Hi Istvan,
Your questions really reflect views seen many times on various forums and sometimes in popular literature. Factors you mentioned are used to explain supposed/assumed variety of colours on Soviet planes and tanks during GPW.
IMHO, effects of those factors are
grossly exegerated. Those who claim that variability of colours rely on photographic evidence and usually ignore the fact that
b/w photographs are not reliable representation of colours.
I always have the same questions stuck in my head.
-how did these paint reacted to the effects of weather ( snow ,rain etc)?
Soviet paints weathered and aged (as any other paint exposed to the elements). Here we are talking about few months, maybe a year before plane was overpainted, or crushed or shot down. Effects of such weathering were so small that b/w photos hardly recorded any diference.
-How many factories were producing these paints to the military?
Could these factories guarantee the shame shades of colors or warrant that they will keep them trough the years, because it was a problem even in the 70?s and 80?s, for example in the case of cars too?
V & O mentioned only two factories: Zavod No36 Avialak (Moscow) and Zavod ?Free Labour? (Yaroslav). Even if there were more factories, the total is probably very small and knowing how Soviet industry worked, larger portion of the production would be concentrated in few factories.
-How stabile was the resource supply in these factories?
There were many problems with raw materials spec in 1942. Some key materials were substituted with local/lower quality materials. IMHO, it wasn?t hard to replicate shade/colour of the original paint ? it was hard to make durable, high quality paint. Standards did exist throughout GPW, and producers had to meet them.
-How were the colors influenced by the conditions of the applying?
Not much?
-what kind of units did the troops receive, were these mixed or they had to do it themselves.
Field maintenance units received prepared paint (in cans), paints were not mixed in field.
-On the photos there are a few where you could barely make out the borders of the colors , but in other instances the difference between the two colors are as clear as it can get.
Borders (sharp or overspray, wide or narrow) varied in different periods and between different factories. B/w photo contrast is a different question ? for photographers.
-Right now the one and only reliable source is the France Jak-3.
N-N Yak-3 No18 was made in Nov 1944, delivered to N-N regiment in May 1945. Most of the time before May 1945, it spend stored (probably in open, covered with tarp) at Saratov factory with many other Yaks. Paint doesn?t look bad for 6 months of exposure.
This Jak has been made only for experimenting with colors.
The line were created by the Stankov book, unfortunately my photos doesn?t give me a clear sign of whether is it a repainted plane or is it a standard painting pattern.
Stankov, in general, is not a reliable source.
Hth,
KL
