BLOG EXCLUSIVE
Blog Exclusives are videos that will be Unlisted on Youtube, allowing me to focus on MaK for the YouTube channel, yet to also explore other genres here on the blog. The Blog Exclusives are set to not be monetized, so if you do see ads… that’s on YouTube. I tried. 🙂

Earlier this year I’d seen that Hobby Lobby stopped carrying Vallejo Model Color. While they never had the full range, it was nice to be able to pop in, pick up a few basic colors at a decent price, and get on my way. So when I saw they were gone, I wondered what would replace them.

A few Google searches turned up varied results. Some guessed AK Interactive 3rd Gen. Others Army Painter. But most assumed Hobby Lobby would do what they have done often – secure a manufacturer and make it under their own name.

A few weeks back, my wife alerted me to the presence of some new paints in the rack. So yesterday after work (July 17, 2026) I stopped in and looked them over. Aside from seeing that it was a limited color line (see chart below) and that the paints were made in Cambodia, I had little to go on to answer the question in my mind – are these any good? So I grabbed a few colors.

My expectation – cheap acrylics with little coverage or compatibility – had me expecting to turn the camera on, start filming, and 5 minutes later stop filming and toss the paint.

But that did not happen.

As you’ll see in this video, I was more than pleasantly surprised.

These paints were good. Not like “hey, I was expecting them to stink but they didn’t stink that bad” good. I mean good like “I will use these in production.” I’ve used them more after making this video. I still want to test a few more colors. But right now I’m at the point of saying I think I can recommend these.

Now, please do not hear me saying “Throw out all your paints and buy these!” No, no, and no.

BUT…

If you are in need of a thinner, airbrush type paint, like Vallejo Model Air, these should be on your list of things to try. I prefer to use thinner paints like Model Air, so these fit the need nicely. They’re not thicker like Citadel or Vallejo Model Color.

But when you can buy two sets of paint (Basic and Weathering) for $16 and walk out with 20 bottles of paint that can form the basis for any paint set… that’s just a spot of alright.

Color me surprised. Very surprised.

Base	Auxillary	Iridescent	Metallics	Pastels	Neons
Basic Skin Tone	Black Primer	Iridescent Blue	Brass	Pastel Blue	Neon Blue
Beige	Cleaner	Iridescent Crimson	Bronze	Pastel Green	Neon Green
Black	Drying Retarder	Iridescent Deep Purple	Gold	Pastel Pink	Neon Orange
Blue	Gloss Varnish	Iridescent Emerald Green	Gunmetal	Pastel Yellow	Neon Pink
Brown	Gray Primer	Iridescent Fire Red	Silver		Neon Purple
Dark Gray	Matte Varnish	Iridescent Orange			Neon Yellow
Dark Green	Thinner	Iridescent Pink
Earth Yellow	White Primer	Iridescent Purple
Green		Iridescent Turquoise
Ivory		Iridescent White
Light Brown
Light Gray
Light Pink
Light Purple
Navy Blue
Olive Green
Orange
Pink
Purple
Red
Rust
Sand
Sky Blue
Tan
Turquoise
White