British uniform for the Med

[Stuart]

Hello

Complete novice to this period, I've bought a few packs with an interest for gaming skirmishes in Greece / Crete.

Just wondering if I've got the palette right for this first British chap?

I'm planning on mixing up figures in battle dress and shorts as photographs appear to show this but I'm short on finding colour sources, or rather quite a few colour sources for the desert but not Crete, were they essentially the same uniforms in colour?

Not sure on the colour for the gaiters so went with green.

Anyway, all comments gratefully received.

Thanks

Stuart

[Arthur]

I'm no WW2 expert but British troops deployed in the various Mediterranean theatres of operations were supposed to wear tropical khaki drill uniforms which were of a light tan/sand colour. However, the extremes of climate that they encountered locally sometimes dictated the use of darker wool serge battledress uniforms, particularly in North Africa where the nights could prove bitterly cold. Mixing and matching was common : in Italy for instance, squaddies would frequently wear KD cotton shirts with serge BD trousers in 1943-44.

Re Crete, the photographs I've seen of British troops seem to show a predominance of khaki drill shirts and trousers with some BD serge battle dress jackets thrown in :





So it's really up to you : you may decide to paint both shirts and trousers in KD light khaki or have your Brits in KD shirts with darker BD trousers as period photos show both arrangements.
 

[Stuart]

That'll make for some variety, thanks very much. Is the KD & webbing on this guy ok?

[Captain Blood]

Very nice Stuart. Colours look good to me
Clothing worn day in day out bleaches and stains very quickly in hot climates, so I think there would have been a real mish-mash of khaki/sandy colours.

[Eclaireur]

Stuart,
not sure what scale you're working in but assume from your very nice trial effort that it's 28mm.
There's a lot of variation in some of these colours so it's not easy to be too prescriptive. Also the castings available don't always allow you to mix dress in the way you'd like. Personally, I painted up a 28mm British force for the Mediterranean and the Perry castings got me 2/3rds of the way there. So they have guys in shorts and also in BD trousers and shirts. But they don't have guys in odd combinations like BD tunic and shorts! Or greatcoat and shorts - some of which you see, particularly in photos, nb during those periods when the desert nights were very cold. Anyway...
1. Battle dress: in standard brown serge is an earthy brown. Vallejo do a British Uniform colour which is just right. In the Mediterranean theatre though some divisions were issued with an identically tailored battle dress in dark green cotton. Also, as you've spotted, some troops held on to KD trousers, some of which became very light, for use when it was too hot for those serge BD trousers.    
2. Webbing. That 1938 pattern webbing came in a wide range of colours from a sort of 'phlegm green' to khaki, or sand colour. Some old campaigners had puttees and webbing that had bleached almost white.
3. The shirts, as you say can be north African issue KD. But darker, woollen, shirts were also issued for winter. I've seen colour pictures where these are similar in colour to the Battle Dress trousers. But a dark green woollen short also came along later.
4. The helmet seems to have usually been issued dark green, though the 8th Army guys had clearly painted theirs a sandy colour during the north African campaigns. But by the time you're in Italy, not many sandy coloured ones seem to survive - clearly they're too conspicuous in an olive grove or grassy field.

An awful lot depends on seasons Stuart. You will see guys fighting in Tunisia, early 1943, in what is essentially European battle dress. It was cold and wet and actually very green in that part of Africa. Then the same guys land on Sicily that summer and are dressed as your 8th Army desert miniatures might be sculpted - shorts, rolled up sleeves and all the rest of it, ditto in the Greek islands. Then you get autumn and winter in Italy and it's back to a northern Europe style battle dress, for example at Cassino, because it's so cold. BD trousers and short sleeves are just a good '3 seasons' compromise,
EC        

[Stuart]

Thanks for your help, I've taken your suggestions and given this chap a khaki shirt, brownish green BD trousers and greenish canvas webbing. Oh and a green helmet.

All thoughts / suggestions welcome

Thanks again

Stuart

[Captain Blood]

Love him Stuart.

I haven't painted any of the metal Perry WW2 yet. Not sure how they compare to the plastics, which are extremely diminutive, and I find lovely, but quite fiddly.
How do you find painting these, compared to your usual medieval / early Renaissance?

[Stuart]

Thanks Richard

Painting time is halved, if not more. I think with this project I've found a good solution to my available time to paint; the ww2 figures are good for occasions where I only have an hour or so whereas my other passion does better for a longer time at the painting desk.

I've enjoyed creating variety in the drab colours and combinations as well as individual basing, there's very quick payback as opposed to a base of 15 pike which is lovely but a real labour.

So yep I think I've found a way to maximise my available time and effort.

There's also the reduced threshold for fatigue if I fancy a change - it sounds obvious but after painting Landsknechts & Gendarmes for the past decade it's a revelation to me 

Stuart

[Stuart]

Version 3; the trousers have come out a brown/ grey but otherwise happy, gone for canvas webbing.

As a group they look a bit of a mix but I think that works

[painterman]

Congratulations on the post-1525 figures!
Not sure I'd really thought of you doing another period.
Great to have a 'secondary' theme, to give a break when needed and use a different palette on different figures.
Look good to my eye.
Simon.

[Marine0846]

I like the colors you used.
With early war British lots of combos of uniforms.
Look forward to see the next figures you do.

[Keith]

Hi Stuart - they look great. Awesome to see you tackling this period!
I hope this isn't bad form (posting my pics in your thread) but this is the look I've gone for with the same figures. Might be helpful? The trousers are definitely BD and I've kept the helmets sand-covered but I imagine this could change depending on a lot of factors.

[Oldgamer]

Comparing your figures to Keith's, l think yours are a little darker but you are certainly on the right track and will have a very nice set of figures when they are finished.

[Stuart]

Keith you're a star, most helpful indeed

Almost finished this blister box, i'll post for further comments

Cheers

Stuart