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Ok so it's a rant. I got a Kairos and a Lord of Change for my 30th along with some other daemonic bitz and bobs. I've reached the conclusion that these will be the last finecast items I get. Lots of reasons, small but enough to put me off in future.

The Texture of the resin, i just hate it. far prefer working with MPP now.
The Flash is just IN-SANE. Trying to figure out what bits to cut and what bits to leave for danger of destroying a delicate part of the model is like Sophie's Choice! The same can be said of what parts to fill once he is assembled. Joins are fine, but for example where the feathered head connects, rather than risk losing detail I've just left it as is.
Nearly 90% of the small nubbiny bits (like on his loincloth) are gone. The same can be said for his talon-tips, on his hands, feet and wings.

I'll probably hit the same brick walls on the LOC, time will tell, for the moment Kairos is mostly done. Pics to follow.

The problem is that I opened these two in the shop, the casting for 90% of it is fine, it's not miscast, there's no warped parts, the wings are practically flawless and the same can be said for the rest of it its just the above bits which you can't really see until you actively start painting are just....woeful.

I'll be getting a bloodthirster and KOS from ultraforge and a skulltaker and Karanak from avatars of war. I'm just glad I decided to get the chaos war hounds instead of flesh hounds now.

You should be able to exchange or call gw customer service and ask them what they can do. Their customer service is about the only good thing left about gw... They will probably offer to send out new ones to you.

I found this image that seems appropriate here

The last failcast thing I bought had bubbles on the dude's face and hat. I took photos of it and emailed GW, they just sent me a new one. That also had bubbles. I just ended up fixing them both so now I have 2.

It sucks, but unfortunately that's the way it is now.

"The way it is now" is that I haven't bought one single thing in Finecast and I never will. If I need something that's 'only available in Finecast' I convert... from other company's product if necessary.

And the only one it's "unfortunate" for is GW for continuing to produce Finecast.

I feel like I am the only one who has four or five finecast models and none of them have had any issues

 Vulcan wrote:
"The way it is now" is that I haven't bought one single thing in Finecast and I never will. If I need something that's 'only available in Finecast' I convert... from other company's product if necessary.

And the only one it's "unfortunate" for is GW for continuing to produce Finecast.

That's sometimes an option, but majority of the time converting from plastic troops doesn't look nearly as good unless you are willing to put lots of effort in to it (far more than just fixing a finecast model), using a model from a different manufacturer again depends on the army you collect and if you are trying to maintain an aesthetic. I haven't bought many finecast models, the ones I have bought are mostly models where there was either not much option or the finecast models looked so much better than the competitors or anything I could convert myself that I just went with them.

I miss metal models. They were annoying at times, but they gave you a range that can't be easily achieved in plastics without all the problems of resin and especially finecast.

Getting a new one from customer support isn't really an option because it's anything that's a rounded small part of the model is like it's burst. the same with the talons. they're all completely blunted like a bubble has escaped through it. it's something I've never once seen in plastic.

At least I'll be going down the route of gettin counts as for a thirster and kos.

 Vulcan wrote:
"The way it is now" is that I haven't bought one single thing in Finecast and I never will. If I need something that's 'only available in Finecast' I convert... from other company's product if necessary.

And the only one it's "unfortunate" for is GW for continuing to produce Finecast.

Very much this. I do not enjoy working with nor gaming with anything in that material.

 Shenloanne wrote:
Getting a new one from customer support isn't really an option because it's anything that's a rounded small part of the model is like it's burst. the same with the talons. they're all completely blunted like a bubble has escaped through it. it's something I've never once seen in plastic.

At least I'll be going down the route of gettin counts as for a thirster and kos.

I'm not sure why what you describe would preclude you getting a new one from customer support?

 SilverMK2 wrote:
You should be able to exchange or call gw customer service and ask them what they can do. Their customer service is about the only good thing left about gw... They will probably offer to send out new ones to you.

Too bad the replacement(s) will probably be just as bad as the original. Though at least maybe if you get enough replacements you can ebay them and recover the money you wasted on attempting to buy a finecast model.

AllSeeingSkink wrote:

 Shenloanne wrote:
Getting a new one from customer support isn't really an option because it's anything that's a rounded small part of the model is like it's burst. the same with the talons. they're all completely blunted like a bubble has escaped through it. it's something I've never once seen in plastic.

At least I'll be going down the route of gettin counts as for a thirster and kos.

I'm not sure why what you describe would preclude you getting a new one from customer support?

Agreed. I'm no GW fan, but it's widely agreed that customer service for broken and incomplete models is one of the things that GW consistently does very well.

Why wouldn't you at least try to get them to send you a new one? Most every story I've heard, GW hasn't even required folks to mail in the flawed example.

My biggest issue with it aside from air bubbles and warped parts is just how cheap the fething resin feels. Seriously, just call FW and have them send intern number 587 to show you how to cast resin models or the other two options: go all plastic or bring back pewter.

Totally agree. Finecrap is horrid. best way to deal with it is not at all. My personal favorite Lord of Change alternative model is the Vrock from ultraforge. It is a bit expensive (and a bit large) but it is so worth it.

I've only bought three Finecast models. One was an Ork Warboss with an Attack Squig, another was Pedro Kantor and my most recent one the XV8 Commander for the Tau. That thing is a real pain. The flash on these models, I'm fairly sure there's a bit that is supposed to be on that Ork's gun that I cut off, I'm not sure if that little bit on the chest of the commander ought to be there. So many questions and then you start painting. Jesus they're a pain. Oh, and the super glue I use, since the nearest FLGS is in Shang Hai (2000 miles away), I've had to settle with some crap local stuff. Amount of time it takes to dry on a mini: half an hour, amount of time it takes to dry on fingers: five seconds.

