Differentiating Red and White armies on the BoB table

[Sir Rodney Ffing]

This one continues to bother me I admit.  Other than flags, how can I differentiate Red and White armies visually in the early (say 1918 - 20) period if the Reds are not wearing the budenovka given the preponderance of khaki brown uniforms on both sides? From answers to earlier questions, this is too early to use grey uniforms for the Reds, which would be one solution (although it would give me the same dilemma with the Chinese).  Different shades of the same basic uniform colour? Or just use grey for the Reds anyway?

I want to remain mostly a purist but would also like the armies to look at least subtly different on the table if possible.  Is this an unsolvable conundrum? Any tried and tested solutions from the old hands out there would be much appreciated.   

[cuprum]

Here this site to you in the help. For translation use Google. Here are the uniforms of anti-Bolshevik formations in the East of Russia. There are lots of colorful uniforms.

http://www.kolchakiya.ru/uniformology_main.htm

For example - Separate Partisan Division Ataman Annenkov:

http://www.kolchakiya.ru/uniformology/Annenkov_units.htm

Reds also sometimes had quite an interesting uniform:

http://siberia-miniatures.ru/article_info.php?articles_id=2
http://siberia-miniatures.ru/forum/showthread.php?fid=22&tid=349&block=0

[AzSteven]

For the Khaki-clad troops I tend to use shoulder boards as the differentiator; those with boards are Whites, those without are Reds.  Officers tend to be a little more difficult since White and Red both have shoulder boards, but generally any time I have an officer there will be a flag-bearer with him.

Non-khaki units are a different story, but there are enough cool and interesting uniform options for unusual White or Red formations that it is usually pretty easy to tell which is which.

[cuprum]

    Shoulder boards in the Red Army appeared only in 1943...  

During the Civil War, the Reds wore insignia on the sleeve of the uniform.
White also did not always have shoulder boards...

[Johnno]

For the Khaki-clad troops I tend to use shoulder boards as the differentiator; those with boards are Whites, those without are Reds. 

Beat me to it!

[khartoum2]

How about doing something on the base  (depending on how you are basing them) e.g. a red or white edge at the bottom or red flowers and white flowers

[Sir Rodney Ffing]

khartoum - I have a similar system on my ECW, so I think that could work.

Thanks all for suggestions.

[Mark Plant]

My Reds have greatcoats mixed in with those in blouses, but my Whites don't have greatcoats. Instant recognition at a distance. This includes cavalry. It helps that Peter Pig have so many troop types that you have dozens of poses to chose from.

You could do it with caps instead - White troops only have one type of cap or fur hat, but Reds have a mix of caps and fur hats. Fur hats are quite easy to sculpt, so you don't need to head swaps.

You could also line all your Whites up in straight lines across the base, and have the Reds more higgeldy-piggeldy.

[Wirelizard]

My Reds are all grubbier than my Whites, and more likely to have non-uniform pants or similar.

All of my Whites have shoulderboards, and all of my White Cossacks have worn their dress hats (with the coloured top instead of khaki) into the field.

It's simple and a Hollywood approach to history, but it keeps them visually distinct across the table!

[Sir Rodney Ffing]

I like your thinking sir!