Color schemes you later regretted?

[MichaelRapp]

A few weeks ago I happened upon a photo of a really striking rocket (I wish I could find it again), but the paint scheme was a dark forest green with fluorescent green accents, an absolutely beautiful rocket.

I liked it so much that I recently went out and bought the paints to try to do my own version of it, until yesterday when I remembered that the field I primarily fly from is....grass, often tall grass. And grass, usually, is, well, green. Hmmm. Perhaps this would have been a suboptimal paint scheme for me. If I lived in Nevada, not so much, but where I am....maybe not a good idea.

This made me wonder what other paint schemes others have tried or envisioned only later to realize they just didn't work (or were outright hideous).

 

[jderimig]

Similar. I restored a John Deere tractor and painted a rocket in JD green and yellow. Flew it in a grass field with thousands of beautiful yellow dandelions. Found it by stepping on it while searching for it.

 

[solid_fuel]

I painted the Estes mini Honest John according to the package. OD green on a bt20 rocket. walked right past it quite a few times while looking for it in medium height grass

 

[dr wogz]

I have seen many a rocket painted green. I even have a few myself. bad. bad, very bad! especially teh flat greens..

I remember, many many years ago, someone had a rocket that had a "camo" parachute. yeah, a very limited number of flights on that one!

 

[jqavins]

I had a non-color scheme I regretted. My Office Supplies rocket is unpainted (because paint is not an office supply product) so it's totally unfinished cardboard and paper. As it was landing is high grass I realized it was not a great idea to fly it right away when the rain stopped. Fortunately it landed close and is quite visible, so I recovered it before any soaking occurred; the damp spots dried without damage. It will remain a shelf queen unless I break down and clearcoat it.

 

[cbrarick]

my son picked out the colors for my L1 when he was 4. My poor vulconite is hunter green on the fin can and purple on the payload & nose cone.
The club voted "Morning After Bad Thai Food." That's what's on it now!

 

[Nytrunner]

Anything painted sky-colored or field stubble colored

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

I have built a few sci-fi style rockets and painted them metallic silver. It looks good up close, but on the pad, in the air, and on the ground, they tend to reflect the colors around them and blend in.

 

[Banzai88]

Anything that I've ever painted Gray, Blue, White, or Green. Can't see the gray or blue or pure white for snot in the sky, and I renamed the green rocket "lost in the beans" for a reason.

 

[David Schwantz]

This one. Went into corn field ballistic. Still in corn field, even had a neon orange chute, which by the way, did NOT deploy. Just finished the green on # 2 tonight.

 

[Nytrunner]

This one. Went into corn field ballistic. Still in corn field, even had a neon orange chute, which by the way, did NOT deploy. Just finished the green on # 2 tonight.

Its almost as if it was designed to be hard to see.....

 

[rharshberger]

Its almost as if it was designed to be hard to see.....

Almost...
Where I live dont paint them desert colors, once its off the sod its well hidden in the tumbleweeds and sagebrush thats if the cornfield or the potato fields dont get it...on second thought forget about camo if you want to see it ever again.

 

[kuririn]

At the risk of sounding misogynistic,
anything with glitter paint.
Too girly.

 

[MichaelRapp]

I have built a few sci-fi style rockets and painted them metallic silver. It looks good up close, but on the pad, in the air, and on the ground, they tend to reflect the colors around them and blend in.

Interesting! I never would have thought about that, but I absolutely can see that. Wild.

 

[David Schwantz]

Its almost as if it was designed to be hard to see.....

Yup. Had a F-18E model at one time, painted it low vis gray. Guess what But what can I say, like the scheme.

 

[Marc_G]

Sure fire cure for green rocket in green grass is to put a 2 foot orange caution tape streamer on the shock cord. Makes it very easy to see!

 

[BABAR]

I had a non-color scheme I regretted. My Office Supplies rocket is unpainted (because paint is not an office supply product) so it's totally unfinished cardboard and paper. As it was landing is high grass I realized it was not a great idea to fly it right away when the rain stopped. Fortunately it landed close and is quite visible, so I recovered it before any soaking occurred; the damp spots dried without damage. It will remain a shelf queen unless I break down and clearcoat it.

I had a Flutter Bye that I first flew unpainted. In the fall. In a field with dried grass, and numerous leaves which were remarkably similar to unpainted balsa and body tubes in color......
I DID find the upper section, which was fortunate as it had the nose cone. The rear section was fairly easily rebuilt using scraps.

Rockets that use featherweight, tumble, glider, helicopter.... basically anything other than a chute or a streamer, REAAAALLLYY need bright markings!

 

[BABAR]

At the risk of sounding misogynistic,
anything with glitter paint.
Too girly.

Call me a Quiche Eater. I like glitter paint. Makes rocket easy to find, and hides finishing imperfections better than gloss colors. I'll take the teasing over the dejection of spending 10 minutes or more unsuccessfully looking for my latest rocket.

 

[jqavins]

I like the idea of a glittery ribbon for a streamer. There might be a design I'd use glittery paint, but I can't think of one at the moment.

 

[David Schwantz]

I had a non-color scheme I regretted. My Office Supplies rocket is unpainted (because paint is not an office supply product) so it's totally unfinished cardboard and paper. As it was landing is high grass I realized it was not a great idea to fly it right away when the rain stopped. Fortunately it landed close and is quite visible, so I recovered it before any soaking occurred; the damp spots dried without damage. It will remain a shelf queen unless I break down and clearcoat it.

Spray it down with "camp dry". it is clear and non staining. Will soak in and waterproof it.

 

[AfterBurners]

I launch at the dry lake beds so don't really have that problem, but that being said I've always painted my rockets bright colors or some some type of combination? I think the only way I would be painting something green, gray brown etc is if was a scaled model I was building.

 

[neil_w]

Call me a Quiche Eater. I like glitter paint. Makes rocket easy to find, and hides finishing imperfections better than gloss colors. I'll take the teasing over the dejection of spending 10 minutes or more unsuccessfully looking for my latest rocket.

You're a quiche eater. Not sure what that has to do with glitter paint though?

I immediately thought of this, which was truly one of the my all-time favorite movie moments:

 

[BABAR]

You're a quiche eater. Not sure what that has to do with glitter paint though?

I immediately thought of this, which was truly one of the my all-time favorite movie moments:

 

[neil_w]

Ha ha, I forgot about that stupid book.