How do you know what paint(color) you need?

Usually the kit instructions will have painting instructions along with a couple brand choices to pick from.  If not or if you are planning to buy paints ahead of time, then yes there are some armour paint sets out there.  Off the top of my head I can name Testors, Vallejo and Life Color, I'm sure there are a few more.   White Ensign Models website has armor colors listed by country, but I don't believe are sold as a set.

Another option is to go the armor forum and indicate the kit you plan to build.  More than likely someone has built it and they can suggest to you some proper colours.

regards,

Jack

Thanks, I used to just be able to go to the local Hobby shop look around actually see them in person and buy them..but now that thats out of business for me all I got is the internet. I was thinking about making sure I had everything on hand that I wanted so I was thinking about getting the paint when I ran into...hmm what paint do I get lol...im not real concerned with the maker as long as its good quality stuff just making sure I get the correct color(s). Im still not positive how im painting this model yet meaning what camo scheme. for a JagdPanther.

For mid to late war German armor, three colors will fill all your needs: Dark Yellow, Red Brown, and Olive Green. All of the major paint lines- Tamiya, Testors, Gunze, etc. have these colors in their lines. If you have a favorite brand, go with it. The colors are very similar by each company and in real life had some variety. go with wwhat you like brandwise.

Thanks, and no I dont have a favorite back when I was painting it was all enamels seemingly and it was Testors ot Taymia(spelling??)

CBennett: as the others have pointed out, most instruction sheets will give you a reference of the paints you need.

For example:

Tamiya - they only reference their own paints, which normally start with the letters X = gloss/semi-gloss or XF = flat colours.  eg: XF-1 = flat black.  Sometimes you'll also see TS = spray can colour.  I think there are some conversion charts available that can convert the TS to an X or XF colour in their line.

Hence, when building a Tamiya kit (if you like Tamiya paints) simply follow their chart and reference numbers.

Hasegawa - normally reference both Gunze Sangyo and Mr Color paints.  I think the norm is to use Gunze Sangyo, which all start with the letter H, eg H317 = grey.

If you are happy to use Gunze Sangyo and simply order colours based on the instructions/reference numbers, then it won't matter too much.  It becomes more difficult if you want to use a different brand, and then converting the "H" colour to another.

These can be a bit trickier, esp if you're building a navy jet and it references H317 & H318 - which are both simply labled as "grey" by Gunze, however, i think one is light ghost grey, the other is dark ghost grey. 

In those circumstances Gunze normally references the FS (ie Federal Standard) number as well - which (i think) is used by Model Master to differentiate between different colours.

So, this can also be handy.

Finally, it's quite good to locate a colour conversion chart - which i think is available on the net, which will convert colours from one brand to another.  This can be invaluable to prevent stocking up on 4 brands of the same colour.

Hope this helps.

CBennett

Ok guys another question is there any type of reference chart since im gonna have to buy all my paints over the internet as they dont really have anyplace locally to get them..i mean im gonna be doing a JagdPanther but I have no idea what colors to order or what brand(acrylics) to use...on a few sited I see they have tons of colors but you cant see them they just have a picture of a generic jar of paint thats yellow and the paint color your looking at is green lol...so how are you supposed to know what to use when you cant see the paint in person...is there some reference?

Honestly I was crossing my fingers that they sold something like a set of a number of paints like...German Armor paint..then they would have a set/kit of all the paints they used on their tanks from the Yellows to greys greens and browns so you KNEW you wre getting the right stuff...or American Armor paints and have the colors they used...but ive found nothing like that..it seems you just have to guess or come close without seeing the paint....so what gives ?

You'll find you don't need much paint if you're willing to mix the color you want.  If in the US, try a Michael's store and look into both acrylics and oil artists paints.  We have a member in our local club who uses artists acrylics exclusively and mixes the color he needs -- he makes figures, armor, aircraft and cars -- and he wins awards for them at regional IPMS competitions.

If you want to buy model paints, start with this site: IPMS Stockholm color charts.  While dated (from about 2007 or earlier) it's reasonably close and allows you to cross reference most colors from one manufacturer to another.

Also try this site:  Ultimate Model Paint Conversion Chart.

If you decide you like a particular brand, say Tamiya or Model Master, if you need to know if a color is right then post in these forums and you'll get an answer.  Of course, you may not like the answer.