Patchwork paint on Navy/Marine Phantom

[AlbertD]

When I look at the patchwork looking paint on these planes am I seeing darker paint that may have been repair work? Maybe replaced panels? Also, the panel lines on the fuselage aft of the national insignia always seem to stand out more than other parts of the plane. Is that due to heat?

[ziggyfoos]

Grime/wear/tear, Vietnam environment, corrosion control paint touchups, etc. Can find many random patchwork appearance for the "old" airframes as they continued to serve in SEA. The fuselage area especially could also have a lot of boot scuffs along the top, side, and around the wing root area as maintenance climbed up/down that area relatively frequently and would scrape their boots (heel/toe) along the whole area. Several panels on the center fuselage area were removable for maintenance component access with screw head fasteners, and woudn't be unusual to see darker/fresh paint sprayed along the edge over the fasteners. Here's a pretty scruffy looking example (post from Facebook):

[Chek]

For anyone interested, the F-4B coded VE-16 in VMFA-115 at the time was BuNo. 152245

[AlbertD]

4 hours ago, ziggyfoos said:

Grime/wear/tear, Vietnam environment, corrosion control paint touchups, etc. Can find many random patchwork appearance for the "old" airframes as they continued to serve in SEA. The fuselage area especially could also have a lot of boot scuffs along the top, side, and around the wing root area as maintenance climbed up/down that area relatively frequently and would scrape their boots (heel/toe) along the whole area. Several panels on the center fuselage area were removable for maintenance component access with screw head fasteners, and woudn't be unusual to see darker/fresh paint sprayed along the edge over the fasteners. Here's a pretty scruffy looking example (post from Facebook):

Thank you Ziggy. I want to try to replicate some of that on my Red Devils Phantom build.

[AlbertD]

4 hours ago, Jennings Heilig said:

It's more likely just corrosion control touchups, rather than "repairs" per se.

Sometimes it looks like an old Chevy that someone took a rattle can of primer to. I want to do some of this but just need to be careful not to over do it. I'm learning that less is best.

[Finn]

Not limited to Navy/Marine F-4s as here is a AF Phantom with a few paint patches and note the external tank with assorted shades of paint:

 

Jari

[Finn]

It's not hard to tell this Phantom had a replacement panel installed, or maybe it was put on the other way around on top of the spine:

 

 

Jari

[AlbertD]

I decided to go ahead and give it a try. I was thinking of a 19 year old PFC with a spray can while I was doing it. It will of course be toned down with weathering.

[Finn]

12 hours ago, Jennings Heilig said:

 

Panels can’t be put on the wrong way around.  They only fit one way.  That’s a replacement panel from a different aircraft.

Yes panels are supposed to fit one way only, that's why they have one or two different size screws or bolts so the panel does get put on the right way however some can go on anyway that fits. Check the 0 on the tail of this F-8:

 

 

Jari

[boom175]

On 9/16/2020 at 11:41 PM, Jennings Heilig said:

 

Panels can’t be put on the wrong way around.  They only fit one way.  That’s a replacement panel from a different aircraft.

You ain't tried hard enough then!! 

[Landrotten Highlander]

5 minutes ago, Jennings Heilig said:

Percussive maintenance! Get a bigger hammer.

I usually do that when me computer behaves a wee bit difficult.  Usually the sight of the 50lbs-er is enough to get the thing to behave itself.

[Confusionreigns178]

I remember seeing a photo of an US Air-Force F-4 from Vietnam and the nose-cone looked like several men had rubbed its surface with very coarse sand-paper for an hour. I have np idea what caused the weathering, but I remember maybe 70% of the black, protective paint having been stripped away. It was possibly in the Airlife Publications book "Phantom: Spirit in the Skies", but I can't be sure on that one. 

 

Cheers.

 

Chris.