Official AEG N.I painting thread
Recently I picked up reducedAircraftFactory's new AEG N.I night bomber model from Shapeways when it was in beta (the thread about stats etc. is here). Time now to unveil it as I got the chance to finish it yesterday...
Choosing the markings to paint was a fairly tough decision. I initially considered the two-colour lilac and green sprayed camo that was common on other types including the AEG C.IV; the N.I being a development of the C.IV and the first prototype certainly seems to have shared this colour scheme. However it's quite possible that this was the only example to have borne these colours as I've found no evidence to support production models in these colours. Additionally, the early airframes were identified and marked as C.IVn (n for nacht) and it wasn't until August/September 1917 that it was reclassified as the N.I in the new N-category by Idflieg. This makes information about the C.IVn somewhat challenging to locate as they were mainly counted along with the normal AEG C.IV.
I wanted this one to be a 'proper' N.I, so I needed to find markings to suit. This led me to numerous photographs of the N.I bearing very dark hexagonal four-colour camouflage on all surfaces, with national markings added in black, or with extremely minimal white outlines; highly suitable for a night bomber but somewhat problematic to paint. Getting the hexagonal camouflage to look neat and crisp and consistent was a task I wasn't entirely keen on! Fortunately some alternative colour schemes are available, but only in black and white photos whereas the hexagonal pattern does have some colour information to accompany it. The markings that took my eye were this one, N.139/17. One source suggests that it was - interpreting the photograph of it - possibly dark ruby and grey to match the AEG J.I and J.II colours. I compared the photo of the N.I with the colour samples of the J-series camouflage and I'm not so sure; the grey in the J- camo was very dark, and the photograph showed a more moderate-toned colour - I think grey, but I wouldn't totally rule out green either.
The white rudder and the very-wide edged Balkenkreuz offset the darker colours of the camouflage from an aesthetic point of view, but why would a night bomber have such vivid markings on it, as well as having light undersurfaces? By this point of the war the single-engined N-planes were eclipsed by the bigger G- and R- bombers and were used solely in tactical bombing roles. I have to wonder whether this included daylight missions. There is another possibility: as it was surpassed by the G-planes the N.I was used as an advanced trainer towards the end of the war, so it's possible that N.139 may have been one of these and may not have seen active service.
Finding details of which units operated the N.I has also proved challenging. Some units had them added to their strength in small numbers (pairs it seems), and I haven't yet found out if any Bomberstaffel was equipped as a whole unit or not.
But the model... very nice 3D model, with the pilot and observer already in place, including the rear MG (I was concerned about damaging this while painting so some considerable care was used). Lovely level of detail, but the print (WSF) itself seemed to be rougher/grainier than usual - the photos show this particularly on the fuselage. I did consider adding a couple of missing coolant pipes with thin wire but decided against it. This is a game piece, not a museum model!
The grey and purple/dark ruby colours were mixed with a lot of faff, partly based on the colour analysis from the J-series samples and partly on the tonal levels of the copy of the photograph of this airframe (which would have been orthochromatic anyway, thus adding more complication!). So I can say with complete confidence that I think it might have looked a bit like this... unless I'm wrong! The source photo shows the almost completed plane minus its wings so I had to just estimate the wing crosses; rather than use the same 'fat-bordered' cross as on the fuselage I used as reference a photograph of another plane (a Fokker) that had the 'fat' cross on the fuselage but less extreme examples of the Balkenkreuz on the wings. This is partially an aesthetic choice on my part, as I thought the 'fat' crosses would look very strange on the wings. Decals are my own design, and the serial number was every bit as fiddly to do as I expected!
... and the custom card for it is here.
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