AFV Painting & Weathering
Answers to questions about the right paint scheme or tips for the right effect.
Answers to questions about the right paint scheme or tips for the right effect.
Hosted by Darren Baker, Matthew Toms
German Sand bag colour
MattEa
Alberta, Canada
Joined: April 14, 2016
KitMaker: 129 posts
Armorama: 120 posts
Joined: April 14, 2016
KitMaker: 129 posts
Armorama: 120 posts
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 07:51 AM UTC
I am making a diorama that contains a machine gun nest, my question is what colour were german sand bags in WWII, I know they were a tan colour but is something like vallejo iraqi sand too tan?
MattEa
Alberta, Canada
Joined: April 14, 2016
KitMaker: 129 posts
Armorama: 120 posts
Joined: April 14, 2016
KitMaker: 129 posts
Armorama: 120 posts
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 10:33 PM UTC
disorderly
Ireland
Joined: June 07, 2014
KitMaker: 125 posts
Armorama: 114 posts
Joined: June 07, 2014
KitMaker: 125 posts
Armorama: 114 posts
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 10:41 PM UTC
Hi Matthew,
I'd would have done it the other way round - Base colour of burnt sienna and dry brushed with iraqi sand for highlights.
I'd would have done it the other way round - Base colour of burnt sienna and dry brushed with iraqi sand for highlights.
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 10:45 PM UTC
Hi Matthew,
They look good so far.
Y'know, I dunno if there was a specific color. I figure that the Wehrmacht/US Army/UK Army, etc., just used the cheapest burlap they could get, the leftovers from uniforms and protective tarps. So long as the bags were an earthy tone and not a color that would stick out like a sore thumb, I figure they were acceptable. Then again, if sandbags were made from leftover canvas used for protective gear, then the sandbags would have been the same color; Wehrmacht seems to have used gray and gray-green (Feldgrau) covers for trucks, etc..
Or maybe they were left undyed and just a plain canvas/burlap color. I am interested in what others know.
They look good so far.
Y'know, I dunno if there was a specific color. I figure that the Wehrmacht/US Army/UK Army, etc., just used the cheapest burlap they could get, the leftovers from uniforms and protective tarps. So long as the bags were an earthy tone and not a color that would stick out like a sore thumb, I figure they were acceptable. Then again, if sandbags were made from leftover canvas used for protective gear, then the sandbags would have been the same color; Wehrmacht seems to have used gray and gray-green (Feldgrau) covers for trucks, etc..
Or maybe they were left undyed and just a plain canvas/burlap color. I am interested in what others know.
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 10:59 PM UTC
Not German but here are some WWII sandbags: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--jA4kVPtrRA/VcC7SrIrOTI/AAAAAAABs9o/zbPqXE7m0Vw/s1600/American%2BTroops%2Bon%2BTarawa%2BAtoll%252C%2BGilbert%2BIslands%2Bduring%2BWorld%2BWar%2BII%2B%25282%2529.jpg
Okay, here's an Armorama post from a long time ago:
https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/18013
Kris
Okay, here's an Armorama post from a long time ago:
Quoted Text
German sandbag were usually made from sackcloth (jute), which is a yellowish/ochre colour. However once filled with sand and wet they become a dark yellow/earth brown colour.
https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/18013
Kris
Posted: Thursday, April 28, 2016 - 02:17 AM UTC
Any real light earthy tones will do. Even though they hold sand, they leak dust. So your upper surfaces should be a bit lighter than the lower curves.
Shape wise they sag into eachother a lot more than yours. It's very difficult to make windows or peepholes in a sandbag fortification unless they are filled with something more rigid than sand.
Working with sanbags sucks. It's one of the most tedious things I ever did in the USMC. It always takes more of them to cover an area than you think. They don't stack like bricks. What you think will be a 5-inch thick loaf once filled, turns into a 2-inch thick blob. It's the nature of the beast.
Best wishes,
Gaz
Shape wise they sag into eachother a lot more than yours. It's very difficult to make windows or peepholes in a sandbag fortification unless they are filled with something more rigid than sand.
Working with sanbags sucks. It's one of the most tedious things I ever did in the USMC. It always takes more of them to cover an area than you think. They don't stack like bricks. What you think will be a 5-inch thick loaf once filled, turns into a 2-inch thick blob. It's the nature of the beast.
Best wishes,
Gaz