SCW Mountain Gun - what color?

[aphillathehun]

I picked up a mountain gun for my SCW forces.  I have requettes.  The crew will be in army uniform.  But the gun itself - what color should I paint it?

[Arlequín]

I'm not entirely sure.

In 1930 the colour selected for steel helmets was gris concreto, which I believe matches either RAL 7023 or RAL 7033 as a mid-dark grey with a hint of olive green. Typically armies painted all their equipment the same colour, so you would expect the colour of artillery etc. to match the helmets.

Some photos seem to show helmets and guns to be the same (as far as you can tell on b&w photos), while many others show artillery as a much lighter colour. Whether that is down to a layer of dust, or that they were a different colour or shade entirely, I couldn't say. Gris piedra RAL 7030 has also been mentioned as a Pre-War gun and vehicle colour.

The Nationalists appear to have stuck with whatever the Pre-War colours were, apart from newly imported vehicles and weapons, while the Republicans seem to have shifted to an olive drab colour; again with imported items in their original colours until re-painted.

[jeffreythancock]

What country and manufacturer of the gun the model is based upon?  That might help with color recommendations.  Spanish, Italian, French, German, or Austrian?

[Antonio J Carrasco]

Spanish most common mountain gun was the Schneider & Cie 70/16 Mod. 1908, widely used in the campaigns in Africa. Usually it was painted in some shade of olive green, although the actual color could vary a lot depending on the circumstances.

I've found a photo in the Internet of a model preserved in the Spanish Army Museum. It is a crappy photo, but perhaps you can find it somewhat useful.

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anexo:Materiales_hist%C3%B3ricos_del_Ej%C3%A9rcito_de_Tierra_de_Espa%C3%B1a_desde_la_posguerra#/media/File:Canon_de_montagne_de_70_Schneider_M1908.jpg

I will visit the Museum when I get my summer vacations, in 20 days or so. If you can wait until then, I will try to get a better picture.

Best