Test Figures for 28mm Vietnam Project

    My 2 test figs for my 28mm Vietnam project -- I like the method I used on the radioman better

Now that the moment had arrived to begin painting figures for my Vietnam project, I wanted to take some time and figure out how to paint them. In particular, how to do the olive drab U.S. Army uniforms? The more I considered the idea, it boiled down to two methods. One method would be to paint their uniforms a dark olive drab and dry brush a lighter version over it. That is typically how I do my 28mm miniatures nowadays. Or I could do a light olive base coat and do a dark olive wash over them, allowing the darker tones to settle into the folds and shadows. I have had inconsistent success with painting figures with this method, so it would be trickier.

I decided to choose two figures and paint one up using each method. I didn't notice till after I had begun that I chose the "U.S. Army Specials" pack from the Black Sun line. It didn't matter, but I ended up picking the radioman and a leader fig from the five figure pack. I cleaned them up, and these Crucible Crush figures, made by Pulp Figures people, had minimal flash. They were excellently cast miniatures, which is why I chose them for my Vietnam project. Next, I used white Gesso to prime them, letting them fully dry overnight.

    Stage 1: Gesso-primed figs receive a base coat of Delta Ceramcoat Light Timberline Green

It was a pretty straightforward thing to do the base coat and dry brush method. For the wash method, I premixed Vallejo Military Green with their Clear Matte Varnish. I used 15 drops of green to each full dropper bottle of clear, using an empty paint plastic paint bottle I picked up from the local craft store. I started with five drops, shook it, and painted it on a sleeve of the figure. Too light. Then I upped the mix to 10 drops. Better, but still a bit light. At 15, I hit what I thought was the right combination. Right away, I felt I liked this method better than the dry brushing. It looked smoother and colors more blended. Once I finished each test miniature and gave it a black wash, I definitely liked it better. The dry brushed one was too dark, and almost looked like a WW II German infantry dark green.

    Stage 2: Web gear and pouches painted Sage green, poncho & helmet camo medium green

I wanted a little more definition, though, between the web gear and the uniform shirt and pants. I remember my web gear in the 1980s was bleached out olive drab, while my uniform was darker. So, I decided to use a different, almost Sage Green, color for the web gear, pouches, and so on. The shirt and pants were a Ceramcoat paint called Light Timberline Green. The poncho was done in a medium green, as were the camouflage splotches on the helmet. After doing the remaining three figures of the pack that way, I decided I needed one more slight refinement. I would dry brush the sage green equipment a very light gray before adding the O.D. wash mixture. 

    Figures after the O.D. wash is applied - I like how the dark olive is in the crevices, much more subtle

The pictures beneath the two test figures show the second batch progressing through its stages. I may actually end up proceeding with this project by having more than one batch in progress. I am letting the figures dry overnight with each of the above stages. I think this allows the acrylic paint to "shrink wrap" onto the figure. This provides better definition in dry brushing, delineating the lines between two colors, and of course providing the deepest crevices for the wash. 

So, as you can see, things are progressing along with my 28mm Vietnam project! I will probably wait till both batches are flocked and finished before updating again on these figures. Suffice to say, I am happy with how they're turning out. What about terrain -- what am I working on there? Well, if you remember the really large resin building I bought from Miniature Building Authority at Siege of Augusta, I am finally working on that. I have scratch-built a roof for it (I got a big discount because it didn't have one) and am working on painting the building itself. The goal is to have it completed before I see Kirk at his vendor booth this coming weekend at Buckeye Game Fest. Will it happen...? I hope so!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 119
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 60 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 13
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 21

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 53
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 55