On Sat, 10 Oct 2009 21:27:27 +0200, Dennis wrote:

But I just don't understand why, after that much time, money, effort and
probably research one would end up with a thing that doesn't resemble
the original.
But it is indeed the choice of the owner.


Glossy finishes have better fuel economy. I would uggest that it is an
economy measure on restored warbirds. You already spent enough
restoring it.

Others have mentioned glossy black for nighttime. The Americans during
the war did testing off the coast of Florida. During these tests they
settled on glossy finish.

Bare metal was chosen by the American's for a few reasons. Less weight
allowed high performance. Higher altitude, faster speed (due to less
weight) - better fuel economy as well.

Camoflage was traded off. Because the Americans would almost always
have numerical superirority the camoflage value of paint was virtually
nil.

The greater number of eyes in the larger formations would offer enough
warning to spot the smaller enemy formations.

Therefore, lose the paint. Which would give you negligible camoflage
and you get performance benefits.

Waldo.