[Milsurplus] [ARC5] Cleaning fine crackle paint

[Bill Carns]

We all know that wrinkle paint is a “black” art – no pun intended. The quality, grain and appearance of the wrinkle is completely dependent on layer thickness, temperature and drying conditions. I am sure that we have all experimented with those parameters and had varying degrees of success trying to match a given wrinkle. It is not surprising – given the process control state of the art in the 30s through the 50s, that wrinkle evolved and changed from one date to the next and from manufacturer to manufacturer.

 

There is an apparent exception.  The wrinkle of the black and St. James grey paint notable on the Collins equipment from the 30s through the 50s (when it finally disappeared) was exceptionally both fine and uniform.  Turns out there was a reason.  All of their St. James grey  (Black) paint was shot in a temperature controlled heated room and the drying was carefully controlled and the final secret was that every single piece of that equipment was painted by one man.  That was it. One guy did it all and he always did it the same.

 

That is one way to control a process.

 

Bill

 

From: gordon white [mailto:gewhite at crosslink.net] 
Sent: Friday, April 17, 2015 12:05 PM
To: Bill Carns; 'Glen Zook'; hwhall at compuserve.com; arc5 at mailman.qth.net; milsurplus at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [ARC5] [Milsurplus] Cleaning fine crackle paint

 

You know that the black wrinkle paint changed over time, especially at first at Aircraft Radio Corporation. I have seen the lab prototype Type K equipment, which had painr with very tiny wrinkles. The ARA/ATA and SCR-274N gear had slightly different wrinkle and the AN/ARC-5 slightly larger wrinkled paint that when new was more shiny than the Type K or ARA/ATA

 - and I doubt the difference was just in the age.

 - Gordon White