The Academy AH-1Z decals are fine.....choose your paint wisely

[Dave Roof]

After reading a handful of complaints from a few modelers regarding the decals in the Academy AH-1Z, I decided to do a quick test. First, not only is one of the colors called for incorrect (36320), one of the paints they recommend are Vallejo. I would strongly suggest you DON'T use Vallejo's air colors as they are way off.

 

The correct colors for the AH-1Z are 36375 for the bottom and 35237 for the top.

 

In this test, the paints used are Ammo acrylics 36375 and 36320. This was used to check for color contrast as the decals "should" be printed to match 35237 as that is the color used for the markings on the real aircraft.

 

The gloss used was Mr. Hobby Super Clear out of the can. Now, I have used 36375, 36320 and 35237 from Ammo, Hataka (lacquer) and AK real air colors. While all three brands respective colors are slightly different shades, they are close enough for me to conclude that any one of these three paints will provide the same result. 

 

I will be doing a test on a chip painted with 35237 to see if the decals 'disappear'.........they should.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Dave