Infantry Tank Mk.I Matilda headlights.

[diablo rsv]

I'm trying to capture the correct look of the headlights on my Accurate Armour build of the 'Matilda I'. During my research  I have noticed that the head light glass often has an opaque appearance to it. It doesn't appear to be painted over so I wondered if there is some sort of other covering on them. The Bovington example seems to display this same opaqueness but the contemporary image of a factory fresh  'Demon' has clear glass so I assume this is a field modification.  

 

 

 

 

 

Wayne

 

 

[Black Knight]

I dunno if this helps you any.

When I bought my 1930 Austin 7 it came with boxes full of original parts, passed down from owner to owner.

In the boxes were a pair of Lucas headlights for use in towns or cities. The glass in these looked a bit like it had been sand-blasted

My A7 did not have any headlamp dipping mechanism. You only had main beam or parking. To drive around a town you had to change the complete headlamp to these 'frosted' glass type.

[Kingsman]

The effect you see in the Deoch and Dreadnaught photos is a paper blackout mask inside the glass made from black sugar paper.  You see these on most early war British tanks before proper hooded blackout lights were introduced (on Crusader?).  The sideways D shape cutout was more common than the round one.

 

I'm not sure that the lenses on Bovington's running A11 (pictured) are glass.  They may be plastic which has yellowed with age, and in any case are almost certainly not original.  Their earlier-model non-runner (marked as Demon but not the same vehicle) with its lights at the front has no glazing in 1 light and a paper mask on the outside of the other, which helps not at all.

[diablo rsv]

19 hours ago, Das Abteilung said:

The effect you see in the Deoch and Dreadnaught photos is a paper blackout mask inside the glass made from black sugar paper.  You see these on most early war British tanks before proper hooded blackout lights were introduced (on Crusader?).  The sideways D shape cutout was more common than the round one.

 

I'm not sure that the lenses on Bovington's running A11 (pictured) are glass.  They may be plastic which has yellowed with age, and in any case are almost certainly not original.  Their earlier-model non-runner (marked as Demon but not the same vehicle) with its lights at the front has no glazing in 1 light and a paper mask on the outside of the other, which helps not at all.

 

Thanks Peter,

That makes a lot of sense. Would that literally be black as it looks lighter in tone in the photos or would you think a browner colour more suitable.?

 

Wayne

[Kingsman]

I think probably more of a very dark grey rather than a true black.  The greying in the photos is partly refraction through the glass, especially if ribbed.

[Mike Starmer]

Frosted glass was used too.  It was textured on the inside and normal outside so that dust didn't adhere to it.  As another method, light blue paint was applied.  This was found on the glass fragments off the headlamp on a Norton motorcycle which I was able to examine in 2007.  This vehicle was in original 1940 camouflage colours beneath a coating of black material used to disguise it.