Colour assistance please !

[Tim]

Hi Gents
Dont normally post here but i have the great delight of sorting out a B serial VSM gun fround at the back of one of the stores in a dept on camp.

It is a deact purchased for display in the auditorium but has been neglected for a while. Horrible rusty bits etc that thankfully are cleaning up well with little or no pitting.

All of the original colour has been removed from the water jacket so i am enquiring about a colour to repaint the jacket with.

Would that WW1 Khaki /mustard colour be suitable or were they only ever green ?

Also what would the tripod have been, tripod is not ww1 but dated 1929.

I do realise that some may feel i should not touch it but i would rather do this and get it back out on display than watch it decay in a back store.
Many thanks for your advice,
regards

Tim

[Richard Fisher]

Hi Tim,

What period do you want to cover? The WW1 khaki should be fine for all. I also have a paint code for a sample that was taken from a sub-surface layer of paint that is a nice green to use.

Let me know.

Rich

[Tim]

Hi Richard,

I would like it to be WW1 even though strictly speaking the tripod will be incorrect.

From looking at past guns i take it the colour would be used overall on the tripod , however only on the cooling jacket of the gun,less the booster assy that would remain in its blued condition.

I had been trawling thro the grand old lady but found nothing at all ( at least so far ) about the finish of various componants or camoflage colours used. Camoflage may be a moot point with a vickers once its on the go but ive seen pics of the guns with sand coloured jackets in Libya in WW2 so presumed they were overpainted to local conditions ?

Regards
Tim

[Richard Fisher]

Hi Tim,

The WW1 khaki would be fine so go for that. All the tripod would be painted as well (apart from the elevating gear, direction dial and contact points of the joint pins. All the waterjacket and perhaps the feedblock exposed brass (unless you are using steel).

Having stripped a few Vickers guns of paint, I have found several different colours that have all been overpainted at some point or another, including sand.

Regards

Richard