The only pictures I have of the real 4.7" guns are Black & White and none of my brief sources thought to mention colour. In most pictures the barrels don't look much different than the carriage, sometimes a little darker. I have read stories of British units going crazy with khaki paint during the Boer War, even painting mules, though that might be apocryphal, but a monochrome model was not going to cut it.
The finished gun with temporary crew from my Mid 19thC forces. Homemade 40mm sailors with converted Scruby ACW officer. |
The original Britain's model came with a grey carriage and bronze barrel. The grey seemed plausible but I'm pretty sure the barrels were steel not bronze. Then I found a picture of the burst barrel of a 4.7 that supposedly was used in the Boer War and then at Gallipoli.
Pic from Wikimedia of a 4.7" gun barrel abandoned at Gallipoli. Now in Australian War Memorial |
Black! There we are then. Now what about the crew? If this was an historical project I would have to do the sailors in standard army khaki with a naval straw hat. Borrrrrring! Luckily my old favorite History of The War in South Africa by James H Birch. (You can download it or read it on line, pictures included, here on openlibrary.org ) has a more attractive version seen below.
"How the Blue Jackets shelled the Boers at Ladysmith". |
But I also found this on the net.
(Attribution pending once I find the picture again) |
Hi ROSS- superb 4.7" Cannon - You have chosen just the right colour scheme - excellent modelling from scratch- well done! Regards. KEV.
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DeleteThanks Kev. It came out as well as I had hoped and much better than I feared.
DeleteTurned out nicely! I think the colors are quite suitable (based on no research, except seeing black cannon barrels in old forts - from a different era!).
ReplyDeleteYes they are common here too and they look good!
DeleteI think the finished gun looks great - definately go with the blue jackets!
ReplyDeleteBlue Jackets are coming,
DeleteVisited Fort Rinella on Malta once and paid my money to fire their muzzle loader. It's not the same as a 4.7" cannon but the colour scheme is basically as you did:
ReplyDeletehttp://i.ytimg.com/vi/iI8MDrg4Wjc/maxresdefault.jpg
For a picture of it.
Thanks Rob. Nice howitzer! And right general era.
DeleteThanks Rob. Nice howitzer! And right general era.
DeleteG'day Ross,
ReplyDeleteLovely job! I remember reading somewhere - the reference lost in the fog of memory - that the later British guns were black barrelled on gray carriages. Your guna and crew hits the target precisely and looks terrific.
Jerry
Thanks Jerry, I'm very happy with it. I admit that I actually knew the black and grey was used earlier, I'm just not sure when it was replaced by khaki and was looking for support for the scheme I wanted.
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DeleteLove the gun, Ross. Well done ! And the temporary crew look just fine with it.
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