Neutral Gray 17ml

Vallejo Neutral Gray 17 ml - a neutral gray (FS 36173)

A medium gray flat shade from Vallejo in a dropper bottle of 17 ml. It is a water-thinnable acrylic from the Model Air line, which the manufacturer makes specifically for spraying: the paint is thin enough to be filled into the airbrush straight from the bottle with no thinning. The thick brush line by the same maker does have to be thinned before spraying, which is why it is worth knowing which line you are holding. If need be, Model Air can still be thinned further with airbrush thinner or with a flow improver.

The color

A neutral gray is a pure gray with no color cast. That has a practical consequence: when you mix it into another color, you only darken the shade without warming it or cooling it, so it does not pull toward brown or toward blue. In that it differs from an anthracite gray, which has a cool cast toward blue-black. That is exactly why a neutral gray is a favorite mixing and shading color. The manufacturer also lists it as a shade matching the US FS 36173 standard, an aircraft gray from the American palette.

Use

• Mixing and toning: it darkens another shade without shifting its temperature.
• Shading and preshading: a versatile darker tone under the main color.
• American aircraft: the shade matches the FS 36173 standard.
• Gray areas of models where you want a medium, unobtrusive tone with no color shift.
• A base for further layering and for tonal modulation.

Who the paint is for

For modelers who want one dependable working gray, for mixing, for shading and as a middle tone between light and dark. Aircraft modelers working on American subjects will appreciate it in particular. It is best to spray a primer on the base first and to apply the paint in several thin coats.

The paint is water-thinnable and contains no organic solvents, yet spraying produces an aerosol: work in a ventilated space or at an extraction booth and protect your airways. Keep out of the reach of children.