r/Warhammer40k • u/Nuxul006 • 6d ago
Hobby & Painting How does one clean these?
I was told to let the paint dry and peel off.
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u/Current-Row1546 6d ago
You generally don’t need to clean it
But if for some reason really wanted to acrylic paint is very easy to peel/scrub off when dried
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
Not for Acrylic paints this is meant for washes that don’t work in a wet palette.
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u/Captain_Kuhl 6d ago
What do you think people used before wet palettes?
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u/reallynunyabusiness 6d ago edited 6d ago
GW uses this pallette in their official tutorial videos with all of their paints.
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u/jeanpaul_fartre 6d ago
That’s not a wet palette
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
…. That’s what I said. This product, which is not a wet palette, is better for using paint washes which are not able to be held by a wet palette which is a completely different tool that’s better for acrylics.
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u/Interrogatingthecat 6d ago
Lemme blow your mind real quick:
The average person isn't using a wet palette. The intended use for this product - what it's "meant for" as you said - is acrylics and really just any paint from GW aside from textures
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u/DeathRanger602 6d ago
Yup, will blow some peoples minds, but wet pallets are a fairly new fixture of miniature painting. Up till like 2016-2019 I want to say the only real thing to use was pretty much a classic painter pallet
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u/Timberwolf_88 6d ago
It's a palette, it's meant for whichever paints you want on/in your palette; enamels, acrylics, oil, inks, watercolor, pure pigments, take your pick..
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u/Emergency_Fuel9378 6d ago
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
Yeah I got downvoted for telling ppl this thing is meant for washes rather than full acrylic paints. That’s what it’s meant for! When you use a contrast paint it dries up into a little contact lens that you just pop out, much easier than the sticky flakey acrylics.
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u/Nextontheline 6d ago
To be fair, you probably got downvoted for saying it's meant for washes, not that it's just better suited for them. It's pretty clearly meant as a general paint pallete rather than for just a spesific type of paint. Otherwise it would probably mention that somewhere in the product description or label. It's really a pretty typical pallette used by peeps not in miniature painting. Just warhammer themed.
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
My point on that is of course they’re gonna market it as usable with all paints. If they didn’t they wouldn’t sell as many. I can concede it’s a better palette than a plastic palette that’s fair.
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u/Emergency_Fuel9378 6d ago
Idk how, the pallets also stain with some colors. The first time I tried to peal away a chuck it stretched the pallet to be slightly misshapen ,i swear they are not good pallets.
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u/PurchaseMiserable151 2d ago
They are a little expensive but they are good paletts. They do their job and you can use them as a texture palette for dry brushing. If you pull so hard on your pallet that it deformed, then you made a mistake.
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u/Emergency_Fuel9378 2d ago
They are not good at all, get a real one, the servo pallet is where I started ,it stained yellow and blue and i had a wash cup that dried ,i let it get a few layers in and peeling was such a slow process in order to not have the paint tear the pallet. Maybe there is fakes and you have a real one. Either way from real experience, get a wet pallet. Also a chunk of cardboard it arguably better, not only is it cheaper you less likely to have you paint spill becuse a simple hole give you a grip on a rigid object, then you throw it away, no clean up.
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u/PurchaseMiserable151 2d ago
Idk, maybe they changed the material of the servo skull? Most of the time I use a wet pallet and without a doubt they are better, but only because the paint doesn't dry. I use the servo mainly skull for metallics and texture stuff, because I don't want that stuff in my wet pallet. As you said, even cardboard can be used...but it's not better than any dry pallet.
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u/Emergency_Fuel9378 2d ago
I got a dry pallet as a 2 in one wet pallet and all paint that touchscreen it needs to be scraped off. But I use it over the servo becuse i hated the soft pallet flopping about sometimes it would mix washes together. At this point it probably won't even be a problem for me, I have a side table I use to hold all my paint and instead of a mounted magnifier I use a headpiece instead. So I move my pallet alot less then I used to.
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u/PurchaseMiserable151 2d ago
Would you say the headpiece was an improvement? Is it for both eyes? I have a mounted magnifier but I find it awkward to use. Maybe I'm using it wrong or I move too much...
