Tamiya Enamel Paint Guide — XF & X Enamel Complete Colour Chart
Tamiya Enamel Paint Guide
Complete colour listing · XF Flat Enamels · X Gloss Enamels · 10ml bottle · Panel line washes & brush painting
Tamiya's enamel formula — brush painting and panel line washes
Tamiya enamels serve two distinct roles in scale modelling: primary brush painting for subjects where hand painting is preferred over airbrushing, and panel line washing and weathering over a sealed acrylic or lacquer base coat. The 50 XF flat enamels cover military, aircraft, and ship colours organised by theatre and time frame. The 25 X gloss enamels provide vivid, saturated colours for automotive, detail, and general use. Both series use the same X-20 enamel thinner.
The most popular use for Tamiya enamels is the panel line wash technique: apply a gloss clear lacquer over your acrylic or lacquer base coat, thin an enamel colour heavily (typically XF-1 Flat Black or XF-64 Red Brown) with X-20 thinner, flood it into panel lines and recesses, allow to dry, then remove the excess from flat surfaces with a clean brush dampened with thinner. The gloss layer underneath protects the base coat from the enamel thinner. Looking for colours by vehicle and subject? See the Enamel vehicle guide.
Using Tamiya enamels
Panel line wash technique — Seal your base coat with a gloss clear lacquer first. Thin enamel heavily (3:1 thinner to paint) and flow into panel lines. Once dry, remove excess with a flat brush dampened with X-20 thinner. The gloss layer protects the base coat.
Brush painting — Enamels are more forgiving for hand painting than acrylics — the slow dry time allows blending and correction. Thin lightly with X-20 for smooth coverage. Clean brushes immediately after use.
Do not apply directly over lacquer without sealing — Apply a gloss clear lacquer between your lacquer/acrylic base and the enamel wash to prevent enamel thinner from attacking the layers below.
XF(E) vs X(E) — XF enamel colours are flat finish, intended for military and aircraft realism. X enamel colours are gloss, suited to automotive and high-gloss detail work. Both use the same X-20 thinner.
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XF Flat Enamels (XF Enamel Series) ↑ top
Enamel formula · flat finish · 10 ml bottle
Best used for hand painting, panel line washes, and weathering techniques. Oil-based enamel with a slow drying time that allows for blending and easy correction. Apply over a fully sealed lacquer or acrylic base coat — enamel thinner will not damage sealed layers. Thin and clean up with enamel thinner. Especially valued for panel line washes, filter effects, and figure painting.
Enamel thinner accessories listed at the bottom of the X Gloss Enamels section below.
| SKU | Colour Name | Swatch | Subject | Used For↑ series selection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TAMEXF1 | Flat Black Enamel | Universal | General purpose — anti-slip surfaces, shadow base coat, tyre sidewalls | |
| TAMEXF2 | Flat White Enamel | Universal | General purpose — base coats, figures, markings, winter schemes | |
| TAMEXF3 | Flat Yellow Enamel | Universal | General purpose — markings, caution stripes, WWII theatre bands | |
| TAMEXF4 | Flat Yellow Green Enamel | Aircraft | Soviet VVS aircraft undersides 1941–43. Suitable as an enamel wash for panel line detail on Lavochkin LaGG-3, Mikoyan MiG-3, Ilyushin Il-2 Shturmovik (early), and Yakovlev Yak-1. | |
| TAMEXF5 | Flat Green Enamel | Universal | General purpose — vegetation, military equipment, camouflage base | |
| TAMEXF6 | Flat Copper Enamel | Universal | Metallic copper — pipes, fittings, engine details, steampunk builds | |
| TAMEXF7 | Flat Red Enamel | Universal | General purpose — national markings, vehicles, figures | |
| TAMEXF8 | Flat Blue Enamel | Universal | General purpose — national markings, aircraft undersides, vehicles | |
| TAMEXF9 | Flat Hull Red Enamel | Ships | Ship hull anti-fouling below the waterline — all eras and navies. Applied by brush over a sealed base and wiped back for clean waterline definition on IJN Yamato, USS Iowa-class, HMS Hood, and Bismarck. | |
| TAMEXF10 | Flat Brown Enamel | Universal | General purpose — earth tones, wood effects, figure painting | |
