Guardsman Blue and Gulf Blue?

[unclescott58]

I'm building the Revell(/Fujimi) Ford GT-40 Mk II #2 car that Dan Gurney and Jerry Grant ran and almost won at Sebring in March of 1966. That car was painted a dark blue called Guardsman Blue. I would like to find the closest blue Tamyia makes in a spray can to that color. Anybody have any suggestions?

Why we are at it, I'm also building Fujimi's Porsche 917K '70 Le Mans Gulf #20. And I wonder if Tamiya has a light blue in a spray can that is close to the Gulf Blue those cars ran with.

Note I only use lacquer paint that comes in spray cans. I've had my best luck with Tamiya lacquers. But, I'm willing to consider other suggestions, as long as the paint is lacquer and in a spray can. I do not, will not shoot enamels anymore. So the closest lacquer is what I'm looking for.

Scott

[Snake45]

Too bad, as Model Master Arctic Blue is a pretty good match for Guardsman Blue

Gulf light blue can be easily mixed from Testor 1108 and white, but it's not lacquer in a rattlecan, sorry.

If you ever start airbrushing, you'll find that enamels cut with lacquer thinner behave very, very much like lacquers. Been doing it for decades now.

[unclescott58]

Thank you Snake. I'll look into the Model Master Artic Blue. But, the mixing of paints to make something close to Gulf Blue is not going to happen. The late 60's-early 70's Gulf race cars must be popular enough that somebody must offer something close to Gulf Blue.

This bring up another question about the Gulf cars. The Fujimi's Gulf Porsche decals do not cover all areas that need be colored orange. This color I assume I will be brush painting on. Does anybody offer a paint close enough match to the orange to match the Fujimi's decals? With bush paints I prefer acrylics.

Scott

[Cato]

Scott, this is Guardsman:

Not sure what you're referring to as 'dark blue'. Scalefinishes makes probably the best lacquer spray of Guardsman.

Edited June 11, 2015 by Cato

[fseva]

I'm building the Revell(/Fujimi) Ford GT-40 Mk II #2 car that Dan Gurney and Jerry Grant ran and almost won at Sebring in March of 1966. That car was painted a dark blue called Guardsman Blue. I would like to find the closest blue Tamyia makes in a spray can to that color. Anybody have any suggestions?

GTS Blue Pearl is a Model Master Lacquer in a rattle can - looks a lot like the photo someone posted here. I have used it and it really does look close...

[vairnut]

Scott, Model Car World offers both colors in spary cans. Gulf blue 2064 and Guardsman blue 6436. It's automotive lacquer. The cans are a bit pricey at $15 each but much better quality. Does require priming first with lacquer primer - duplicolor spray will work.

I haven't found anything Tamiya or Testors close to Gulf blue, and the real Guardsman is a bit different than the other dk mettalic blues in that it has a bit of gray or cast steel hue to it.

[Brett Barrow]

I have a chip of Guardsman Blue, and it's very subdued like a steely blue. I think Tamiya and Model Master lacquers are all too vivid a blue.

[Brett Barrow]

Actually Model Master Lacquer Ford Acapulco Blue is very, very close, just tested it out. Getting even better as it dries. They could label it as Guardsman Blue and I doubt anyone would complain.

Tamiya TS-50 is too vivid. That's the only Tamiya medium met blue I have handy.

Edited June 9, 2015 by Brett Barrow

[Matt Bacon]

You could try Tamiya AS-5 spray for the Gulf Blue:

bestest.

m.

[Matt Bacon]

...and a lot of Cobra's seem to get painted in TS-19:

or you could try TS-51 Racing blue over different base metallics, like this guy:

http://zerofourgundam.blogspot.fr/2012/01/mg-qant-wip-tamiya-base-coats-and-blues.html

(The TS-51 is at the right hand end in the pics)

It looks very different over mica silver than it does over gunmetal or black. I'd try it with Polished Aluminium as well...

bestest,

M,

[unclescott58]

Tamiya's TS-52, racing blue looks correct for Guardsman Blue to me. What do others think.

Scott

Edited June 9, 2015 by unclescott58

[Brett Barrow]

TS-51 you mean? Too dark, too blue. TS-19 is probably the closest in Tamiya. I dug out a can and sprayed a test, it's very similar to TS-50. Similar in shade, just a bit too vivid for Guardsman Blue.

Edited June 9, 2015 by Brett Barrow

[DR JAY]

Have you considered obtaining a paint code and having an automotive paint supply place make you a rattle can of your favourite colours? I use a supply house locally that mixes me whatever I want in full size cans for about 25 bucks. A little pricey, yes, but considering how much paint I get compared to the contents of a Tamiya can--and the colour is either computer matched or mixed by code and 100% what I am looking for--and the fact that I reserve this expenditure for special projects only; it makes sense for me.

[High octane]

I've seen the Gurney cars and Acapulco Blue would probably be close as Brett had already mentioned that.

