Rust is the colour that makes models look real. Nothing says a machine has lived — hauled, weathered, sat out the winters — like convincing corrosion, and Humbrol No. 113 is the classic starting point: a matt mid-tone rust that anchors the whole weathering palette. It's the base coat for corroded steel, the dry-brush colour that catches raised detail, and the wash ingredient behind streaks and stains on everything from wagon underframes to tank exhausts. When a paint guide calls for "113", this is the tin.

One Tin, a Whole Spectrum

Real rust is never one colour — it runs from near-black chocolate through red-brown to bright orange, depending on age and exposure — and No. 113 sits usefully in the middle of that spectrum. Deepen it with dark browns for old, stable corrosion; brighten it with orange (No. 82 pairs naturally) for fresh rust and recent scrapes; stipple the variations together and flat steel starts to look pitted and weeping. One mid-tone plus a little mixing covers the lot.

Made for Weathering Techniques

Matt is essential here — corrosion has no shine — and enamel brings a genuine technique advantage: thinned into a wash, it stays workable long after application, so streaks can be drawn downward with a damp brush and blends softened at leisure, where acrylic washes lock in place in minutes. Dry-brush it over raised rivets and hinges, wash it into panel lines and around fittings, stipple it for scabby patches: rail sides and rolling stock underframes, armour exhausts and tracks, ship hulls at the waterline, and every hinge, bolt and bracket of diorama ironwork.

Classic Solvent-Based Enamel

The traditional fast-drying Humbrol formula: high-density pigment, strong coverage, durable matt film. It adheres to most plastics, wood, glass, ceramics, metal, cardboard and sealed surfaces (test a small area first on anything unusual), with a 14ml tinlet covering roughly 0.3 square metres — and weathering work, applied in washes and dry-brush loads, makes a tinlet go a very long way.

Brush or Airbrush

Brush straight from the tin — two thin coats beat one thick one — or thin further for washes. Airbrush thinned with Humbrol Enamel Thinners at 2 parts paint to 1 part thinner. Matt is touch dry in 20–40 minutes and hard dry within 24 hours; recoat after 6 hours minimum, preferably overnight. Clean up with Humbrol Enamel Thinners.