Type II Paint Schemes on SN IIA

[warpatroller]

Since I will be getting an SN IIA, I thought I'd use one of Jeff's photos to experiment with paint schemes. What I have done gives a better idea of how nice this model will end up looking after it is painted and the deck slats opened up.

I based the schemes on my current Type II knowledge, and some reference photos that I have. Feel free to comment on the colors and schemes.

Overall Light Gray


Dark Gray lower, Light Gray upper


Dark Gray lower, Light Gray upper with White tower


Painted just like the Vesikko currently is


The ever so controversial Red with Black boot line,
which is the most striking and does look pretty cool!


I have read about some IIs (in the mid 30s) having the entire boat painted White, instead of just the tower being white, but I didn't do an all white boat.. I have a photo of 4 IIBs in a row, dockside, and they all have white towers with a light gray upper hull, which is where my white tower came from. That Red with the black boot line is pretty cool looking though..

Which scheme do you guys like best?

Steve

[JWLaRue]

I'm thinking along the lines

I'm thinking along the lines of the two-tone gray with the white conning tower, making it a pre-war boat.

-Jeff

[hakkikt]

Yes, and the big numbers

Yes, and the big numbers on the tower!
Numbers are supplied in both black and white in the kit, so all pre-war schemes can be done. Pre-war ships have the locator buoy in red and white on the aft deck too, should look nice.

I have one on order too, but I am thinking about painting her as Vesikko in black & white splinter camo.

Steve, these photos look great! How did you do them? Photoshop?

-Harald

[dougie995]

Hi guys,

I like the two

Hi guys,

I like the two tone grey with the white tower. Pity we can't paint VIICs in that scheme as it is pleasing on the eye!

U-boat paints are a controversial, and indeed, frustrating subject. But there is one massive advantage in our favour in regard to the pre-war boats. You'll often see pre-war boats lined up next to the U-boat tender. The tenders were painted in Hellgrau 50 (light grey, H50) superstructures and Dunkelgrau 51 (D51) upper hulls. If the quality of the image permits, we can often tell whether the upper colour of the U-boats next to the tender are in H50 or D51.

One confusing aspect is that "Dunkelgrau 51" is a misnomer. It wasn't a dark grey at all but a medium grey - really not dark at all. In the following link you'll see colour shots of the Bismarck with H50 superstructure and D51 upper hulls, just like the U-boat tenders -

http://www.bismarck-class.dk/bismarck/g ... olour.html

When you see Type IIs next to tenders it may be surprising to find they that they were usually in D51 rather than H50. In sunlight, photos of D51 boats look like light grey rather than medium grey. Again, refer to known paints on the tender for comparison.

Very broadly, if the pre-war number is black or dark grey the upper colour is probably H50 (H50 was possibly too light a backgound to have a white number?). And if the pre-war number is white the upper colour will likely be D51.

Lastly, the boats that did have white towers had, I believe, D51 upper hulls. That's what makes this scheme attractive - the contrast of white tower, D51 upper hull and dark grey lower hull.

Cheers,

Dougie

[sam reichart]

Hi guys,

I like the two

Hi guys,

I like the two tone grey with the white tower. Pity we can't paint VIICs in that scheme as it is pleasing on the eye!
Dougie

Dougie- I thought I read somewhere that there at least one Type VII that had a white tower? Patrolled way up north, had the Polar Bear emblem?

[dougie995]

Hi Sam,

Very good point. Photos

Hi Sam,

Very good point. Photos of Hellgrau 50 taken in bright sunlight can look like the white in photos. So I'm always wary about saying the towers were white in case they were Hellgrau 50. The polar bear emblem appears to have been white itself (at least according to Hoegel's book) so wouldn't have been seen on a white background? Having said that, I'm sure you are right about some towers being white on Arctic boats. The XXI U 2511 was reported to have had a white tower also. So you make a very valid point.

Cheers,

Dougie

[warpatroller]

Harald,

Thanks for the compliment on

Harald,

Thanks for the compliment on the photos and yes, I used Photoshop to make the images. I too am liking the white tower.. I revised that image making the upper hull a little darker shade of gray to give better contrast between the hull and the white tower.

