Get the very best for storing your miniatures, and your hobby table in this rundown of our top 10 miniature best hobby products we use every day!
If you missed our first hobby essentials post, make sure you check it out after you scroll through our list here! We guarantee these will help you at some point during your hobby endeavors.
Overhead Triple Bright Lamp
We all know lighting is a big deal when it comes to hobbying. Whether you’re gluing, green stuff-ing, or painting, you want to make sure you’ve got the right kind of light. These triple bright lamps are perfect for getting some crisp overhead illumination. The stand is adjustable and durable and should last you throughout your hobby seasons. I even use two of these when I hobby. Its overkill for personal use but looks good on TV!
Harder & Steenbeck Evolution AL Airbrush
Specs:
- 0.2mm nozzle size
- gravity feed 2ml cup
- Weight only 56 gram
Have you been looking for an airbrush that’ll put in some serious work? The Harder & Steenbeck brand is definitely a trusted source to go to. If you’ve got a lot to paint and don’t want to rip your hair out doing it all by manual brush, it may be time to pick up one of these guys!
Harder & Steenbeck COLANI Airbrush
Specs:
- 0.4mm nozzle
- 15 ml paint cup
- ergonomic handgrip
The Harder & Steenbeck brand also offers another airbrush that might suit your liking. With a bigger nozzle, paint holder, and handle, you’ll be able to put paint on swathes of units in no time. Best of all its for R or L handed hobbyists and has an ajustable “stock” to help you hold it better. Get yours today!
Iwata Eclipse Value Set (Cleaner, Hose & Paints)
Specs:
- .35mm nozzle
- 1/3 ounce paint cup
Needing to get the most bang for your buck? You really couldn’t go wrong with the Iwata bundle. You get the airbrush, cleaner, the hose, and some paint to get you started. If you’re a casual airbrusher or are wanting to get into airbrushing, this is a great place to begin.
Industrial Grade 160 Watts Digital Heated Ultrasonic Cleaner
If you are tired of cleaning your resin and plastic minis by hand and want to save some time? This ultrasonic cleaner will make sure you get 100% surface area of your minis squared away while you’re hobbying on something else. There is even a smaller version available as well.
SRL I191 Selfie Light
This selfie light is worth is weight in gold. If you need a mobile light to help capture all the detail of your minis when you snap pics of them, you couldn’t go wrong with this guy. It can clip on to your phone and be stored in your back pocket when you’re not using it. Plus, it comes with three brightness settings. Start taking better pictures now!
Collapsable Movement Tray/Cart
If you’re playing in tournaments, this is a necessity. Don’t roll up to that tightly packed table bunched in between players and start to pull your models out of countless foam trays. If you bring this along, you’ll have all your models ready to go and once you’re done setting up, you can collapse it underneath the table you’re playing at.
You can even pack it in your luggage case for those longer duration events as well!
Anycubic Photon Printers Are Great For Miniatures
We’ve seen 3D printers grow in popularity as more and more people are beginning to print their own models. With this being said, it’s picking up speed and becoming more popular. But why now all of a sudden you ask? Well, it’s a complicated question that may have a lot to do with both supply vs. demand, and perceived necessity by hobbyists.
Enter the Anycubic line of 3D printers that seem to be taking the hobby by storm, and both are on sale quite frequently on Amazon.
ANYCUBIC Photon UV LCD 3D Printer (left) and Photon S (right). Image theSLAchannel
In 2019 it’s even easier for hobbyists to source and print bits, perhaps more so than any of us had thought. The undeniable allure is that it’s not too expensive for any person to get into 3D printing in order to monetize and/or supplement their hobby.
This Chaincannon was spotted on eBay from Kojo1231 going for $4 per bit.
This whole model was printed using the Anycubic Photon S above.
Clear Plastic Tub (12×12) 4″ Tall
Staying neat and organized is another hobby discipline to practice. You’re able to find your models/paints/ and brushes in half the time. You can even add some tin plates secured with double-sided tape to the bottom of this for your magnetized bases!
Save on space by keeping your hobby area in order! Best of all… keep that cat hair out!
Project Hobby Drawer
The step up from getting a couple of plastic cases comes the big boy project drawer. This comes with six total different compartments for you to organize whatever you need to in your hobby corner.
You can even combo them with the cases above, and the same tin plates and double-sided tape to make some super affordable figure cases!
And there you have it! Those are more of the hobby essentials that we recommend everybody tries.
What will you be picking up?
Do you stand by any of these hobby products already? Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
This post contains affiliate links, meaning that Spikey Bits will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
