TAMXF18 - Tamiya - Flat Medium Blue Acrylic - 10mL Bottle

TAMXF18 - Tamiya - Flat Medium Blue Acrylic - 10mL Bottle

Tamiya XF-18 Flat Medium Blue represents the United States Navy's Non-Specular Intermediate Blue (ANA 608) — the mid-tone blue applied to the fuselage sides and lower surface transitions of US Navy and Marine Corps carrier aircraft under the tricolour camouflage scheme in use from January 1943 through mid-1944. In the tricolour scheme, Intermediate Blue sat between the darker Non-Specular Sea Blue (ANA 607) on the upper fuselage and the Non-Specular White (ANA 601) undersides, creating a graduated counter-shading effect that made aircraft harder to spot against the sky from the side. It was applied to the fuselage sides, lower cowl, and in some cases the undersides of outer wing panels where they folded upward and were therefore visible from above. As Tamiya's original catalogue documentation confirms, XF-18 was designated "Camouflage on Navy plane" in the range's original intended-use list. Researchers note that XF-18 is somewhat more saturated than the historical ANA 608 chip; for greater accuracy it can be desaturated slightly by mixing approximately 3 parts XF-18 to 1 part XF-2 Flat White, which also brings it closer to the lighter tone the wartime colour exhibited compared to its post-war FS 35164 successor.

Tamiya Acrylic paints are a hybrid acrylic formula built on water-soluble resin — they can be thinned with water, isopropyl alcohol, or lacquer thinner, and clean up easily with water before curing. When thinned with Tamiya Lacquer Thinner, the paint lays down faster, dries harder, and bonds more aggressively to the substrate. The hybrid resin chemistry means the paint film remains slightly soluble after initial drying — subsequent brush strokes can reactivate and lift the layer below if applied without restraint. For this reason, airbrushing is strongly recommended for large surface coverage. Brush painting is workable for detail and touch-up work, but requires a gentle, deliberate stroke and a fully cured base layer. See our Tamiya Acrylic vs. Enamel vs. Lacquer guide for a full breakdown of paint type differences.

• Vought F4U-1/1A Corsair tricolour scheme — fuselage side Intermediate Blue on Marine Corps F4Us operating from Henderson Field, Guadalcanal and Munda (VMF-124, VMF-213, VMF-214, 1943); the F4U specification issued by Vought in 1943 explicitly called for Intermediate Blue on the fuselage sides and the undersides of outer wing panels, which folded upward and were visible from above
• Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat tricolour scheme — fuselage side tone on Hellcats of VF-9 (USS Essex), VF-16 (USS Lexington), and VF-2 (USS Hornet) during the Gilbert Islands campaign (November 1943), Kwajalein (February 1944), and Truk raids (February 1944); the F6F-3's backwards-hinging wing fold meant the outer wing undersides remained Light Grey
• Curtiss SB2C-1C/3 Helldiver tricolour scheme — fuselage side and lower transition blue on Helldivers of VB-17 (USS Bunker Hill) at Rabaul (November 1943) and VB-16 (USS Lexington) at the Marianas (June 1944); the SB2C's upward-folding wings required the outer panel undersides to carry the topside camouflage colours
• Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger tricolour scheme — Intermediate Blue fuselage sides on Avengers serving with VT-6 (USS Enterprise), VT-16 (USS Lexington), and VT-31 (USS Cabot) through 1943–44; some TBMs retained the tricolour scheme through August 1945 while operating from TF-38 carriers off the Japanese Home Islands
• Early two-tone Blue-Gray over Light Gray scheme base — mixed with XF-2 Flat White (3:1) to approximate the Non-Specular Blue-Gray (FS 35189/BS 485) applied as the overall upper surface colour on F4F Wildcats, SBD Dauntlesses, and TBF Avengers from late 1941 through early 1943; this two-tone scheme was worn by F4Fs of VF-3 (USS Saratoga) and VF-42 (USS Yorktown) at Coral Sea (May 1942) and by F4Fs of VF-6 (USS Enterprise) at Midway (June 1942)
• Douglas SBD-3/4 Dauntless tricolour — fuselage side Intermediate Blue on Dauntlesses transitioning to the new tricolour scheme during 1943 while serving with VS-5 and VB-5 (USS Yorktown CV-10) and VS-2 (USS Hornet CV-12) during the Marcus and Wake Island raids
• General-purpose medium blue mixing — XF-18 serves as the blue component in a wide range of custom mixes for RAF Mediterranean Sea Blue schemes, French Navy inter-war aircraft, and various utility blue-grey markings across nationalities

For full Tamiya paint colour references and modelling compatibility charts, visit our Tamiya Paint Colour Chart — Complete Guide for Scale Modellers.

Thin and airbrush with Tamiya Lacquer Thinner, Mr. Color Thinner, or Mr. Color Leveling Thinner.

• 10ml glass jar
• Part of the Tamiya Acrylic paint range