Skins by Aelius

[aelius]

The pdf shared by 69th Stonehalo prompts me to make a contribution as well.

It is a Bf-110C-4 from 6./ZG 76 stationed in Argos, Greece from where the Haifischgruppe flew in the Balkan campaign. In addition to the shark's mouth, the planes were given yellow identification markings on the engine cowlings and rudders that were retained for the invasion of Greece and Crete in April and May 1941.

Although not appropriate for the Battle of Britain, it is a colorful example of the type and a good plane with which to practice skinning. I used the template for the ZG 26 but, given how little detail is provided, was obliged to overlay it with a checkered pattern and then fly the plane to discover where the various cowling panels were to be placed. The tail rudders and size of the nationality markings were an exercise in repeated experimentation as well.

What one discovers in doing this for the first time is that various representations of the Bf-110 are not consistent. The placement of codes on the fuselage, for example, which have been taken from Messerschmitt Me-110 from 1939 to 1945 by Dominique Breffort and Andre Jouineau, simply cannot be reconciled with the model in IL-2. Or, for that matter, with a similar example in The Messerschmitt Bf 110 in Color Profile, 1939-1945 by John Vasco and Fernando Estanislau--two of the best books for skinnng the Bf-110. Interestingly, the placement of insignia in IL-2 is not consistent either, with the balkenkreuz on the upper and lower wing surfaces wandering from type to type. I should say, by the way, that the most difficult mark to construct accurately is the hakenkreuz, virtually all the examples of which are asymmetrical.

Although a great deal of time is required and the repeated placement of insignia is numbingly tedious, skinning a plane truly is exhilarating. And I thank the developers for making such beautiful examples available, especially the Bf-110, Ju-87, and He-111, although, in comparison, the Me-109 seems unexpectedly bland. I only wish that they or some community member would provide detailed blank templates for all aircraft types. And that the mottled grey camouflage pattern (RLM 71/02), which became more prevalent during the Battle of Britain, could be exemplified as well.

You can download a template for the 6./ZG 76 here.

[Das Attorney]

That's excellent work - cheers!

[LcSummers]

Nice work of another 110.

[Ze-Jamz]

The front of that thing just says 'Pain'..

Nice skin m8

[aelius]

My second skin and now its first patch!

When I first posted Anton-Paula from 6./ZG76, the image had been taken from Breffort and Jouineau, Me 110 from 1939 to 1945, which illustrates the Haifischgruppe in the yellow livery of the Balkan campaigns. This particular plane was flown by Hauptmann Heinz Nacke (who was awarded the Knight's Cross in November 1940) and combines the traditional post-Battle of Britain camouflage colors with the yellow markings of the Balkan campaigns. A handsome plane it is, but I neglected to color the spinner tips to match the yellow identification letter of the Staffel. I've corrected that in the link to the plane in my original post and again here.

More to the point, the artist rendered the plane with the entire nose in yellow and the tips of the wings uncolored. An illustration from Messerschmitt Bf 110 Zerstorer Aces of World War 2 by John Weal, however, shows only the hinged gun-bay cover in yellow, as well as the propeller back plates, a scheme supported by a photograph from Vasco and Estanislau, The Messerschmitt Bf 110 in Color Profile 1939-1945, which shows a sister ship of M8+AP in the foreground.

In the colored illustration that accompanies the picture, the back plate is white (mistakenly, I suspect) and, although the undersides of the wings are not visible, Weal depicts the tips in yellow (but with no identifying letter). I've redone the plane, this time following his scheme, a link to which is here.

Nacke's plane has been illustrated several times, and one is struck by the fact that none of the illustrations are consistent. But it is understandable, given that they all depend upon often grainy black-and-white photographs. Nor is my replication any more exact. Coloring the underside of the left engine nacelle introduces a splinter of yellow on the outer rear of the right nacelle (a fact that took some time to discover). But it cannot be eliminated without affecting the coloring of the nacelle itself. The supercharger intake also is painted but that, too, cannot be corrected. And the leading edge slats affect the coloring of the under-wing tips. None of these artifacts will be readily apparent, but it is annoying that I don't have the skill to eliminate them.

[Xilon_x]

please post the skin the real skin use in battle of brittain sceanario and not BALKANS.
a comple list of skin use in battle of brittain.
the game clift of dover not have map of BALKANS but have only ENGLAND MAP.

[aelius]

As I said, the 6./ZG76 is one of the most colorful examples of the Bf-110C-4, which is why I chose the type. Certainly, one doesn't have to fly it in the Battle of Britain. For me, it simply made for a pleasing screenshot.

In the future, though, I'll only post planes that actually fought in the battle.

[No1 Cheese]

Lovely job,many thanks.

Cheese

[Gamekeeper]

Originally Posted by Xilon_x

please post the skin the real skin use in battle of brittain sceanario and not BALKANS.
a comple list of skin use in battle of brittain.
the game clift of dover not have map of BALKANS but have only ENGLAND MAP.

Bit rude mate!

[Xilon_x]

cheesehawk because is worng topic...........
ORIGINAL TOPIC IS----SKIN AND REPAINTS FOR BOB COD.---
NOT IS ----SKIN AND REPAINTS FOR BALKANS COD.---

you after create confusion.
not just order.

if you want post another tipe of skin open NEW POST.
i like if you post complete list of AXIS and ALLIED real skin use in BOB.