone.



The colour in the top right is 76 - quality photography skills on my part.

That's very nearly all the Greens in the Humbrol range of tins.


I haven't heard a dicky bird from Humbrol... I doubt I will.

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You don't have to be pitilessly sadistic to work here.... But it helps.
http://www.chefs-creations.co.uk/shop/index.php/colonial-marine

http://www.kgbairsoft.com/wordpress

Humbrol 76 is very interesting!

_________________
If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

Check out his painting: http://forum.alienslegacy.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12731&start=150

_________________
If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

I used 76 on my current build, but stripped it off. It does work quite well, and mimics the various effects seen in the various reference pics.

On a related note, the only "stock" brown I've tried that looks right so far is from a tin of 170, the older "Super Enamel" version. Going to be really bummed if that's it, though I know conventional opinion so far has been that it wasn't used on the armor. It's going to bug me if I have to use a 170 "clone" when all my other colors are Humbrols... sighhhhh

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"He is as clumsy as he is stupid."

Btw, a little late night reading yielded that the Italian Molak 1170M enamel is apparently a supposed out of the box match for Humbrol 170. I've had no luck in finding a source for it though. Perhaps any of our European compatriots might lend a hand..?

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"He is as clumsy as he is stupid."

After weeks...month...years....talking with Rob (Chef) about the right colors here we go with my personal results!

This is my Instruktion for armour Painting:
Mix 101 and 30 for Green!
64 and 140 for grey!
93 and 186 for yellow

and chocolate Brown with German red Brown for correct BROWN!

This Rocks! Try if u want!

_________________
If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

While I'm not really in a position to try your specific blend, I do agree that a custom mix is a great way to go! I have no doubt yours looks great.

I am nearing a painting stage myself and don't mean to kick a dead horse here, but I keep coming to the same conclusion: Trying to determine the exact colors are an impossible task. I mean, look at all the variables in these verified screen used armor sets.



-Ski armor in the bottom right: That is PROOF of fading. The dark green color has turned ghostly. The weathering on the yellow has all but come off. While that is an extreme case, what other colors may have changed/faded over the last 30 years on the other known existing sets we see today?

-Frost armor 2nd from the right on the top row. The dark green is absent on the body, but present on the shoulders. It looks like 2 shades of brown were used (perhaps someone filled in faded spots with BB? It is clearly a lighter brown). This seems like a clear case of post production 'touch ups' (or 'tampering', if you want to apply a sinister twist). Who knows what else may be a touch up in what we see today?

-On any photo original or modern, the lighting, filter and flash all have a dramatic effect on what we see.


Add it all up and, in my opinion, you end up with an unsolvable mystery. A custom blend is just as good to me as any attempted 'official' color list. No point stressing over what can't truly be known.


BTW, I compiled this trying to determine a color for my brackets. The brackets are another example of the original painters clearly doing whatever the heck they felt like at the moment, so why should we hold ourselves to a higher standard? Do what feels right and wing it, I say.

I love the way you are writing, haha xD - yeah - you are right - pick your favourite "official" painting of one of the many a,b,c and d armours and try to copy it ! This is the way i go !

_________________
If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

Damn...I remember the heavy research to find the correct colors...haha....

_________________
If you can read this, - you're too close!
ALIENS: Last Stand (Fan Film): https://felixberner.de/film/ALIENS-Last-Stand/

Is this currently the correct colours?

Also, in your post you list mixing the two colours to get the lighter green, the yellow, the brown and the solver/grey, but I can’t see which colour is the correct one for the darker green?