1:35 '40 - French Infantry On The March No.2

French Infantry On The March No.2 - a 1:35 figure from Dynamo-Models

The second number of the marching range of Dynamo-Models, carried in 1:35 scale. The range is built so that the individual numbers can be lined up one behind another and form a continuous movement. This is a figure, not a kit - no vehicle and no finished terrain comes with it, but a figure that gives a scene a human dimension and a scale.

France, May and June 1940

From an infantryman's point of view the French campaign was above all a matter of feet. Only selected formations were motorized; the rest of the army moved on foot or by rail and in the field carried a full field kit on its back. The roads of northern France with their avenues, ruined villages and streams of refugees gave rise to an image that to this day is among the strongest subjects of diorama work. A marching figure is the basic building block of such a scene.

Tips for painting and for the base

A marching scene stands or falls on its base. Make the surface of the road dusty rather than smooth and leave it a shade lighter than the uniforms, so that the figures are not lost. Add a darker tone into the tracks and the edges to suggest damp and depth. Paint the uniform from a darker base toward lighter edges and cover the transition between the boot and the base with pigment matching the color of the terrain - that is the quickest way to anchor a figure visually. Leave the metal parts of the accessories rather dark and lighten them only slightly with rubbing on the edges.

Who the figure is for

• Builders of dioramas from the campaign in France in 1940
• Modelers putting a column together from several numbers of the same range
• Collectors of French infantry figures in 1:35
• Modelers looking for escorting figures to go with a 1:35 vehicle