Acrysion - německá šedá

The gray that a whole army wore

A dark gray with a cold bluish undertone is the best known base color of German ground hardware. Vehicles carried it from the second half of the 1930s and it lasted across the board until 1943, when a dark yellow base replaced it in production. Anyone building an early version of an armored vehicle, a half-track or an artillery tractor can hardly do without this tone.

Why it reads darker than you expect

In a small scale a full gray looks very dark and swallows the shaping. It therefore pays to lighten it on the upper surfaces and in the places light would fall on, and to leave it saturated in the depths around the running gear. Going up in scale emphasizes that difference further.

Working with the paint

It is thinned with water, so once you are done it is enough to flush the cup and the needle before the paint dries. The pigment settles at the bottom when left standing, so stir the contents properly, otherwise the coat comes out paler than you wanted. The line is primarily intended for application with an airbrush and in thin coats it keeps the surface free of texture.

The markings on the bottle

The number of the shade sits in a frame in the color band above the name of the line. The name of the paint stands below it, to its left you will find the gloss level and to its right the intended use, that is whether it is a tone for aircraft, cars, ground machines, ships, weathering or a base color. Military shades add the country and the period as well.

Which set it belongs to

A gray base will not finish a model on its own. Add a darker tone for the shadows of the running gear, a metal shade on the exposed edges and a dusty cast on the lower parts. Only the contrast with the surrounding colors gives a large area depth and legibility.