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Kubel Question

Rob -MadAsKiwi- Mooar

Rob -MadAsKiwi- Mooar

Member
Hey All

I have a quick question.. that will showcase how little I know about German hardware lol. I was wondering if anyone can give me some advice on colours for a Kubelwagen used in Europe? I've seen a deep gray or bluey-gray.. but meh.. all looks strange to me lol. Coz of the mecca we live in, I only have access to Humbrol or Tamiya paint, so something that looks about right would be good.

Thanks in advance

Rob
 
like there's no ultimate russian green for soviet stuff, the german grey varied in tones, depending on who delivered the basepaint and climate conditions ...

there are photos of almost black vehicles, very light grey ones, bluish grey ones etc.

take the paint you have a good feeling with! if i were you i'd go with the deep grey and if in need lighten it with some white, maybe add a speck of blue! but i'm infamous for painting my vehicles as dark as possible ...

e.g. i always mix my tamiya german grey with black and blue ... always! but the tamiya grey could be used directly also since - like mentioned above - some vehicles were very light in tone!

anything goes as long as you stay with grey (or dark yellow)
 
Or desert yellow if it is in Africa , some were even covered in mud which dried to the same colour of the desert but the grey showed thru quickly . They were camoflaged over the dark yellow with red brown and green too .

White wash also was used in russia , again with all the weathering variation this allows for .

Jenny :kiss:
 
Thank you very much ladies. I knew you both would have the answer. The Kubel I'm building is going to be a "under new management" type situation post war, would that make the grey the right colour to paint it?

Thanks again :)
 
Early wart would be dark grey and late would be in the yellows. But if you are going to do this with the surf board paint it as you like. I saw some movies as a kid where the Beatniks had kubelwagens as well as the iconic love bugs. So my take is you could make a wacky beatnik kubelwagen and paint it up psychedelically.

James

edit not a wwii but http://www.welt.de/reise/article5804522/Die-indonesische-Insel-per-Kuebelwagen.html

and a post war one
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11507
 
G'day James

Yea.. was heading along those lines.. but I was going to make it look like just another ex-mil vehicle that has the usual "got it for a song" hand brushed paint job over the top of the original paint.. but leaving stuff like in the foot wells and under the seats , and less obvious places like that.. sort of.. unfinished.. (when thinking about how to explain this, I instantly think of the old Morris that periodically made appearances in "Last of a Summer Wine" or Pop Larkin's Chev Cargo in "The Darling Buds of May"). Can you sorta see where I'm trying to go with this?

Cheers

Rob
 
Rob -MadAsKiwi- Mooar wrote:
The Kübel I'm building is going to be a "under new management" type situation post war
Click to expand...

hmmmm ... yesterday a red kübelwagen passed by so if you're going for a postwar private use use the paint you like!
 
Oh yea.. I'll be going for some obnoxious colour like canary yellow, but I'm going to paint it in such a way that it looks like its been painted with a house painting brush, and in places you can still see the original colour in places, and through the paint.. I don't know if I'm painting a very clear picture here :(
 
I kind of guessed that was your direction of thought. I don't think I would sweat it and just paint her up as you like. Maybe get a throw rug from reality in scale or something to drape over the seats. But if you want some old paint I believe German Dark Yellow would be what you wanted. Dark Grey was early. I will defer to more knowledgeable members though as I have never really done much with Kubel Wagons.
James
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

Hi All

Further to this, did the German Army have any standing order as far as chassis colour and engine colours?

I know that the US had a colour they tended to paint engines, and the British tended to depend on the company of origin.. and I've seen on some MV's about the people restoring them have found the chassis' to be different colours than the rest of the MV.

Any elaboration on this would be appreciated.

