Tamiya Paint Colour Chart — Complete Guide
Tamiya Paint Colour Guide
Complete colour listing · Acrylics · Lacquers · Enamels · All formulas
Every Tamiya paint formula in one guide
Tamiya paint is one of the most trusted names in scale modelling — used by beginners and master builders alike around the world. This colour chart covers every Tamiya paint formula we carry at Wheels & Wings Hobbies, organised by formula with reference notes on military designations, time periods, and specific vehicle subjects each colour applies to.
Tamiya produces paint in three main formulas: hybrid acrylic (alcohol-based, fast drying, versatile thinner options), lacquer (fast-drying, highly durable, best for airbrushing), and enamel (oil-based, best for hand painting, washes, and weathering). Use the sub-guide links below to go to the formula you need, or browse all Tamiya paints here. Looking for paints organised by the specific vehicle or aircraft you're building? See the vehicle guides further down this page.
Which Tamiya formula should you use?
Hybrid Acrylics (XF/X) — Can be thinned with water, IPA, alcohol based thinners, or lacquer thinner. Best with an airbrush; second brush coat may reactivate the first. Great all-round choice for military, armour, and aircraft builds.
Lacquers (LP) — Best airbrushed. Hard, durable finish with fast dry times and excellent colour consistency. Requires lacquer thinner for cleanup and proper ventilation.
Enamels (XF(E)/X(E)) — Best for hand painting, panel line washes, and weathering over a fully sealed base coat. Slow dry time allows blending and easy correction. The standard workflow: lacquer or acrylic base → gloss clear → enamel wash → flat or satin clear.
Jump to formula guide:
Acrylic Paints
Tamiya's hybrid acrylic range covers 73 XF flat colours and 32 X gloss colours across military, aircraft, ship, and automotive subjects. The hybrid formula can be thinned with water, isopropyl alcohol, or lacquer thinner, and is compatible with most airbrush setups. The XF flat series covers the most important military and aircraft colours — IJN greys, WWII camouflage, NATO shades, and modern jet colours — while the X gloss series provides vivid, saturated colours for markings, automotive, and detail work. Acrylic accessories including clear coats and thinners are also listed in this guide.
View Full Acrylic Colour Guide →Lacquer Paints
The LP lacquer range is Tamiya's premium airbrushing line — 84 colours with a hard, durable finish, excellent colour consistency, and fast dry times. Lacquers require lacquer thinner for cleanup and proper ventilation but produce the most consistent and professional results for large-scale airbrushing. The LP range covers the same military and aircraft colour spectrum as the acrylic XF series, with particularly strong coverage of IJN ship greys (LP-12 through LP-15), WWII German armour (Dunkelgelb three-tone), and modern jet shades including Ghost Grey for F-22 and F-35 builds. Lacquer clear coats and thinners are included in this guide.
View Full Lacquer Colour Guide →Enamel Paints
Tamiya enamels serve two roles: primary brush painting and panel line washing over a sealed acrylic or lacquer base coat. The 50 XF flat enamels cover military and aircraft subjects organised by theatre and time period, while the 25 X gloss enamels cover automotive, figure, and general-purpose colour work. Enamels have a slow drying time that makes them ideal for blending, correction, and pin washes — the slow dry allows full control over panel line depth and weathering intensity. The standard modelling workflow is: lacquer or acrylic base coat → gloss clear lacquer → enamel wash → flat or satin clear. Enamel thinner is included in this guide.
View Full Enamel Colour Guide →Looking for paints by subject, era, and theatre?
Each formula has its own dedicated vehicle guide — organised by theatre and time frame so you can find exactly which colours apply to your specific kit.
Choosing the right formula for your build
A common workflow among scale modellers is to airbrush a lacquer or acrylic base coat, seal it with a clear gloss lacquer, apply enamel washes and filters for panel lines and weathering, then seal the whole model with a flat or semi-gloss clear. This takes advantage of each formula’s strengths — the durability and coverage of lacquers, the blendability and forgivingness of enamels — while ensuring each layer is protected before the next is applied.
Shop the full Tamiya paint range in store at 1880 Danforth Ave, Toronto, or order online — we ship across Canada.
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