Trop collours to humbrol?

[Guest]

What do you lads think of the following humbrol collours for the Tropical 109E sceeme? Will it be "acurate" enough? Tamiya calls for all kinds of weird mixes.

RLM 79 = Hu 118 "US tan" over RLM 78 = Hu 65 "aircraft blue" (needs to be 122, but is discontinued) with RLM 86 -Hu 86 "light Olive"

Thanx

Theuns

[spanner570]

Theuns, I don't know about your other Humbrol colours as I'm doing the European 109, but Hu 65 is spot on for the 'Aircraft Blue'

Cheers,

Ron

Edit: Just had a nose about and 'Experts' reckon the Lt. Olive you want is Revell 145. I don't know what the equivalent Humbrol number is though, could be 86....I've just looked on the paint conversion at the top of the page and it does show 86.

[Guest]

OK, so it seems thatthe RLM 78 and RLM 80 is basically sorted. I have no idea what HU 122 light blue looked like, funny they don't make such a collour anymore,I had wondered if aircraft blue is not to "blue" Maybe a drop of white to slightly lighten it to simulate the fading under African sun???

I found Hu 122 is a copy of FS- 35622. It looks allot more (on the screen anyway) like duckegg blue, I don't have a collourchip with me, what do you think???

T

[spanner570]

I've just looked at the lid of my Humbrol 65 and it does look kind'a like duck egg blue! This is certainly the colour I have seen recommended for the underside of the 109 and Revell 45 for the light Olive topside. That's what I have on mine anyway, so I'm stuck with it now! lol

Perhap Steve (stona) can offer some advise?

Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about getting it exact, as the sun plus general weathering would discolour anything!

Ron

[stona]

I really don't use Humbrol for my camouflage but Hu65 is supposedly a good match for RLM 65 as seen on early Bf109 undersides as well as the undersurfaces of bombers and transports. The tropical colour RLM 78 was a slightly different colour designed for the brighter Mediterranean skies. On a model I wouldn't worry about it,I think it would look okay. I doubt anyone would notice unless they come armed with a colour chip!

RLM 79 was a sandy brown and a tan colour sounds like a reasonable interpretation.

Those were the only two camouflage colours on the standard tropical scheme. I'm guessing the "light olive" is meant to be RLM 02,the colour of wheel wells,gear struts,and early cockpits. That colour should be a grey/green.

Bearing in mind the vagaries of colour chips,computer monitors etc you can see that RLM 65 and RLM 78 are not that different here.

RLM Color List

Here's a contemporary colour photo of the scheme and,yes,that is snow in the background. The aircraft have been diverted to the Eastern front.

And a couple of decent restorations,posted with the normal caveats, they are just big models!

Cheers

Steve

[Guest]

I think you guys are right, 65 is as close to RLM 78 as I will get in standard HU collours, I will lighten it just a tad.

It will also posably allow for some pre-shading to give a bit of "feel" to it.

Almost ready to start painting, just a bit of sanding to complete first.

Theuns

[Guest]

I got the following model master collours after comparing it to the much more expensive life collour paints. Life collour dous however give the actual RLM codes and that helped allot.

Visually they are pretty close to identical for 12 price :-D

RLM 78 = modelmaster 35414 FS Blue (F)

RLM 79 = modelmaster Afrika Grunbraun 1941

RLM 80 = modemaster French Khaki (identical to light olive green)

Now that the paint is sorted, I am eager to slap some paint on, just a pitty I will have to paint the white fuse band on as the decal has some staining on it!

Theuns

[Guest]

I have done the painting on the 109 and the decals went on OK ,eccept for some slight silvering under the wing walkway stripes, even though it was onto gloss with setting solution.Looksed good till I put the matt clear over it, ho well, too late now :-(

I was in my local toy shop today and actually found some tins of Hu 122! Must have been old stock, but it would have been nice to find it last week LOL!

Hopefully it will be of some use on the Me 262 later.

Has anyone perhaps have any pix of the landscape/ airfields in north Africa? I need to do a base for this plane.

Thanx

Theuns

[Guest]

I think what is really interesting there with Stona's excellent pictures is the difference between reality and the restored versions that we take for granted as being the real deal nowadays.

Allowing for the limitations of early colour photography just look at how faded the yellow on the lower nose is and how gently the brwon and blue are shaded together on the side of the fuselage. I think the technique we are seeing more and more of using a translucent white to fade paint is making a very big stride towards realism with these subjects.

[stona]

North African airfields were very rudimentary. Tented accomodation (although one Gruppe did acquire an ex circus caravan for their office) and revetments made of sandbags and/or stone filled fuel barrels were common. The airstrips were nothing more than a flat stretch of desert from which the rocks and scrub had been cleared. Many images of servicing in the open,infact I can't think of a picture of what we might call a hangar. Often A.A. positions in little more than scrapes with a dry stone wall.

Their principal protection was the vast expanse of the desert which means that raids by the LRDG/SAS in 1941 must have come as a bit of a shock!

I have some images of JG27's airfields,I may have time to pop home tomorrow,if I do I'll scan a couple for you.

Cheers

Steve

[Guest]

Thanx Steve. Does anyone know if the gerry's jsed the standard 44 gal round fuel drums like the Yanksand you guys?

If so , has anyone made these from scrach yet???

Theuns

[stona]

Here's some drums for you.

They contained 200 litres (no idea how many gallons that is). The colour seems to have varied but generally grey. Some may have been a light green colour. Some had they fuel type stencilled on the top of the barrel, B4 or C3,though I don't see that in these pictures. This may be because they are fairly early,all the aircraft are Es, and they only used one type.

Some had a red stripe and I've heard conjecture that this indicated the drum contained the mix for the MW50 boost system but I can't confirm that. Not applicable to an E in any case.

Cheers

Steve

[Guest]

Thanx Steve, that helps allot for some ideas.

I assume (by the look of the camm) that the pix were taken on the eastern front/balkens?

Theuns

PS. it is 44 Imp Gal and arround 53 USGal

[stona]

Top one is JG27 in the Balkans. It's pretty regulation except for those "Stab" markings on the nose. Definitely in the Balkans.

Bottom one is from JG54 and sports one of their many extraordinary and unique camouflage patterns,a challenge for any modeller! Not sure of the date,but they went to the Balkans in early 1941 IIRC.

Fancy a go at one of these?

Notice that the second two are Fs.

Cheers

Steve

[stona]

Here's a few pictures of desert airfields.

A view across the airfield.

Armourers at work.

If you didn't have a tent you might have a dug out.....comfy.

Some dispersed Bf109s.

A makeshift and camouflaged revetment.

Take off.

Finally I./JG27's circus caravan H.Q.

Cheers

Steve