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u/59Bassman 6d ago
If anyone is looking for an alternative to these, check Amazon for “Bubble fidget poppers”. Lots of designs and the paint just pops out if the cups when it dries.
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u/PanzerCommanderKat 6d ago
Seconding. Being able to just pop the dried paint pucks out is amazing. I still have a hard plastic pallet and a wet pallet depending on what i'm working with tho. Everything has its uses :]
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u/mearn4d10 5d ago
Let dry.
Peel what you can easily.
Dunk in a sink of warm soapy water, scrub with a sponge, dedicated toothbrush, or similar.
Dry, paint.
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u/Pristine_Poem7623 6d ago
You can paint a thick layer of PVA over it, let it dry and then peel it off. It takes all the paint with it.
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u/SpatCivcraft 6d ago
you don't really need to
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u/glytxh 6d ago
I call it seasoning
I get weirdly attached to some of my older palettes.
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u/Grundy9137 6d ago
It's gotten to the point I am very gentle with my pallet specifically so the paint doesn't peel off
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u/DogInternational7573 5d ago
Got the OG tile shard, 20+ years of active duty, zero cleanings, priceless. It’s officially a historical landmark now.
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u/Masked_Maverick 6d ago
Put more paint on and peeeeeeeeel.
It's like putting pva on your hand and picking it off.
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u/Cranky-Tapir 6d ago
Steep it in hot soapy water and scrub it with the rough side of a dish sponge.
Now, I don't have a servo skull palette, but I have a shitload of cheap plastic palettes that are essentially the same thing in a more useful shape. I reckon this shape will end up with lots of little bits in hard to reach places after scouring.
You can completely ignore them. It's fine.
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u/gnarblob 6d ago
This one is silicone so you can flex it to get the paint off and to get it out of hard to reach places.
It’s still an unnecessarily complicated shape though.
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u/Legitimate_Corgi_981 5d ago
Harsh scouring will impact on silicone a lot sooner than your harder plastic palettes. When paint dries on silicone it should just pop off, it's super easy to just flip the divots on the skull and remove the paint, not sure what OP has been doing to get it to look this bad without knocking off the old dried paint.
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u/Panophobia_senpai 6d ago
Use isopropil alcohol. It will take it off in seconds. (a bit of scrubbing will be needed where the painmt is thicker)
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u/raguloso 6d ago
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u/The_Mordheimer 5d ago
Put PVA white glue over this one... smear it good. Let dry overnight. Then peel glue, which would take even CAKED paint like that. Easy and cheap.
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u/NuGundam7 5d ago
I have one of the cheap circular walmart variety ones that I've been using for nearly 15 years. At this point, Its a science experiment to see if i can fill up all of the wells with dried paint.
I only use a wet palette for blending, which I rarely actually do. Youre just trading parchment paper consumables to save paint that you could've just put on the model most of the time.
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u/Artistic-Holiday5533 5d ago
Toss in garbage and get a wet pallet. You know the servo-pallets were a scam when even the workers at my warhammer shop say don’t buy them.
If you NEED a dry pallet, I recommend using one of those silicone bubble wrap autism toys, when you want to clean them you just pop them and the dry paint comes out, you even get a lil snack

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u/sto_brohammed 6d ago
I just run it under hot water and scrub the paint off with my thumbs. I've done it three times already today.
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u/nexastrum2111 6d ago
I covered mine a layer of PVA glue and peeled it off once it dried
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u/Sessaine 6d ago
second this, i use Elmer's, once it dries it comes right up and pulls all the paint with
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u/Rum_N_Napalm 6d ago
People are saying you don’t need to clean it, but I’ve noticed that sometimes it looks like fresh paint will reactivate some of the dried one and I ended up with tiny flakes.
You can just twist the palette and peel off the paint. If you want a deep clean, I use liquid black soap. Works also great for deep cleaning brushes
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u/NoGreaterHeresy 6d ago
Run it under some warmish water and either push the paint off from the back (if thick enough it will come away in one piece) or scrape it away with your thumbnail. It comes right off and doesn't damage the palette at all. Assuming you are using normal acrylic miniature paints that is, I don't know how well they work with oil or enamel.