| TAMEXF11 | Flat IJN Green Enamel | Ships · Aircraft | IJN 1937–1945 — standard dark green. Ideal as a panel line wash and weathering colour on IJN Yamato, Musashi, Shokaku-class carriers, and Zero fighter cockpit frames on 1/350 ship builds. | |
| TAMEXF12 | Enamel Flat IJN Grey | Ships | IJN 1937–1945 — standard hull grey. Ideal for panel line washes on 1/700 scale IJN ships including Yamato, Nagato, Takao-class cruisers, Fubuki-class destroyers, Akagi, and Kaga. | |
| TAMEXF13 | Enamel Flat IJA Green | Armour · Aircraft | IJA 1937–1945 — standard dark green for IJA vehicles and aircraft. The enamel formula works well for chipping effects over a lacquer base on Type 97 Chi-Ha, Type 95 Ha-Go, and Ki-43 Hayabusa. | |
| TAMEXF14 | Enamel Flat IJA Grey | Armour | IJA 1937–1941 — early-war khaki grey. Use as a panel line wash to add depth on 1/35 early IJA armour builds including Type 94 Te-Ke tankette and Type 89 Chi-Ro. | |
| TAMEXF15 | Enamel Flat Flesh | Figures | Figure painting — skin tone base coat | |
| TAMEXF16 | Enamel Flat Aluminum | Aircraft | NMF aircraft 1944–1955 — bare aluminium for panel variation and detail work over a metallic base coat. Suitable for B-29 Superfortress, P-51D Mustang, F-84 Thunderjet, and F-86 Sabre. | |
| TAMEXF17 | Enamel Flat Sea Blue | Aircraft | WWII US Navy 1943–1945 — Non-Specular Sea Blue (ANA 606). Well-suited for panel line washes over a sealed acrylic Sea Blue base on F6F Hellcat, F4U Corsair, TBF Avenger, and SB2C Helldiver. | |
| TAMEXF18 | Enamel Flat Medium Blue | Aircraft | WWII US Navy 1943–1945 — Intermediate Blue (ANA 608). Suitable for F6F Hellcat, Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless, TBF Avenger, and Vought F4U Corsair in Pacific operations. | |
| TAMEXF19 | Enamel Flat Sky Grey | Aircraft | WWII US Navy 1944–1945 — Light Gull Gray (ANA 602) underside. Use as an enamel wash to accentuate panel line depth on F4U Corsair (late-war), F6F-5 Hellcat, and F8F-1 Bearcat. | |
| TAMEXF20 | Enamel Flat Medium Grey | Aircraft | WWII US Navy and USAAF 1941–1943 — Light Gray (ANA 602). Suitable for PBY-5A Catalina, TBF-1 Avenger (early), Douglas TBD-1 Devastator, and early F4F-4 Wildcat in Atlantic and early Pacific operations. | |
| TAMEXF21 | Enamel Flat Sky | Aircraft | WWII RAF 1940–1942 — Sky (MAP) underside. Suitable for Hawker Hurricane Mk.I/IIb, Spitfire Mk.I/II/Va, Bristol Blenheim Mk.IV, and de Havilland Mosquito B.IV. | |
| TAMEXF22 | Enamel Flat RLM Grey | Aircraft | Luftwaffe RLM 02 Grau 1935–1945 — interior grey. An excellent enamel wash for instrument panels and structural frames on Bf 109 B/C/D/E, Fw 190 A/D, He 111 H, and Ju 88 A/G. | |
| TAMEXF23 | Enamel Flat Light Blue | Aircraft | Aircraft undersides — various WWII schemes, general purpose | |
| TAMEXF24 | Enamel Flat Dark Grey | Universal | General purpose — shadows, weathering, modern vehicles and aircraft | |
| TAMEXF25 | Enamel Flat Light Sea Grey | Aircraft | WWII RAF 1941–1945 — Medium Sea Grey (MAP) underside. Ideal as an enamel wash for panel line definition on Avro Lancaster, Halifax B.III, Spitfire Mk.Vb/IX, de Havilland Mosquito, and Short Stirling lower surfaces. | |
| TAMEXF26 | Enamel Flat Deep Green | Universal | General purpose — deep foliage, jungle camouflage, vegetation bases | |
| TAMEXF27 | Enamel Flat Black Green | Armour · Aircraft | Soviet VVS and Red Army late-war green 1944–1945. Applied as an enamel wash it deepens panel recesses on T-34/85 (Zavod 183 and 174), IS-2 Mod. 1944, and ISU-152 builds effectively. | |
| TAMEXF28 | Enamel Flat Dark Copper | Universal | Aged copper — weathered pipes, engine details, exposed metal | |
| TAMEXF49 | Enamel Flat Khaki | Figures | British and Commonwealth 1939–1945 — Khaki (BS 987C). The enamel formula is ideal for blending shading across cloth folds on 1/35 figures in North Africa, Italy, and Northwest Europe, including SAS and LRDG. | |
| TAMEXF50 | Enamel Flat Field Blue | Figures | WWII German Luftwaffe field blue 1939–1945. The slow-drying enamel formula allows controlled blending of uniform shading on 1/35 Luftwaffe mechanics, armorers, and flak gun crews. | |
