Building a Starter Paint Set: Which Scale75 Colors to Pick First

Quick answer

Start your starter miniature paint set with a small core of Scale75 colors for skin, cloth, and metal, then add task-focused sets like COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES for tires, tools, and tracks or WEAPONS for infantry guns and blades. If you also want a display piece to practice on, add a resin figure such as Kelly Kraken.

A starter miniature paint set works best when it covers the jobs you actually paint: skin, cloth, leather, metal, and bases. Scale75 sells individual colors and themed sets, so you can build a compact kit without buying a giant box you will never finish.

This guide gives you decision rules for choosing first paints, using utility and weapon sets, and knowing when a figure kit is the smarter purchase than another bottle of paint.

Start with a core of six to eight colors

A beginner paint selection does not need forty bottles. Pick a light, mid, and dark tone for skin, a base cloth color, a leather brown, a bone or off-white, a black, and one metallic. That covers most historical, fantasy, and sci-fi figures at the tabletop level.

Scale75 colors are matte acrylics designed for layering and washing. Buy one or two extra bottles only when a project demands them, such as a specific uniform or a bright accent. This keeps your first paints for miniatures focused and your budget under control.

• Buy a mid tone first, then its light and dark partners.
• Add a metallic only when your models have guns, armor, or tools.
• Skip specialty colors until a project actually calls for them.

Use themed sets to solve specific painting jobs

Themed sets remove guesswork when you already know the task. COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES is a set of 3 matte-finish acrylic paints and 1 metallic color for base colors on military vehicle chains, tow cables, tires, and tools. These paints are durable and withstand oil paint, pigments, and enamel washes, so they suit armor and vehicle builders who weather heavily.

WEAPONS is a set of 3 acrylic paints, 2 metallic acrylic paints, and 3 acrylic inks for infantry weapons, both metal and wooden components. Use the matte acrylics for bases, the metallics for gun metal and bluing, and the inks to deepen wood and metal finishes.

• Buy UTILITIES if your models have tires, tracks, or tow cables.
• Buy WEAPONS if you paint many rifles, swords, or spears.
• Pierce the paint can cap before first use, and stir the paint rather than shaking alone.

Add a figure when you want a practice project

Paint sets only help if you have something to paint. Kelly Kraken is a 35mm scale figure made with high quality resin, unpainted, and requires assembly. Each box includes a SCALE75 painting reference to inspire your artistic creations, giving you freedom to customize the figure and apply your own painting style.

Carla McCarthy is a 75mm figure produced in white metal with a FORMAT option. Larger scale figures are easier to practice skin and cloth on because the surfaces are bigger, but they need more paint and more time than a 35mm piece.

• Choose 35mm resin if you want a quick, affordable practice piece.
• Choose 75mm white metal if you want a display figure with larger surfaces.
• Remember that both figures arrive unpainted and may need assembly.

How to spend your first budget

If you have a limited budget, spend most of it on a core palette and one task set. A core palette handles skin, cloth, and leather, while a set like WEAPONS or COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES handles the repetitive metal and utility parts that otherwise force you to mix every time.

Avoid buying three similar browns or four near-identical greys at the start. Scale75 color range is broad, and it is easy to duplicate tones. Buy one bottle, paint a test model, and only then decide whether you need a lighter or darker version.

• Core palette first, themed set second, figure third.
• One test model before any second bottle of the same hue.
• Keep a written list of what you own so you do not rebuy.

Decision rules for your first Scale75 order

• If you paint mostly infantry: Buy a core skin, cloth, and leather palette plus WEAPONS for metal and wood components. This covers rifles, swords, and spears without extra mixing.
• If you paint vehicles or armor: Buy COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES for tires, tools, and tracks, then add one or two uniform colors. Durable matte and metallic utility colors hold up under pigments and enamel washes.
• If you are brand new to painting: Buy a small core palette and one 35mm resin figure such as Kelly Kraken rather than a large paint box. One figure teaches you how your paints thin, cover, and layer.
• If you want a display project: Choose a 75mm white metal figure like Carla McCarthy with the FORMAT option, and budget more paint and time. Bigger surfaces are easier to practice on but slower to finish.

Product facts

• COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES: Utilities for tires, tools, and tracks. A set of 3 matte-finish acrylic paints and 1 metallic color, used to create base colors for military vehicle chains, tow cables, tires, and various tools. These paints are highly durable and easily withstand any aging technique using oil paint, pigments, and enamel washes. A focused buy for armor and vehicle builders who weather their models heavily and do not want utility colors to lift during washes.
• WEAPONS: Weapons. A set consisting of 3 acrylic paints, 2 metallic acrylic paints, and 3 acrylic inks. Ideal for painting infantry weapons used by different armies, both metal and wooden components. Covers the metal and wood parts of guns, blades, and spears in one box, so you spend less time mixing bluing and wood tones.
• Kelly Kraken: 35mm scale Figure made with high quality resin. Unpainted figure. Assembly required. In each box, you'll find a SCALE75 painting reference to inspire your artistic creations, giving you the freedom to customize the figures and apply your own painting styles. A low-commitment practice piece that gives you a reference to follow while you learn how your new paints behave.
• Carla McCarthy: 75mm figure. Figure produced in white metal. Larger white metal figure with a FORMAT option, useful when you want bigger surfaces for practicing skin and cloth, though it needs more paint and time.

Who this starter approach fits

Best for

• New painters building a first miniature paint set on a budget
• Tabletop painters who want skin, cloth, leather, and metal covered without duplicates
• Armor and vehicle builders who need durable utility colors for tires, tools, and tracks

Not for

• Painters who already own a full palette and only need one replacement bottle
• Collectors who want pre-painted display figures rather than unpainted kits
• Hobbyists who prefer a single all-in-one box with every color already chosen

Build your starter miniature paint set around the jobs you actually paint, then add a focused set like WEAPONS or COLORS FOR AFV - UTILITIES when a project demands it. A small, deliberate Scale75 order will teach you more than a shelf full of unopened bottles.