| fred12df | 06 Oct 2013 11:25 a.m. PST |
I've got a couple of questions about how to paint my Perry 8th Army. 1) Mortar bombs; both 2" and 3", what colour should they be? Green, sand or black all seem possible. 2) Bren barrels – in photos the last foot or so of Bren gun barrels is often silver coloured. What was this for, and do you paint them this way? I have done so on occasion, but it tends to make it look like a bayonet! |
| kustenjaeger | 06 Oct 2013 11:47 a.m. PST |
Greetings mortar rounds: link Not sure if the Bren barrels is blacking wearing off or that some were manufactured this way. I've seen reference to early versions being bright but can't confirm this. Regards Edward |
| number4 | 06 Oct 2013 11:56 a.m. PST |
As most of all the 2" Mortar ammunition carried was smoke, go for green. There were still a few .303 Brens around for training purposes when I joined the service; I can tell you the muzzles were never blued ('blackened') but a dull grey metal finish – not worn. They may have been parkerized like the muzzles of the US Garand and BAR link |
| fred12df | 06 Oct 2013 12:18 p.m. PST |
Its definitely not wear on the Bren barrel
A google image search shows a mix of bright and black – with about a 50:50 split
Thanks for the link on mortar ammo.
Green for 2" and looks like a bronze lacquer for 3"
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| x42brown | 06 Oct 2013 12:39 p.m. PST |
Bright was the factory finish on the ones I carried with the backed ones from one of the refurbishment shops. This the late 50s early 60s. All the ones that I personally carried were bright. x42 |
| Martin Rapier | 06 Oct 2013 1:14 p.m. PST |
Early model Brens have silvered barrel ends, later marks have them blued (or maybe it is a regimental preference based on what x42brown said!). The photos in my (1968) Bren manual are all fully blued, but my actual Bren has a silvered barrel end. |
| Black Bull | 06 Oct 2013 1:56 p.m. PST |
Have a photo of some guys from 1 Royal Norfolks in Normandy one as a silvered Bren another a black one…oh and the RSM as a MG42 |
| John Armatys | 06 Oct 2013 2:36 p.m. PST |
Mk 1 Bren guns had stainless steel barrel fore ends (from the gas regulator), later marks (including the Mark 1M) had blackened barrel fore ends. All had stainless steel gas regulators. |
| Andy P | 07 Oct 2013 3:43 a.m. PST |
Middle of body brown with writing in white or yellow, fins steel and top green with red line 2/3 up , fuse is steel I.E. nipple on end. End of barrel as stated varies depending on Mark so either or. |
| Norman D Landings | 07 Oct 2013 3:53 a.m. PST |
AFAIK, all marks of the Bren had stainless steel barrel fore-ends. Early attempts at bluing/Parkerizing the stainless components weren't successful, hence the issue of early marks with bare metal fore-ends. Later issue Brens had exactly the same stainless steel fore-ends – but the bluing process had improved so they now matched the finish of the rest of the weapon. That info came from a chap I met at the Elvington military vehicle show, who restores deactivated Brens for collectors. |
| uglyfatbloke | 09 Oct 2013 8:25 a.m. PST |
The last 12 inches or so the barrel of my Mk 1 (June 1940 Enfield) Bren is bare metal like the photo above – likewise all the other Mk 1 Brens I've seen. I remember (long, long ago) reading about someone painting their barrels black to avoid glinting in bright sunshine in N. Africa, but the paint burnt off PDQ. |
