Paints › AK Interactive › Dark Steel › vs Heavy MetalDark Steel vs Heavy Metal
Brand AK Interactive Range AK Quick Gen Code AK17067 Type a metallic Swatch #60585b (estimate)
Brand Army Painter Range John Blanche Vol. 1-4 Code Vol. 2 Metallic Type a metallic Swatch #414342 (estimate) How close are they?
ΔE 11.2, fair: the same colour family, but not a straight swap. Heavy Metal is noticeably darker than Dark Steel.
Can I use Heavy Metal instead of Dark Steel? Only where an exact match doesn’t matter, such as a new unit or a highlight. Fair match (ΔE 11). Heavy Metal is noticeably darker than Dark Steel.
Can I use Dark Steel instead of Heavy Metal? The same difference applies the other way round: Dark Steel is noticeably lighter.
ΔE is the colour difference between our two swatch estimates: under about 6 is close, over about 15 is loose. Real paints also differ in finish, coverage and how they thin, so test before you commit.
See Dark Steel on the colour wheel See Heavy Metal on the colour wheel
Other Army Painter paints close to Dark Steel Other AK Interactive paints close to Heavy Metal All matches: Dark Steel equivalents · Heavy Metal equivalents
© 2026 AK Tabletop Studio. Swatch colours are estimates and will differ from the real paints; cross-brand matches are close, never exact.
Chart-listed matches come from the Two Thin Coats Paint Comparison Chart 2024, the Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic conversion chart, the AK 3rd Generation Acrylics equivalence table (2021) and the Herrick Games hobby paint comparison chart; the rest are a nearest-colour calculation.
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