Cno7 Chest correct colour?

[Buccaneer]

I have just acquired a good Cno7 chest that is very sound but the paint has almost gone, I want to refinish it but I need to know the correct colour, was it deep bronze green?

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[Flying10uk]

I have used Very Dark Drab for a Bren chest and a repro Thompson chest that I'm making. There is a slight difference in shade between Very Dark Drab and Nato Green. I also have a Bren chest that is in Deep Bronze Green which I suspect could be ex Australian army but this is only a suspicion and has not been confirmed.

[stencollector]

The Cno7 chests were originally a somewhat pale olive green. Thru the 50s and 60s, the bulk of them were repainted the Canadian semigloss olive green. I have a few minty samples of the original finish, and a larger number of them with the semi-gloss green. Most of the chests have the semigloss green, and also have the NSN and checklist number painted on them, indicating post 1963 service.

You can usually see the original colour inside the lid of the chest.

[Buccaneer]

You can usually see the original colour inside the lid of the chest.

The inside and outside are both green but are so badly faded that it is impossible to tell what colour they started out as. I can now find the paint but does anyone know where I can get a set of the correct letter & number stencils???

[bigduke6]

Paul, is it for yourself or to punt on ? if your moving it on I'd leave the stencil to the new owner, gives them a blank canvas.........

as for colour I'd go by UK Military vehicles, khaki at the beginning of the war, service brown 42-44, olive drab 44 -till Deep Bronze green came into fashion...... as Peter often says all depends what the blanket stackers had on there shelves at the time.

[Peter Laidler]

On the other hand you could get a few samples from your box (or ask Sten collector for a few) on a piece of sellotape and ask one of the paint mixers to analyse the sample on their spectrometer and come up with the EXACT match and mix formula. Valentines Paint did it for my Mini Cooper engine colour. But like Duke says (thread 5) the blanket stackers just use the paint that they get from the fitters shop! But if you do it the blanket stackers method, don't forget to get it all in the hinges so they are jammed solid, running down inside, all over the floor and overalls, into the catches and then leave great big greasy hand marks on it where it's been put back in the shed. And don't forget to leave the brush in the open tin to go solid for a few days afterwards

[stencollector]

To that end, I picked up almost 30 chests the other year, and some had been painted grey, most the semigloss green, one black, and a couple were still their original olive. I suppose it depends on what level of "overhaul" the paint job was done at...user, unit, station or depot.

As to the stencilling, I found a few varieties of the original stencilling, including one chest where they seem to have silkscreened the lettering as there are no gaps like you get on a traditional stencil. The Original did not have much more than the basic description.

Thru the 50s, they repainted the chests, and you would usually find the checklist "scale" number.

In the 60s, the paint job included the NSN for the rifle complete with EIS.

So depending on what time period you are covering, the stenciling will change.

I'll try and snap some photos of the different markings.

[Buccaneer]

But if you do it the blanket stackers method, don't forget to get it all in the hinges so they are jammed solid, running down inside, all over the floor and overalls, into the catches and then leave great big greasy hand marks on it where it's been put back in the shed. And don't forget to leave the brush in the open tin to go solid for a few days afterwards

Yes Peter I know my L42 box is EXACTLY as you describe....

[englishman_ca]

Canadian C No.7 transit chests. No two the same.

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[snipershot1944]

Anybody got a spare Canadian 4T chest for my Long Branch?