Merkava Mk. IV – Camouflage painting
I used the airbrush in order to paint the base camouflage also for this model. The color of post-1982 IDF tanks is best rendered by paints like Lifecolor UA 035 (acrylic) or Humbrol 84 Mid Stone (enamel). Since I wanted to use Vallejo Model Color acrylics, however, I chose a mix of five parts of 70.991 Dark Sea Grey and one part of 70.967 Olive Green, using an airbrush.
First of all I made a preshading with black along panel lines and recesses (including the lower hull):
Then I sprayed the paint in thin coats, trying to not cover the preshading lines, but rather to blend them with the rest of the camo.
The battalion the tanks belongs to is indicated by a number of white rings around the main gun barrel. According with the decals provided with the kit I painted only one ring, which means that the tank belongs to the 1st batallion. To do so, first I painted in white the zone containing the ring, then I masked it with Tamiya tape, and finally I sprayed the base paint.
After that, I sprayed a brighter version the paint (by adding to it two more parts of 70.976 Buff) in the center of the panels, thus achieving a lighting effect. It is hardly noticeable in the photos, but it is more visible to the naked eye.
