I consider myself a bit of a ham-fisted modeler and always trying to improve my skills and techniques, by ruining one kit after another. I have been putting glue to styrene and paint to plastic since the mid-1970s. The first kit I got was Tamiya’s Tiger I Ausf E (MT-126) kit for Christmas, still remember that moment. I decided recently to revisit some of the armor that I have always been interested in, German Armored Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) of WWII that were used in North Africa around 1942-1943.

About the Kits

Rye Field Models (RFM) Tiger I

The first kits that is featured here is the Rye Field Models (RFM) Tiger I (Model No# 5001), the Early North African Front/Tunisia variant. Outside of the offerings from Dragon, RFM has a nice kit and I had never built an RFM kit before. I am not an authority on German Armor, however there are several subject matter experts and one of the leading ones is David Bryden. According to David, the Tiger I’s that were shipped to Africa in 1942 were not assigned to the Deutsche Afrika Korp, they were formed into independent battalions under the command of Panzerarmee 5, and later they were in Panzer Regiment 7 in the 10th Panzer Division, which was again a part of Panzerarmee 5. Tigers in Africa did not belong to the DAK and therefore did not carry the famous “palm tree” logo. According to Bryden, there were two schwere Panzer Abteilung battalions sent to Africa, first was the s.Pz.Abt 501st which arrived to counter the Allied invasion of North Africa, Operation Torch. The second was the 504th which arrived in time to delay Operation Torch; the 504th eventually absorbed the remnants of the 501st, after the battle of Beja.

Some of the Tiger I varied in design, the RFM kit Tiger 141, featured here has the Fiefel filters on the rear of the vehicle as well as the squared off covers over the exhaust which differed from other Tigers deployed to Africa (such as the Bovington Tiger I “131”). Also noted is that the tow cables on the deck of the RFM Tiger 141 is reversed of the Bovington “131”, that are secured to the vehicle with tow eyelets to the rear. Also, there is a difference in the front lights for this unit‘s Tigers, mounted in front of the hull versus on top, which was normal for early built Tigers.

Dragon Pzkpfw. IV Ausf. F2(G)

For the other Panzer, I went back and did a weathering update on an older Dragon kit, Pzkpfw. IV Ausf. F2(G), (DRA-6360) that I had built almost 5 years ago.

There is a lot of contrast in colors and weathering for these two kits. The Panzer IV F had the 7.5cm KwK40 L/43 gun fitted to it in 1943 to counter the thicker armor of the Russian T-34 and KV-1 they were up against in Russia.

Color - Getting It Right

Let’s address the colors of the TIGER I from RFM instruction manual, they recommend RLM02, which is a Luftwaffe color of green. IN the Vallejo world in which I am working, RLM02 is supposedly equivalent to their Model Color 886 is green/grey, which appears more green-ish. The Model Air version is black/grey (airbrush friendly) is 71.044. which according to some internet sources is equivalent to RAL 7002, which is equivalent to olive grey. So, is anybody confused, join the club. Do your research, use your Mark-One Eyeball and it will be fine. The good news there are options.

Alhought some of early Tiger I’s were painted in a Panzer Grey (Schwarzgrau), many Tigers were manufactured finished in RAL8000 Brown base color. According to David Bryden, “… (Tigers) were manufactured in RAL 8000 Brown base color, and the crews were supposed to camouflage them with RAL 7008 (Khaki Grey) or in Vallejo speak, 71.116 Grey Green. According to David, these two colors are almost impossible to distinguish in Black and White photos, so it's not clear to us how or whether this camouflaging was done, but whenever we can study a good photo of a clean Tiger in Africa, the camouflage appears to be there. The British Tank Museum in Bovington found both colors on their restored Tiger "131”. There is an effect of lighting in certain light and conditions that appears trick the eye and it seems to change shades or hues which adds to the camouflage. Two tone color in light gives off an Olive hue, which sparked reports of Olive-Green Tiger Is in Africa. This has been confirmed by one of our club members who has been up close an personal with the Bovington Tiger. For me the takeaway is that you can play with the paints to get the right hue, with Vallejo and others you can almost out of the bottle get the right color and hue.

Another really good source for colors is AK-Interactive book, D.A.K. Profile Guide which has a good overall side profile view of German, Italian, as well as captured vehicles with side plate views and a brief description of some details and colors. They suggest that the color for this Tiger might have been RAL 8020 (Camouflage Brown).

On to the Panzer IV, or as the Brits referred to it as the “Mark IV Special”, one of the better German panzers at the Battle of El Alamein in 1942. The DML instructions recommended that the overall kit be painted in a RAL 7028, Dunkelgelb or Dark Yellow (Model Air 71.025). So, 5 years ago the is what I did, with minimal weathering. However, after referencing the AK-Interactive publication, their research states that many of the PZ IV were veterans of several months of combat and had a very worn coat of RAL 8000 (Yellow Brown) over the original base of RAL 7021, (Dark Gray). However, weathering can be a great balancing tool.

