Color Formulae

Many current documents quote FS #34087 as being Olive Drab, which it in fact is, however it is not the live Drab that was used during WWII for which there is no matching current FS number. Both our Olive Drab #340 & Olive Drab - Shade 41 match the WWII color.

M & M Models - Military Aircraft Color Guide

As time passed extensive research has been done pertaining to the exact colors applied to the Japanese Aircraft at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack and after. Significant evidence has been found in the form of actual aircraft parts which were acquired from crashed Japanese aircraft after the Pearl Harbor attack or as souvenirs during the war. These pieces, well preserved from the affects of salt, sun and heat, have revealed that another color was widely used on the aircraft of the Japanese naval air force.

So extensive has this research been that is now strongly believed that the Grey tones which were previously identified as the top side colors of many aircraft were likely to have been oxidized examples of what is now known as "Bamboo". This color which was originally applied as a gloss quickly faded and oxidized.

Documentation of the existence of "Bamboo" can be found in the Japanese Naval and Army aircraft color and markings books produced by Ian K. Banker and Donald W. Thorpe respectively. Additionally, actual inspection of well preserved aircraft parts done by James F. Lansdale at the US National archives confirms the existance of the color. Most recently, an actual inspection of a "Zero" on display at Kermit Weeks "Fantasy of Flight" mesuem in Florida by the producer of the M&M Models - Military Aircraft Color Guide revealed small samples of the original color he U.S. National Archives confirms the existance of the color remaining on approximately 5% of the aircraft. Safe from the elements, this color was matched and reproduced for this book.

The above information has been discussed and confirmed as factual by Dave Platt A.M.A. previous scale board chairman.

To view any of our current lists of mixing formulae for Military, Federal Standard colors, Monokote, and Ultracote colors, please click on your desired formulae set below. Viewing these formulas requires some form of Adobe Reader.

Note*** - We now have an expanded, multiple page list of colors we have already determined the formulas for! If you don't see your desired formula, please email us or call us directly and request that we work on it. There currently is NO Up-Charge for this service! All we require is a firm order for a minimum quantity of the color. All Klass Kote Epoxy mixing formulas are measured in weight by grams. There are some formulas that indicate "drops" of certain colors. If you do not have access to a gram scale, you can substitute "parts" in place of grams. Because the specific gravity (weight) of each Klass Kote Epoxy Paint color is slightly different, using a "parts" substitution number will yield a close facsimile to the desired color. You can then work from there to fine tune your mixture. If you need help interpreting our formulas - please feel free to email us for direction.

These formulas are provided as is, without any specific warranties implied or intended. If you work on, and develop a formula for a color that is not in our list, but feel it would be useful to the Klass Kote users community, please feel free to email us a copy the formula, and we'll be sure to get it published to our website. Be sure to include the proper name of the color, including any codes to properly identify it.

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