What is best acrylic color for Modern US Desert Armor

Modeling Subjects Armor
1

I was thinking it was Tamiya Buff, but doesn’t look quite right.

Any of you have a combination that works with Deck Tan or Desert Yellow, perhaps?

I don’t want to use enamels.

2

This is a question I have wondered about too. The enamle Model Master Sand is the choice of the experts here. I have acrylic sand and always thought it looked really light in the bottle. I have to admit, I have not used it. it may look darker weathered. Before I heard about Sand, I used Model Master Acrylic US Army/Marines Gulf war armor. I will be checking back to see what they say

3

HI,

I asked the same question a while ago when I was building the M2 A2 ODS and the M1 A2 OIF from Tamiya. I finally started with Tamiya Desert Yellow and added flat white to it until I was satisfied with the colour as a match with the box art and what photos I could find. Then I added more white to the same mix for spraying the middle of the panels and on top of the armour to simulate sun bleaching. I was real happy with the way it turned out. I don’t remember the proportions of the colours I used but I just mixed them until they looked good. Definitely don’t use tamiya dunkelgelb as it is much to green. Good luck.[8D]

4

I have an M1A2, an M1A1HA and an M113 painted in MM Sand #4720 and they look close to the desert color. I just need to weather them a bit. When I get my digi camera in the next couple of days, I’ll take some pics.

5

i always thought it was Tamiya TS-46 Sand. i used that on both my M1A1 and my M2A2 ODS.

6

Model Master Enamel Sand, FS # 33531, is an exact, out of the bottle match for modern sand on US vehicles. Once weathered, it matches perfectly to vehicles I have been on in Iraq and in stateside motorpools. I am assuming that the same color in acrylic will also be a perfect match, but don’t know since all I use is MM Enamels.

7

That is the acrylic, right?/ I am working on a M60 and want to make sure before I spray away. Thanks

8

This is what I always (didn’t do to many desert vehicles mind you) use.

9

Jason, yes that is the acrylic MM color.

10

Thanks!

11

MM Sand #1706 is what I use, FS33531
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts1706

Here are other “sand” colors that MM makes:
1704 Armor Sand FS30227
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts1704
2053 Sand no FS #
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts2053
2088 Sand Yellow (German) no FS#
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts2088
2110 Italian Sand no FS#
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts2110
2136 US Army/Marines Gulf Armor Sand no FS#
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=ts2136

Overall, I think that 1706 is the best option; I used it on my M997 10t fuel truck and it worked out great. I plan to use it on my Desert Storm HMMWV and M1A1 as well.

12

Agree with knight667. 1706 is the same as FS#33531. The US Army/Marines Gulf Armor Sand is too dark for modern sand. It will work for ODS sand since there was no standard and all sorts of sand paint was used to quickly repaimt NATO camo vehicles as they arrived in Saudi Arabia from Gemany and stateside.

13

i noticed while in iraq we would see new/replacement vehicles coming off trucks (fresh from rebuild or whatever ) but the sand paint had a weird greenish tint to it

even now back on post if you look into a motopool recieving any new vehs a lot of them look a little different in shade/darkness

so i think that you can use whatever paint you think looks right

sgtkopp

14

Another question. Would you also use the MM Sand for the Desert Combat Uniforms? What would you use for the light green in the DCU’s?

15

DCUs. This is how I paint them. Base coat of Testors MM Sand 1706 ,FS# 33531. I mix my own khaki-green color, Testors MM SAC Bomber Tan is close. I use a dark brown for the brown. I paint the boots with Testors MM Armor Sand fro some variety. Here is how they come out.

Good luck.