Trumpeter 1/48 SM 79 Sparviero.

[Ian M]

Steve-the-Duck I know zip about Regia Aeronautica and the colours they used. I do know that Sovereign Hobbies that overtook White ensign paints do have very accurate colours 98% of the time and are as much as possible matched to original colour chips. they might be of interest to you Chris.

I would also point out that it is maybe a good idea to check that your screen is calibrated correctly before you start to pick at the colours.
Barry I am sure can take it as it was intended. Others may not.

[Andy the Sheep]

Barry, a very neat and fine build, as per your standards. Looking forward to your next builds, especially the B17.

I was staggering on the edge of the minefield of the colour discussion: Italian Armed Forces colour during WW2 is a topic which still cause violent blood feuds on Italian modelling forums, hotter than the infamous Dunkelgelb issue.
Anyway, being Italian I feel as someone is poking at my shoulder so I dare to give some suggestions :nerd:which I deem useful.
First: there's no certainty about that issue :relieved:: some purist affirms that even some restored aircraft now on display at Vigna di Valle Italian Air Force museum is not correctly painted.:nerd:
Second: there wasn't a general strict rule and there was large freedom of choice at Squadron level (and even at individual level: never forget we're talking of Italian pilots, thus a very individualist sub-kind of the already very individualist Italian kind) and I cannot rule out that many maintenance and repair units went to local shops or used whatever they found (paints and thinners as well) that could be sprayed or brushed on an aircraft;
Third: the chemical industry in Italy had some difficulties in producing paints due to the peculiar situation caused by international economical sanctions (consequence of the invasion of Abyssinia) and war so F.S. or RAL or PANTONE or any other accepted benchmark in paint production were considered no more than a suggestion. Moreover, low quality paints means bad reactions to sunlight, heath and/or cold.
For those who may be interested, Italeri has a good range of Italian colours as well as LifeColor (set CS19), but they are all acrylics, thus nothing to do with the MRP line used by Barry (with the usual enviable results) :thumb2:.




Andrea

[Steve-the-Duck]

Hey Andy,
I was about to say, 'Oh blimey, not another range of Italian colours', and then I went, 'no, wait, I've got those.' you're absolutely right about changes due to sunlight, we are talking the Med after all. There's some info that nocciola chiaro, thepost'41 basic 'sand faded to a distinctly pink shade.

I stay away from the Italian model forums as, like the Japanese colour debates, they're bleeping snake-pits. Unlike the much more gentlemanly discussions around here. How about 'the luftwaffe staged through Italy en route to North Africa. Sandgelb is practically identical to nocciola chiaro, so...' Heresy!

Yeah, there's a lot to be said for colour balance in picture reproductions. I would post some of the pics I took in Vigna di Valle, if I hadn't managed to lose the lot on the memory card. Gah! I've got no problem with the 'planes there. But it was a hot day in August

Oh yeah, the number of paint manufacturers, and which ones served which companies is hilariously complicated, hence there being at least four giallo mimitici! Not to mention, 'ooh, the Regia Marina aren't using their paint stocks so we'll borrow some,' is perfectly plausible, so having grigio azzurro scuro (let's call it dark sea grey, because why not), as on this beast rather than the more likely grigio azzurro chiaro (light blue-grey) isn't implausible. Hey if seaplanes used that, and the camo idea for the SM79s was 'horizon blend, sure, why not?

One fun real world example, which came up in the build on here of a 1/32 CR.42, is why the one in Hendon has a silver underside, as described in the intelligence report, when all Italian documentation states all CR.42s should be grey underside? I have a theory...

Anyway, what colour, from Airfix's own rnge would you paint their SM.79

Let me finally say, I'm sure the good manners and tolerance shown around here is we're a bunch of eclectic modellers who appreciate skill, effort, and knowledge. I mean, I've posted RAF silver wings and large manga figures. Or l'm just weird

[Andy the Sheep]

Hey Andy,
I was about to say, 'Oh blimey, not another range of Italian colours', and then I went, 'no, wait, I've got those.' you're absolutely right about changes due to sunlight, we are talking the Med after all. There's some info that nocciola chiaro, thepost'41 basic 'sand faded to a distinctly pink shade.

