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Over time, gray or white hair replaces the original horse color, going through a variety of color phases. Some develop pronounced dapples, others have tiny dark freckles, and some just turn a solid gray.
Chestnut (red/brown) horses can turn gray with a pinkish undertone. Black and dark brown horses can develop a blue cast to their gray coats. As the horse ages, the coat becomes lighter as more and more of the colored hairs turn pure white. Aged gray horses can be completely white.
Many horses have dark skins. On a gray horse, the black skin will show through where the hair is thin. Lips, eyes, inside the ears, underneath part of the tail, and around the genitals will show the dark skin. White markings have pink skin underneath, and the pink will show through on the face. There is a nice example of this to the left.
The most accurate way to paint a model horse gray is to start with a good photo a gray horse and copy the markings.