[WWI] Fabric

[Knut Erik Hagen]

Hei,

I have had access to pieces of fabric from the airship N1 build by Nobile in
the mid 20ies and used by Roald Amundsen to reach the North Pole.
Internal gasbas are yellow, I would almost say mustard coloured.
External surface is aluminium doped, red primer underneath is only visible
where the fabric has been cut/torn.

An Etrich Rumpler Taube on display here in Norway has probably been
recovered, my impression is that the original covering was an offwhite
finish with a yellowish/grey tinge.  
For my model in 1:48 did I use Humbrols Ivory and I think it looks reasonable.
I would suggest you start with white and add a touch of yellow if mixing the
colours yourself.
See http://www.wwi-models.org/app/sbj/srch/Macn.php?action=uArchList&subjId=299


  Eders
Knut Erik



>Not to flog an old horse again, but I would like to ask about fabric. I
have been re-reading an airship book, and the subject of envelope fabric a
la Zep is rather lenghthy. The fabric used was red, as red was believed to
inhibit sunlight damage to the cloth. Doped with clear with a healthy amount
of aluminium powder. What the author doesn't state is WHEN Zep started doing
this-the book begins with Goodyear-Zep and the USN right after the war.In my
collection of oddities, I've got an OT Nat'l Geo bookmark made from the
envelope of Explorer 2. I have had this since 1960, when I found it in a
copy of 20 Hours, 40 Minutes-it is rather brown and has slight spalling of
the rubber, but the condition hasn't changed much in the intervening 46
years. I also have a fair sized, 2'x18" bit of Vought-Sikorsky fabric that's
been used as reinforcing on flying models and it is quite supple still, is
the same pale aqua it was when my uncle gave it to me. He worked as VS
from1934 to the end,
> and this fabric dates to OSU timeframe. What I am interested in is, has
anyone got any older samples, traceable to Mrf (both cloth and aircraft)?
The point of this is : what color is the fabric Rumpler used prewar and into
the Taube combat variants? I've seen rather bright yellow Continental
manufactured cloth and a warmer, toned down yellow from SPAD (which was in
terrible shape). I am almost ready to cover a cute 1/24 taube and would like
some input as to whose dope or other finish I should use? I get somewhat
reluctant to commit to a color on a one-off model (and do I have some
paint-ready birds amassed!) for fear of feeling that I blew it on the
finish-John Marganski