Best Acrylic Paint Markers | Episode 2 | Montana Acrylic Markers

 

Overview - ★★★★★

These are some of the best (and most expensive) paint markers that I reviewed. For opacity they performed the best overall. They're extremely juicy, almost too juicy. That latter point is what keeps me away from using them on coated surfaces. I have to expect the markers will well up unless I move quickly. 

As these markers are refillable, they're both eco-friendly and can give you more longevity for money over time. The ability to make more colors is what will have me coming back. 

So my assessment is this is an S tier marker. It's expensive, but there's a reason for the price. You're getting quality where you need it if you need it. 5/5 stars. 

Breakdown

Below I'll go over all my points that led me to my conclusions. 

Pros

• Refillable
• Juicy
• Great nib quality
• Easily activated
• Nice colors

Out of all the markers I did, the Montanas activated the most quickly. After a couple of pumps, they were filled. Never had an issue with clogging even while blending. Their refill and empty marker series is really great. For 180 mL of ink, you'll pay about $16 which is super cheap. Makes it a great choice for mixing your own paint markers. 

Speaking of colors I like these a lot. Malachite Light is probably my favorite. While they don't have a lot of darker flesh tones, I'm confident I could make my own. 

Cons

• Low selection of fine tips 
• No brush tips 
• Expensive

While Montana does have some extra fine tips, they don't appear to have any brush or technical nibs. Those are important aspects to me in my art. Again, you'll really be paying for that quality. 

I found these to be almost too juicy when using these on glossy coated paper (my go-to for paint markers). They created wells of paint that cracked. You can see that on the opacity tests below. 

Price

The price on these are pretty high at about $5.56 per marker. If you buy in sets of 12, you can get them for closer to $3.60 per marker which is much better priced. However, it's probably best to buy individually the colors you think you'll use the most. 

You can get the cheapest prices at Blick Art Supplies. Here's a link to the page. This is not an affiliate and no link shorteners to get any money. 

Opacity Tests

Below you'll find the opacity tests. These were done on double-coated cardstock. The black used here is Sharpie marker which has no streaking with these markers. The red is Uni Posca Marker, Red. 

The "1" stands for "1 coat". The "2" stands for "2 coats". The lines show horizontal application. The circle over black shows circular application. The middle shows a fill to the true hue over no background. The red background shows a textured background interaction. 

These are as close to real life as I could get them.