Dear colleagues, instead of paying $7 for a tiny bottle of “red zinc oxide” hobby paint from AK Interactive, why not use automotive zinc oxide primer? It will cost $5 and it will come in a huge spray can or even 1 gallon can if you want, that will last you the rest of your life even if you build a German tank every month.
But which commercial zinc oxide primer has a similar shade to the Nazi product?
And for those unfamiliar with the topic, the Germans primed their tanks in this rust colored primer designed to prevent rusting on all internal and external parts they didn’t want to corrode. The camouflage was applied in the next phase. In the final months of the war, in total desperations, they didn’t even bother painting the tanks anymore, just primed them with the red stuff and delivered them to the frontline units.
I dont use all that much red oxide primer but I found that the rattlecan Tamiya Fine Primer that I use also comes in German Red Oxide,it sprays and nicely and levels just like the gray stuff.
It’s actually not Zinc oxide, but lead oxide (Pb3O4) - so it’s clear today you’re not going to get the original paint - but something lead-free instead. For the modellers that’s no big deal, as long as the colour is right - but for rust protection the lead-free stuff might be not as effective as the real deal - but more ecological…
On a side note, the use of red primer as a base color for camo on WWII German AFVs was short lived from the fall of 1944 thru the early to mid winter of 1945. The last vehicles produced after that were supposed to be made in a overall base color of Olive Green with the Red Brown and Dark Yellow camo colors applied over that.
Like perfume that will loose its fragrance in larger bottles if it sits a while unused I rather go with smaller paint jars that may be more expensive but are used up faster than ones in larger containers often going bad so no money saved since a replacement has to be purchased.
