pete sheridan (no login) from IP address 4.228.183.89
Other than their wooden handles, would not the tools carried on Shermans have been the same OD as the tank (except for wear and tear on blades, etc.)?Kit instructions call for various shades of unpainted steel, but I would think they'd have rusted in place in no time.
I have an Army entrenching tool and a screwdriver and both are painted Olive Drab, but the paint chips off the metal parts pretty easily. The paint is both a chemoflage color and a protective coat, so I think they are representative of items produced for the US military. I am sure there were exceptions (e.g. War Emergency substitute standard tools), but that would be less common. Because most vehicles were repinted from time to time "in-toto" I suspect most vehicles carried painted tools. In addition to corrosioin, wear and tear, one interesting way to vary the look of your tools is to paint them in a darker shade of OD - similar to the darker OD used on .30 and .50 ammo cans.
This is always a subject of much controversy. Here is what is known. First you need to divide the tools into two catagories: 1,tank tools which were all metal i.e. starter handle, track wrench, pioneer tools, 2,wood handled tools such as shovels, axes and mattocks.
Per Army contracts all tools were to be painted O.D.
The tank tools were usually made by the companies that made the vehicle and were probably therefore painted the with the same O.D. paint.
Pioneer tools: They started out as O.D. and then the war broke out. Army began buying these tools by the millions for all sorts uses not just for tanks. Every company that had been making shovels were now making shovels for the Army. This caused a shotage of O.D. paint for these companies. The Army let them substitute black paint on the metal parts and varnise or linseed oil on the wood parts until they could obtain enough O.D. paint. This means on early to mid production vehicles you can use black metal an natural wood handles or O.D. metal and natural wood handles or just paint all of it O.D. The all metal tank tools were probably always O.D. By late war all tools should be O.D.
Be careful of color photos of current restorations including museum pieces. They are often repainted incorrectly.
Speaking of ammo cans...there is a recent statement on MS WWII forum that British ammo cans were a shade of brown. Any thoughts on this? Since I'm modeling British Shermans I plan on lots of welded-on bits...most likely the .30 and .50 cans (obtained from US stocks) would be the familiar OD, but British stuff (17pdr, et al)would be brown (what shade?)...all in all, would make for interesting contrast, what?
I have seen ammo cans painted a warm choclate brown Pete - but never US issue (they are OD unless they are Navy, they sometimes they are grey). I have a Spanish 8mm Mauser can made to the German pattern that was brown till I repainted it (don't ask why), and sometimes ComBlock cans are brown, so Brit cans could have been brown sometimes too (hey, you can always use some artistic license). The only problem I think you will have is finding a British pattern ammo can . I am not aware that any Commonwealth country made .30 or .50 cans to the US pattern, but others may know more about this bit of esoterica
. I am not aware that any Commonwealth country made .30 or .50 cans to the US pattern, but others may know more about this bit of esoterica 
