What are the correct {brand} colors for {specific ship}?

The primary basis for ship-color choice was cost!

First of all, until very recently, the pigments used for painting on a ship had either mineral (e.g., iron oxides) or organic (e.g., tar, lampblack) bases (the first manufactured chemical pigment, Prussian Blue, first appeared about 1750; few others appeared until the 20th century).

The mineral pigments were mined (usually locally) and then purified (to some extent) - that meant that "red" used in New England was likely a different shade of color than that mined in Virginia (go to the hobby shop and look at all the different shades of "boxcar red" in the train area - the railroads had the same constraints as the ship owners).

The organic pigments (such as "tar") were also made in relatively small batches - excessive "cooking" could significantly change (e.g., darken) the color.

The painters would buy the pigments and make their own paints - usually enough for one day's work. Thus the colors would vary slightly from one day to another, depending on the various components (and even the weather!) As the paint dried out during the day, or as more solvent was added, the colors would change again.

The result would be that a particular color on a single ship would not be consistent; different ships (especially from different areas) could be quite different.

Then the colors would weather! (The actual minerals might not change their color, but the various binders use to hold them together might darken, yellow, fade, or otherwise change) - to say nothing of dirt (and rust) accumulation.

Finally, the viewer and his surroundings could dramatically change the color perceived - any moisture in the air would tend to make the colors appear bluish from a distance; so would increasing the distance. (Some modelers attempt to compensate for this effect by adding a small amount of blue-gray to each color used; this "tones-down" the colors and helps unify them as well.)

That's why there can be no "correct" match between modern modeler's colors and the "original" - the original itself would vary a great deal! This hold true even for modern warships.

A fellow (Ray Morton) in our club once shared his research into the colors used on the Constitution, and gave the Pantone references. I don't have the original, but I'd transcribed it thus ("v" is "value" - I don't know how to apply it; "P" is the Pantone designation; all colors are flat unless otherwise specified; I also am not sure if the fields separated by "/" are alternatives or part of the designation):

Yellow Ochre:	v=5, P=131C
Litharge:	v=6/7, P=145C
Vermillion:	v=4/5, P=193C
Terra Cotta:	v=3/5, P=175C / 1685C
Prussian Blue:	v=3/4, P=Reflex Blue C / 296C
Verdigris:	v=3, P=330C
Dark Green:	v=4, P=350C
Black Lead:	v=3, P=405; Satin
Lampblack:	v=0.5, P=Process Black C;
Ordinance Black:	v=1, Pantone=Process Black C; Slight Sheen

Perhaps someone with a Pantone Chart can translate these to standard Paint colors?

Note: one advantage of Pantone is that you can output Pantone colored documents to a computer color-printer.
{John O. Kopf}

PMS books are produced on special presses by Pantone and are broken into coated (C) and uncoated (U) sections, denoting the stock.

Other than Opaque White, lithographic inks are transparent and color is contingent on the stock it is printed on. The book assumes white and must be replaced often as the stock yellows, fades etc.. if you want to maintain consistent color matching. There are also light-fastness issues with different pigments within a formula to be taken into account.

Ink pigments do not also always correspond to commercially available paint pigments.
{Joe Volz}

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