Jonesythecat
Well-Known Member
So what colour is it exactly Lancer? (hard to tell from pictures)
Lancer
Sr Member
well it's not a bright nato green this one. it's a dull green veering into a green OD in tone. but it is used, it's been washed a few times and I have no idea of how much the material fades. the green tape by the buttons is very green but I Think that's fairly standard.
merliner might be able to comment on this more as he's got a few of them that are different shades.
merliner might be able to comment on this more as he's got a few of them that are different shades.
Jonesythecat
Well-Known Member
I wouldn't be surprised if a yellow one pops-up one day. So many different shades!
Lancer
Sr Member
you gotta laugh, look at what someone has put on the autction for a mark 3 jacket on feabay.
"Comes with rare 3 Velcro badge holders, one on each arm and one on the chest. Very few of these jackets have these holders, i have 3 and this is the only one with Velcro holders"
gosh, its got bits of velcro the shape of squadron patches, buy it fast, its RARE!!!
lol
"Comes with rare 3 Velcro badge holders, one on each arm and one on the chest. Very few of these jackets have these holders, i have 3 and this is the only one with Velcro holders"
gosh, its got bits of velcro the shape of squadron patches, buy it fast, its RARE!!!
lol
A few tips for anyone that gets a green one.
1. Remove all patches and velcro.
2. Remove the sleeve pocket.
3. Cut out the beaver tail.
4. Cut out the hood.
5. After all that is done, wash with LIQUID RIT dye, Royal blue. Let it sit in the water and dye for about 15 minutes before the wash cycle. It will still have a hint of green but the blue will be surprisingly close to what you see in the movie.
6. Now you're ready for the lacings, wings, patches, pink collar trim and back lettering.
Yes, it's a real pain in the ass to get all this done, but when finished, it will be totally worth it!
1. Remove all patches and velcro.
2. Remove the sleeve pocket.
3. Cut out the beaver tail.
4. Cut out the hood.
5. After all that is done, wash with LIQUID RIT dye, Royal blue. Let it sit in the water and dye for about 15 minutes before the wash cycle. It will still have a hint of green but the blue will be surprisingly close to what you see in the movie.
6. Now you're ready for the lacings, wings, patches, pink collar trim and back lettering.
Yes, it's a real pain in the ass to get all this done, but when finished, it will be totally worth it!
kane2122
Member
There are no actual yellow MK3 flying jackets, the jacket you are probably referring to I 'm guessing is the Tom Skeritt yellow prototype! this is in fact an RAF aircrew fire fighting jacket from the early 1970's produced by Beaufort the makers of the aircrew flying jackets, to give it its correct designation a MK3A Protective Crash Firefighters Jacket (blouse). Made from fire resistant aramid these were issued to RAF fire fighting crews and worn as the main turn out gear alongside the proximity suits (silver) for intense fires. The MK3A came in blue, grey, dark and light green, they were short in the body sported the same button arrangement as the aircrew flying jackets, more importantly these jackets could be reversed to show the light tan interior used for better visibility in low light or night operations, they featured velcro epalettes for rank designation, a stitched in reinforcing back belt, velcro and zip cuffs depending on version with a protective flap over the zipper and a slightly shorter squared off collar than the flying jacket version.
It is more than likely Tiny Nicholls procurred these from the same RAF location as the Dallas and Kane MK3's, to experiment with the general look and implementation of design ideas on this jacket first! The colour of the jacket could have been an early colour concept choice, to see how these would look under the lights first and tie in with the other costumes? probably not enough contrast between the white of the set and uniforms to stand out?
This information is over on the propsummit forum under the Dallas Prototype jacket section provided by nexus42, so thanks nexus42 for this relevant info.
Lancer
Sr Member
neat tips all round. I'll be honest, I'm gonna turkey out and not dye mine, basically because this one is pretty beat up, already weathered and ready to go so I'll just go piping, wings, patches and letters.
I'm not even going to remove the hood or tail to be honest because I'm going to wear this every day and they'll come in handy for crap british weather.
just gotta get to the haberdashery for the bits so I can make the lacings.
I'm not even going to remove the hood or tail to be honest because I'm going to wear this every day and they'll come in handy for crap british weather.
just gotta get to the haberdashery for the bits so I can make the lacings.
Unless you're planning on jumping out of a plane, the tail won't do you much good. :lol
Lancer
Sr Member
Okay, I've been sleeping on this and changed my mind. The jacket is 'just' faded enough that it could do with a burst of colour just to liven it up a bit.
It is a faded green/OD so I'm torn between refreshing that, or going the whole way and going for a more accurate colour with the whole blue option.
I can get liquid RIT in the UK, but mail order only and I'm wanting this jacket ready before next weekend, which includes lacings and everything else so I don't think I'll be able to get it all done in time. This means buying over the counter fabric dye, maker of choice in the UK is Dylon.
funnily enough, after reading funkyjedi's recommendation, there is just something that confuses me a bit. He suggests royal blue, which to my surprise is actually quite light, what I would class as an ocean blue.
Is this because in combination with the green colour of the jacket itself, it comes out darker?
Dylon do, ocean blue, navy blue and denim blue.