I stay away from the Italian model forums as, like the Japanese colour debates, they're bleeping snake-pits. Unlike the much more gentlemanly discussions around here. How about 'the luftwaffe staged through Italy en route to North Africa. Sandgelb is practically identical to nocciola chiaro, so...' Heresy!

Yeah, there's a lot to be said for colour balance in picture reproductions. I would post some of the pics I took in Vigna di Valle, if I hadn't managed to lose the lot on the memory card. Gah! I've got no problem with the 'planes there. But it was a hot day in August

Oh yeah, the number of paint manufacturers, and which ones served which companies is hilariously complicated, hence there being at least four giallo mimitici! Not to mention, 'ooh, the Regia Marina aren't using their paint stocks so we'll borrow some,' is perfectly plausible, so having grigio azzurro scuro (let's call it dark sea grey, because why not), as on this beast rather than the more likely grigio azzurro chiaro (light blue-grey) isn't implausible. Hey if seaplanes used that, and the camo idea for the SM79s was 'horizon blend, sure, why not?

One fun real world example, which came up in the build on here of a 1/32 CR.42, is why the one in Hendon has a silver underside, as described in the intelligence report, when all Italian documentation states all CR.42s should be grey underside? I have a theory...

Anyway, what colour, from Airfix's own rnge would you paint their SM.79

Let me finally say, I'm sure the good manners and tolerance shown around here is we're a bunch of eclectic modellers who appreciate skill, effort, and knowledge. I mean, I've posted RAF silver wings and large manga figures. Or l'm just weird

Chris, unfortunately my bench is some 5 km away from my computer and I suppose my notes about paints for RA aircrafts are there, but if I'm not wrong, I have some notes only about Humbrol colour.
If you may wait a couple of days, I'll be glad to oblige. :thumb2:

Andrea

[Tim Marlow]

………Or l'm just weird………

Stick with weird……I like weird :tongue-out3:

[BarryW]

Now Japanese WW2 colours were mentioned…. MRP have those too and my Tamiya Sally will be coming up after the B17…. Talk about minefields!

[Airborne01]

Stick with weird……I like weird :tongue-out3:

What was her name?

[Guest]

there's no colour called 'sabbia' sand in the Regia Aeronautica listings, but the pre '41 colours, the mimetici, are a bit vague. There are at least four different Giallo Mimetici, from four different actual real paints.

For those wondering, this seemed to me to be a pretty good guide, when I was looking into this subject some years ago.

[Tim Marlow]

What was her name?

What, all of ’em….

[Airborne01]

What, all of ’em….

Trollop ... !

[Steve-the-Duck]

Wait. Where is this going?

[Airborne01]

Wait. Where is this going?

Tut, tut Ducky - merely a little quackers interjection (or two)!

[Steve-the-Duck]

Tut, tut Ducky - merely a little quackers interjection (or two)!

Ouch!

[Steve-the-Duck]

I knew I'd find it eventually!


Yes, I have too many Regia Aeronautica books! Aaand, this is only four out of the ten or twelve of the squadriglia, so no way to know just what the others looked like. I've another pic of at least four different S.79s all from the same sqd and all in completely different schemes
BTW Buscaglia, as mentioned leader of this sqd. was, I believe, the guy that put a torpedo into Barham

[The Smythe Meister]

Well that's an impressive gert big slab. I'm still hoping for a 1/32 injection job. Or Airfix do one in 1/24th, lol... Hmm, Tamiya have never done anything Italian

However, time to put my nerd hat on, because those colours look a bit weird to me and my (copious) references and paint stocks.
The yellow could be giallo mimetico (camo yellow) '1', the most pale shade (I put the numbers in quotes as they're post war classifications), the green is a bit too 'green' for the verde mimeticos (camo green), but the brown is okay for bruno mimetico (camo brown). The underside looks close to a RAF 'Sky', rather than grigio mimetico (camo grey). That's all the pre '41 colours
The nose and leading edge look, to me way to dark, even for grigio azzurro scuro (the blue-grey for late seaplanes), and by my references ought to be closer to grigio azzurro chiaro (light grey-blue). 'Soft-edged' too

Going to have to look into this MRP range

...... Apart from that,it's spot on!!...