GW's Choices - Finecast vs Metal vs Plastic

[Lord Azaghul]

Thanks - that's what I suspected about CAD but I wanted to be sure.

@eldergal: biggest reason I can't pick up finecast - the weight to price ratio. IMO the price to far to high for something that weighs less then 3 paper clips.
I'd still rather have a metal character or build my own out of plastic kits.

[gendoikari87]

I miss metal. Finecast has about the same level of detail with a better ability to hold paint. BUT, I miss the heft of metal. Just something to the metal minis I loved.

[Grenadier]

I can't comment on the merits of any of the material in terms of which is better when producing models. My experience only allows me to comment on the material in terms of someone using the models.

I don't like metal at all. I find it harder to keep metal parts glued together. And I hate when you get one which is plastic and metal. Like the old Devastator squads. The heavier metal weapons and backpacks were a pain in my posterior trying to keep them on the plastic bodies. And almost every time I tipped one over even the slightest thump seemed to dislodge the metal pieces. I broke down and began using green stuff to keep pieces together. I also find metal parts much harder to deal with when I want to seriously alter models.

For example I had this female model from another range. Warmachine I think. She was dressed in clothing that would make her into a nice female Commissar. Problem was she was wielding a weapon high over her head with arms raised. I clipped them off and intended to repose her with Imperial Guard appropriate weapons. Only I had to use a Dremel to bore out some area around her shoulders without ruining the high collar of her greatcoat. And then basically sculpt new arms.

Plastic is my favorite medium to work with. It glues easily. But it is very nice when you want to make custom models. You can carve it and sand it and green stuff works good with it. My best custom models all are based on plastic ones. They take better to swapping bits and pieces around too.

As for the Finecast resin I've yet to have a Finecast model and never have worked with it. I have worked with FW resin with my DKOK models. And I don't like it. In fact I was a little afraid of it. I found gluing it was more difficult and the pieces are easily broken. Many of the pieces came to me with some damage. Including being warped, full of holes, and even broken. Consequently I've made no attempts to alter any resin models to make custom ones.

[Bean]

I'm really not a big fan of metal. I've never messed with a fine-cast model, but I'll admit that I'm skeptical--the material seems very soft.

GW's plastic kits, on the other hand, have come leaps and bounds in the last few years. The material is fantastic, the sculpts are routinely good, and the number and variety of bits and bobs and options that come on the sprues continue to impress. I use plastic kits almost exclusive, at this point, as a matter of course, and I hope to see GW continue to release a majority of their product in plastic.

[TSINI]

One of the little touches that made the product designer in me giggle with joy was the double drilled out barrels in the baneblade heavy bolter sponsons (that requires side cores in two extra planes)

It really told me of the improvements in plastic moulding techniques that GW are using.

[AnEnemy]

I like to convert my models.

Therefore metal has always been a material that I hated working with. Not to mention the heartbreak of seeing a paint job chip.

Plastic is my preferred material, but I don't mind Finecast. I own several and most are pristine sculpts.(I know I must be lucky) I've only had two minis(two of my five Wracks) miscast and GW was nice enough to send me a new box of them...so I got ten models for the price of five.

Finecast is very lightweight, but this lends itself well to conversion. It's even gotten me thinking about buying minis that repulse me just for the conversion potential. I would NEVER have bought a Ragnar or an Ulrik model. Now I probably will because I can cut the parts I like off and marry them to plastic kits.

That said, it seems to have a real problem with thin bitz like swords and staves. They tend to be warped from what I've seen personally. This can be fixed, but it is a hassle. Metal had the same issue, but it was much easier to fix...usually.

PS: I shudder to think of how much a single Beastmaster unit will cost when they get around to converting them to Finecast. It's already about a dollar per point for the damn unit. Sorry, I know you said not to bring up price! I play DE so I am quite evil.

[Wildeybeast]

I miss metal. Finecast has about the same level of detail with a better ability to hold paint. BUT, I miss the heft of metal. Just something to the metal minis I loved.

I really loved the feel of metal too, but as others have mentioned it was a pain in the rear end to work with. And the amount of times I had to re-glue and re-paint my metal zoanthropes means I can only celebrate the arrival of finecast.

You should try Finecast, worst happens and you get a miscast, email customer service with pictures and they send you a new one.

And as far as I know, they don't ask for the duff one back either. I've bought quite a few FC models now and never had a significant problem. I'd recommend people at least try them, particularly as like it or not, they are the future. One day all the metal will be gone (though whether that includes the SG range, I'm not sure, GW hasn't mentioned them or converted any of them yet).

[thecactusman17]

I'm never buying Finecast again. NVM that the guys at my local GW were cool about greenstuffing any really bad stuff themselves, the models just have not held up in the time since. they break easily in critical places that do not allow them to be glued back together, I've even had models break in three places along a solid section just by tipping over at the wrong moment from atop a Cities of Death building (only about a foot!).

Never again. If GW wants to make their models with a cheaper material, they can switch to all plastic. But I'm never buying their resin materials again.

[Deadlift]

I have a few Fine cast models which were much nicer to work with than metal, it made some conversions a joy. However I just really love the plastic. GW plastic kits are just my absolute favourite to work with hobby wise and the improvements in detail we have seen in the last few years in plastic kit details is fantastic.

[wittdooley]

I'm never buying Finecast again. NVM that the guys at my local GW were cool about greenstuffing any really bad stuff themselves, the models just have not held up in the time since. they break easily in critical places that do not allow them to be glued back together, I've even had models break in three places along a solid section just by tipping over at the wrong moment from atop a Cities of Death building (only about a foot!).

Never again. If GW wants to make their models with a cheaper material, they can switch to all plastic. But I'm never buying their resin materials again.

Not calling you a liar, but I find that REALLY hard to believe. I've dropped a ton of my FC models and they haven't even remotely come close to breaking. Typically, they bounce....