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Made in gb
Crafty Bray Shaman




Anor Londo

I'm looking for something that I can use to shake my paints for me, my wrist has taken a bit of a pounding over the years (LOL).

I was looking at a massage device on Amazon that is apparently pretty good at doing the job. I've also just seen the paint shaker from Greenstuff World that looks pretty good, it's 20 Euros but I'm concerned about any import duty that I might have to pay.

Does anybody have any ideas for a cheap paint shaker? I'm based in the UK.
   
Made in gb
Dakka Veteran






I bought a particular branded paint shaker on ebay that I think must have been repurposed from a nail polish shaker. I used it about five or six times and found it to be pretty ineffective and haven't used it since. I've heard vortex shakers are good, though. You'd be looking about £20/£25 for one of those, though. I can't currently justify that outlay as my wrists are still mostly working.
   
Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





I have tried using a massage gun but not great results, difficult to attach the paint to the massage arm, I used rubber bands and it went wonky and ripped the label.

I have built a holder that attaches to my combi drill and spins the paint, I have taken pictures with the intent of posting on here showing results but not collected all the results.

However all may be in vane as green stuff world have, today, posted in instagram a usb rechargeable device that mixes paint by spinning it, it’s like a magic wand. Not sure on prices but GSW are always good on their prices. It’s probably exactly what we all need
   
Made in gb
Perturbed Blood Angel Tactical Marine





I've tried a nail polish shaker one - a board with a shaker arm in the middle - and it was rubbish, barely did a thing.

I then bought a vortex mixer, and it's fricking amazing. Turns citadel metallics a consistent colour you didn't even know they had, and I now buzz every paint on it before use. Adding a shaker ball or two speeds it up for thicker or annoying paints (Contrast!), and it feels very robust. Much easier on my wrists than shaking manually, and better results too. Partially dried out gloopy paint can be resurrected easily too, just add some lahmian or matt medium and vortex it - turns it like new. I think it generates a vortex, or whirlpool, in the middle of the bottle.

The one I got wasn't cheap @ £86 alas. (check the video there for it in use!). They also have a more powerful one for the same price that's come out since, which is aimed at model painters.

I have heard the vevor version is similar power to mine and works in a similar fashion, and is substantially cheaper @ £36, though build quality may not be as solid.

This message was edited 7 times. Last update was at 2022/06/11 10:04:38


 
   
Made in us
Grisly Ghost Ark Driver






I've not bought one, but I've seen cheap ones for sale on Amazon US. Perhaps Amazon UK carries a few? Mind, I was reading the reviews, and users were often disappointed by the cheap shakers.

Kings of War: Abyssal Dwarves, Dwarves, Elves, Undead, Northern Alliance [WiP], Nightstalkers [WiP]
Dropzone Commander: PHR
Kill Team: Deathwatch AdMech Necron

 
   
Made in us
Infiltrating Broodlord






search on amazon for "Vortex Mixer" and you will get lots of results for cheap pressure activated machines.This once is pretty decent because you only press down to start and stop it. The one I have requires constant pressure. https://www.amazon.com/Mxmooonfree-Activate-Suitable-Miniatures-Acrylic/dp/B09NB9F4RG/ref=sr_1_8?crid=2ZPRKVGNFV022&keywords=vortex+mixer&qid=1654887412&sprefix=vortex+mixer%2Caps%2C80&sr=8-8
[Thumb - 61tUCB64OgL._SL1500_.jpg]
Vortex Mixer

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/06/10 19:03:37


 
   
Made in gb
Crafty Bray Shaman




Anor Londo

Thanks everyone for the responses.

Those vortex mixers look very promising, I'll have to have a closer look at them
   
Made in gb
Blood-Drenched Death Company Marine





United Kingdom

Green Stuff World just released one

https://www.greenstuffworld.com/en/paint/2382-rotational-paint-shaker.html

   
Made in gb
Perturbed Blood Angel Tactical Marine





Does look a bit unwieldy though - you need to put on the right size holder for the bottle (I have a mix of citadel and the common 17ml dropper, as well as pro-acryl's larger ones and 60ml primer), then wedge it in there, then hold it up while it spins.

I have my vortex mixer on a shelf by my desk, and whenever I grab a new paint I just press it on the top of the mixer for 5-10 seconds, job done. Only old paints I haven't used in a long time might need a bit longer, or some extra medium.
   
Made in pl
Longtime Dakkanaut







On a side note, I saw medical professional warning people to not do this. Supposedly vibrations can damage your finger nerves, try using a holder or something instead.
   
Made in gb
Leader of the Sept







Vibration White Finger is a real health and safety issue, but I think it’s more relevant to the construction industry, rather than buzzing a paint bottle for a few seconds at a time

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vibration_white_finger

Please excuse any spelling errors. I use a tablet frequently and software keyboards are a pain!

Terranwing - w3;d1;l1
51st Dunedinw2;d0;l0
Cadre Coronal Afterglow w1;d0;l0 
   
Made in pl
Longtime Dakkanaut





 Flinty wrote:
Vibration White Finger is a real health and safety issue, but I think it’s more relevant to the construction industry, rather than buzzing a paint bottle for a few seconds at a time

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vibration_white_finger

This paper on tests of vortex mixer on lab animal limbs says it's a significant hazard and it's in fact easy to damage your hand, slowly at first, but it quickly accumulates: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2847637/

Your link even seems to support it, saying using a tool that vibrates slightly for a long time (construction equipment) can be as damaging as using a heavily vibrating tool for a short time (like a lab mixer). In any case, I just wouldn't risk it, but I need my manual dexterity for my job.
   
