SPLITTERTARNMUSTER UNIFORMS

The sharp edges of splinter camouflage

The splinter pattern is one of the oldest German camouflage schemes and in the literature it appears under a designation referring to the year 1931. Its hallmark is the sharply outlined polygonal patches, which look like shards of broken glass, with fine vertical lines imitating rain drawn over them. It is exactly this two-layer build-up that makes the pattern demanding for modelers.

Three possible base colors

The set offers three variants of the base area. Besides the main base color it holds a gray-green and a sand alternative, because the fabric was produced by various suppliers and the shade shifted noticeably after washing and in the sun. The choice of base makes it possible to tell new equipment from a piece that has been through several campaigns.

The patches and the rain lines

The pair of colors for the patches covers the green and the red-brown component of the pattern. The sixth color is for the network of thin lines that run across the whole area. They are drawn with heavily thinned paint and with the finest brush you have, because once the lines are too thick the pattern turns into stripes and the whole effect falls apart.

Where to find the pattern

Besides the shelter quarters, which were sewn from it in enormous numbers, it appears on paratrooper smocks, on winter clothing and on helmet covers. The set will therefore serve on figures across the whole war, not just in one short period. If you are building a scene with several figures, choose a different base for each one. The difference between the gray-green and the sand option is visible even from a distance and the group immediately loses its machine-made uniform look.