GROUND COVER COMPARISON
GHQ makes a fine line of ground cover for use with their hexes. But other companies make ground cover as well. I thought it would be interesting to do a comparison of some differing ground covers...
Each hex is painted with Delta Ceramcoat 02435 Trail Tan, both tops and sides. I allow my paint to completely dry first, preferring to glue my scenic material to the hex -- my feeling is I get a better adherence this way. Next, the ground coverings are applied. My general method of application is to "paint on" Elmer's White Glue, diluted slightly with water; as soon as the glue is spread over the entire surface of the hex (using an old paint brush), the ground cover is applied in a heavy layer. Covers without static grass then get what I call the "pat and tap treatment" -- using my forefinger, I lightly "pat" the ground covering down into the white glue. Following this, I hold the hex at an angle, and "tap" the bottom of the hex to shake of any non-attached cover. (This is done over the container I store the ground cover in -- that way, the "excess" which shakes off is not wasted!) Areas that are rather thin in ground cover usually get another application of ground cover, then "pat and tap" again. When dried, the non-static grass hexes get a soaking of a water/glue mix, to thoroughly fix the ground cover to the hex. (Water/glue mix applied to static grass soaks in well; but as it dries, the static grass is pulled down to the surface of the hex. While the "coloration" is still there, the effect of the raised fibers, simulating grass / weeds, is totally negated. This becomes a bit of a "trade off", as the static grass is not as firmly affixed to the hex... but those fibers standing up sure do look good! Lately, I have been spraying hexes covered with static grass with a cheap hair spray; this seems to help hold the static grass to the hex.
Hexes are "sorted" by manufacturer of the ground cover. "Custom blends" or "combinations" are listed last. The companies' "stock numbers" are listed in bold type. I have also shot "group comparison" shots, so you can compare the hexes against each other; this was done to compensate for the way my digital camera compensates for color, brightness, etc. in each individual shot. These pictures were taken outside on my blacktop driveway on a sunny day.
Currently, there are 51 different hexes in my comparison -- 47 with unique materials, and four where I've used either a custom blend or "layered" different materials. This has been an "interesting exercise" for me -- I hope you will find it of value to you!
| Group Comparison shot | |
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Row 6 (back): GHQ TMA-3, TMA-4, TMA-5 TMA-6, TMA-7, TMA-8, TMA-9, TMA-10
Row 5: GHQ TMA-11, Noch 08310, SE EX801B, EX805B, EX810B, EX822B, EX880B, EX,881B, EX882B, EX883B
Row 4: SE EX883B, EX884B, EX885B, EX886B, EX887B, SS Sable (Tan), TS 304, 307
Row 3: TS 313, 355, 400, 406, WS FL631, FL632, FL633, FL634, FL635
Row 2: WS FL636, T42, T43, T44, T45, T46, T49, T50
Row 1 (front): WS T61, T62, T63, T64, T65, four custom blends (see end of list for details) |
| GHQ | |
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GHQ ground cover comparison back row: TMA-3, TMA-4, TMA-5 middle row: TMA-6, TMA-7, TMA-8 front row: TMA-9, TMA-10, TMA-11 |
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Grass TMA-3
This is the "base cover" I use for most of my "non-ground cover comparison" hexes. This way, my "battlefield" has a visual continuity throughout. However, I always "top" this layer with a multitude of colors and textures, and I do not have a single "set" of materials I use -- other than TMA-3 as a base. |
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Light Green Vegetation TMA-4 |
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Medium Green Vegetation TMA-5 |
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Pale Green Vegetation TMA-6 |
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Dark Green Vegetation TMA-7 |
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Winter Wheat Vegetation TMA-8 |
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Winter Medium Vegetation TMA-9 |
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Dark (Winter) Vegetation TMA-10 |
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Desert Sagebrush Vegetation TMA-11 |
| Noch | |
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Static Grass - Late Summer Grass 08310 |
| Scenic Express | |
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Scenic Express Fine Turf comparison back row: EX801B, EX805B front row: EX810B, EX822B |
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Light Green Turf Fine EX801B |
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Medium Green Grass Turf Fine EX805B |
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Spring Green Turf Fine EX810B |
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Moss Green Turf Fine EX822B |
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Scenic Express Blends comparison back row: EX880B, EX881B, EX882B middle row: EX883B, EX884B, EX885B front row: EX886B, EX887B |
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Grass Blend EX880B |
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Summer Lawn Blend EX881B |
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Scrub Grass Blend EX882B |
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Conifer Floor Blend EX883B |
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Alpine Meadow Blend EX884B
According to the folks at Scenic Express, the items in Turf Blend EX884B that look like small stones are, indeed, small stones. I have to admit that I am not familiar with "Alpine Meadows" -- this was a blend that I obtained as a part of a "six-pack". And while it is most likely an accurate representation of what an "Alpine Meadow" would look like -- I don't know how "appropriate" it would be on many gaming tables... |
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Forest Floor Blend EX885B |
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Farm Pasture Blend EX886B |