Cheers

Rob
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

ROB,

As far as a Standing Order - The Germans painted all Moving Parts in a Vehicle - i.e. the knob on the Stick shift & all levers on the Dash a Semi-Gloss Black, as all of these were made from Bak-Lite ( a sort of Plastic before Plastic was invented kinda' thing). The springs and shocks were like wise Semi-Gloss Black. These were assembled in the VW factory in Stuttgart. The Floor Pan on the Interior was the Base Coat of the Vehicle - Panzer Grey(Tamiya Dark Grey XF-24) '40- '41 & Dunklglelb ( Dark Yellow, Tamiya XF-60) '42-'45 ( correct me if I'm wrong. I can't get to my reference right this second). The Bottom of the Floor Pan would have been Semi-Gloss Black. The Engine "tins"( Fan Shroud, tin around the engine compartment) were like wise Semi-Gloss Black. The Engine blocks were sometimes Black & Sometimes Field Grey. Throttle Bodies of the Carburetors were Flat Aluminum, as were the Valve covers on the Heads. The Oil Bath/Air Filter on top of the Carb, (it acted as an Air Filter)- also Semi-Gloss Black.

If you are Portraying a New Management Afrika Corps Kubel IMHO - I would Mix Tamiya Khaki(XF-49) with a little of Tamiya Buff(XF-57) to get the DAK Yellow. As you say Yours will be "Under New Management" so I would use these colors as Base coats & put your final color over top. Don't forget that the Americans would have added a Star on the Doors as Not to catch Friendly Fire :evil:

If you want a "New Management" Luftwaffe Kubel try Tamiya's Field Blue ( XF-50 ) to get that Luftwaffe Blue . As I mentioned all of these German colors would be as Base Coats before you add Your New Management Color .

Also if you can still Find it - The Modelers Special Edition Guide to the Kubelwagen , Ampersand Publishing , It's an 80 page Soft back Book Jammed with Reference on the Kubel & 21 Super Detailed Kubel Models !! All 21 Models are shown as a Step by Step WIP !! They also run down all available P.E. sets & resin updates !! I would start with Ampersands( These Guys do MMiR) Website - http://ampersandpubco.com/mmir/ Once there you ccan Contact Pat Stansell & see if it's still available !


Hope this Helps !

ERIK
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

Hi Eric

Thanks for the awesome rundown. That's absolutely fantastic. One quick last question.. did the back seat fold down to give more access to the storage area above the engine?

Cheers

Rob
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

ROB,

Yes, They Absolutely Did ! The rear seat cushion folded up as well, to provided access to the Battery , Like the Old School Beetle Bugs. Both parts of the Rear seat folded down !! The Seat Cushion could actually be removed & the Back of the Rear seat would fold down with a Piano Hinge at the Bottom - Much like the Piano-Hinge on the Stowage door on the Top Rear

What kit are you using for your Kubel ?

ERIK
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

Hi Erik

Magnificent.. thanks for that info. I can feel a wee bit of hacking and scratching coming on for the back seat.

I'm going to use the Tamiya kit (35213) for this. It woulda been cool to use the Dragon/Hasegawa/Tasca one, but coz they are really hard to get here, and also very much more expensive than the Tamiya one.. I think it'll do the job for what I want to do. Have you built this kit?

Cheers

Rob
 
Re:Kubel Question - Chassis and Engine

Rob -MadAsKiwi- Mooar wrote:
Hi Erik

Magnificent.. thanks for that info. I can feel a wee bit of hacking and scratching coming on for the back seat.

I'm going to use the Tamiya kit (35213) for this. It woulda been cool to use the Dragon/Hasegawa/Tasca one, but coz they are really hard to get here, and also very much more expensive than the Tamiya one.. I think it'll do the job for what I want to do. Have you built this kit?

Cheers

Rob
Click to expand...

ROB,

Yes. I have built this one & it goes together like a Dream !! I also picked up Verlinden's - Kubelwagen Detail set ( for Tamiya) (#1284) to use with it. If you can find it , it really will enhance the overall build ! It comes with P.E. rifle racks, door handles, clips for the Hood,pieces for the Convertable top + a whole lot more !!

This Kubel is a '42-'43 production variant. Meaning that Tamiya is Modeling a Kubel that was produced during '42 '43 & has production changes integral to that production run. No need to really worry ,as some of these surely made it through til the End of the War.

This is a Very well engineered Model from Tamiya !! The others are a little pricey. You have a Good Kit ! I made mine as a Recon Vehicle belonging to Das Reich during the Battle of Kursk(July '43) !

ERIK
 
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