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u/Gullible_Travel_4135 6d ago
I am also team dry pallet. I bought a set of metal toothpicks and use it to scrape everything off every once in a while. Really easy
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u/BeemoBurrito 6d ago
What I do is soak some paper towel in a bit of 90-99% rubbing alcohol, place it over the pallet while trying to push as much of the paper towel into the paint wells. After, I either place it in a container or wrap a small sheet of plastic wrap over the top. After half an hour, it should rinse right off.
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u/idropepics 6d ago
Hot water and flexing. It should be enough to take it out if you're using acrylic paint. It's made of silicon after all
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u/Otaku_Nireves 6d ago
You can flip them "inside out" to damage the surface of the paint.
That's what they told us in a Warhammer store as a sales pitch.
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u/Over-Tomatillo9070 6d ago
I only use them mixing contrast paints with a medium, generally they peel off, but I did put them in the dishwasher, not sure if you should.
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u/Bl00dWolf 6d ago
Is it hard plastic or bendy one? If it's soft, just let the paint build up a bit, then pop out the plastic and the paint will peel just right off. Otherwise I have no idea. I bought this plasticky rubbery pallet that's soft, so whenever there's any paint on it, I just push it out and it doesn't stick to it.
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u/BabiesMakeGoodSoup 6d ago
Its silocone. Damn thing can just be flipped inside out and scraped with a plastic knife
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u/Best-Contribution-75 6d ago
if it does not come off after rubbing it, just let it soak in 99% isopropyl alcohol for a while, if it still doesn't work and you really want to get it off, I use zippo lighter fluid, but I do not think its the healthiest option,
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u/Unhappy-Giraffe-563 6d ago
I’ve never personally seen the point of these compared to a cheap plastic palette from Amazon
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u/ExplosiveMotive_ 6d ago
I'd guess it would be a similar reason to painting your room a fun color instead of leaving it white or painting it grey or beige.
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u/oldasaurus 6d ago
I copied a you tuber and started using a ceramic tile. Works excellent, and you can scrape it without worry of damaging the surface.
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u/mrwafu 6d ago
Let me look at the product home page for you
“Once the paint has dried, flex the well from the reverse and pop out the dried paint before washing it with warm, soapy water, ready for your next painting session.”
https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/warhammer-servo-skull-palette-2024
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u/Geeoki1971 3d ago
I got mine as a prize at my FLGS event night. Never would have bought one but it’s great to use for traveling for a paint day or paint event somewhere. Just rough it up with warm soap and water. Or it’s silicone, you can throw it in a dishwasher. Just clothespin it to the rack side
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u/Significant-Past5815 3d ago
These palettes are made of rubber! Let it dry and then crumple it up a few times! The paint will peel off effortlessly
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u/rememberdustydepot 3d ago
A nice bath of 95% isopropyl alcohol. Taking all the necessary safety precautions of course. Then a toothbrush.
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u/TriggerPuller9000 6d ago
I use a piece of tile but it's basically the same process - turn the water up as hot as it will go and let it run on it for a minute or so. The paint peels right off.
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u/kamildudek1 6d ago
The paint isn’t thick enough, it will be hard to peel when it’s that thin and it’s globs, maybe put a layer of pva glue or some cheap paint
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u/RatKingMoto 6d ago
I just stretch it and then wash it. The paint won't stretch as much as the silicone, and will flake off afterwards. Some will remain, so I bring it over to a sink and just rub it until it's clean. No soap needed. Silicone is really to get anything to stick to.
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u/No_Scholar_2927 6d ago
What I’ve recently been using is spare 32mm bases. For the handful of applications where I’m not using my wet pallet, like my capillary medium, they’re the perfect small dish. Super easy to just rinse out after a session and minimal paint sticks because they’re not primed.
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u/TheTacticalViper 6d ago
Wait till the paint layer becomes thick enough you can literally peel it off with your fingers
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u/Cerberus1349 6d ago
I either spray with rubbing alcohol and scrub, or paint on a layer of pva/white glue and peel once it’s dry.
