Revell Aqua Acrylics

[Casey]

I've decided to give this paint range a try. Unfortunately, Revell Aqua paints are not readily available outside of Europe, and their price is crazy - usually going for about 4$ per 18ml of paint. Furthermore, they currently have 88 colors in the range, so you must be prepared to spare around 350$ plus postage. Owch.

 

 

Paint pots.

I've started with opening and mixing the paint as per instructions. The first thing I've noticed is the design, which is brilliant, terrible, bad, and ugly.

Brilliant: They fit in a drawer perfectly. They are cubes!

Terrible: Opening one requires a knife (or long fingernail, which will inevitably break after the tenth paint) to cut the paper, then a lot of strength to unscrew them. After 88, you will get a long-term mark on your finger, exactly where the edge of the cap comes 'off' and bites you. Ouch again!

The bad: When it comes to having cube-shaped boxes neatly arranged in a drawer, you quickly feel like you are playing a sliding-block game.

The ugly: the overall design could be better, it suggests you should keep the paint open while painting, but the paint is not usable out of the pot. You need to thin it before use. I prefer this paint to be in a dropper bottle with mixing balls. And do not use the electric stirrer; the container shape makes it easy to end up like that episode of Mr. Beans doing a wall painting session.

 

The paint

The paint itself is super thick. It has a chocolate pudding consistency, making it a bit difficult to use the pipettes to transfer them. The best way to handle them was either an artist's knife or a toothpick. It does thin very easily with just a bit of water. Still, without using any retarder, it dries fast and shows a similar problem in brushing as Tamiya paints - your brush will pull up the previous layer while trying to apply it. Revell has an Aqua Color Mix, a thinner and retarder in one, which works great and I would highly recommend getting one.

 

Brushing

They are excellent to work with if you thin them and add some paint retarder. They cover well and are relatively resilient.

 

Airbrushing

Again, after thinning them, they work well. Thinning them with water will cause the paint to dry on the airbrush needle, so use either vendor thinner or some alternatives. I tried them with a mix of Vallejo Airbrush Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver, which worked great. I used Aqua Color Mix too, and it works similar as Vallejo combination.

 

Colors

After thoroughly (5 min on lab mixer, then hand stirring with a painter knife for a minute or two, then another 5 min on the mixer), I've made drawdowns of all of the paint as it came in the pots. The drawdowns of unthinned color were a bit painful because of the paint's quick drying - it was drying on a drawdown bar, so I made most of my work using an artist's knife.

 

Technical details

I've prepared all of the paints on brush-out drawdown cards from BYK - https://www.byk-instruments.com/en/Physical-Properties/Drawdown-Cards-%26-Panels/Brushout-Drawdown-Cards---thick-stock-paper/c/p-5940

Then I measured them all on my spectrophotometer (parameters: geometry: D/8 SCI, D65 light source, 10deg observer, 400-700nm with 10nm wavelength interval, 400nm UV filter). The results are in L* a* b* form, but I've provided an RGB interpretation. RGB color space cannot represent some colors; for example, Luminous Yellow, is a very fluorescent paint, and RGB math limits it to pure yellow (255, 255, 0).

 

Here are the combined results:

 

Gloss, Satin, Metallics and Transparent

 

Matt

 

I've matched some of the colors with real samples I had and here is how they are seen by spectrophotometer:

 

RAL color matches

Matched with RAL K5 color fan. I've matched most of them and they all are pretty close matches, here are some examples

 

Revell Aqua 36179 | RAL 7031

Difference: 0.77 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36146 | RAL 7013 (NATO Olive)

Difference: 0.53 DE

 

Some were bit further off, but not too far neither.

Revell Aqua 36115 | RAL 1017

Difference: 1.86 DE

 

Overall - this is a VERY GOOD source of RAL matches paints.

 

Matches with British Aviation Colours of World War Two

36117 - Africa brown | RAF Light Earth

Difference: 2.53 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36182 Dark Earth RAF | RAF Dark Earth

Difference: 2.39 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36168 Dark Green RAF | RAF Dark Green

Difference: 2.85 DE

 

36174 - Gunship grey | RAF Extra Dark Sea Grey

Difference: 0.59 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36179 - Greyish blue | RAF Ocean Grey

Difference: 1.59 DE

 

36167 - RAL 7009 - Greenish grey | RAF Dark Slate Grey

Difference: 2.02 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36159 | RAF Sky

Difference: 1.63 DE

 

36156 - RAL 5000 - Blue | RAF Dark Mediterranean Blue | RAF Deep Sky

36156 vs RAF Dark Mediterranean Blue: 1.50 DE

36156 vs RAF Deep Sky Difference: 2.17 DE

 

36134 - Italian red | RAF Matt Red (but Italian Red is glossy so you need to apply matt varnish)

Difference: 1.41 DE

 

Matches with 1938 RLM

Revell Aqua 36140 - Black Green | RLM 73

Difference: 0.94 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36145 | L.Dv. 521/1 RLM-grau | RAL 7003

36145 vs RLM-grau: 1.56 DE

36145 vs RAL 7003: 0.47 DE

 

Matches with FS595B

Revell Aqua 36143 - Medium grey USAF | FS 36321

Difference: 0.88 DE

 

Revell Aqua 36176 - Light grey USAF | FS 36375

Difference: 2.04 DE

 

36165 - Bronze green | FS 34096

Difference: 2.56 DE

 

36184 - Leather brown | FS 30051

Difference: 1.47 DE

 

Paint finish

Revell paints have a very uniform finish. For example, gloss paints have around 80GU glossiness, Silk Matt (satin) is approximately 20 GU, and matt are about 2-5 Gloss Units.

