In this detailed review, we take a look at The Army Painter’s Wet Palette and see how it holds up to the competition.
The Army Painter’s Wet Palette comes with a nice red elastic trap to keep it airtight, 2 foam sheets, 50 sheets of hydro palette paper, a how to use leaflet, and a couple of other Army Painter brochures. I think a wet palette is an essential hobby item, and here is why.
This item was kindly provided by The Army Painter. Opinions are our own.
Features
The Army Painter’s Wet Palette has a three-part design. You’ve got the black bottom container to place the wet foam inlay and the palette paper, a red insert to store brushes, and a black top lid. An elastic red textile strap with The Army Painter logo and a faux leather application keeps the wet palette sealed.
The palette has a size of 13,8 x 19,8 cm, which is about a centimetre less in width than Redgrass Games Everlasting Wet Palette in the Painter edition. For most people this will be the ideal size.
I think the black and red design looks awesome and is a real eyecatcher on a painting desk. The build quality is great, and the red strap adds to the quality feel of the product. The included two foam sheets and 50 sheets of palette paper will last you a long time and are also available separately once you run out of paper or feel the need to replace the foam.
The red insert has a space specifically designed to hold The Army Painter brushes, however, I found the brushes don’t really clip in and will fall out if you turn the inlay over. Of course, you can use the inlay for brushes from other manufacturers, most regular sized brushes will fit.
One thing I noticed is that the red inlay is required to close the palette as the top and bottom lids don’t have rims. I’d have preferred a modular approach so that the bottom lid could slot into the top lid even without the brush inlay. This would have added more versatility to the product as surely not everyone has the need for a brush holding inlay.
As you can see, the foam sheet fits very snuggly, while the palette paper is a couple of millimetres shorter. This makes it easier to align the paper when wet.
Value
The palette is priced at 19,99 Euro / £ 18.00 RRP, which is about 10 Euro cheaper than the Everlasting Wet Palette from Redgrass Games (in the complete bundle), and the same as the Everlasting Wet Palette starter set, which only comes with 15 sheets of paper and a single foam sheet. The set is available directly from thearmypainter.com, or at our partner stores Wayland Games and Element Games at a 10% discount.
8.0Score
Pros
- Looks and feels great
- Comes with 2 foam sheets and 50 sheets of hydro paper
- Decent value
Cons
- Doesn't close without the brush inlay
Final Verdict
The Army Painter's Wet Palette looks great and does everything you'd expect from a wet palette. The brush inlay is a welcome addition even if I'd have preferred it to be optional. Compared to Redgrass Games Wet Palette, The Army Painter's offering looks cooler and has a bit more bang for your buck, but in the end, it comes down to whether you have a use for the brush storage inlay or not.
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Been using one of these for nearly a year now after upgrading from a homemade palette, and I think that (especially with a discount) it’s worth the investment. I’ve said for a while that Army Painter products tend to be ‘reasonable quality at a reasonable price’, and this is no exception.
Most importantly the moisture retention in your paint is very good (I’ve continued using week-old paints!), although I agree that the option to remove the brush tray would be nice. I use it, but only because it’s there.
One mistake I did make was throwing out a hydration foam sheet after it dried and went hard. I tried to re-wet it but didn’t wait long enough and assumed it was ruined. I’ve since discovered that simply waiting an extra 30 seconds was all I had to do! Still, the box came with two, so it wasn’t the end of the world.
How would you say the AP palette compared to the RGG/Masterson’s etc?
They’re both on eye level. I’ll continue to use my RGG wet palette, because I don’t have a need for the brush inlay, but I much prefer The Army Painter’s black and red design and considered switching just to make my workplace look cooler 😉