Paints › AMMO by Mig › Zimmerit › vs US Desert SandZimmerit vs US Desert Sand
Brand AMMO by Mig Range ATOM Code ATOM-20144 Type an opaque base/layer paint Swatch #9d8b71 (estimate)
Brand Vallejo Range Model Air Code 71.140 Type an opaque base/layer paint Swatch #9c8273 (estimate) How close are they?
ΔE 7.2, close: similar, with a visible difference side by side. US Desert Sand is warmer than Zimmerit.
Can I use US Desert Sand instead of Zimmerit? Usually, if you are not matching paint already on the model. Close match (ΔE 7). US Desert Sand is warmer than Zimmerit.
Can I use Zimmerit instead of US Desert Sand? The same difference applies the other way round: Zimmerit is cooler.
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 Zimmerit on the colour wheel See US Desert Sand on the colour wheel
Other Vallejo paints close to Zimmerit Other AMMO by Mig paints close to US Desert Sand All matches: Zimmerit equivalents · US Desert Sand 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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