 

Metallics

They are alright and differ not only in color but also in finish. For example, Silver and Aluminium have similar shades. Still, silver has a gloss 'luster' finish of GU 77, while Aluminium looks like a flat block of unpolished metal, with a GU of 11.9 (almost matt).

 

Transparents

Those are pretty good, with around 70% transparency, even with a thick layer of paint. Selection is minimal; for example, there is no green, but you have blue and yellow.

 

Mixing

Those colors do not have primaries. Even white is not absolute white - it is an off-white creamy color. It improves the coverage significantly but reduces its fitness for color mixing. On the other hand, Revell uses mixes in their manuals. They do not specify if you should use mass or volume parts, and with the paint's thickness, it is challenging to make volume-based mixes.

 

Verdict

Will I use them?: Yes.

Are they my new favorite thing?: No.

 

HTH!

 

Let me know if you have any further questions or want more comparisons or photos.

 

 

Edited January 27 by Casey
Updated with some matches

[ColonelKrypton]

6 minutes ago, Casey said:

usually going for about 4$ per 18ml of paint

 

$5 here in Canada

 

cheers, Graham 

[Troy Smith]

2 hours ago, Casey said:

I've matched some of the colors with real samples

Note  "Revell 45 is matched to RAL 7003 Moosgrau (Moss Grey) which is closest to 5 out of 6 samples of RLM 02 measured"

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235072075-best-rlm-02/#elControls_3663656_menu

 

Interesting to note how close the DE fro the RAF colours are.  I have the Dark Earth, but not the Dark Green and Sky.   Sounds like they could be a good option for a 'close enough' match?     

 

Are there any other close matches to specfied  colours, eg RAF,  Luftwaffe etc ?   That would a most useful bit of information to have. 

 

 

2 hours ago, Casey said:

On the other hand, Revell uses mixes in their manuals. They do not specify if they use mass or volume parts, and with thickness of the paint it is bit difficult to make volume based mixes.

I would presume they mean volume.  Mass based mixes require precision scales.

 

Many many thanks for this, it's a really informative and helpful piece of research....

 

The Vallejo range next ? (ducks for cover...) 

 

cheers

T

[Casey]

11 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

The Vallejo range next ? (ducks for cover...) 

I only have around 100 of Vallejo colors, thats not full range... I have hand painted chart from Vallejo but those samples are not suitable for measurements so I'd need to do my own

 

I might be that crazy though.

 

13 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

Note  "Revell 45 is matched to RAL 7003 Moosgrau (Moss Grey) which is closest to 5 out of 6 samples of RLM 02 measured"

 

Readouts:

Revell Aqua 36145 | L.Dv. 521/1 RLM-grau | RAL 7003

 

36145 vs RLM-grau: 1.56 DE

36145 vs RAL 7003: 0.47 DE

 

Yes indeed it is a good match.

 

And here how it looks over L.Dv. 521/1

 

[stevehnz]

That is great info thanks Casey. I've recently discovered an outlet for Revell in NZ, not sure how extensive their range is but you've given me some colours to go look for.

Steve.

[PattheCat]

Thank you very much Casey. 

The Revell Aqua range has become my first choice for detail painting. 2.5 € here.

Covering well and giving an even result. Tam and Gunze always fought back the hairy stick.

Airbrushing is quite a pain though, about as much dry tip as Vallejo. Using Vallejo airbrush thinner and a retarder or flow improver helps a lot.

 

Have a nice day.

Pat.

[PhantomBigStu]

Wow, good analysis, thing I don’t like about aqua is they dry out really quickly in the pot If I do use them now I decant them into spare dropper pots 

[Casey]

On 10/31/2022 at 4:13 PM, Troy Smith said:

Are there any other close matches to specfied  colours, eg RAF,  Luftwaffe etc ?   That would a most useful bit of information to have. 

All named RAL matches are really good, usually around 2.0DE. I've updated with couple of RLM and FS matches I've found, for you to judge. If you feel some other color should be matched with something, let me know, if I have sample of that something I will update the main post.

[sapperastro]

Just a tip regarding the pots; make sure after opening you use some sidecutters to cut off the little tabs, as they never line up, and prevent the tops going on properly, leading to paints drying out.

[speedy]

I’m a big fan of these paint and have been using them for a million years and they last years before drying out. As above snip the tabs off straight away. Pour what volume of paint I want into the airbrush jar/cup and drop (by eye) some hot water to thin. The only drying on the needle tip I get is with the white. If mixed well these are great for brushing the small bits and again a couple of drops of warm water into the lid an bingo. A very underrated paint

[Casey]

@Troy Smith, @stevehnz - I've went through whole RAF book and I've updated the list with all colors that have <3.0DE difference matches.

