I just picked up the Tamiya PzIIIN and want to do it in a North Africa scheme (partially because I want to save the skirt armor for a later M!). Tamiya says Dark Yellow. Squadron's book says Brown. What color should it be? Any specific reccommendations (I have access to Polly Scale, Testors Acryl, and Tamiya)?

Damon.

I think it depends on the date (and time of day:)) as to which colors were used. You could also go with basic Panzer grey with a patchy or cross-hatched coat of desert yellow.

Tamiya says Dark Yellow for anything. It definitely wasn't brown either. I'd be quite dubious about it being a base coat of Panzer Grey with scuffed yellow on top. This would more be in line with an earlier vehicle when paint stocks where short and almost anything was used. The Pz III N came out in 1942, so would have been painted in RAL8000 Gelbbraun/Grunbraun if it was early on (and the Germans had this paint in stock), so that would be ok for a vehicle reaching the theatre early. Later on in the campaign, following the withdrawal to Tunisia, RAL8020 would be a more likely colour. LifeColor does an excellent set of colours, including these two. The numbers are UA203 and UA201, respectively.

While lifecolor sounds great, I have no access to it unless I mailorder. So from whom do I get it? That's the problem. Both Squadron and Greatmodels do not carry the specific colors...

Damon.

for contingencies...... When Bovington restored their Tiger I ausf E, they found that this late-1942 tank had been painted in the two 1941 approved colors, RAL 8000 Gelbbraun (Yellow-brown) and RAL 7008 Graugruen (Gray-green). One would have expected the 1942 colors, RAL 8020 Braun (Brown) and RAL 7027 Grau (Gray). THe first color is a pinkish tan, intended to match the pink colored sand found in much of North Africa. The latter color is a gray-green that looks fairly similar to RAL 7028 Dunkelgelb (Dark-yellow). RAL 7027 was used to supplement supplies of Dunkel-gelb as an alternative overall camouflage color. It is POSSIBLE that the use of RAL 7027 MAY have been the origin of the elusive "Tunisian olive" color, but you are strictly on your own there..... German armor camouflage is a minefield, even when they had rules.....