Used FDE and Olive drab.  The pics online look waaaay different than it turned out on my rifle.  The olive drab looks a lot "greener" on the handgun they have on the Cerakote site.  They have a Glock that looks much "greener" than the wavy sample picture (Cerakote OD page).

I'm OK with the Olive Drab, but the FDE really isn't what I expected. (Cerakote FDE).

It may be more that the images of warhawks the green is greener (but the brown is also browner)

I had a mishap and the red got on too thick and subsequently lifted with the masking so I'm going to start over but I'm going to change to a different brown, just not sure which (leaning to Desert Sand which may be technically too light but I think would look good).

Any suggestions??  Anyone have pics of Olive Drab alongside any of the browns so I can see what it would look like in the "real world" since the pics on the Cerakote site don't really match with what I'm seeing real world.

I'd love to see Olive Drab and Desert Sand together on the same item.



This is what I envison OD and Desert Sand:


This seems to not be loading, link should be: LINK

This is how I pictured FDE and Olive Drab would look:


ETA:  Retrospectively, that last photo makes me think the OD is the problem and needs to be a greener green?????

Barett brown would be a little darker and maybe forest green?

First of all, get ye these: Montactical Stencils

BOOYAH!  Wow, thanks.  Ordering 2 just in case I mess one up.

I was going to use Playdough to fill in the "non-teeth" part of the mouth.  Still plan to play around with that concept but those stencils would have saved a TON of time.

Found this pic on the Cerakote Picture thread, page 12 about 2/3 way down (user "woodsy").  He lists Magpul FDE and Olive Drab (plus graphite black).  The green and brown looks like what I want in terms of colors/contrast etc.  His OD looks greener than my OD and that Magpul FDE looks WAAAAAAY lighter than my standard FDE (and on the cerakote site the Magpul looks a little darker than standard Flat Dark Earth).



I'll shoot him an IM to see if he mis-labled his picture in that thread (?).

Those P-40s were painted in RAF colors.
IIRC medium green and earth.
OD was the color applied to the US Warhawks in one solid color with the undersides neutral gray.
The FDE looks fine, anything else would be to light.
The green is your problem.

80sgyrene, I think you may be right.  Leaning toward ordering the Highland Green and use that with the FDE.....

As I said Augee, they were painted in RAF colors, not in RAF paint. The later "E" models most likely wore the standard USAAC scheme.
Patriot brown would be too dark for the earth color. At least compared to the Glock I had done.

OP, what if you just paint with enamels, then the weathering would replicate the battered appearance of the Tomahawks. They really got beat up.



Some good pics of RT Smith with Charlie Older's P-40.

Thanks for the help.

I think I'm going to order Highland Green and use it with the FDE.  I like the Patriot Brown, but not sure it would really be much different than the FDE.

All the other greens I think would give me the "not green enough" feeling I have with the current OD.

Not trying to be historically accurate, more just so when people see it they think "That looks like it represents a P-40 Warhawk from the Flying Tigers".  In fact, I plan to paint the front couple inches of the hand guard red to simulate the red spinners I've seen on some later model P40's, and may even do horizontal red/white stripes on the rear of stock (I've seen some P40's with blue/white on the rudder).

That last pics by 80sgyrene shows a red fuselage band which I don't recall seeing on other p40's.  I've painted my standup jetskis in fighter camo schemes and all have a fuselage band like the German theater bands (and all have a shark's mouth...).   So there will be some stylizing going on

In for pics of your completed rifle.  What rail are you planning on using (if you mentioned it I missed it)?  Looks like a cool project.

Dude, you do you, but by the time you add enough "design cues" to the rifle to make someone instantly think, "oh, that's a P-40 Warhawk, but as a rifle"! you're going to have a shit ton of other stuff that is going make the rifle look um..."really busy".

I love me some WWII aviation and the Flying Tigers, but a plane is not a rifle...and getting it there may not turn out as great, unless you already have the end design in front of you. If you are going to try to get it right "as you go along", I think you will ultimately be disappointed with the result.

I'm reminded of the A-10 exhaust spinners on a truck..."But the gun is sideways? And it's on a truck. Let me add an A-10 decal. And now some "rivet" decals. And now the shark mouth on the quarter panel. Wait, now it needs a battle damage! That's the ticket"!

And before you know it...

Frank, plan Seekins SP3R V3.  It is going to be a precison/benchrest rifle and the flat bottom should make it easier to stabilize on sandbags etc.

GT, I think the available area will limit the "busy-ness".  I was going to put kill flags on it, but can't really figure out a good spot on the receivers to put them, so I think they will not be used.  I'm going to put the US star on the stock, and possibly the red/white stripes but that's probably about it.  Thought about a number, but not enough room (and the theater band will likely not make it due to space issues).  We'll see.  I'll put pics up when done, but will be several months (haven't even purchased hand guard, stock, barrel)…..

I do wish you luck though; it may just be the screen/photos/whatever, but I think your FDE and OD green look spot on. I hope the finished result turns out just like you want, and the effort will be worth it.