Hello gents!

Trying to replicate a Steel clor mix ratio for track paint, to be used as base color before weathering.

Any good recomendations on what paint colors to use? I have a nice stock on Tamiya paints, so any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Jorge

Hi Jorge,

What kind of track do you want build/paint? WWII or modern?
I use the method of giving the tracks a basecoat of Tamiya XF 69 NATO Black or XF 63 German Grey. Then I set some highlights with XF-56 Metallic Grey. Best you do your of research and look for pics of real tracks.

HTH
Hans-Hermann

Hello Hermann!

Just looking for a steel base color... it is for a WW2 track... all to be covered in weathering.

Again, just looking for a nice steel shade so I can start on the weathering process... no need for it to be a shiny steel plate color.

Thanks!

Hi Jorge, as Hans-Hermann said, it depends on the tracks. A lot of tracks and track plates are primed or painted at the point of manufacture before being installed to a vehicle. If they aren't a coat of rust and dust would quickly form on the non-contact areas. Any shiny bare metal showing would be a result of wear.

There are a few excellent threads on how to paint tracks in the paint forum that should answer you question.

Joel

Jorge;
Try 3 parts Gun Metal to 1 part Flat Aluminum. This should give you a good basic "steel" colour to work with. I would highlight with the flat aluminum (dry brush) to give it that sheen. Hope this helps. Cheers.

XF-56 or vallejo natural steel

I recommend Tamiya Metallic Grey acryl. No need to custom mix. Paint the teeth on the drive sprocket, the edges in between the links and the cleats MM Steel. Just MHO.

This link is from a Panzer IV.

There are a number of pictures of German tank track links on this page; they all show much the same basic metallic color as the link in the image Matt posted. They also point up a minor bit of detail that I realize I hadn't thought about in the process of weathering -- pictures of heavily-weathered and war-weary tanks showing rusting, dirt-encrusted tanks... that somehow managed to get that way without wearing off any of the little diagonal cleats on the flanges of the track links. Look at the middle link in the image below and compare it to the more heavily-worn links on either side:



The tracks that we get in kits or aftermarket sets are all cast as if they were fresh out of the factory, and I never thought about how fast the cleats would wear off the track links in use; I'm going to have to make sure that wearing down the tracks is a part of my future build process. With the odd less-worn link indicating a recent replacement to add verisimilitude.