One for FOLGORE?
I have my first commission to build an Italian M13/40 from North Africa 1942.
What colour is best for the desert sand overspray? (OCHRE)? I know the base colour was grey-green.
What are the main failings of the zvezda kit?
I have ordered the friulmodellismo tracks.
Is it worth getting Model Victoria kit also? OR Can I scratch build the bits I need?

Thanks

Hey Desert-Fox. Model Master makes a colour called Italian Sand, which is a good match for M13/40s painted for the desert. It kind of has a pinkish hue to it, rather than yellow. Some of the early M13/40s rushed to Libya were still in the continental grey-green. Since you are doing this on commission, you might want to consider getting yourself a copy of the Squadron/Signal Italian Medium Tanks in Action. I don't have it and there are things I am not sure about (most of my information comes from pictures I have seen, other models by reputable modellers, and the scraps of information I have found on the internet).

I wrote a review for both the Zvezda kit and the Model Victoria Conversion Kit here on Armorama, so you can see what I thought of them there. If you really want to make an M13/40, you definitely need the conversion kit as the Zvezda kit actually represents an m14/41. There were subtle differences and all are addressed by Model Victoria, though I think you should chop the box-like thing off the turret-top for the M13/40 as well. Actually, you could probably scratch-build the changes, but the Model Victoria set replaces some areas of the Zvezda kit that are seriously lacking in detail. Many M13/40s didn't have a wireless set either, so you might not want to add the antenna (particularly if doing an early one). Historica also makes a conversion kit, I believe. Model Victoria has recently come out with an M13/40 transmission and Historica has an engine if you really want to go nuts. The Royal Model PE set shouldn't be necessary if you get one of the conversion kits.

I didn't know Friul made tracks for the M13/40. Let me know how they are. I use the indi-link workable tracks by Model Victoria, which were very simple (just snap-together).

If you need help with markings, I think I can dig up some OOBs for you. The markings are easy to make yourself if the Zvezda kit doesn't supply what you need. The battaglione is simply represented by white roman numerals (mine was from Battaglione III, which was one of the few units fielding M13/40s against O'Connor in late 1940/early 1941). I think the company is represented by the coloured rectangle and the platoon by the number of white stripes inside of it. They didn't always have this showing, but the number of the tank within the platoon might also be displayed as a regular number (ie. 1,2,3).

That's about all I can think of right now. I don't know everything (and I might be mistaken on something) so if you find anything new, please let me know. Good luck.

Nic

Martin,
in my view the interiors of the Italian WWII medium tanks are not that complicated to be scratchbuilt. If you need some references you can try to visit my site http://www.cavalleriaitaliana.it. Once on the home page click on "Mezzi" on the top menu, then click on "Carri armati medi" on the menu at the left and then click on "M15/42" on the new menu always on le left menu. A page with the description of the tank appears. If you scroll to the bottom you will find another link named "Archivio fotografico". Once there select "Interni" and you'll access the interiors pics. Sorry not to provide the direct link to the page but the site url is re-directed so a direct link won't work... At the moment the site is only in Italian but soon I'll translate it to English too.
Hope this can help
Ciao

Sorry, Martin, if it's an interior you're looking for, than the Model Victoria set won't help you. It's just to backdate the exterior to an M13/40 version. It also includes stowage and replacement parts with more detail.

Thanks for the link, Fabio.

Nic

You're welcome Folgore. I'm slowly building up the site and I've got access to lots of vehichles. The Cecchignola Museum is a friend of mine for instance and I can photograph all of what they've got there. I've already pics of an 100% restored AB41 and fully functional.
Next time I'll be in Rome I'll shoot exteriors and interiors of an L3 and a Lince they've just restored. If you're interested in something in particular I can also have access to:

- M13/40 *
- M14/41 *
- 75/18 Semovente (M41 hull)
- Semovente Bassotto (I don't remember the main gun)*
- An halftrack looking like a Famo (but built in Italy under license) that they claim to be the only one survived *

As far as I'm concerned I'm only interested to vehicles who served with the Italian cavalry, but if you (or anybody else) is interested in one of the ones marked with an asterisk (that means that they were not in use in the Cavalry) I can shoot pics and then find a way to publish them somewhere...
Ciao

Thanks to both you guys scoccia and folgore.
I just knew you'd have the answers. Good on you both.