Out of the Box - Well Almost

Both kits were pretty much Out-of-the-box (OOB). I did utilize Friul Model tracks and some of the photo-etched on the Tiger I build, but it was more of a mix for the tool set clamps and such. The painting part was the real challenge. My Airbrush of choice is the Anest Iwata Revolution BR and several ago years I bought a Super Silent A20 compressor and it has been worth every penny. The paints utilized in these two projects are the Vallejo Air Model series of paints. I used Tamiya for a long time and switch over to Vallejo Model Colors and Air Model. I have in the past used the Tamiya fine primer gray, however I switched over to the Vallejo Surface Primer series for all overall painting and pre-shading. For these I used the German Grey Panzer 70.603 as the primer. The Panzer IV was entirely covered with a coat of Model Air 081, Tank Dark Yellow 1943, which has a greener tint of the Vallejo 71.025 RAL 7028 Dunkelgelb. I used Vallejo 71.315, “Tire Black” for the rubber part of the road wheels and overall track for both Panzer IV and Tiger were airbrushed with the Vallejo Panzer Aces series Track Primer 304. An important note and one that I cannot live without when using Vallejo Model Air is their Airbrush Flow Improver (Art. 71.262), only way to make Vallejo worth your while, I have also had success when using their Model Color series in my airbrush…as they say on TV, “results may vary”.

The biggest difference was that I pre-treated the Friul Model track with a “Blacken It” type product to treat the white metal to make it look black. I used a product called Novacan Black Patina for Solder-Lead. This is used in finishing the metal parts of stain glass to give it a dark patina and has a nice effect on the tracks. Track can be submerged for a short amount of time, you can actually watch the track blacken as the liquid does its thing. This was purchased through Amazon. This product comes with a warning, so use plastic gloves and mask in a well-ventilated area, probably the same concerns as with “Blacken It”.

The only thing that was done on both was the use of Vallejo Environment Rust texture was applied to the muffler on the Panzer IV. Wonderful product. I also applied an interior buff color to any exposed interior areas, I used Vallejo Sand/Ivory (Elfenbein) RAL1001. I was able to use the Vallejo Model Color Smoke (70939) in my airbrushed, with a little extra thinner and was able to apply a smoke effect around the exhaust of the Tiger I, that I believe really stood out.

Painting Resources

Vallejo Model Air 081, Tank Dark Yellow 1943
Vallejo Model Air 71.025, RAL 7028 Dunkelgelb
Vallejo Model Air 71.315, Tire Black
Vallejo Model Color 70939, Smoke
Vallejo Model Air 71.075, Sand/Ivory (Elfenbein)
Vallejo Panzer Aces Track Primer, 304
Vallejo Airbrush Thinner, 71.061
Vallejo Airbrush Flow Improver, Art. 71.262
Vallejo Model Air Gunmetal, 71.072 (used on OVM tools)
Vallejo Panzer Aces Weathered Wood, 310 (used on wood pieces)
Vallejo Environment Rust Texture 73.821
As is standard with most of my model painting, when I finished with the overall painting, I applied a coat of gloss varnish over areas that I applied decals and once decals are on I put an overall coat of Matt Varnish. Vallejo also makes these products as well:
Gloss Varnish 70.510
Matt Varnish 70.520
Satin Varnish 70.522

They also have a range of products that come in an aerosol can which is great for overall projects and not confined to the use of an airbrush.

Weathering

Next was the weathering portion… the advent of the AK-Interactive series of weathering pencil was a godsend. Prior to this I used the Sandford Prismacolor series and only had a few pencils. I went and splurged on the AK series. I purchased the Rust & Streaking Effects Set (AK10041), the Chipping & Aging Set (AK10042) and the Dirt & Marks Set (AK10044). I used the chipping color (AK10019) to outline areas around the vehicle to show wear and tear =by the crew. The Gunmetal (graphite) AK10018 was used on areas of the drive sprocket that would show metal on metal as well as those parts of the track that would also show wear. Dust / Rainmarks (AK10026) was applied on all surface areas of the vehicle where dust would be… pretty much everywhere on vehicles in North Africa. I also used the Rust series of pencils on areas that there might be rust on the vehicles, I used Light Rust AK10011 and Medium Rust AK10012 on areas that I thought rust would appear. What is very nice with the AK series, I would either dip the pencil in a little water or draw the rust streak and the apply a brush over it to show rust streaking. This works for any of their pencils. I did a lot of experimentation with these colors on an older kit to try and test different effects. If you think you’ve made a mistake, you can always go back with a Q-tip or wet brush, remove what you have done and start over, it’s that simple and forgiving. Few things in this hobby are that forgiving. I really like this product series.

