"SF US tanks - green and grey work, or too British?" Topic

I'm playing around with colour schemes for my Khurasan Samson tanks. I've packed away the airbrush so am using tamiya and army painter sprays.

Decided on Tamiya RAF Green as the green part of the equation, and am trying to figure out what to use as a contrasting colour for two tone sharp edge camo. I played with Flames of War US Armour spray (way too dark) and Army Painter Army Green spray. I found Army Green to be ok, but I'm trying to figure out what "out of the pot" GW or Vallejo colours to use for highlighting and drybrushing. Any suggestions? (Have found GW Catachan green to be an effective colour for highlighting the RAF Green spray).

But when researching the Tamiya RAF green I saw plenty of great pics of RAF planes in the grey/grey two tone combo – I like it a lot, but I have a feeling that it's too British to be an effective US colour choice. Here's an example:

Thoughts from the crowd?

It's all good !

I think that would make for a very handsome scheme actually.

I think either scheme would work.

Just look for a nice olive green – almost all paint manufacturers make one, or more, so they should be pretty easy to find.

Grey/grey would look nice too, if you can get some decent, but not too stark a contrast between the two.

I generally try to match the game table terrain I'll be using.

I've had terrible trouble with making my camo too effective and missing vehicles on the table top

Me and the guys use a lot of sand cloths (my mate Roger has done some very nice mottled ones with paint and stuff – see these shots link ) and I just keep lsing vehicles when I use sand based camo. I'm just reluctant to break out the purple vehicle scheme (however SF I think it is!)

I love Bucaneers, though, so I'll vote for that camo McWong!

John T

Green/ Tan?

Saving Green/Tan for an opfor. It was my initial preference, but felt that combo belonged to the Red Banner tanks.

John, T, am absorbing my copy of the Crucible I recently purchased for inspiration, will hit the website next.

Good oh McWong – hope you enjoy it! talking of which, I'll be off line for almost three weeks come Friday – off on a tour of Scotland by motorcycle (I just hope it stops raining!) so – if anyone has any questions, before Thursday, please, or in September!

John T

Well, I can see the "no purple" point of view, in most cases, although someone here on TMP did post a really great looking, Sci-Fi table in an overall purple theme.

I thought it looked great, and certainly a lot more alien than the run of the mill green, or sand colored tables.

You could always go with this color scheme instead, John, and I can almost guarantee you won't lose any vehicles on most game tables, unless there happens to be a major dust storm, or sudden power outage:

The backstory is listed below:

The bright orange color of the 9857th Heavy Grav Armored Division's vehicles strikes fear into the hearts of all that oppose them, much like the Red Baron did in his bright red aircraft many centuries ago. All enemy units are required to perform and pass a mandatory morale check when they first spot them visually. "The Fireballs" (named that due to their brightly colored vehicles, and the contrails they leave in the sky as they drop to the planet's surface from orbit at Mach 3) have developed a fearsome reputation throughout the galaxy, rarely giving quarter to their opponents.

They look fantastic, Mako – don't get me wrong! I tried purple scenery for a 6mm game in 1981 (this is the only picture I have left!)

I had metal finish vehicles with green hover skirts (Table Top Games, as I recal) so I could at least find them!

Anyway, it's SF – it's all good!

John T

Well, for US vehicles you can't go too far wrong with the traditional olive drab.

@John Treadway – that sheffield game is absolutely gorgeous! One day I hope to get my terrain up to that standard…

If you decide to do 'participation' game of Hammers at the Warlords please let me know (I live in central london) as I'd love to have a game with some of your minis/terrain, they're beautiful!

Just put on some black or white stars. That will get the convey the fact that they are Americans.

Samulus – send me an email hammers-slammers.com/contact.htm at some point. We don't always get out all of the nice terrain for a club night but we get some out Let's see what we can arrange: you'd be very welcome.

John T

It's all good … 'cept orange and purple … And lime green, lemon yellow, fire engine red, etc., etc. …

I'd like to add pink to the list of colors not to be used, after seeing the large Ogre army yesterday.

Pink actually works pretty well for Martian camouflage. It can be a variant of the desert pink seen in the Middle East -- the faded paint where the red oxide shows through and the sandy color fades with a pink effect emerging. I've also used it on upper surfaces of flyers used on Mars. It's surprisingly effective and plausible

And…my granddaughters are now interested in painting miniatures

You just gotta pick your battles

Gang, when in doubt, always refer to historical sources:

Remember what Oscar Wilde always said, "Talents create; geniuses steal!"

Leland R. Erickson
Metal Express
metal-express.net

I did these in pink:

Army Painter Barbarian Flesh as the primer/base colour with blue as the disruptive pattern, so very much based on (perhaps inspired by would be more accurate) one of the WW2 British desert camo schemes. They wound up like this:

So I for one can quite hack pink – the right sort of pink – in a desert environment. See it all here link

John T

You haven't seen any USAF Euro 1 schemes, then.

Gunship Gray, Gunship Green, and a darker green.