Made in gb
Perturbed Blood Angel Tactical Marine





Did a quick bit of research because I genuinely wouldn't want to recommend an unsafe tool! EU and UK limits are based upon amount of acceleration in m/sec squared.

This is caculated as (Output x Output) x 2 = Points.
A 5m/s2 tool = 50 points per hour.

400 points per day is the legal limit (ELV). Above 100 points (the EAV) is when employers must start taking risk management action; recording use, rotating work assignments so use is spread across more days, seeking to replace equipment with lower vibration alternatives etc.

Two professional science lab vortex shakers are measured in this PDF

The EAV (the lower risk measure) for the first is 111 minutes per day, the second (a competitor) is 55 minutes a day.

So for the worse of the two high performance vortex shakers at maximum setting, above 55 minutes use per day of 15 ml tubes is considered to start to elevate risk of HAVS (hand-arm vibration syndrome)

Let's be harsh and say I shake a paint pot for 20 seconds on average and shake say, 20 paints in a sitting. That's less than 7 minutes exposure - and that would be a very heavy day for me; 20 minutes of vibration a *week* would be a highly productive one! And I'm fairly sure these basic mixers are not as harsh as high power proper lab equipment (it's a smaller orbital distance for a start)

So if you're shaking paint for a living because you're a commission painter, it's a fair point, and you should ensure you're keeping below recommended limits for vibration exposure to minimise your risk if you use a vortex shaker. Using your hand to hold the pot rather than a single finger will reduce exposure also.

As a light use hobbyist, I think I'll stick to the method that *doesn't* make my wrists hurt and is far below the vibration action limit for my usage - I'm genuinely probably at greater risk from my very sharp craft knives and solvent use (IPA).

But obviously that's a risk decision that people should make for themselves.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/06/12 00:50:09


 
   
Made in us
Unstoppable Bloodthirster of Khorne





Melbourne .au

I got one of these quite a few years ago. Pricey, but it's a beast and is working now just as well as the day I bought it.

https://www.oznailsbeauty.com.au/izen-proshaker-version-2.0-professional-gel-nail-p~171844


   
Made in gb
Fresh-Faced New User




Paint spinners wont get really old clogged up paint fully mixed as they only rotate the material out to the edge of the rotation, plus the bottle itself is spinning so their sped relative to each other is fairly constant. Vortex shakers are far superior....the bottle itself doesnt spin, so its the paint inside thats spinning, plus there is movement in the up and down direction in addition to the rotational, so they are far superior.

I bought a cheap one off aliexpress...it worked great for about 4 weeks then died. I eventually coughed up the 70 quid GBP for the 4 E's vortex shake and this one is fantastic. Its pricey yes, but you get what you pay for. Its heavy and not as convenient as the handheld ones granted, but i cant see the hand held ones competing.

Im an older painter, with damaged wrist/hand from vehicular crash, and and this indispensable....but for anyone other than capability disabled, id say its a pure luxury.
   
Made in de
Longtime Dakkanaut






After years of restraint and some DIY solutions I bought the 4E vortex. That thing is simply awesome, no comparison to agitating paint manually or with other contraptions.

   
Made in us
Grumpy Longbeard






Here ya go


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Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





I just don’t think we’re gonna do better than this

https://www.greenstuffworld.com/en/paint-shaker/2382-rotational-paint-shaker.html

Especially considering the price.




Automatically Appended Next Post:
Although I haven’t seen any reviews yet but the video looks pretty convincing

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/06/28 05:30:54


 
   
Made in us
Grumpy Longbeard






mrFickle wrote:
I just don’t think we’re gonna do better than this

https://www.greenstuffworld.com/en/paint-shaker/2382-rotational-paint-shaker.html

Especially considering the price.




Automatically Appended Next Post:
Although I haven’t seen any reviews yet but the video looks pretty convincing

Anyone got a drill at home ?

 
   
Made in gb
Leader of the Sept







It price is the only market, and you already have a 3D printer, the. There are a range of free shaker thingies you can attach to a range of power tools.

Please excuse any spelling errors. I use a tablet frequently and software keyboards are a pain!

Terranwing - w3;d1;l1
51st Dunedinw2;d0;l0
Cadre Coronal Afterglow w1;d0;l0 
   
Made in gb
Longtime Dakkanaut





I made this for my combo drill and it works pretty well. this is just a prototype and can be improved in a few ways but for £16 the GSW shaker has a lot of benefits:

1. USB rechargeable
2. Don't have to go to the shed to get the power drill
3. don't have to keep recharging the batteries for the power drill
4. Higher RPM than the drill so I expect it mixes better
5. less wear and tear on the drill (not sure if that's something to worry about but I assume the motor will die at some point)
6. I don't want to sit at my painting desk (kitchen table) with a drill
[Thumb - DA6413B5-80D9-47F7-AE1C-7B8C1D62C7D8.jpeg]

This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2022/06/28 09:54:22


 
   
Made in gb
Fresh-Faced New User




I bought a nail varnish shaker and it does the job. Sure, it's not the sexiest machine in the world but the paint gets mixed.
   
 
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