ICM Acrylic Paints

Premium ICM Acrylic Paints for Scale Modeling

ICM Models has established itself as a respected manufacturer of high-quality scale model kits spanning aircraft, military vehicles, ships, and figures, with their acrylic paint line extending that commitment to quality into the finishing realm. The ICM Acrylic Paints collection at MPM Hobbies offers over 100 carefully formulated colors in convenient 12ml bottles, providing modelers with comprehensive color selections for historical accuracy, creative finishing, and weathering effects. ICM's water-based acrylic formulas deliver excellent coverage, smooth application characteristics, and durable finishes while maintaining user-friendly cleanup with water and soap. The extensive color range includes basic primaries, specialized military shades, authentic metallic finishes, transparent clear colors, and weathering tones that address virtually every painting requirement for scale modeling across all subjects and eras.

Water-Based Acrylic Formula Advantages

Water-based acrylic paints offer significant advantages for scale modelers including reduced odor compared to solvent-based alternatives, simplified cleanup requiring only water and soap, and safer working conditions particularly important for modelers working in limited ventilation environments. ICM's acrylic formulation maintains excellent adhesion to plastic, resin, and metal surfaces when applied over appropriate primers, with fast drying times that enable efficient multi-coat application and rapid project progression. The paints thin readily with water or dedicated acrylic thinners, allowing modelers to adjust viscosity for brush painting or airbrush application according to specific techniques and desired effects. Once fully cured, ICM acrylics demonstrate good durability and resistance to handling, though final clear coat protection remains advisable for models subject to frequent handling or display in challenging environments.

Comprehensive Color Range for All Modeling Subjects

The ICM acrylic paint collection encompasses over 100 colors organized into functional categories that address diverse modeling requirements. Basic colors including Black, White, and primary hues provide fundamental tones for mixing custom shades and establishing base coats. Military and historical colors feature authentic shades like German Grey, German Field Grey, British Khaki, Dark Sea Grey, and various neutral greys that replicate period-accurate camouflage schemes and equipment finishes for World War I, World War II, and Cold War subjects. Earth tones and weathering colors including various rust shades, browns, tans, and ochres enable realistic weathering effects, terrain modeling, and figure painting. Specialized colors like skin tones, clear transparent shades, and vibrant accent colors expand creative possibilities for figure work, automotive finishes, and sci-fi subjects. This comprehensive selection reduces the need for extensive color mixing while providing excellent starting points for custom shade development.

Metallic Finishes for Authentic Metal Representation

ICM's metallic paint selection includes eleven specialized formulations that replicate various metal surfaces and finishes essential for realistic model representation. Gold, Brass, Copper, Bronze, and Burnt Tin provide warm metallic tones appropriate for decorative fittings, ammunition components, and weathered metal surfaces. Aluminium, Silver, Natural Steel, Gun Metal, and Oily Steel deliver cool metallic finishes suitable for aircraft panels, vehicle armor, weapons, and mechanical components. Rusty Brass offers pre-weathered metallic effects that simulate corrosion and oxidation without requiring additional weathering steps. These metallic formulations contain fine metallic pigments suspended in acrylic medium, delivering convincing metal appearances when applied over dark primer bases. Modelers can enhance metallic realism through techniques including pre-shading, post-shading with washes, and selective polishing that replicates wear patterns on high-traffic surfaces.

Clear Transparent Colors for Special Effects

Transparent clear colors including Clear Red, Clear Blue, Clear Green, Clear Yellow, Clear Orange, and Clear Smoke enable specialized finishing techniques impossible with opaque paints. These transparent formulations work effectively for tinting clear parts like canopies and windows, creating colored lighting effects, simulating fluids and liquids, and building up subtle color variations through glazing techniques. Clear colors applied over metallic bases create candy finishes popular for automotive and sci-fi subjects, while layered applications over varied base tones produce depth and visual complexity. Clear Smoke proves particularly valuable for weathering applications including exhaust staining, panel line emphasis, and creating subtle shadows that enhance surface detail visibility. The transparent nature of these colors allows underlying details and textures to remain visible while adding color dimension, making them essential tools for advanced finishing techniques.