| TAMEXF51 | Enamel Flat Khaki Drab | Armour | WWII US and British vehicles 1940–1945 — SCC 15 Khaki Drab. Suitable as a wash and weathering colour on Churchill Mk.VII, Cromwell Mk.IV/VI, Universal Carrier, and M4 Sherman Firefly. | |
| TAMEXF52 | Enamel Flat Earth | Universal | Ground terrain and diorama bases — all eras | |
| TAMEXF53 | Enamel Flat Neutral Grey | Universal | General purpose — weathering mix, shadow tones, intermediate colour | |
| TAMEXF54 | Enamel Flat Dark Sea Grey | Aircraft | WWII RAF 1941–1945 — Dark Sea Grey (MAP) Temperate Sea Scheme. Suitable as a weathering and panel line wash on Spitfire Mk.Vb/IX/XIV, Hawker Typhoon Mk.Ib, Hawker Tempest Mk.V, and de Havilland Mosquito FB.VI. | |
| TAMEXF55 | Enamel Flat Deck Tan | Ships | WWII US Navy ship deck surfaces 1943–1945. Apply as an enamel wash into deck plank seams over a sealed acrylic base for a realistic weathered deck finish on USS Enterprise (CV-6), USS Essex (CV-9), and Fletcher-class destroyers. | |
| TAMEXF56 | Enamel Flat Metallic Grey | Automotive | Automotive metallic grey — car models and mecha builds | |
| TAMEXF57 | Enamel Flat Buff | Armour | WWII British vehicles 1940–1942 — Portland Stone / Light Stone. Use as an enamel wash to pick out detail on Western Desert armour builds including Matilda II, Valentine Mk.I/II/III, and Crusader Mk.I/II. | |
| TAMEXF58 | Enamel Flat Olive Green | Universal | General purpose — vegetation, military equipment, Allied vehicles | |
| TAMEXF59 | Enamel Flat Desert Yellow | Armour | WWII North Africa and modern Middle East 1941–present — sand/desert yellow. Suitable as a weathering wash and panel line colour on Afrika Korps Panzer III Ausf.N, Panzer IV Ausf.F2/G, Israeli Merkava Mk.I/II/III, and M48A3/M60A1 Patton. | |
| TAMEXF60 | Enamel Flat Dark Yellow | Armour | Late-war German armour — RAL 7028 Dunkelgelb. The enamel formula is the standard choice for applying a darker Dunkelgelb wash into Zimmerit paste recesses on Tiger I (Ausf. E), Panther (Ausf. D/A/G), and Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf. H/J. | |
| TAMEXF61 | Enamel Flat Dark Green | Universal | General purpose — military vehicles, foliage, camouflage | |
| TAMEXF62 | Enamel Flat Olive Drab | Armour · Aircraft | WWII US Army 1942–1955 — Olive Drab (ANA 319). Especially useful for dot-filter weathering techniques on large Olive Drab surfaces such as the M4 Sherman hull and turret. | |
| TAMEXF63 | Enamel Flat German Grey | Armour | WWII German Panzerwaffe 1939–1943 — RAL 7021 Dunkelgrau. An essential enamel wash for deepening the recesses on early-war German armour built over a lacquer base including Panzerkampfwagen III, IV, and StuG III. | |
| TAMEXF64 | Enamel Flat Red Brown | Universal | General purpose — rust effects, wood tones, earth colours, figure painting | |
| TAMEXF65 | Enamel Flat Field Grey | Figures | WWII German infantry 1939–1945 — Feldgrau (RAL 6006). The slow-drying formula is well-suited to blending shadow and highlight transitions across cloth folds on 1/35 Wehrmacht infantry, Panzergrenadier, Fallschirmjäger, and Gebirgsjäger. | |
| TAMEXF66 | Enamel Flat Light Grey | Universal | General purpose — modern aircraft, ships, and vehicle schemes | |
| TAMEXF70 | Enamel Flat Dark Green 2 | Armour | Late-war German camouflage 1943–1945 — RAL 6003 Olivgrün. Suitable as a wash and shading colour on Jagdpanzer IV/70, Hetzer, and Panther Ausf. A/G in the three-colour ambush pattern. | |
| TAMEXF71 | Enamel Flat Cockpit Green | Aircraft | WWII US aircraft cockpit interiors 1941–1945 — Interior Green (ANA 611). Ideal for panel washes on instrument panels and cockpit structure detail on P-51B/D Mustang, P-47D Thunderbolt, F4U Corsair, F6F Hellcat, and B-25 Mitchell. | |
| TAMEXF84 | Enamel Flat Dark Iron | Universal | Weathered metal — exhaust pipes, engine blocks, worn track links | |
| TAMEXF85 | Enamel Flat Rubber Black | Universal | Tyres, rubber tracks, hoses and seals — all model types and eras |
X Gloss Enamels (X Enamel Series) ↑ top
Enamel formula · gloss finish · 10 ml bottle
Best used for hand painting, panel line accents, and detail work. Gloss enamel formula applied over a sealed base coat — enamel thinner removes mistakes without damaging the layers beneath. Thin and clean up with enamel thinner.
