Thank you for your quick responses! This little journey of mine started with trying to seek the 'holy grail'- the 'true', nature of PC-12. Having been familiar with the artifact since childhood, I never questioned the colour. My friend Tony Bell pointed out that the artifact was repainted-look at the original photos dummy! Duh... (My words not his.) A frantic call resulted with me requesting of Mike Blecher that he marches right down to the museum, as he lives in Ottawa and request a thorough examination including paint removal of a small sample section, forensic examination, blood splatter patterns, search for bullet fragments, etc., etc. I haven't heard a response.
Plan B- my thirteen year old niece texted me that she was about to go into the War Museum with her class as she was on a school trip to our nations capital. She has big, killer brown eyes so I told her to go up to the curator, lock on and drill him with the statement "I believe that this artifact is not the original PC-12 but is in fact, a re-paint!". This didn't go over well as the tour guide just blinked and looked back her with a blank look. Seems to me a more serious approach is in order!
So the question remains, is there original paint below the surface? Why are there no bullet holes or even evidence of repairs considering the terrible, extensive injuries received by Barker? Lance, I am very interested in meeting up with you in Ottawa in September. I'm sure the museum will be uninterested in a destructive test of a fabric sample but examination with a good light under the watchful eye of a trained curator may be welcome. Let me know if you want to exchange contact information off-board so we can arrange a meeting.
As for my Snipe, I will be posting the pictures upon completion as I'm writing an extensive article on the build. Up to now, I've been posting my articles on Hyperscale where you can see some previous builds.
Happy WW1 modeling!
GI