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We see Tony Stark using the Iron Man armor Mark 50 during the events of Avengers: Infinity War. Then when we watch Avengers: Endgame, we see him donning Mark 85 armor.
So where are the rest of his armors between Mark 51 and Mark 84? Why were they not shown in the movie (like in Iron Man 3 we saw all armors between Mark 15 and Mark 42, live in action)?
If there aren't any, what's the point of having that armor named Mark 85?
Likeliest reason; many of those Marks were only designs, or testbeds that were disassembled when they proved to have some flaws, or never finished, or a slight improvement was made that meant it was given a new Mark number.
Real life example, the Supermarine Spitfire. The Mark XX was originally the Mark XIV prototype with the Griffon engine. The second Mark XX test aircraft was fitted with a Griffon II engine and first flew in August 1942, in December had engine switched out for a Griffon 61, and was designated the Mark 21.
So the Spitfire Mark 21 started life as a Spitfire Mark XX, which was really just a Spitfire Mark XIV with a different engine.
From a recent interview with RDJ, the MK 85 suit was created as a contingency plan. The MK 50 was used to survive, while the MK 85 was designed to get the job done. My guess is that he built suits until he got one that would sustain the Gamma Radiation levels emitted by the Infinity Stones so that if/when the time came, he could finish the job.
The nano gauntlet seems to be made of the same nanites as the MK 85, so this would hopefully support that theory.
Purely speculation on my part, but the suit from Infinity War was based around having nanobots as confirmed here.
The suit was entirely contained in a detachable housing unit of nanoparticles which could deploy over Stark's body with a simple push on it. MCU Wiki
I'm assuming that since the nanoparticles are so configurable based on Tony's thoughts, as seen when he produces all of the cool weapons from nowhere during the movie, MK 51 onward could reuse the same particles and just configure themselves differently. Suit designs 51 through 84 may have just reused the same nanoparticles that arranged themselves differently when activated, thus the other suit versions don't exist anymore because the same components make up MK 85.
The closest I can find to confirmation is this line, from a different page on the same Wiki.
It is a direct evolution of the Mark L, and as such, it functions with the same nanite technology, granting great versatility and efficiency. MCU Wiki