Military and Historical Accuracy

ICM's extensive selection of military and historical colors reflects the company's expertise in producing accurate scale model kits of military subjects. Colors like German Grey and German Field Grey replicate authentic Wehrmacht vehicle and equipment finishes, while British Khaki captures the distinctive color of British Commonwealth military equipment. Naval colors including Dark Sea Grey, Blue Grey, and various neutral greys enable accurate representation of warship camouflage schemes across different navies and time periods. These historically researched colors provide reliable starting points for accurate finishing of military models, though modelers should always reference period photographs and color documentation when pursuing maximum authenticity. The availability of these specialized military shades eliminates the guesswork involved in mixing custom colors while ensuring consistency across multiple models representing the same service or time period.

Weathering and Earth Tones for Realism

Realistic weathering transforms pristine model finishes into convincing representations of operational equipment showing appropriate wear, exposure, and service history. ICM's weathering color selection includes Dark Rust, Medium Rust, and Hull Red for simulating various stages of ferrous metal corrosion. Earth tones including Light Earth, Tan Earth, Middle Stone, Ochre, and Green Ochre replicate dust, mud, and soil accumulation on vehicles, aircraft, and figures. Browns ranging from Saddle Brown and Leather Brown to Chocolate provide versatile tones for leather equipment, wooden components, and general weathering applications. Buff, Deck Tan, and Pale Sand offer lighter tones suitable for desert weathering, faded paint effects, and highlighting raised details. These weathering colors work effectively through various application techniques including dry brushing, washing, stippling, and airbrushing, enabling modelers to develop personalized weathering styles that enhance realism while maintaining scale appearance. Complement your ICM paints with specialized weathering products from our Mig Weathering, Tamiya Weathering & Texture, and Vallejo Weathering FX collections.

Application Techniques and Best Practices

Successful application of ICM acrylic paints requires understanding appropriate techniques for both brush painting and airbrushing. For brush painting, thin paints slightly with water or acrylic thinner to improve flow while maintaining coverage, applying multiple thin coats rather than single heavy applications that may obscure detail or show brush marks. Use quality brushes with synthetic or natural bristles appropriate for water-based paints, maintaining brush condition through thorough cleaning after each session. For airbrushing, thin paints to appropriate viscosity for your specific airbrush and pressure settings, typically requiring more aggressive thinning than brush application. Strain thinned paint to remove any dried particles that might clog airbrush nozzles, and maintain consistent air pressure for even application. Always apply ICM acrylics over appropriate primer coats that ensure proper adhesion and provide uniform base colors that enhance final finish appearance. Allow adequate drying time between coats, and consider final clear coat protection using compatible acrylic or lacquer clear finishes that preserve painted surfaces while adding desired sheen levels.

Integration with ICM Model Kits and Other Brands

ICM acrylic paints integrate seamlessly with ICM's extensive model kit catalog while remaining fully compatible with kits from other manufacturers. Use these paints for finishing models from our 1/72 ICM Prop Aircraft, 1/72 ICM Jet Aircraft, 1/48 ICM Prop Aircraft, and 1/48 ICM Jet Aircraft collections. Apply them to military vehicle models including 1/24 ICM Cars and ship models from our 1/350 ICM Model Ships and 1/700 ICM Model Ships collections. ICM paints work equally well on kits from other manufacturers, providing color options that complement paint lines from Tamiya Acrylic Paints and Mig Acrylic Paints. The 12ml bottle size provides sufficient paint for multiple small to medium-sized models while remaining economical for modelers building extensive collections. The consistent quality and extensive color selection make ICM acrylics valuable additions to any modeler's paint inventory, whether used as primary finishing paints or supplementary colors that fill gaps in existing paint collections. Visit ICM Models to explore their complete product line including model kits, aftermarket accessories, and painting resources.