Looking at a straight colour swatch online, navy blue is a bit of a deeper blue than royal. Denim is too light and ocean blue is really lighter, so taking the UK dye's into account, I think navy blue might be the way to go.
secondly, I seem to remember mention being that the fabric on these jackets is a bit flakey at taking colour,
whoever's dyed their's could you chime in with some comments on that one please? If there's a chance this will be patchy, I'd rather just leave it.
all opinions welcome, not dyed fabric before, some input would be good. anyone dyed this jacket using Dylon at all?
It is a faded green/OD so I'm torn between refreshing that, or going the whole way and going for a more accurate colour with the whole blue option.
I can get liquid RIT in the UK, but mail order only and I'm wanting this jacket ready before next weekend, which includes lacings and everything else so I don't think I'll be able to get it all done in time. This means buying over the counter fabric dye, maker of choice in the UK is Dylon.
funnily enough, after reading funkyjedi's recommendation, there is just something that confuses me a bit. He suggests royal blue, which to my surprise is actually quite light, what I would class as an ocean blue.
Is this because in combination with the green colour of the jacket itself, it comes out darker?
Dylon do, ocean blue, navy blue and denim blue.
Looking at a straight colour swatch online, navy blue is a bit of a deeper blue than royal. Denim is too light and ocean blue is really lighter, so taking the UK dye's into account, I think navy blue might be the way to go.
secondly, I seem to remember mention being that the fabric on these jackets is a bit flakey at taking colour,
whoever's dyed their's could you chime in with some comments on that one please? If there's a chance this will be patchy, I'd rather just leave it.
all opinions welcome, not dyed fabric before, some input would be good. anyone dyed this jacket using Dylon at all?
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Good questions.
Please remember, this is my experience with trying several things out, others may have had different results.
If you use powdered dye, you will get flaky results as it doesn't always disolve leaving some areas of the jacket darker than others. In liquid form it seems to wash over the jacket evenly.
If you go with a darker blue, true, it will be bluer but not screen accurate. Let's face it. If you have a green jacket it will never be the 100% screen accurate color no matter what kind of dye you use, or the process you utilize. All you can do is get it as close as possible. Seeing as how the Dallas/Kane jacket is a strange color, more of a slate/blue/grey, stephen210 acually came up with the royal blue idea that works out very well. It still has a hint of green in it, but it very much looks as it should. I was trying navy blue and it was coming out too dark.
Please remember, this is my experience with trying several things out, others may have had different results.
If you use powdered dye, you will get flaky results as it doesn't always disolve leaving some areas of the jacket darker than others. In liquid form it seems to wash over the jacket evenly.
If you go with a darker blue, true, it will be bluer but not screen accurate. Let's face it. If you have a green jacket it will never be the 100% screen accurate color no matter what kind of dye you use, or the process you utilize. All you can do is get it as close as possible. Seeing as how the Dallas/Kane jacket is a strange color, more of a slate/blue/grey, stephen210 acually came up with the royal blue idea that works out very well. It still has a hint of green in it, but it very much looks as it should. I was trying navy blue and it was coming out too dark.
kane2122
Member
Check out page 19 2nd post on this topic, Merliner gives his description of what is required to achieve the colour!
The jacket still might have remnants of the waterproofing left in, which tends to affect the outcome, depends how many times it's been washed since it's last treatment? the blue/grey is achievable but requires a bit of work.
The jacket still might have remnants of the waterproofing left in, which tends to affect the outcome, depends how many times it's been washed since it's last treatment? the blue/grey is achievable but requires a bit of work.
Lancer
Sr Member
good answers guys. it would appear then that the main variable I need to surmount is the waterproofing in the fabric.
as it happens, mine is in good condition but quite faded/used as regards the colour which would indicate to me it hasn't been treated for a looooong time and has been washed many times.
so hopefully this should work.
colour wise, I've looked at the dylon site and think I'll go
denim blue
grey
lavender.
the trick is going to be getting the quantities right.
well, here we go, I'll get these tomorrow and see how I do.
as it happens, mine is in good condition but quite faded/used as regards the colour which would indicate to me it hasn't been treated for a looooong time and has been washed many times.
so hopefully this should work.
colour wise, I've looked at the dylon site and think I'll go
denim blue
grey
lavender.
the trick is going to be getting the quantities right.
well, here we go, I'll get these tomorrow and see how I do.
Kt Templar
Well-Known Member
Lancer, the ocean blue turned the grey:
into this:
It's a pretty definite 'blue' adding lavender might give the effect we are looking for... but it might not!
into this:
It's a pretty definite 'blue' adding lavender might give the effect we are looking for... but it might not!
division 6
Master Member
If the beaver tail is the same fabric as the jacket shell than if you remove it you have something to do dye tests on.
D6
D6
If the beaver tail is the same fabric as the jacket shell than if you remove it you have something to do dye tests on.
D6
Bingo! :thumbsup
Wayne R.
Well-Known Member
A friend of mine (who works for the MOD) says those jackets come in charcoal. Is that the colour he means, or is that a faded one?
Kt Templar
Well-Known Member
This one was a undersaturated green grey, possibly not the charcoal colour your friend was talking about.... get one to show us!
Charcoal would make a better base than the bright green ones.
