Hello hobbying fanatics,
Dr. D here to tell you about a neat little (it is in fact not little at all) doodad that I started using for my own hobbying needs. A long, long time ago the idea of wet palettes started to pop up when people were using sponges and cookie sheets to create a paint-placement area that prevented your paint from drying out while you were using it. The idea was sound, but it was a bit of a pain in the butt to make since it was such a new concept. The concept was strange and very imperfect when it first started. And I am sure I am not alone when I say I have had situations with sink sponges that make it hard to look my Dad in the eye.
Behold, CAPITALISM IN ALL ITS GLORY! If a need is there, eventually something will come up to meet that need. I have been around the hobbying sphere for a very long time, and have seen so many companies have different takes on this hobbying tool. This is the part of the segment where I validate my experience with this tool through my own personal, brief testimonies.
My very first wet palette was the Privateer Press P3 Wet Palette. I must have been 19ish at the time and it was like giving a 50 cal. sniper rifle to a cave man. It sounded like a good idea, but hell if I could figure out how to use it. I for sure blew a finger off trying to use it. (That is a giving a dumb person a smart person tool joke, Taylor.)
I was turned off of the idea of using one until I moved up to Boston and gave the Red Grass Wet Palette a shot. The timing of skill and practice on this was much better and I actually got a TON of work out of the thing. It was a fantastic product, but I noticed that the seal would be prone to imperfections if you did not use the band to keep it shut throughout the night. This occasionally caused a bit of a mold issue, but it was easy enough to clean out that I never really worried about it. Ultimately, my biggest issue with it was that the paper did not meet the edge of the basin so paint would sometimes seep off of the edge and get into the sponge on the bottom. The bottom of my basin looked like a homicide crime scene.
Also, being a mess of a human being with paint flying everywhere did not help. I used this product until I actually ran it over with my car by accident. Long story on that one. Reach out if you want to know how dumb I really am.
Anyway, the point of this article is to talk about the new palette that I picked up as a prize in the last Infinity event I went to called Everwinter’s Brawl at Beantown 2. We will have talked about it on the network’s podcast Arachne: An Infinity Podcast. (Not out at the time of writing this article since it releases Christmas Day). I did not place great in the event, but to my amazement this piece of prize support had managed to stay on the table when it came to be my turn to pick.
Well little did those other FOOLS know that I won the true prize. I figured why not try something new and grabbed it. I put it on my desk for the next time I sat down to paint, and after using it for a little bit I wanted to review it for you guys. I know that I am lucky enough to be more imbedded in the hoppy space than others and quiet a few people ask me for advice on this kind of stuff. I figured I might as well write my thoughts down for anyone pondering if this product is worth it.
So lets get to it. If you are interested in purchasing one for your very own desk before you even read the rest of this article. Here is a link that will directly help out the network.
The first thing you will notice about this thing is that it is absolutely massive for a wet palette. I took pictures for below since some people may not believe how big this thing really is. As far as I am aware I have not seen any other wet palette that is this big.
The palette measures out to 10 in x 6.5 in of workable space. The sheets included go all the way to edge of the basin so that paint shouldn’t be absorbed by the sponge quiet as readily as some of the other palettes I have used. I am not a math scientist, but that is at least about 13 football fields of real estate to slap your paint down. It’s actually 65 sq inches, but who is really counting these days. Numbers are for people who want to know things.
As you can see I have used the palette since I wanted to test it before I told anyone about it. Such is the way of the consummate professional such as I. This picture is taken after painting five models from a few different games. So, I was using a variety of paints from different brands to cover the ranges between the different armies I play.
Here a few examples of models to illustrate the variety of paints I have used.
All of this took me probably about a week and I have only had to remoisturize the sponge once. This means that the seal used to keep it shut when you are not using it is very, very good. They use a latch system that for all intents and purposes is darn-near perfect and much more intuitive than remembering to put the band around the palette after use. The seal is very good and uses silicon to make sure no air manages to sneak into it when you have your back turned. I admit I wasn’t too sure on the idea of latches, but after having used it I admit that I am a big fan of it.
Now, all of this by itself would probably let me give this product a solid recommendation, but it actually has more. To my amazement, the lid opens up to a little compartment that holds onto 2 rows of 4 paint cups (I admit I am not sure what the technical name for these are) that you can use to mix paint or hold onto more watery paint like glazes. The device also has a little basin area with a ramp that I believe is there to test paint consistency. The every-elusive need to water down our paints until they are “skim milk” consistency is easier to test when you can physically watch the paint move with gravity. The basin on the far right looks to be a tool or paint brush holder that you can also use to store the little square smoother (they call it a squeegee) that is used to make sure the paper is sealed up against the sponge when you moisturize it or replace the paper.
The little square squeegee is probably the one part of the product that I am not the biggest fan of, but I have not had many opportunities to use it.
All of this fits into the neat upper compartment that I believe was provided so that someone could take this show on the road. It has room for things like brushes or hobbying tools and could be very helpful for someone who wants to hobby on a lunch break or only has a small amount of hobby space and needs to be miserly with their hobby footprint. It’s a great way to keep things out of the reach of kids or hide your shame from loved ones.
And that is everything that comes with the purchase of this bad boy. None of these things are add-ons from the original package and it comes with 2 sponges and a package of palette sheets. I did not take the time to count them out, but the product says that it comes with 50 sheets. This gives the product SERIOUS longevity given the size of the sheet. I imagine when I am at the peak of my painting time with a few hours a day this will easily last AT LEAST 2 weeks a sheet for me. Which is crazy good value!
My overall rating of this is bad/to the bone.
I admit I was taken aback with how much I loved this thing. I enjoyed it so much that it made me want to rave about in on the internet. Depending on how much people like this article I may even review all the hobby stuff I can get my hands on since I have tried a LOT of it.
I love this thing and I don’t suspect any other wet palette is going to take its place any time soon. If anyone has any questions please reach out to me on Discord as Dr.D or send an email to Furypainting@gmail.com.
And of course you can always find me on EVERY episode of Arachne: An Infinity Podcast where we talk about all kinds of stuff that I hope everyone can enjoy. NOT just Infinity players. If you would like to support the network and ME specifically, please sign up to the Patreon at the Digital Nomad tier since it helps me afford the things I would love to review or replace equipment that gets destroy in the slow gremlin-fueled experience I call my life.
Keep it popping guys and catch you in the next one.
