Unboxing the Soltek 2.0 Ultra

Kyle Martin

Well-known member
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Hi all,

I just posted a video showing the Soltek 2.0.
they have made a lot of changes to the original and I think I detailed most of them in this video.

thanks for watching,

Kyle

 
Very cool, thanks for the info. Looking forward to seeing what you create while using it.
 
Thanks Kyle, I remember lusting for the original version. Then hearing all the horror stories --- although Ian Roberts uses an original one and swears by it.

Looking at the design, having the large end of the telescopic leg at the bottom making contact with the ground will also improve stability. It looks like it will have very good palette support, The mast however makes me question how much "panel wiggle" there is going to be when you paint. I know that is not a big deal for a lot of painters but it irks me. Mostly for that reason, I go thru the wing-nut pain of a half-box French easel since they have robust panel support.

The best IMO for panel support is the Gloucester/Anderson type easels like the Beauport and Take-It_Easel. But I do Urban Plein Air and unfortunately, those easels have a very wide footprint - which would make it challenging to set up on city streets and sidewalks.

Please keep posting about the Soltek. It's a beautiful looking piece and a triumph of design.
 
Hi Bongo,
I think the palette support is pretty good. I have used different French easels for 15 years, and this one is similar in stability. The tension can be adjusted as well. I’ll update once I get more time with it.
I also have a take it easel and have had 4 beauports over the years. Those are my favorite easels by far, just because they rarely tip over.
Thank you,
Kyle
 
About a month ago I was in Hobby Lobby and they had a French easel but with 4 camera tripod-style legs. If I,m remembering right it was around $150. Just found a similar one in black on Amazon


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What interests me even more than the legs is that the piece the top and bottom rails slide on has been recessed in the backing board - that means a panel could rest up against the backboard instead of the vertical bar the rails slide on.

This means massively more support for a panel than any other Plein air easel. Such a simple design change, I've wondered for years why no one has done it, You see it sometimes on table-top easels but not on standing easels.

No more panel wiggle.
 
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This is a very interesting French easel. I saw one like this a couple of years ago on eBay, but the bottom panel/canvas support would not move up or down. I’m going to save this Amazon search and I’ll probably grab one at some point. I like French easels with backpack straps for hiking and this one looks pretty nice. I’ll let you know if I purchase one.
 
Kyle can you keep your paints on the soltek palette ? Is there enough room so you can leave your paints on the palette when you close up?
 
Kyle can you keep your paints on the soltek palette ? Is there enough room so you can leave your paints on the palette when you close up?
Hi Bongo, yes you can. I am going to make another video showing this as oth es have asked as well. I will put my paint in a masters on wet palette seal (small) which fits under the palette for transport and then can nestl in the side tray when painting. I’ll show this hack in the next video as well
Thank you
Kyle
 
Hmmm. Wish I could afford to "unbox" 700 bucks worth of Easel..... ahh well.... Nice though, thanks for making me drool.
 
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