AK-Interactive Weathering Pencils (Sets):
Rust & Streaking Effects Set (AK10041)
Chipping & Aging Set (AK10042)
Dirt & Marks Set (AK10044)
Individually:
Smoke (AK 10003)
Light Rust (AK 10011)
Medium Rust (AK 10012)
Light Chipping For Wood (AK10016)
Gun Metal (Graphite) (AK 10018)
Chipping Color (AK10019)
Dust / Rainmarks (AK10026)
Concrete Marks (AK10027)
Earth Brown (AK10028)
Buff (AK 10029)
Streaking Dirt (AK 10030)

One of the last steps was to use look at applying some dust effect, if you think you have enough, you probably don’t. I also like the Vallejo Model Wash series, for these models I used, wait for it, the Desert Dust (75.522). You could brush it on, I did do that, but since I’m so impatient, I used my airbrush and a little thinner and flow enhancer and did several coats of the wash. I believe I also used a flat brush to do streak effects with the dust. Towards the end I wanted to add some grime and fuel stain effects around areas on that vehicle that there would be leaks. I used the Vallejo series of weathering effects Engine Grime (73.815), Streaking Grime (73.824) and Fuel Stains (73.814). Makes for a nice combination of effects. The only thing I did know whether it was me or just a quirk, the engine stain goes on a little glossy, which is a cool effect, however when you finish your model and seal it with a Matt Varnish, it will take the glossy effect away. I just re-applied it over the spot.

Vallejo Model Wash Desert Dust (75.522)
Engine Grime (73.815)
Streaking Grime (73.824)
Fuel Stains (73.814)

These two kits are a contrast in time and a contrast in colors, they do to tell a story. During the time of the German Forces in North Africa, color regulations were changing, giving the modeler a lot of flexibility when painting and weathering vehicles. Not everything is exact and as you look at the German Armor of the period, they took what they had, improvised as needed and the environment took its toll on the equipment and it allows the modeler a great amount of flexibility to tell the story. I really plan to go back to a lot of kits I previously built and to experiment with these products. Thanks for looking. Feedback is always welcomed.

Reference Materials:

https://www.youtube.com/c/Panzermeister36/videos This young man does some amazing armor model building tutorials.

http://tiger1.info/ David Bryden’s site, enough said.

AK-Interactive Book – D.A.K. Color Profile Guide. Great resource for profile image of Deutsche Afrika Korps vehicles to include Italian and captured vehicles. Includes a brief description and colors.

AK-Interactive Book – DAK German AFV in North Africa. Another great slick publication that features the works of a variety of modelers and their step-by-step process.

AV Vallejo – Airbrushing and Weathering Techniques, Tips, Tricks and Techniques, 2nd Edition. By Rob (Scratchmod) Ferreira. Probably the ultimate guide for using Vallejo products and a variety of painting and weathering techniques.

Euro Modelisimo – Armor Models No. 10. (99310) This is a bi-Monthly publication that actually may not be in print any more. Based out of Spain and distributed in the US by MMD Squadron. This particular issue had a great write up an photos of a Pz I using Vallejo, Tamiya and other paints. The colors used and plates of colors gives a nice breakdown of the early Panzers in North Africa.

Euro Modelisimo – Armor Models No. 9. (99309) This is a bi-Monthly publication that actually may not be in print any more. Based out of Spain and distributed in the US by MMD Squadron. This particular issue had a great write up an photos of a Pz III using Vallejo, Gunze Sangyo and other paints. The colors used and plates of colors gives a nice breakdown of the early Panzers in North Africa. Exrtra benefit was the figures of DAK crewman and step by step painting.

Model Art Magazine – 1/35 Scale Plastic Model Kit Guide German AFV Database. Publication is in Japanese and features a breakdown of German Vehicles, very similar to the old Panzer Files annual publication. There is a complete breakdown of sprue contents as well as finished models by some of the best Japanese model builders.

Squadron/Signal Publication - Afrika Korps in Action. Weapons Number Four. This is an old reliable document that features the artwork of the venable Ron Volstad. Published in 1979.

Squadron/Signal Publication – Panzer Colors I. Camouflage of the German Panzer Forces 1939-45. Authored by Bruce Culver and Bill Murphy, with Artwork by Will Greer. Published in 1976. This is one of the original works at the time which eventually became a 3-volume set, red, yellow, and green. Some things in the publication are subject to argument, however for its time and some of the original research was groundbreaking. My copies are worn and beat up and I still reference them.