Hobby color - FS34097 polní zelená

Green for ground equipment

FS 34097 is a dark green with a strong gray component, the kind used on US ground equipment in the postwar period. It differs from the aviation greens in being more subdued and less saturated, because it had to blend with vegetation seen from the ground rather than from above.

Paint properties

The binder is a water-based acrylic and the resulting surface is neither flat nor gloss. Where the material is absorbent, water is enough; on smooth plastic the coat holds better after the line's own thinner. It cannot be mixed with the lacquer lines.

Working with the color

• Modulate large vehicle surfaces with a lightened tone, otherwise they look flat
• Wait with dust and mud until the camouflage has hardened
• Mark the chipping with a dark brown; silver looks out of place on a vehicle
• Stir the paint well, subdued shades have a dense pigment

A note on the scale

Scaling down darkens a color optically, so a shade that looks right on the chart can come across as too dark on the finished model. In smaller scales it therefore pays to lift the tone slightly with white, while in large scales there is no need for that.

Where the color is used

• US ground equipment of the postwar period
• Crates, jerrycans and gear in a diorama
• A base under lighter green tones when modulating

On vehicles it pays to leave the lower areas markedly dirtier than the upper ones. The difference between the maintained surfaces the crew could reach and the underside, which was rarely cleaned, is one of the most effective ways to bring a model to life.