Enamel thinners listed at the bottom of this section.
| SKU | Colour Name | Swatch | Subject | Used For↑ series selection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TAMEX1 | Gloss Black Enamel | Universal | General purpose — panel lines, deep shadow areas, gloss black surfaces | |
| TAMEX2 | Gloss White Enamel | Universal | General purpose — light colour schemes, markings, figures | |
| TAMEX3 | Gloss Royal Blue Enamel | Universal | General purpose — national markings, aircraft roundels, figures | |
| TAMEX4 | Gloss Blue Enamel | Universal | General purpose — national markings, vehicles, sci-fi builds | |
| TAMEX5 | Gloss Green Enamel | Universal | General purpose — vegetation, vehicles, figures | |
| TAMEX6 | Gloss Orange Enamel | Universal | General purpose — safety markings, automotive, aircraft | |
| TAMEX7 | Gloss Red Enamel | Universal | General purpose — national markings, sports cars, aircraft roundels | |
| TAMEX8 | Gloss Lemon Yellow Enamel | Universal | General purpose — bright yellow markings, training aircraft | |
| TAMEX9 | Gloss Brown Enamel | Universal | General purpose — wood effects, earth tones, figures | |
| TAMEX10 | Gun Metal Enamel | Universal | Gun barrels, weapons, engine components, mechanical details | |
| TAMEX11 | Chrome Silver Enamel | Universal | Chrome trim, polished metallic highlights, bare metal details | |
| TAMEX12 | Gold Leaf Enamel | Universal | Metallic gold — decorative details, medals, trophies, figurines | |
| TAMEX13 | Metallic Blue Enamel | Automotive | Automotive metallic blue — car models and mecha builds | |
| TAMEX14 | Gloss Sky Blue Enamel | Universal | General purpose — aircraft undersides, sky effects, sci-fi builds | |
| TAMEX15 | Gloss Light Green Enamel | Universal | General purpose — vegetation, light foliage, figures | |
| TAMEX16 | Gloss Purple Enamel | Universal | General purpose — figures, sci-fi and fantasy builds, mecha models | |
| TAMEX17 | Gloss Pink Enamel | Universal | General purpose — figures, sci-fi builds, novelty and character models | |
| TAMEX18 | Semi Gloss Black Enamel | Universal | Tyres, rubber parts, semi-gloss black surfaces — all model types | |
| TAMEX19 | Smoke Enamel | Universal | Tinted windscreens, smoked visors, transparent canopies | |
| TAMEX21 | Flat Base Enamel | Universal | Additive — mix into any gloss enamel to create a flat/matte finish | |
| TAMEX28 | Gloss Park Green Enamel | Universal | Civilian vehicles and dioramas — general purpose green | |
| TAMEX31 | Titanium Gold Enamel | Universal | Metallic gold accents — automotive trim, sci-fi and mecha builds | |
| TAMEX33 | Bronze Enamel | Universal | Metallic bronze — historical artillery, ship fittings, figurines | |
| TAMEX34 | Metallic Brown Enamel | Automotive | Automotive metallic brown — car models | |
| Enamel Accessories↑ top | ||||
| TAMEX20 | X-20 Enamel Thinner 10ml | Universal | Tamiya enamel thinner — for thinning X and XF enamel paints and cleaning brushes and airbrushes after enamel use | |
| TAM80030 | X-20 Enamel Thinner 40ml | Universal | Tamiya enamel thinner — for thinning X and XF enamel paints and cleaning brushes and airbrushes after enamel use | |
| TAM80040 | X-20 Enamel Thinner 250ml | Universal | Tamiya enamel thinner — for thinning X and XF enamel paints and cleaning brushes and airbrushes after enamel use | |
Shop Tamiya Enamels at Wheels & Wings
All Tamiya XF and X enamel colours are stocked at our Toronto store and ship across Canada. Individual bottles available singly. X-20 Enamel Thinner is stocked in 10ml, 40ml, and 250ml sizes.
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