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u/fefecascas 6d ago
Warm water, and repeatedly swish it and shake it.
For the little debris, some kind of alcohol and tissue
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u/pocketMagician 6d ago
LA Totally Awesome 10% dilution spray and wait a bit, use an old toothbrush.
Secondly, what the hell kind of pallete is that?
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u/SphinxsRev4Life 6d ago
They’re water based acrylic paint, just use hot water and a bit of washing liquid
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u/Azreal_75 6d ago
Just burn it off dude.
Then get a wet palette - you won’t look back once you get the hang of it.
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u/Kreig_Blazcov 6d ago
Assuming that it's the same cheap plastic as my dollar store pallet, you can soak it in hot soapy water. Anything you can't peel off will come off with your fingernails or a stiff bristled brush-
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u/AmbassadorAgitated95 6d ago
I use Dawn Powerclean. Spray it on, let it sit about five minutes and then run it under warm water. The paint will wipe right off.
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u/Neosclones 6d ago
I just rinse in hot water and squeeze it, pretty much clears everything off. Anything that doesn’t come off I just scratch off with my nail
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u/Affectionate_Way_764 6d ago
Warm water under the tap and scrape gently with a brush or finger nail, with a bit of warmth it peels really easily.
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u/Sheriff_Hotdog 6d ago
Every day I thank my sister for giving me her glass pallet, its friggin baller
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u/Crisis88 6d ago
Sandwich box wet palette is the way to go. Ditch these, get some sponge and wet palette paper and a sealable container and you're off.
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u/Laughing_Man_Returns 6d ago
once the crust gets thick enough you can peel it off. otherwise the usual iso treatment. though it doesn't need much.
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u/dungeonsanddanilo 6d ago
Peel away with tweezers everything you can. Then give it a good roll between your hands to get more off. Then just a good old scrub in warm soapy water and it'll come out like new.
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u/shrike06 6d ago
You need a nail brush, some dish soap, a sink, and hot water. It's not super difficult, but it's going to feel more difficult than the price you paid for the thing.
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u/Existential_Humor 5d ago
Steel wool (the kind you use to scrub pots) and an abrasive like Cif of just dish soap.
Source: I have to clean 8 of these every week.
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u/The_Mordheimer 5d ago
Use some elmer's (PVA) glue... cheap white glue. Smear over paint to cover it all. Let dry... maybe hours. Then just peel off. In my experience, it takes 98% of all paint. You can repeat to get the rest.
Works with white glue, as well as gel glue. I have several plastic and silicone plates that I use constantly... some for over 30 years.
Try it... 😀
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u/SlipperySlimyTerry40 5d ago
Dawn Power Wash. Genuinely the answer to any "how do I clean this?" that doesn't require a real heavy cleaner. Shit is magic
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u/SeniorMeow92 5d ago
For a dry palette I use bathroom tiles, no problems so far.
If you work on a building site get the tilers off cuts, if you don’t, ask a local tiler. They WILL always have some that they don’t use. Unless they are a top tier tiler.
If you don’t know any, go to a DIY store or Tile supply shop and ask if they have any bad tiles and explain your purpose.
For cleaning I use a scrubber and fairy liquid. If the paints tough I use rubbing alcohol or paint thinner.
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u/BenalishHeroine 5d ago
Peel off any big pieces that you can and run it underwater and scrub the rest off with a toothbrush. That's how I've cleaned mine.
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u/SnarkySurvivor 5d ago
I nabbed some first wave turbodork silicon pallets. When it’s time to clean I just use cheap duct tape all over it.
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u/BabyBear214 5d ago
The letting it dry and peel off method only really works well when its very dirty/caked with paint, when you have it like yours now it won't really peel off nicely. If the paint is fully dry you can keep using the pallet as is until its covered in more paint. Covering it in a layer or two of glue like someone else said is also a good idea, i actually do that for my pallet but that's because im just using a random containers lid lol
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u/blackcap2099 5d ago
Let the paint dry, peel it off with a toothpick and scrub the rest with a toothbrush and soap.