Unfortunately I cannot post it because Imageshack is not cooperating It won't allow me to upload any files today, and I only have 6 images total on my account.. Perhaps I will try again tomorrow..

I am pretty sure some Uboats based in Norway did have a white tower during the war (VIIs and IXs). Whether they had the polar bear emblem I do not know. U-156, a IXC, supposedly had a white tower with 2 vertical black disruptive stripes and light gray upper hull in late winter/spring of 1942.

I have not seen this locator buoy your talking about, where on the aft deck was it?

Steve

[warpatroller]

I see the locator buoy

I see the locator buoy now on the aft deck of a IIB in a photo I have after looking more closely. It is a round hemisphere sticking out of the deck. The round depression in the SN II's aft deck must be where it is suppose to go. Guess the kit includes this buoy(or top of it) as either a resin or injection molded part..

[JWLaRue]

Correct.....there is a flattened hemisphere

Correct.....there is a flattened hemisphere part for the locator buoy. Several PE parts are used for the handles. ANd I agree that once painted in the red & white scheme, the buoy would be a big help to the r/c operators.

-Jeff

[warpatroller]

Here is the other image

Here is the other image with the white tower that I was trying to post yesterday. This time the upper hull is a little darker shade of gray.



Jeff, when you say the buoy would be a big help to RC operators I don't quite follow you.. Unless you mean cutting a round hole in your aft deck and attempting to make a functional buoy that a failsafe would release, allowing it to float to the surface? Otherwise I don't see how it would really be of any help just having a small white/red flattened hemisphere on the deck..

Steve

[sam reichart]

Here is the other image

Here is the other image with the white tower that I was trying to post yesterday. This time the upper hull is a little darker shade of gray.



Jeff, when you say the buoy would be a big help to RC operators I don't quite follow you.. Unless you mean cutting a round hole in your aft deck and attempting to make a functional buoy that a failsafe would release, allowing it to float to the surface? Otherwise I don't see how it would really be of any help just having a small white/red flattened hemisphere on the deck..

Steve

a couple of feet down on a sandy bottom, and that red/white may just jump out at you as you're looking for the model...

[JWLaRue]

...perhaps even more so when

...perhaps even more so when running the boat at or below periscope depth in less than clear water. I know that painting the sonar domes on my Skipjack makes it very easy to track the sub while driving it.....and that's just a light gray color on a black hull.

-Jeff

[warpatroller]

The visibility is so poor

The visibility is so poor at some of the local lakes where I am at that you'd need more than a red n white buoy disk on the deck to see the boat at periscope depth The white tower would probably be more helpful in that respect.

There is one rather large lake here in the Phoenix area called Lake Pleasant with visibility down to about 5 feet or so, but the water is typically so choppy and rough that you'd need a Mylo sized boat to survive the patrol run. This little SN model would probably get destroyed or at least knocked around quite heavily in the water...and if that didn't get it, a hungry lake trout might mistake it for lunch

Little Type II goes in the water......BIG Lake Trout's in the water, our Lake Trout....Farewell an' adieu to you fair Spanish ladies, Farewell an' adieu to you ladies of Spain.....

Steve

[sam reichart]

Little Type II goes in

Little Type II goes in the water......BIG Lake Trout's in the water, our Lake Trout....Farewell an' adieu to you fair Spanish ladies, Farewell an' adieu to you ladies of Spain.....

Steve

bravo....!
still a great movie, even after all these years.

[hakkikt]

Found one more interesting paint

Found one more interesting paint scheme on the Typ II. "Vom Original zum Modell" includes one photograph of U 11 in dry dock, plastered with more or less rectangular Fafnir rubber mats to counter ASDIC. No texture is visible on the Fafnir mats of the photograph, but scale & resolution are probably too small. Individual mats vary in tone, and there are probably ~200 per side, not counting the deck. Their framing is clearly visible.
Imprinted lead or aluminium foil comes to mind, for anyone with too much spare time on their hands.