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Home| AcryStand Marker Stand | Published Apr 2005 An Article by Mike Wallis |
| A good marker stand really helps to display your marker properly. A stand can also help keep your marker out of harms way at the field in the staging area. No longer will your pride and joy be balanced in precarious places or lost under piles of gear that could easily scratch and damage it. The AcryStand on test is about as simple as it gets. Made from clear or tinted acrylic plastic, it's available in two configurations, folding or non folding and two models, one marker or five markers. The later is designed for use by teams.
The models I had on test were both of the single marker type and consisted of a folding stand in clear acrylic and a rigid model in a blue tint. Other colours available include a red tint and black, plus custom colours are available on request.
We'll look at the folding model first. This model is ideal for taking with you to the field as it folds flat and is easy to slip into your bag along with the rest of your gear. Whilst the rigid model is designed to steady the front of the marker via the vertical grip, the folding model has a barrel rest. I found the whole setup quite stable and whilst the marker could move around when the stand was bumped, it showed no signs of tipping over. The finish on the folding model was superb. All parts were beautifully finished and the clear hinges at the pivot points expertly glued. On the bottom, four little clear feet are fitted to hold the base off the deck and reduce the chance of scratches marring the nice finish.
As I've mentioned, the rigid model steadies the marker using the vertical foregrip. This is a much more stable system than a barrel rest as it prevents the marker from tilting far when knocked. Obviously, this method of holding the front of the marker isn't possible for the folding model but I feel that the trade off in rigidity is more than made up for by the practicality of the folding model in the field. The finish on the rigid model is just as good as the folding model and again, there are four soft feet on the base to reduce the chance of scratching the stand or what you place it on. At first I was concerned that the acrylic plastic would harm the finish on my marker. But after a series of tests where I attempted to scratch a piece of anodized aluminium with the stand I found that the chances of any damage were fairly low. It took quite a concerted effort to mark the anodizing with the relatively soft acrylic. However, from a marketing viewpoint, this perception of possible damage may work against the product and if I were the manufacturer I'd be looking into adding a soft edge in the future. The only other point to consider before purchasing is the fit of your marker to the stand. Being a non adjustable product, there is a limit to what types of markers will fit on these stands. After a series of tests I found that most modern markers fitted with no or small drop forwards will fit just fine. You may find that if you are old school and have a big drop forward fitted to your marker it just won't fit. But don't dispair, custom stands are available on request to fit any setup you own. Cost is $27.50 including shipping within the USA for both the folding and rigid models in the standard colours. Custom colours add an extra $5 to the price. All in all a nice product at an affordable price. For more info on the AcryStand visit: http://www.allacrylic.com Mike Wallis Paint site design and contents Copyright Mike Wallis |
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