HobbyZone Modular Workshop System OM05s Paints 26mm Module Review

By Michael Benolkin

Review

Here's a look at a quick and easy addition to your workbench. This is the OM05s Paints Module which works by itself or as part of the HobbyZone Modules Workshop System. The kit consists of nine wood parts (base; left riser, center riser, right riser, four shelves, and back) plus four magnets. The wood parts are nicely machined and the whole rack dry-fits together so nicely, you could almost not use glue. This is the first module I've fully assembled.

First, insert the magnets into the pre-drilled holes in the left and right risers (one each) and two for the base. The magnets are not marked for polarity, so I inserted two from the top of the base and one each from the left side of each riser. I gently hammered each one into place. Since this is my first module, I will use it as a magnetic template for assembling the rest of my modular workshop to make sure all of the magnets are consistently oriented in polarity.

I used Gorilla non-foaming Wood Glue (white glue) to assemble the rack and I followed the instructions with no problems. When all was together, I used clamps to keep everything tight while the glue dried. While these parts fit tightly dry, they need a little help when glue is introduced into the joints. One reader pointed out that he prefered finishing nails to clamps to hold the assemblies together while the glue dries - whatever works best for you.

The resulting assembly is rock-solid and ready to magnetically snap onto another module. The OM05 series of modules are designed as paint racks. This one (OM05s) has 26mm openings and the rack can hold 36 bottles. The paints that use the 26mm diameter include:

• AK Interactive 17ml bottles
• Ammo by Mig 17ml bottles
• Andrea 17ml bottles
• Army Painter 18ml bottles
• Scale 75 17ml bottles
• Vallejo Model Air/Model Color 17ml bottles

If you want to hold larger bottles, the OM5b holds 26 bottles of 36mm diameter (we'll test this one soon), and the OM05u which is a simple shelf unit without bottle cut-outs so you can hold bottles of a variety of sizes.

The nice thing about these modules is that you can mix and match these to store the types of paints, washes, pigments, etc., that you want within reach. These modules are just under 12 inches long and about 6 inches in width and depth.

Here is the OM05s (right) snapped together via the built-in magnets with the OM05b (left).

You can see these and other modules at the HobbyZone website ( www.hobbyzone.biz) and on their eBay Store. Stay tuned as we build up other modules and see what we can do with them to organize the bench!

My thanks to HobbyZone.biz for this review sample.