Edited November 3, 2022 by Casey

[Troy Smith]

On 31/10/2022 at 20:35, Casey said:

RAL color matches

Matched with RAL K5 color fan. I've matched most of them and they all are pretty close matches, here are some examples

A question,  you list 36186 Olive brown as RAL 7008.

 

RAL 7008 is listed as Khaki Grey

https://www.ralcolorchart.com/ral-classic/ral-7008-khaki-grey

 

RAL 8008 is listed as Olive brown

https://www.ralcolorchart.com/ral-classic/ral-8008-olive-brown

 

the Revell  sites does not list a RAL code

https://www.revell.de/en/products/modelmaking/colors-accessories/aqua-colours/aqua-color-olive-brown-matt-18ml.html

 

I ask as RAL8008 is the colour used by  the Israeli AF in the blue/brown scheme of the late 1950's to late 1960's  , so  which is 36186? 

 

Thank you

 

[Casey]

30 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

A question,  you list 36186 Olive brown as RAL 7008.

 

RAL 7008 is listed as Khaki Grey

https://www.ralcolorchart.com/ral-classic/ral-7008-khaki-grey

 

RAL 8008 is listed as Olive brown

https://www.ralcolorchart.com/ral-classic/ral-8008-olive-brown

 

the Revell  sites does not list a RAL code

https://www.revell.de/en/products/modelmaking/colors-accessories/aqua-colours/aqua-color-olive-brown-matt-18ml.html

 

I ask as RAL8008 is the colour used by  the Israeli AF in the blue/brown scheme of the late 1950's to late 1960's  , so  which is 36186? 

 

Thank you

 

It is RAL7008.

 

The RAL equivalent is given on their site here:

 

https://content.revell.de/revell-colors/en.html#revell-aqua-color

 

They call the color 36186/32186 RAL 7008 Olive brown

 

The paint label contributes to confussion, as the label reads (line by line)

 

Khakibraun,

matt,

Olive brown, matt,

36186

Gris kaki, mat,

Kaki, mat.

 

Spectrophotometer readouts show:

 

 

So it is a great match for RAL7008, and definitely a "nope" for RAL8008.

 

Edited February 2 by Casey

[PhantomBigStu]

Only just seen this, interesting re the RAF colours. I'm meaning to have a little bit of research (by eye nothing like your excellent work Casey) and try and find the best of the shelf brand for each MAP and BSc RAF shades based on all the various threads so sure this will come in handy to help me narrow it down. Interesting results as I dismissed Aqua colors years ago comparing them to xtracrylix shades I had.  May well end up sticking with XA but as per the now deleted thread and the exchange with Troy medium sea grey is the one I'm least happy with, having painted my mosquito humbrol 165 is a tad too light for both the MAP and Bsc shades

 

edit: to follow up, having done some by breif eye research and thread scanning came up with this 

Not particularly useful but, going to try AK Dark Earth and Medium Sea Grey as well as Humbrol 164 for DSG and 126 for MSG

 

Edited February 3 by PhantomBigStu

[Troy Smith]

On 02/02/2023 at 22:30, PhantomBigStu said:

May well end up sticking with XA but as per the now deleted thread and the exchange with Troy medium sea grey is the one I'm least happy with,

Not sure why you wanted that deleted, as it was of wider use? It also deleted my comments which was annoying.

I'm not impressed by Xtracrylix colour matches, far too many are really poor to RAF museum MAP chips,  including Sky, Dark Green, Dark Earth, MSG, Ocean Grey  Azure Blue, EDSG, are some from memory

I got them as the consensus was they were good matches, Xtracolor maybe  the acrylic frequently are not.   Since I did get a response from Hannants when I mentioned an error on a forthcoming decal sheet, might be worth while... 

 

 

 

[PhantomBigStu]

11 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

Not sure why you wanted that deleted, as it was of wider use? It also deleted my comments which was annoying.

I'm not impressed by Xtracrylix colour matches, far too many are really poor to RAF museum MAP chips,  including Sky, Dark Green, Dark Earth, MSG, Ocean Grey  Azure Blue, EDSG, are some from memory

I got them as the consensus was they were good matches, Xtracolor maybe  the acrylic frequently are not.   Since I did get a response from Hannants when I mentioned an error on a forthcoming decal sheet, might be worth while... 

 

 

 

I didn’t, only asked (or at least I thought i did) for my post to be deleted as I had settled on using humbrol 165 before you replied, admins must have got confused.  Anyway had a second go and tried to collate al the info on MAP and BSc colours in a text document to make a thread on here and ended up with a mess and a headache. Question from the thread still stands Id like to find a long term solutions to certain colours such as MAP Dark Earth, Bsc Dark Sea grey and Medium sea grey in both, not even looked at sky and azure blue.  It’s a real shame neither ak or Xtracrylix are good as I love using both brands 

Edited February 4 by PhantomBigStu