Micro-Mark's new acrylic paints.
Apr 15, 2024 2:36:39 GMT -8
Colin 't Hart, drsvelte, and 3 more like this
Post by Christian on Apr 15, 2024 2:36:39 GMT -8
For an Amazon Vine Review, I received a free set of the new Micro-Mark Air paints. Amazon restricts comments about price and comparisons to other brands. So that review really doesn’t get to the heart of the matter, and looks like a mfr shill, as do most Vine Reviews. Here is a revision of that review with some ARF moments! Comments that I couldn’t make on Amazon.
Firstly: Micro-Mark. They’ve been around nearly a hundred years, selling hard to find stuff for stupid prices. Some excellent quality: some trash.
Micro-Mark has been timid with their paint offerings. Instead, they’ve been carrying lines of paint from Vallejo and Badger. The Vallejo paints have been relabeled with railroady names and, mostly, been packaged in sets. For the last couple of years, there have been supply and shipping issues with Spanish made paints, including Vallejo. In response, MM is selling US made paints which are formulated to their specifications (paraphrasing their PR text) and with the Micro-Mark label. Both the brushing and airbrush versions of these paints are supported by a full line of primers and mediums. The basic set I choose looked to have muted colors, which I like a lot. I wasn’t disappointed when I opened the box. 16 colors and a bottle each of Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver. At thirty bucks for the set, these paints are a bargain. I think that this might be my first ever bottle of purple. I thought the greens and blues were weak. The ochre and oxide look to be keepers and users.
I did a test panel on black plastic with a neutral primer stripe to check coverage. I dribbled the paint directly from the bottle into my airbrush cup. #5 tip and needle. The paints performed about like Vallejo Air, which they closely resemble in most aspects. The bottles are an itsy bit larger.
To test the Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver I used a Pro Acryl color which always has to be thinned for airbrushing. I did scientific measuring; a dribble of the paint right into the airbrush cup, followed by one drop each of the thinner and improver. After a quick stir in the cup, I sprayed a stripe on the test board. The result was excellent. Somehow I had missed flow improver all these years. It’s a wetting agent with a touch of retarder and thinner. Pro Acryl is a great paint no matter what, but this took it another step. When I was filing away the Micro-Mark paint, I found an unopened bottle of Vallejo flow improver which has probably been in that drawer for years.
In the matter of naming paints: If a mfr uses railroad names, the military modelers won’t buy it. If the mfr uses military names, the figure painters won't buy it. If the mfr uses fantasy names, the railroad modelers won’t buy it. Micro-Mark has chosen to name these colors with artists color names for the most part. That seems to befuddle modelers of all denominations! Cadmium medium yellow = UP Armour yellow = Luftwaffe yellow = goblin vomit.
Following is a list of the paints in the set I reviewed.
Air White, Air Black, Air Medium Gray, Air Grass Green, Air Buff, Air Light Skin Tone, Air Sky Blue, Air Orange, Air Olive, Air Flat Brown, Air Flat Red, Air Flat Blue, Air Lemon Yellow, Air Yellow Ochre, Air Rust Oxide, Air Purple. Plus one bottle each of Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver.
My painting preferences are still Mission Models and Pro Acryl, followed by AK-Interactive 3rd Gen, followed by Vallejo Air, followed by everything else. These new Micro-Mark Air paints fall with Vallejo Air. None-the-less, these paints are worth a look for price alone. Both in sets and à la carte. If you are a prime member, Micro-Mark has part of their catalog available on Amazon with Amazon shipping.
Firstly: Micro-Mark. They’ve been around nearly a hundred years, selling hard to find stuff for stupid prices. Some excellent quality: some trash.
Micro-Mark has been timid with their paint offerings. Instead, they’ve been carrying lines of paint from Vallejo and Badger. The Vallejo paints have been relabeled with railroady names and, mostly, been packaged in sets. For the last couple of years, there have been supply and shipping issues with Spanish made paints, including Vallejo. In response, MM is selling US made paints which are formulated to their specifications (paraphrasing their PR text) and with the Micro-Mark label. Both the brushing and airbrush versions of these paints are supported by a full line of primers and mediums. The basic set I choose looked to have muted colors, which I like a lot. I wasn’t disappointed when I opened the box. 16 colors and a bottle each of Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver. At thirty bucks for the set, these paints are a bargain. I think that this might be my first ever bottle of purple. I thought the greens and blues were weak. The ochre and oxide look to be keepers and users.
I did a test panel on black plastic with a neutral primer stripe to check coverage. I dribbled the paint directly from the bottle into my airbrush cup. #5 tip and needle. The paints performed about like Vallejo Air, which they closely resemble in most aspects. The bottles are an itsy bit larger.
To test the Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver I used a Pro Acryl color which always has to be thinned for airbrushing. I did scientific measuring; a dribble of the paint right into the airbrush cup, followed by one drop each of the thinner and improver. After a quick stir in the cup, I sprayed a stripe on the test board. The result was excellent. Somehow I had missed flow improver all these years. It’s a wetting agent with a touch of retarder and thinner. Pro Acryl is a great paint no matter what, but this took it another step. When I was filing away the Micro-Mark paint, I found an unopened bottle of Vallejo flow improver which has probably been in that drawer for years.
In the matter of naming paints: If a mfr uses railroad names, the military modelers won’t buy it. If the mfr uses military names, the figure painters won't buy it. If the mfr uses fantasy names, the railroad modelers won’t buy it. Micro-Mark has chosen to name these colors with artists color names for the most part. That seems to befuddle modelers of all denominations! Cadmium medium yellow = UP Armour yellow = Luftwaffe yellow = goblin vomit.
Following is a list of the paints in the set I reviewed.
Air White, Air Black, Air Medium Gray, Air Grass Green, Air Buff, Air Light Skin Tone, Air Sky Blue, Air Orange, Air Olive, Air Flat Brown, Air Flat Red, Air Flat Blue, Air Lemon Yellow, Air Yellow Ochre, Air Rust Oxide, Air Purple. Plus one bottle each of Airbrush Paint Thinner and Airbrush Flow Improver.
My painting preferences are still Mission Models and Pro Acryl, followed by AK-Interactive 3rd Gen, followed by Vallejo Air, followed by everything else. These new Micro-Mark Air paints fall with Vallejo Air. None-the-less, these paints are worth a look for price alone. Both in sets and à la carte. If you are a prime member, Micro-Mark has part of their catalog available on Amazon with Amazon shipping.