[Brett Barrow]

That's the Acapulco Blue on the left and TS-19 on the right (or top if it flips my pic). TS-19 or TS-50 would probably be closer over a dark base like black or gunmetal, these are on white. TS-51 Is a bit darker than -19/50 but still very blue I thought I had a can, I know I've used it before.

Scratch that, I think TS-51 over Gunmetal might be the way to go in Tamiya after checking out that link above.

Edited June 10, 2015 by Brett Barrow

[Brett Barrow]

or you could try TS-51 Racing blue over different base metallics, like this guy:

http://zerofourgundam.blogspot.fr/2012/01/mg-qant-wip-tamiya-base-coats-and-blues.html

(The TS-51 is at the right hand end in the pics)

It looks very different over mica silver than it does over gunmetal or black. I'd try it with Polished Aluminium as well...

bestest,

M,

Yeah, TS-51 over Gunmetal looks good, the middle spoon in that first pic. I might be remembering it darker than it really is, I just remember it being too dark for a Moto GP bike Tamiya recommended it in the instructions of.

[SSNJim]

I saw on another site that the original Gulf racing blue was RAL 6027. I used to have the orange color too, but can't seem to find it, but it was another RAL color, maybe 2005 or 2007. I think it was 2007.

They seem to be pretty close to the original colors anyway. The RAL colors are used by military modelers, and there should be cross-references to more common paints.

Edited June 10, 2015 by SSNJim

[fseva]

Have you considered obtaining a paint code and having an automotive paint supply place make you a rattle can of your favourite colours? I use a supply house locally that mixes me whatever I want in full size cans for about 25 bucks. A little pricey, yes, but considering how much paint I get compared to the contents of a Tamiya can--and the colour is either computer matched or mixed by code and 100% what I am looking for--and the fact that I reserve this expenditure for special projects only; it makes sense for me.

Gee, if I had that guy so readily available, I'd ask him for a 1oz bottle - then, I'd go home and add 3oz of lacquer thinner and airbrush like crazy!

[Ace-Garageguy]

Gee, if I had that guy so readily available, I'd ask him for a 1oz bottle - then, I'd go home and add 3oz of lacquer thinner and airbrush like crazy!

Most of the paint formulas in body-shop-supply houses won't do a 1oz quantity of anything. The formula weights are usually set up for standard size cans.

It IS possible to do one liquid ounce by weight on the electronic scale most color mixers use these days... if your paint-shop-mixer guy isn't math-challenged.

Good luck with that.

[unclescott58]

TS-51 you mean? Too dark, too blue. TS-19 is probably the closest in Tamiya. I dug out a can and sprayed a test, it's very similar to TS-50. Similar in shade, just a bit too vivid for Guardsman Blue.

Yea, I meant TS-51. I'm getting a little confused on what the color of the Gerney/Grant GT-40 Mk II #2 was as raced at Sebring on March 26, 1966. Their car looked like a very dark blue to me. Revell claims in their story about the car at the begining of the instruction sheet, that car was painted Guardsman Blue. Maybe it was not Guardsman Blue like Revell claims, and something else? Tamiya's TS-51, Racing Blue looks close to me.

As far as the Gulf cars, I got the impression from one source that any light blue and basic orange will work. I question this. It would be very easy to go with Tamiya TS-23, Light Blue in a that case. That does look kind of close. Now, I wonder about Tamiya's basic acrylic orange paint?

Scott

[vairnut]

My local auto paint supplier mixes up 1 - 3 oz of lacquer for me all the time. Known as "touch up" for fixing door dings and small areas. I have about 50 factory stock 1950's - 1970's colors on hand. They have been doing this for 15+ yrs. After telling them I used it for models and showing a couple of builds to them they very rarely ever charge me for it. About 1 out of every 4 mixes they charge $5 - $7. They stopped doing spray cans a long time ago but there are a couple of other auto paint supply stores around here that still do that.

I use the Tamiya AS lt blue all the time and it's way too light for the Gulf color. I know of nothing close to Gulf blue in spray cans, the closest would be the old Testors regular line enamel lt. blue

Edited June 11, 2015 by vairnut

[Ace-Garageguy]

My local auto paint supplier mixes up 1 - 3 oz of lacquer for me all the time. Known as "touch up" for fixing door dings and small areas.

You're indeed a lucky fella. Nobody around here even HAS lacquer mixing bases any more (because production body shops no longer use lacquer, and there's no point in keeping mixing bases that just sit on the shelf for years and dry out).

It's urethane or acrylic enamel (for cheap all-overs) or nothing.

Edited June 11, 2015 by Ace-Garageguy

[Matt Bacon]

I use the Tamiya AS lt blue all the time and it's way too light for the Gulf color. I know of nothing close to Gulf blue in spray cans, the closest would be the old Testors regular line enamel lt. blue

917 and GT40 Gulf Blue IS pretty light:

I've got both the blue and orange from Zero's, and they're what I use for Gulf cars, but the OP wants a rattle can.

That's what it looks like on a model.

bestest,

M.