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AFV Painting & Weathering
Answers to questions about the right paint scheme or tips for the right effect.
German Sand bag colour
MattEa
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Alberta, Canada
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
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Alberta, Canada
Joined: April 14, 2016
KitMaker: 129 posts
Armorama: 120 posts
Posted: Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 10:33 PM UTC
I went ahead with my own technique of applying a base coat of irqai sand and then a heavy dry brush of burnt sienna. I am looking for feedback as to what people think



disorderly
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Ireland
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.
JPTRR
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RAILROAD MODELING
#051
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Tennessee, United States
Joined: December 21, 2002
KitMaker: 7,772 posts
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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.
JPTRR
Staff MemberManaging Editor
RAILROAD MODELING
#051
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Tennessee, United States
Joined: December 21, 2002
KitMaker: 7,772 posts
Armorama: 2,447 posts
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:
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
GazzaS
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Queensland, Australia
Joined: April 23, 2015
KitMaker: 4,648 posts
Armorama: 2,248 posts
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
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