- FOUR E'S SCIENTIFIC Vortex Mixer 5600rpm, Paint Shaker Touch Function, Lab Mini Vortex Mixer with an Extra Silicone Cap for Acrylic Miniature Hobby Model Paints Nail Polish Ink

This vortex mixer has been very effective for the use that I got it for: quick, thorough mixing of small pots of liquid or semi-liquid paints. Specifically, Reaper MSP paints, Vallejo GameColor Inks, GreenStuffWorld Fluor paints, Secret Weapon, Army Painter, MIG, AK Interactive, Games Workshop contrast paints, and generally all types of thin washes and inks all mixed very well. The only caveat was around thicker paints: outliers like Vallejo Model Color dropper bottles and Games Workshop metallics pots (e.g. Leadbelcher) were too viscous to effectively mix. The device is heavy enough and the three-leg design with rubber feet is stable enough to prevent motion or drift while running the mixer on a desk surface. Sound while running is audible not but not loud. Quality assurance: my mini vortex mixer died after just over 11 months, with an internal mechanical fault that caused it to stop rotating/agitating despite electrical power still working and the top sensor switch still functioning. To their credit, 4E's Scientific did provide good support. They were communicative when the problem was reported through Amazon, and did quickly provide a within-warranty replacement after being provided with video of the fault. I would give this a guarded 5/5 rating due to the effective use of it with (nearly all) of the miniature paints I use it with and the warranty service that 4E's lived up to. If the warranty replacement mixer ends up breaking down the ranking would go down, but this is an excellent mixer while it runs properly. ==== Update 2022-07-12: the replacement mixer is still going strong after one year, so I would now give this an unreserved 5/5. ==== Update 2025-07-20: the replacement mixer is still going fine after ~4 years, so definitely an unreserved 5/5.

This is the second time I've purchased this vortex mixer. The quality and durability is unmatched by lesser models in the $30-$50 range. Yes, the price tag can be a bit daunting, but paying an extra $20-$30 is worth it for a product that not only does what its supposed to do but excels at it. As an avid miniature painter (Warhammer 40k and DND) and DIYer, believe me: this thing mixes everything: rattle spray cans? dropper bottles? those fat Citadel pots? ZERO ISSUES AND PERFECTLY MIXED EVERY SINGLE TIME. This beast could probably mix pancake batter and salad dressing in a mason jar if you wanted it to. Ease of use? Plug it in, flip the switch on, and press your container down onto the rubber 'nub'. The container will slightly suction onto the nub and as you press it will feel like its vibrating the container, but if you loosen your grip slightly, you'll notice its actually spinning the liquid AND vibrating it. I use this on spray paint cans: 60 seconds upside down, 60 seconds right side up, and maybe 60 seconds on the side if I'm feeling saucy. This is the fastest way you will ever mix paint and the consistency of the mix is perfection. No more pretending you're in a Shakeweight infomercial. For something designed to vibrate and spin liquids into a perfectly mixed consistency, it's quiet. Cheaper models are much louder and take 2-3 times as long for a worse consistency.

This is probably one of the best purchases I have made, regarding miniature painting equipment. The ability to resurrect paints that I thought were too far gone is amazing. The speed on this thing is insane and has been working flawlessly for several years. Hands down the best mixer you could buy to use for hobby painting.

As an on-again, off-again miniature painter my paints sit for long periods of time before they get used a bunch, and then left to sit again for another stretch. I bought this ‘Four E’s Scientific’ mixer in the spring of 2022 to mix my miniature paints, washes, and nail polishes after they had been sitting for two years. I mixed 74 paints (including metallics and washes) and 23 nail polishes over 3 days. The instructions that came with the mixer specifically say to not overheat the motor which will cause it to burn out. Knowing this, I paused in my paint mixing about every ten minutes to cool it even if it didn’t feel hot. Also of note: I have 1 to 2 non-rusting metal mixing balls in each container that I mixed. I find these make a big difference in speeding up the process as well as a more thorough mixing. For those who care, the paints I mixed include ‘The Army Painter’ paints, ‘Citadel’ washes, ‘Adikolor’ paints, ‘Vallejo Model Color’, ‘Vallejo Game Color’, ‘Vallejo Varnish’, and ‘Liquid Surface Primer-G’. My newer paints and nail polishes took about 1 min to mix; thirty seconds with the lid pointed up and thirty seconds with the bottom pointed up. I suspect these were faster to mix because less evaporation has happened since they were purchased. Older paints and polishes took 2 min to mix. I should probably add a drop or two of distilled water to each of these and mix again. If you watch my attached video, you will also see that even after mixing, the small paint bottles with the tiny dispenser get some liquid stuck in the tip. I found that shaking back and forth twice by hand after mixing tended to get rid of that issue. Also, even though a sediment had formed at the bottom, it mixed each of my metallic paints, washes, primer, and glitter nail polishes very well. Things I liked: It worked very well for me (though I do have the metal mixing balls in each), but especially well on the newer paints. It comes with a 24 month warranty (which I have not had to use so far, but am glad I’ll be able to put it through its paces a few times before that time runs up). I was able to watch and get it on sale for less than $90 which I felt was a good price for how much hand and wrist pain it saved me from shaking each bottle by hand. Things that I didn’t like: I have to hold each bottle in place while mixing. In addition, my hand feels ‘vibratey’ after so many bottles, my arm and shoulder are sore from doing so many paints at once, and I had to position the round bottom of bottles at specific angles to get the mixer to work well (also in my video). This last one isn’t a big deal to me as I was able to get the knack after just a few bottles (and it is easier to do when you’re not filming yourself). All in all, I am happy with this mixer and will buy again when this one dies (even if it dies at 24 months and 1 day). 😊

I was apprehensive about purchasing this. I had many bottles of acrylic and enamel paints that were stitting for a while and separated in the bottles. No bs, this thing mixed them perfectly. I also use it as opposed to shaking by hand, it does a much better job. Back in the day Inwould mix the paint with the end of a brush and then shake them. This does it all in one. Highly recommend.

This is absolutely the best paint shaker I have ever tried. It will completely mix any bottle of model paint in seconds compared to 5 minutes or more doing it by hand. Colorshift, interference, metallics and more get completely mixed with ease. And it's a very well made unit. Heavy enough to stay in one place while mixing is going on.

Worked great at first. Then it just stops working. Cant really recommend Edit: I messaged the company and they responded almost immediately and sent me a replacement. I am satisfied

I've been using this to mix hobby paints almost every day since I got it with no problems. It works exactly as advertised and has given me no problems. It is quite loud though, especially on a hard surface like a tabletop. I may put it on an old mousepad to dampen the sound, at least the rattle from the tabletop. Not enough to take a star away though. Sure, it's a bit spendy for a hobbyist, but it definitely falls into the "buy once, cry once" category of hobby purchases.