I knew that when I started this project that I didn’t want to build a standard desert tan Abrams, and I opted for a woodland scheme instead. Modern armour paint weathers quite differently then ww2 or Cold War armour and as such I needed to take that into account for this build and decided I would take a more subtle approach to the finish of the model and put more focus in the environmental effects.
After a coat of Mr. Surfacer 1500 black to the prime the model, I applied a fairly even coat of Tamiya Lacquer NATO Green. I intensionally made this layer uniform as the paint weathering would entire be done with post-shading. For the post shading, I chose a 80/20 mix of NATO Green with flat yellow. This created a fairly vibrant green tone that would serve as the highlight layer that would isolate details I wanted more focus on. After the highlight layer was completed, I chose a dark green shade to darken the lower sections and recesses of the tank, which balanced the overall post-shading technique. All this work helped to serve as a guideline for the next colours, black and brown.
After the post-shading work was complete, It was time to pick out the elements of the tank that were not finished in the standard NATO camouflage. These parts included the CVTESS equipment, various antennas, and the combat identification panels which were partially hand painted. I also opted to paint some parts of the vehicle in desert tan to help add some visual interest and further break up the colours of the Abrams. These parts were chipped in a dark grey colour, and meant to represent parts that may have been swapped from another vehicle that had seen significant damage or wear.
After this stage had been completed, I sealed my work in a satin clear coat in preparation for decals and weathering.
Nomad Models 