Model Railway Forum

I'm not sure I would describe this as a tool, but I'm sure we have all at sometime or another needed to mix some paint in very small quantities - may be add a drop of white to lighten whatever colour we are using. Something that is readily available in almost every household, and thrown away every day is a milk bottle top. They are ideal for mixing very small quantities of paint and can be thrown away when you have finished. I usually have three or four in the paint box. Also when the paint in the lid is dry, it peels off, and the lid is ready to use again. I major tip, do not remove the lid from the bottle until the bottle is empty.

IMG_0841 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

Good idea Barry. Does it matter what colour they are?

Excellent tip Barry.
As an alternative, the Range sell white plastic paint palettes of varying sizes - useful when painting figures as you can lay out the main colours and vary the shades slightly by mixing as you go. I also have a supply of cheap plastic shot glasses in the shed for mixing larger volumes. And not always paint.

Walkingthedog wrote: ↑Sat Jan 23, 2021 10:46 am Good idea Barry. Does it matter what colour they are?

I find that "green" offers the best of both worlds

Yes I can see that.

I guess as well that using those lids makes it easier for the little guys to climb into. And true to form it seems that only two of the guys are actually preparing to mix the paint whilst the others are stood around supervising

Great idea, simple and ideal for small amounts.

No chance of getting milk bottle tops in our house, my wife is a member of Inner Wheel and they save the tops to be turned into Crocs!
I'm told the Crocs will be going out to Africa for children out there.
As I take a size 13 shoe i would be waiting about 4 years for a pair

it occurs to me that one of those tops upturned look a lot like the larger paddling pools, and are about the right scale too!

Muller Rice do nice tubs - the rice inside is nice too! They make the perfect non-tippable (well, they can be tipped but it takes some effort) place to put screws etc when working on a loco.

They could also be used for paint mixing as the base is not too large.