It is difficult for me to write in English in detail.
I believe that in various tanks in different ways.
For example C5 had camouflage on the roof. This is evident from photographs.
At the same time, other photos show the roof without camouflage.
I read on this site that in France that brown spots were added to Solomon's camouflage.
Also in the book by David Fletcher has a pilot's memoirs, which saw Mark 1 in Flers.
He wrote about the brown back.
I guess that in this case the roofs could also byte repainted in brown.
However, the photographs Company D shows that the roof of one color. And it is light.
Maybe it's gray paint factory. I hope that the experts can write more accurately.
My favorite for the construction of the model is A17 HMLS Oh, I say!, is there a certain combination of colors, from the fotos I know only bright and dark field.
The MK1 Tanks arrived in France in their Factory grey with Russian writing on the sides. The Russian Cyrillic's are as a rule at the front on the left hand side and at the rear on the right hand side.
Once in France they were painted in Solomon Scheme, although not all, also the amount of area that was camouflaged seems to have varied from Company to Company. Some were camouflaged all over, others the roof and rear panel were left grey. Unless you are modelling a particular Tank that was photographed all around then go with what you like.
You have to remember that these Tanks were rushed in to Use and there was variation in Paint and with the extent of Grenade Netting used.
The colours used for the Solomon Camouflage were not as bright as some have shown, in fact you wouldn't be far off using German WW2 Camo Colours. I have attached a photo of a sample of camouflage I applied to the Tail Gear on my 1/6 scale model. Obviously the smaller the scale you model the more you should pale the colours a little.
It's a pity that the R.A.C. Museum disposed (in 1966) of the model MkI which Solomon used to demonstrate his camouflage scheme. I don't know if it was photographed prior to disposal, but if it had been I suspect that the photo would have turned up in one of David Fletcher's books.
I think that the attached photo of 721 (C5) may be the one which Denis is referring to. This is the only photo which I have seen that suggests that the roofs of the MkI's were camouflage painted, although photos which clearly show the upper surfaces of these tanks are not plentiful. This particular tank is a bit unusual in that the inner facings of the rear horns and hydraulic cylinder also appear to have been camouflaged.
There is no doubt that at least some of the MkI's were sent to France in the factory monochrome grey colour with visible "Petrograd" inscription. A photo taken at Rollencourt in June 1917 shows a MkI in this state. However, the memoirs of Swinton, Henriques and Solomon himself, all mention him camouflage painting tanks while still in Norfolk, prior to their shipment to France. Henriques goes on to state that they were repainted soon after arrival in France, prior to going into action on Sept. 15, 1916. All accounts seem to agree that the tank crews were kept very busy during this period, and we might assume that the time allotted to repainting was fairly limited.
The "Petrograd" inscription appears to be located behind the sponsons on the tanks manufactured by Metropolitan (eg. 713) and in front of the sponsons in those built by Fosters (eg. 742, 743).
The MK1 Tanks arrived in France in their Factory grey with Russian writing on the sides.
Helen x
Helen, would it be fair to say some MK I's went into battle still in their factory finish? Or would they have all be given some sort of camouflage re-paint...even if it was just some form of khaki, green or brown?
The "Petrograd" inscription appears to be located behind the sponsons on the tanks manufactured by Metropolitan (eg. 713) and in front of the sponsons in those built by Fosters (eg. 742, 743).
That would be an interesting way of reducing down the options when trying to recognise an unknown tank. I would expect that there was no mention of what hand the writing had to go round, so factory differences would not be surprising. That's a good spot!
I'm just wondering if it could be that those tanks camouflaged all over were painted in the UK and then used in France as painting guides for the rest. Time then resulting in the variation we see in those few photos we have from that time.
-- Edited by MK1 Nut on Wednesday 3rd of February 2016 01:47:11 PM
The MK1 Tanks arrived in France in their Factory grey with Russian writing on the sides.
Helen x
Helen, would it be fair to say some MK I's went into battle still in their factory finish? Or would they have all be given some sort of camouflage re-paint...even if it was just some form of khaki, green or brown?
Grant
Hi Grant,
At one time I would have said Yes, but these days I'm not so sure. Most of the photos I have seen of un-camouflaged tanks have turned out to be training vehicles. So now I'm unsure and would go Camo if modelling a Tank in battle condition.
When I eventually get to do some modelling, I think I'll use a variety of colours on my WWI vehicles. I know some of the early armoured cars and lorries used by Locker-Lampson were just in admiralty 'grey' for a while, (a short while I believe), so I'm thinking of just using khaki, greens and browns, on the tanks, and with a hint of ochre or yellow for contrast on my armoured cars.
I remember the first time I saw the Airfix box artwork for the MK I!! Needless to say, no rhomboids will be done like this, but a few armoured cars might be.