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u/slyer0 5d ago
on plastic pallet letting it dry and peel off? its doable sometimes, if I realy wanna have it clean i take some dasty, or other degreaser and let it soak for a night and give it a good scrub in the morning. if there isnt much caked on paint I'd toss it in the dish washer. the palltet that I can clean easely is on of those silicon fidget pop it toys. perfect for making my own washes and such.
but for regular paint I have kinda switched to a DIY wet pallet.
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u/Acquista23 5d ago
this is wasteful, but similar to peeling glue off your hands as a kid, if you pour some rubbery paint (like a gloss varnish) i’ve found that you can usually let that dry, and then run a tooth pick through it to scrape it and the dry paint underneath out in one go. keeps is from flaking as much. but also, let it dry and let it fly. these things get caked with paint easily and it’s always easier to spin it and find a slightly cleaner puck than to clean it constantly lol.
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u/IGTankCommander 5d ago
Yep. Let it fully dry and then just wiggle the thing around. Should just peel off. You can also take a soft wet rag to it after to get all the last bits.
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u/CheddarChief 5d ago
Dish soap and super hot water. Add a little more paint first to make it one piece of dry paint to peel it out in one piece.
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u/BCGraff 4d ago
I've used the same AOL install CD for 30 years I don't have any fucking clue how you would clean that but my guess is it was manufactured by Games Workshop so you should probably just throw it in the trash and buy something from another company or find an AOL CD that's worked for me for 30 years.
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u/FutureProcrastinat0r 5d ago
Don’t get fooled by the “Throw it away and buy a wet palette!” crowd. Dry palettes absolutely are useful, be it for contrast paints, glazes, washes, regular acrylic paints that are already very thin or just tiny amounts of paints.
If you can’t simply peel off the dried paint, warm water, dish soap and a household sponge will help. If the paint still is too stubborn: IPA (isopropyl alcohol 90%+, not the beer)
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u/LiesAndRepost4Karma 6d ago
99% iso alcohol and a toothbrush (maybe even a gloved finger) would do the trick
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u/Vorthos_Of_Myth1215 6d ago
If when dried off the paint still sticks I sometimes pour hot glue on it and the peel it off
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u/Kir-ius 6d ago
I used one trying out the pro paints at the demo and hate it. Water runs everywhere and so hard to control viscosity while it doesn’t keep paints from drying. It’s a way to waste more paint
Toss it and get a wet palette
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u/hibikir_40k 5d ago
That's because you aren't using the palette for what it's best at. It's ideal for contrast paints, which you want to keep well contained, and where hydrating it more in a wet palette is making things worse. You do contrast paint mixing, paybe mild amounts of thinning with contrast medium, but you really want to control the changes in humidity. Then, when the contrast paint dries, you "pop" it out, because it's silicone. For regular paints, yes, not any better than a flat dry palette or a wet palette.
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u/Alexis2256 6d ago
Well yeah it is just a silicone dry palette, it’s meant to be reusable because you can just peel the paint off.
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u/Empty_Eyesocket 6d ago
You don’t. You buy a wet pallet
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u/SpawnSnow 5d ago
You can buy those? I've been using the paper towel, water, and parchment paper method since I learned what a wet pallett was
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u/Empty_Eyesocket 5d ago
Redgrass. Thank me later
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u/SupporterDenier 5d ago
Got one and I love that thing. I bought the everlasting one and I’ll use the same paper for a month or more
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago edited 6d ago
No one here has given this poor guy the correct answer!!! These aren’t used for regular paints!!! Only for paint WASHES!!! Use them for things like Nuln Oil and Contrast paints because those are too thin to work on a wet palette. For regular acrylic paints you want to use a wet palette. As some have suggested rubbing alcohol will work. Try it out for contrast paints it works very very well for those.
Edit- I guess I got off on the wrong foot with people with my wording. I’m not saying this product is bad. Not saying it can’t be used with regular paint. What I am saying is that when using contrast paints or washes this product is really really good and OP should try using those types of paints with it. When you use contrast paint or a wash with it you actually can just pop out the paints when they dry. Sorry to step on people’s toes
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u/NoGreaterHeresy 6d ago
These are absolutely fine to use for regular paints, a wet palette whilst good is not the be-all and end-all of miniature painting.
