Vallejo WWII British Africa paint set 71.622
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The Complete Desert Rats & British 8th Army Color Palette
The Vallejo WWII British Africa Paint Set 71.622 is designed for modelers building British Army vehicles used in North Africa, Egypt, and the Middle East between 1939 and 1943. Built around Vallejo Model Air’s airbrush-ready acrylic formula, this set brings together eight coordinated colors selected to reproduce key British desert camouflage schemes with more historical consistency than a generic sand-and-brown palette.
Vallejo lists this set as reference 71.622, and keeping both 71.622 and the store SKU 71622 visible in the copy helps support exact-reference searches as well as broader product discovery.
What makes the Vallejo WWII British Africa paint set especially useful is that it covers more than one flat desert tone. It combines Light Stone, Middle Stone, Desert Pink, greens, black, and supporting contrast colors that help modelers reproduce disruptive camouflage, vehicle repainting, field variation, and weathered desert finishes across British softskins, armored vehicles, and support equipment.
The included palette is useful for Matilda II, Valentine, Crusader, Churchill, Grant/Lee, and Sherman subjects used across the Western Desert campaign. Whether you are building a single vehicle, a British 8th Army column, or a Desert Rats diorama, the set gives you a practical core palette for basecoats, disruptive patterns, fading, touch-ups, dust effects, and weathering preparation.
Why Choose the WWII British Africa Paint Set?
- Historically focused palette: Built around British Army vehicles used in Africa, Egypt, and the Middle East from 1939 to 1943.
- Mike Starmer supported: The official set description notes assistance from historian Mike Starmer.
- Airbrush ready: Model Air paints are pre-thinned for smooth, direct airbrush application.
- Balanced desert range: Includes key sands, greens, dark disruptive tones, and utility colors for broader finishing work.
- Reference-friendly buying: Reinforcing 71.622 / 71622 helps exact-match shoppers find the correct set faster.
Included Colors & Historical References
This set includes 8 × 17ml / 0.57 fl oz Model Air bottles. Vallejo’s official contents are listed below, and the added-use column gives extra practical value beyond the core historical set theme.
| Ref. Number | Color Name | Historical Set Use | Additional Modeling Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 71.400 | UK Desert Pink | British desert camouflage tone for later North Africa schemes | Useful for faded warm dust filters, sun-bleached desert highlights, and pinkish sand variation on trucks, stowage, and groundwork. |
| 71.143 | UK Light Stone | Main British desert base color | Also useful for light desert modulation, dusty upper panels, canvas lightening, and dry terrain transitions. |
| 71.031 | Middle Stone | Secondary desert stone tone in British North Africa camouflage | Good for tonal variation on sand vehicles, desert gear, layered highlights, and lighter rocky groundwork. |
| 71.030 | Brown Green | Disruptive camouflage color in British vehicle schemes | Useful for darker field repainting, tarps, earthy green shadows, and worn equipment contrast. |
| 71.309 | Dark Slate Grey | Essential disruptive pattern color in selected British schemes | Also useful for dark camouflage accents, equipment shadows, wheel/rubber contrast, and cooler weathering tones. |
| 71.012 | Dark Green | Supporting green camouflage tone | Useful for greener theater transitions, tool handles, field equipment, vegetation accents, and multi-theater British builds. |
| 71.043 | US Olive Drab | Utility green in mixed military workflows | Helpful for American M3 Grant/Lee and M4 Sherman tanks that served alongside British forces in North Africa from late 1942, as well as Allied stowage, tarps, packs, crates, helmets, and diorama details. |
| 71.057 | Black | Contrast, shadows, and depth control | Useful for preshading, rubber details, tools, exhaust darkening, and deep camouflage separation. |
US Olive Drab is included to model American M3 Grant/Lee and M4 Sherman tanks that served alongside British forces in North Africa from late 1942, and for allied diorama work mixing vehicles from the same theater.
Application Guidelines for Desert Armor
The 71.622 palette covers the full spectrum of British 8th Army armor in the Western Desert: the Matilda II and Valentine used in the early desert battles, the Crusader that saw heavy use at Gazala and El Alamein, the Churchill in Tunisia, and the American-supplied M3 Grant/Lee and M4 Sherman that joined Commonwealth forces from late 1942.
- Prime first: Use a suitable primer before airbrushing to improve adhesion on plastic, resin, or metal.
- Build the base in thin passes: Start with Light Stone or Desert Pink depending on the scheme and layer gradually to preserve surface detail.
- Add disruptive colors carefully: Brown Green, Dark Slate Grey, and Dark Green work best when built up in controlled passes rather than one heavy coat.
- Use tonal variation: Lighten exposed upper surfaces and dusty areas with Light Stone, Middle Stone, or Desert Pink for a more realistic sun-faded result.
- Clean between colors: Desert camouflage often requires frequent color changes, so prompt airbrush cleaning helps keep pattern edges sharp.
Expert Tips for British Desert Modeling
- Break up monotone sand finishes: Even simple desert schemes usually look better with subtle shifts rather than one single flat tone.
- Use darker colors for contrast zones: Brown Green, Dark Slate Grey, and Black are useful for disruptive patterns, deep recesses, and stronger visual separation.
- Expand the set beyond armor: Several of these colors also work well on crates, tarps, field gear, tow cables, and other diorama accessories.
- Keep the reference visible: Adding 71.622 / 71622 naturally in the copy helps both customers and internal catalog searches find the right set more reliably.
Modeling the full North Africa theater? The Vallejo Middle East Wars set 71.619 covers the same region’s post-war conflicts and is useful if you are expanding into 1967–1973 Israeli and Arab armor. You can also browse the Vallejo WWII Ground & Camo Sets collection for additional Pacific, European, Eastern Front, and desert-theater palettes.
Frequently Asked Questions — Vallejo 71.622 WWII British Africa Paint Set
The Vallejo 71.622 set contains 8 pre-thinned Model Air colors matched to British 8th Army vehicles in North Africa from 1939 to 1943, including UK Desert Pink, UK Light Stone, and six supporting tones for disruptive camouflage and allied armor.
What colors are included in the Vallejo 71.622 WWII British Africa set?
The set contains 8 × 17ml Model Air bottles: UK Desert Pink, UK Light Stone, Middle Stone, Brown Green, Dark Slate Grey, Dark Green, US Olive Drab, and Black.
What vehicles is this set designed for?
The set is built around British 8th Army armor in the Western Desert, including Matilda II, Crusader, Valentine, Churchill, Grant/Lee, and Sherman tanks used across the North Africa campaign.
Why is US Olive Drab included in a British WWII Africa set?
US Olive Drab helps cover American M3 Grant/Lee and M4 Sherman tanks that served alongside British and Commonwealth forces in North Africa from late 1942. It is also useful for Allied stowage, crates, tarps, helmets, and mixed diorama work.
How does this set differ from the Vallejo Middle East Wars set 71.619?
The Vallejo 71.619 Middle East Wars set covers modern conflicts from 1967 to present, including the Yom Kippur War and later desert armor. The 71.622 set is specific to WWII British North Africa from 1939 to 1943.
Is this set airbrush-ready or does it need thinning?
Vallejo Model Air is pre-thinned for airbrush use straight from the bottle. For finer misting, add 10–15% Vallejo Airbrush Thinner and start around 15–18 PSI for base coats.