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20/65 Breda Model 35 AA guns
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by Martin J Quinn |
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| RThe Cannone-Mitragliera da 20/65
modello 35 (Breda), also known as Breda Model 35, was a 20 mm anti-aircraft
gun produced by the Società Italiana Ernesto Breda of Brescia company
in Italy and used during World War II. It was designed in 1932 and was
adopted by the Italian armed forces in 1935. It was the one of two 20-millimetre-calibre
anti-aircraft guns used by Italy during World War II, the other being the
20 mm Scotti.
This gun was widely employed by the Regia Marina as a deck-mounted anti-aircraft weapon in most Italian warships, in both single and twin mountings; considered a fairly efficient weapon, in the widespread Model 1935 twin mounting, it shared with the similar Cannone-Mitragliera da 37/54 the operating systems and therefore its flaws, namely the requirement for a strong supporting structure and high vibrations. Of the two single mountings (Model 1939 and 1940), the latter (widely used on small units like corvettes, and MAS), partly corrected these faults and had a better sight; however, overall the Breda 20 mm was considered somewhat inferior to the Oerlikon 20 mm cannon (used by the Regia Marina from 1941). Above history from Wikipedia. For more details on the weapon and its history, click here. |
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Click to enlarge images |
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| THE FRET | |||||
| Regia Marina has released a set of
photo-etch 20mm Breda Model 35 AA guns in 1/700. This is the
single mount. The twin mount was previously reviewed
here.
There are four parts to each photo-etch gun, and 20 guns on the set. The details are sharply etched. |
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There is a one-page sheet – all in Italian – detailing
which ships carried this AA gun, and how many each ship carried.
Additionally, there are four small drawings at the bottom of the sheet,
showing the parts and how to assemble them. You'll have to consult
your references on where to mount these on your model.
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| CONCLUSIONS | |||||
| This is a nice set of photo-etch,
which will help dress up the AA guns on your Regia Marina cruisers, destroyers
and torpedo boats. As mentioned the set contains 20 single AA guns, so
you will be able to outfit multiple ships.
This is Regia Marina set #AF57 – 1/700 Photo-etch single 20/65 Breda Model 35 AA guns. The set retails for 8,20€ outside the EU and for 10,00€ within (that’s about 8.65/10.54 in USD). Recommended. Thanks to Regia Marina for the review sample. |
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