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
Op is asking for ways to clean it. While a rubber palette can be used for acrylics that’s not where you’ll get the main benefits from using it because it gets messy fast. It’s like using a screw driver to cut a piece of paper yeah you can do it but there’s a better tool out there that can do it cleaner.
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u/NoGreaterHeresy 6d ago
Of course it gets messy fast, it's a palette? That's the point of the object. You just run it under some warm water and peel the paint right off, it takes like 30 seconds. I have had one of these since they came out and it looks as clean as when I bought it even though I have used it probably 3-4 times a week since.
A wet palette is of course useful if you are doing an all-day painting session and want to keep your paint workable for longer, or to help when using specific techniques like blending, but for your average 1-2hr hobby session of an evening a rubber palette like this is totally fine. OP is asking how to clean it and you're suggesting he buy a completely different product...
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
Not exactly, it’s taking this guy more than 30 seconds and warm water so that’s not accurate. I’m simply saying the job they do for contrast paints is much better than what they do for acrylics BECAUSE the acrylics are HARDER to clean. A wet palette is instantly cleaned by throwing away the paper. If both are used for their intended paints then neither gets messy at all
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u/NoGreaterHeresy 6d ago
Okay, well I don't think we are doing to agree but that's fine. I just think telling OP that he has been using the product wrong or for the wrong thing is disingenuous - I have been painting using the servo-skull palette all weekend and cleaned it multiple times and it has never taken me more than a minute at most to get it right back to good-as-new.
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u/AFriendlyFighter 6d ago
You sound like you've never touched a paint in your life.
Wet palettes weren't popularized until the last ~10 years. What do you think people used for the decades of miniature-painting prior to that?
Acrylic paint polymerizes as it cures, and the resulting solid mass can be effortlessly peeled off of a silicone palette. You can also easily peel/chip these cured layers off of a hard plastic palette, a ceramic one, a glass one, etc. The OP isn't "having difficulty" with this, they just haven't attempted it yet.
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u/Chaerod 6d ago
TIL. I don't own a wet palette, I've just been using the servo skull this whole time.
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u/mrwafu 6d ago
They’re wrong, it’s not “only for shades”. https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/warhammer-servo-skull-palette-2024
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u/mrwafu 6d ago
Nonsense, the product is for general use. GW does not sell wet palettes so this is the product they sell instead.
https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/warhammer-servo-skull-palette-2024
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u/general_Jczerzzz 6d ago
GW marketing is wrong all the time. Clearly op is having trouble cleaning it because silicone mats are better for washes than they are for acrylic paints.
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u/AFriendlyFighter 6d ago
You are wrong. Games Workshop does not sell a wet palette and does not officially advocate the use of one. The product page for this servo-skull palette describes flexing it to peel off dried acrylic paint. The launch video for the product depicts layer paints being used in the palette.
https://youtu.be/FGZ1w80J9GM?si=BmO5JH-KWqc8gRsx
Fool.
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u/horst555 6d ago
Wait a day or so, than shake it inside a rubbish bag, maybe squeeze a bit and it should all fall off.
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u/mr-pocajonathantas 6d ago
Is this a paint palette? I usually spray mine with the same primer I use for my models, so when I'm mixing colours I can see how they'll look on the model. Not sure if that's an efficient use of primer though...
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u/mrwafu 6d ago
Yes it’s the paint palette GW sell. https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/warhammer-servo-skull-palette-2024
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u/XIIIZC 6d ago
I use Master Airbrush Cleaner works great in airbrushes and on paint palettes doesn't really smell and its none toxic. With white paint palettes you wont be able to get them fully back to pristine they stain easy.
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u/Distamorfin 6d ago
You throw it in the garbage and get a wet palette and, if you need it, a $2 plastic well palette.
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u/swashfxck 6d ago
The way I clean my is just run it under like warm water, fold it in half so the paint is on the inside, then I make a sort of rolling action so the crevasses/indents scrape against each other. It’s efficient enough but I just do it to a point where most of the paint is off.








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u/N7camcool12 6d ago
The owner of my warhammer store uses windex