Paint Mix Guide

One of the biggest issues in customizing, that I've found, is trying to match up existing paint colors with those sold in stores. This is easy if you have access to or can afford high-quality paints like Citadel, but what if you're like me and only have cheaper brands, like Apple Barrel or Delta Ceramcote?

You mix 'em, of course!

The following is a list of tried-and-true paint mixes I've whipped up over the past couple of years that have worked out well for me. In each case these assume you're using Apple Barrel paints, unless noted otherwise in the description. In every case a "drop" is just that--one drop, from slightly squeezing the bottle.

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Abernathy Green (close shade to VvV Wave 5 Gen. Abernathy cap/costume)

• 2 drops Forest Green
• 1 drop Black

Bombstrike Khaki

• 4 drops Brown Oxide
• 4 drops Yellow
• 1 drops Cinnamon apple

Brekhov Tan (matches the '98 Brekhov colors)

• 3 drops Mango
• 1 drop Dark Chocolate
• 1 drop Sandstone

1982 Cobra (Officer) Blue (a very near -- and highly sought after -- match)

• 2 drops Delta Ceramcoat Midnight Blue
• 2 drops Too Blue (1 drop to match some yellowed parts)
• 1 drop Delta Ceramcoat Ocean Reef Blue
• (This mix was compared to a 1983 Cobra Officer v1.5. Also compared to Viper v1, Tele-Viper v1, and 2004 Cobra Infantry Troopers.)

Comic 3-Pack Stalker's fleshtone (an almost exact match to Comic Pack #7 Stalker's face)

• 1 drop Golden Brown
• 1 drop Brown Oxide (2 for a darker shade, as used on CP #7 Stalker's hands)

Dusty's Sand Brown (shade very similar to SpyTroops Dusty)

• 3 drops Toffee
• 1 drop Mango
• 1 drop Brown Oxide
• 1 drop Yellow

Heavy Duty Brown (matches the brown straps, etc. on the Heavy Duty Spytroops torso)

• 1 drop Black
• 1 drop Brown Oxide
• 1 drop Chocolate Bar

Heavy Duty brownish-gray (matches the Heavy Duty Spytroops torso)

• 2 drops Pewter Gray
• 1 drop Brown Oxide
• 1 drop Dolphin Gray

Original Joe green (Produces a shade of green very similar to that of the original Joes)

• 1 drop English Ivy Green
• 1 drop Leaf Green
• 1 drop Brown Oxide

Slaughter's Marauders Dark Green (Found while attempting to mix Steel Brigade Green 2. A nice match for the dark green parts on the 1989 team's 3-color camo.)

• 1 drop Leaf Green
• 2 drops Forest Green

Steel Brigade Sky Blue (an exact match to Steel Brigade vers. 1's arms and collar)

• Use Apple Barrel's Pool Blue (no mixing needed!)

Steel Brigade Green 1 (a very close match to Steel Brigade vers. 1's shirt/vest and backpack)

• 1 drop Light Ivy Green
• 1 drop Leaf Green

Steel Brigade Green 2 (an exact match to Steel Brigade vers. 1's knee pads and helmet detailing)

• 1 drop Leaf Green
• 1 drop Forest Green
• 1 drop Dark Forest

Steel Brigade Desert Khaki (an exact match to Steel Brigade vers. 1 and Law vers. 2's pants)

• 1 drop Khaki
• 1 drop White
• (To better match Steel Brigade parts with some yellowing, substitute White with Ivory. The Khaki + Ivory variant is also a close match to Cover Girl vers. 1.)

Tiger Force Duke Green (a close match to Duke vers. 2's shirt and backpack; found while attempting to match Steel Brigade Green 1)

• Use Apple Barrel's Light Ivy Green (no mixing needed.)

Venomous Maximus Blonde (produces a shade of blonde identical to that on V. Max's head)

• 1 drop Toffee
• 1 drop Yellow

Medium Dark Flesh (typical of the painted on skin tone found on VvV Mindbender and some SpyTroops)

• 4 drops Medium Flesh
• 1 drop Dark Flesh (Delta Ceramcote)
• 1 drop Cinammon Apple
• Note: when applying fleshtones, I've found it a good idea to add a single drop of water to the mix; this results in a smoother, more natural look.

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Special Paint Mixes

This list is basically non-standard colors I've used with various customs, provided here for you to try out and see if you like.

Native American Fleshtone (might need to be adjusted)

• 3 drops Medium flesh
• 3 drops Dark Flesh (Delta Ceramcote)
• 2 drops Mango

Sand Clay (produces a very light tan, similar to the color of clay sand)

• 1 drop Toffee
• 1 drop White

Medium Sand Clay (produces a slightly darker Sand Clay shade)

• 1 drop Toffee
• 1 drop Sandstone

Oxide Khaki (produces a lighter shade of brown oxide, darker than Desert Khaki)

• 3 drops Toffee
• 1 drop Mango
• 1 drop Brown Oxide

Old Leather Brown (produces a very dark, almost black shade of brown)

• 2 drops Cinammon Apple
• 1 drop Black

Rust Brown (produces a darker reddish brown than with Cinammon Apple alone)

• 1 drop Cinammon apple
• 1 drop Chocolate Bar

Desert Khaki

• 2 drops Sandstone
• 2 drops Toffee
• 1 drop Yellow (Delta Ceramcote)

Dark Green Khaki (produces a very dark olive green, similar to WWII khaki)

• 1 drop English Ivy Green
• 1 drop Chocolate Bar

Olive (creates an olive color lighter in tone than English Ivy Green)

• 1 drop English Ivy Green
• 3 drops Brown Oxide (4 for a lighter shade)

Blue-gray

• 3 drops Storm Grey (Delta Ceramcote)
• 3 drops Denim Blue (Folk Art)
• 1 drop Pewter Gray

Tanker Tan (desert tan shade I used for my custom tank crew)

• 1 drop Fleshtone (Delta Ceramcote)
• 1 drop Dark Chocolate
• 1 drop Toffee
• 1 drop Mango