The Camouflage Project

Shipshapes

The Camouflage Project

Pensacola (left) with Measure 32 and Northampton (right) with Measure 12

After creating Northampton, it came to my attention that I might want to create various camouflage measures for these vessels. I considered different means of doing so; perhaps actually painting it in or coating certain sections with different colored clay. I decided on a far simpler and realistic solution; drawing camouflage measures on strips of paper than can be wrapped around the hull and interchanged.

Now, granted, this doesn't let me camouflage the superstructure like it would have been in real life, but that would just be far too complicated. But it does give some variety to the hulls of the ships that I was making.  

I started by just measuring the approximate width of Pensacola's hull as it was the tallest of the lot besides Saratoga. Repeating that four more times, I had five strips of blank white paper on which to draw the patterns. I decided on Measure 32 and Measure 12 in addition to the Measure 22 that I painted the ships in. 

I then proceeded to cut out one from each and test them on two models. I decided that Pensacola and Northampton would be the test subjects for this project. I wrapped each one around the hull and taped the extra segment to the full one.

I then slipped the measure around the hulls of the vessels until they were tight. The end result turned out quite well; I could effectively give a ship an interchangeable and temporary camouflage that I could take on and off at will. A success, so to say.