Hi All,

Inspired by some of the lovely KV2's that have recently been posted here, I have decided to strip and rebuild/repaint my Trumpeter KV2.
I intend to do it as a damaged, knocked-out vehicle that has been left in the field for a few months, this will give me a chance to practice some rust-work.
As I am mainly a German vehicle builder, Im not too up to date on the best base colours for Russian armour. I was wondering if any of you guys could offer suggestions for the best colour matches.
I use Vallejo and Tamiya paints mainly.

Thanks, Paul

Russian 4BO Protective Green had a pretty wide range of colors when new, though FS-34102 has been suggested as a decent match for the original color cards. Others favor FS-34096 or FS-34097. They are available as USAF camouflage colors from Testors Model Master, among others. Given the chaotic situation during the war years, a lot of latitude had to be given to manufacturers when it came to matching the paint standards. Also, recent research has suggested that the pigments in 4BO were chemically unstable, and tended to darken with age rather than fade, which can partially explain the rather wide range of colors on preserved samples.