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Swampy Bog Blend EX887B |
| Scenic Sand (purchased at Hobby Lobby) | |
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Sable (tan) -- no product number noted
This hex has multiple layers of the sand; as I applied a coating, the sand just seemed to "sink in" to the glue. So I added more... and more... and more. But I am pleased with the result; when I get around to making desert terrain, I believe I will use sand to cover all of my hexes. |
| Timberline Scenery Co. | |
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Timberline Scenery comparison back row: 304, 307 middle row: 313, 355 front row: 400, 404 |
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Mid-Summer Green - Fine 304 |
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Spring Meadow Green - Fine 307 |
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Bristlecone Green - Fine 313 |
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Forest Glen - Fine 355 |
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Forest Floor (with "deadfall") 400
This "Forest Floor" is actually a mix; the predominant color is a burnt orange / tan color, simulating the "dead leaves" one would find on a forest floor. There is a fair amount -- maybe 15% to 20% -- of a medium green ground cover, simulating what little vegetation would be growing in a place where a large portion of direct sunlight would be blocked by the canopy of overhead leaves. Mixed in with these two colors is what Timberline Scenery calls "deadfall" -- they are small, straight "sticks" in rather dark colors. I believe while they may be "weeds in real life", they do a fine job of simulating the dead logs, etc., that would be found on a forest floor. They are rather large for 1:285 scale... but they give an excellent appearance nonetheless! |
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Mountain Meadow (with "deadfall" removed) 406 |
| Woodland Scenics | |
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Woodland Scenics Static Grass comparison back row: FL631, FL632, FL633 front row: FL634, FL635, FL636 |
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Static Grass - Wild Honey FL631 |
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Static Grass - Harvest Gold FL632 |
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Static Grass - Burnt Grass FL633 |
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Static Grass - Light Green FL634 |
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Static Grass - Medium Green FL635 |
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Static Grass - Dark Green FL636 |
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Woodland Scenics Fine Turf comparison back row: T42, T43 middle row: T44, T45, T46 front row: T49, T50
The Woodland Scenics "Fine Turf" textures, in my opinion, are too "fine" for simulating the terrain that Mother Nature creates. In my opinion, they look much more like well-manicured lawns. If you are modeling an "urban lawn", a pasture that is "groomed" by livestock, or something of that nature, then they'd be okay... Also, the Green Grass and Weeds colors are "too green" to suit me... they are much greener than shows up in my photographs. (I do like the T49 Green Blend; it is a very nice mix.) But mixed with other materials, or as a base layer with other materials layered on top of them -- now, that's a different story! |
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Fine Turf - Earth T42 |
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Fine Turf - Yellow Grass T43 |
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Fine Turf - Burnt Grass T44 |
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Fine Turf - Green Grass T45 |
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Fine Turf - Weeds T46 |
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Fine Turf - Green Blend T49 |
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Fine Turf - Earth Blend T50 |
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Woodland Scenics Coarse Turf comparison back row: T61, T62 front row: T63, T64, T65 |
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Coarse Turf - Yellow Grass T61 |
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Coarse Turf - Burnt Grass T62 |
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Coarse Turf - Light Green T63 |
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Coarse Turf - Medium Green T64 |
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Coarse Turf - Dark Green T65 |
| Custom blends and layering | |
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Custom blends and layering comparison |
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"My Blend 1" see Note 1 (below) for details |
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Layered: "My Blend 1" over Woodland Scenics Fine Turf Green Grass T45 |
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Layered: Scenic Express Alpine Meadow Blend EX884B over Woodland Scenics Fine Turf Weeds T46 see Note 2 (below) |
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Layered: Scenic Express Summer Lawn Blend EX881 over Woodland Scenics Fine Turf Burnt Grass T44 (note: caption on picture has T44 mislabeled as T62... oops!) |
Note 1: This is a "custom mix" that I made my mixing together different colors / textures I had on hand. While mixing it, I took the time to write down what was in it. I used an old teaspoon for measurement, and placed the mix in a Woodland Scenics empty canister shaker (S194), which I obtained at my local hobby shop. For the record, the mix is:
4 parts GHQ TMA-3 Grass
4 parts WS FL634 Light Green Static Grass
4 parts WS FL635 Medium Green Static Grass
4 parts SE EX881B Summer Lawn Blend
2 parts SE EX886B Farm Pasture Blend
2 parts WS T45 Fine Turf - Green Grass
2 parts WS T46 Fine Turf - Weeds
2 parts TS 313 Bristlecone Green - Fine
1 part TS 307 Spring Meadow Green - Fine
1 part WS T44 Fine Turf - Burnt Grass
GHQ = GHQ (duh!) / SE = Scenic Express / TS = Timberline Scenery / WS = Woodland Scenics
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