The colours of Albatros cowling hoods

[Olham]

Dear Dan-San, Greg Wyngarden (or anyone else who really knows?)

Recently, I have worked on some Albatros skins for use in my favourite sim.
I have made quite a few now.
Then I have come across the beautiful Albatros D V they have built at the "Vintage Aviator" website.
There, they used a grey-green for the hood, which is a bit similar to the WW2 colour RLM 02. Other hoods on models or in photographs look, as if they are polished alloy, with no colour. Then again, some seem to be just a light grey.

Now I would really like to know, if you know, which colours were used on which types? If it was discussed before: "perhaps you can lead me to the water"?

If anyone wants to give me colour code numbers: I only have access to RLM or German modern RAL colour samples.

Thank you very much! Stay aloft! Olham

[Hans]

All metal parts on Albatros D.V where painted, I never saw a unpainted cowling.

For a primary source I would use the restored Albatros in the NASM plus surviving parts like those found in

The Aero Conservancy

The NASM Albatros seems to be rather dark on several photos in the net, but it isn't. The grey-green they used I would describe as RAL 6011, but maybe there where some originals with a lighter tone which I would compare with RAL 6021.

Judging from b/w-photographs is not possible and to make it even more harder, Jasta colours where often applied to the cowlings, so be aware if you are looking to an unchanged cowling or not.

H

[SCMc]

Here is a photo of the recently restored Alb D.Va at the Australian War Memorial. The color may not be exact, because it is a restoration (though they sought to be very careful this time), and there can be color shift due to the camera, lighting and your monitor, but it should give you some idea.

I would expect the painted metal parts of all models (D.I to D.Va) to be similar, if not the same.

Steve

[Olham]

Thank you, Hans!
RAL 6011 could be the colour used by "The Vintage Aviator" indeed.
And RAL 6021 looks much like the upper wing surface light green.

The author Jim Miller wrote to me, that a factory painting of Albatros cowlings
was also "a yellow brown". He knew it was factory painting, cause there was
stencil writing on it. Unfortunately I haven't found any color pictures of Albatros
original parts (if they exist at all).

I still wonder, if the basic rust protection paint RLM 02 could have been in use
already in WW1 ? (Not under that name of course; but predecessors of IG Farben had roots earlier than the Third Reich. See here: IG Farben - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ). RLM 02 is the olive-grey RAL 7002.

The NASM made mistakes on their craft, so I don't know, how good their sources might be. One mistake was, that the "Albatros" emblem on the port side looked/flew to the right, rearwards. But the Albatros emblem figures always flew in flight direction, forwards, as can be seen on original photographs. Seems, so early aircraft are a difficult research object.

Thank you again! Olham

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Hello Olham:
It seems all the cowlings from the Alb.D.I throught the Alb.D.V were painted grey tinted with green with a result of a color about like WW2 RLM grau, possibly a little lighter. With the Albatros built D.Va the cowling and metal parts and fittings, access doors, louvers etc., were a little darker than RLM grau. Check the photos of the Alb.D.Va 7161/17, "Stropp" in the National Air & Space Museum in Washington,D.C.. Also the Alb.D.Va built by Vintage Aviator in New Zealand. It is magnificent!
Blue skies Olham,
Dan-San

[Olham]

Thank you very much, Dan-San!
In our "Over Flanders fields" Forum, I was given the advice to ask you,
as you seem to know all Albatros photographs available, and so much more.

Yes, the Albatros replica of Josef Mai's D Va at "The Vintage Aviator" is magnificent indeed! I have been "strolling" through the many photos, made to document the building of the craft, many times.
And I was wondering, if the grey might be the "predecessor" to RLM 02 Grey. Now you confirm that, and I will work this into my next skins.

Thank you so much!

Olham

[Olham]

Here's what I have done with "my" Albatros skin so far.
It is based on the skin works of James "OvS" Romano from the WW1 sim crew "Over Flanders Fields". I made new plywood, and changed parts of the hood after photographs, and the help of other enthusiasts like JFM, or in this case, Dan-San Abbott.

Please don't mind some distortions - this is a skin, which was designed to be
placed over a 3D model; that's why. What do you think - could the color be right?

[Hans]

Olham, RLM 02 had several "internal" changes, the recipes where changed due to changing demands concerning the corrosion resitance. Also the binding agents where different. If there is any sort of 'relationship', then it would be to the different sorts of Feldgrau used as general "army paint" in WWI. These Feldgrau where used on everything, from cannons over LKW up to gas mask containers. It also was a greyish green or a greenish grey....

H

[Brez]

Hello,
Dan San, Hal,

You haven't mentioned the (originally) brown cowling on the War Memorial Albatros DVa in Canberra (Bob Waugh's drawing, page 104 of the Albatros DVa by Robert Mikesh).

Any thoughts on this? Did it leave the Albatros factory like this, do you know?


Cheers,
Tony.

['14-'18aviationcollector]

Hi Tony,

The opinion explained to me is that the brown was an early re paint. Before the latest restoration I had seen the original brown on several occasions, and there was plenty of it to be seen under the bright green paint applied during the latte 1960's / early 1970's restoration. The green paint was simply sprayed or brushed on with the cowls in place. If the brown was not an early re paint, as suggested during the most recent restoration, it could be a Jasta colour or a personal marking.

Regards,

David.