I've never seen a Finecast model that didn't have apparent defects in box. I stopped looking soon after the launch and decided never to buy any. If enough people took the same approach, there wouldn't be any Finecast any more.

Funnily enough, the Finecast name has been quietly dumped because of the bloody awful reputation it has acquired.

I only bought finecast models I intended to chop up for parts.

At least I did until I got fed up with replacements that still had defects.

For me, it's not the defects (as I can play tag with GW customer support until I get something usable), it's the fscking flash. It's *EVERYWHERE*. I got the Thousand Sons Finecast conversion kit and other than a bent sword hilt, that's what I had to deal with.

Of course, I can't find a photo of the models with all the glorious flashing intact on that kit. -.-;

GW really should provide photos of what they consider the "average" look for the fresh-out-of-box finecast parts. Then people would at least know what they're getting into!

Ive got arjac rockfist in finecast which is my only decent one if anyone has seen the sw fenrisian cyber wolf they will know that theres only 1 point of contact to the base which is a leg thats about 1.5mm thick and because of the weight of the wolve it just bends mine has now snapped without it ever being out of the house im just pleased they made the new logan grimar proper plastic

maybe im just lucky but i've ordered 40+ finecast over the last 10 years adn I've never gotten a really bad one, the wrost i've gotten was a bubble on the underside of a skinks foot

My biggest issue with finecast is that it's both fragile AND expensive. I'm so worried about damaging a $20-$30 28mm model during prep that a lot of the fun is taken out of the process.

Finecast has been great for when i want to convert. trying to cut the frills off my witch hunter from fantasy to 40k would of been AWFUL if it was metal.

But as a thing in it self its awful.

They shoved a huge gate on the side of my Telion and i had no idea how deep to gouge it out.

so now i have to figure out how to convert him.

(will probably become some sort of acolyte or something)

I totally agree, Desubot. If I just want something to paint for fun, rather than kitbash, Finecast is way more trouble than it's worth. Frankly, if gw had $15 metal miniatures, they would easily get another $300+ a month from me easily, as this is what I spend on non-gw white metal miniatures on average. I buy lots of gw plastics, but very few finecast.

With how good their plastic kits are, one has to wonder how much longer finecast will survive.

Yep. Just opened up Typhus and while not terrible, cleaning up all the moulding bits is a pain! Luckily, he's supposed to be Nurgly, so I can make it work, but its frustrating as hell when I get older stuff off ebay thats beautiful.

Ive had plenty of finecast and had both ends of the scale.

My LOC really does not compare to my other metal one or metal fateweaver.

Any model that has thin base connections really does not stand a change.
My mangler squigs have collapsed, swooping hawks fallen off of bases due to being connected to their bases by toes!

GW really didnt think it through.

Its a very weak material with no strength what so ever, so it needs support.
My mangler squigs now have steel rods going through their legs and body and to the base, just so it can stand up without bending and falling over.


I have also noticed that warpage isnt fixable like on FW resins.
You can warm and re-set finecast, but over the course of a month or 2 it sets back to how it was.

FW resin stays as it is set.


Flash is not all that bad, unless its on ribbed or detailed sections, then its a pain.

My main issues are:

1: Air bubbles - I have possible 1 or 2 models that do not have them.

2: Mould alignment - i have had quite a few that the halves dont even line up on.

3: Fuzzy sections - usually faces or other detailed areas tend to just end up as a fuzzy mess.

4: Poor resin - I have had a few models now that are like rubber.
The resin has not set and i cannot make it set, so im guessing a poor mix of resin?



Thats about it from me really.
Stick with big chunky models and they are amazing.
As soon as fine detail is involved your screwed really.

 Anfauglir wrote:
With how good their plastic kits are, one has to wonder how much longer finecast will survive.

Indeed. However, I can't see myself paying $20+ for a single plastic 28mm. Frankly, I find it pretty tough buying boxes that are over $10 / 28mm plastic model. Likewise, I just couldn't bring myself to buy Logan Grimnar for $70, even though I thought the craftsmanship on the plastic was exceptional.

Had he been white metal, I wouldn't have blinked at $100. I know that doesn't even really make sense, since plastic is often much easier to work with, but psychologically, I just value plastic less.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Jackal wrote:
Ive had plenty of finecast and had both ends of the scale.

My LOC really does not compare to my other metal one or metal fateweaver.

Any model that has thin base connections really does not stand a change.

This! And, I'm perpetually afraid that if I knock over a resin model, I'll break something.

 Jackal wrote:


2: Mould alignment - i have had quite a few that the halves dont even line up on.

4: Poor resin - I have had a few models now that are like rubber.
The resin has not set and i cannot make it set, so im guessing a poor mix of resin?

Mold 2 is a major issue for me with some GW models. Usually it's fixable, but it requires so much remediation that my head hurts.

The resin for Finecast is different from FW resin -- I read a theory somewhere that on reason was to make the dust (from filing, for instance) non-toxic. I find Finecast pretty easy to get flash and mold lines off of; on the other hand, I'm paranoid about messing up the miniature. I think my blood pressure actually goes way up when I'm prepping expensive resin models, lol.

I've had a couple issues...And gotten them promptly replaced for non-issue models. That's off a good 20 or so models. Overall quality is perfectly fine. Ranting is great, but it's just that, ranting.

 Orsai wrote:
Oh, and the super glue I use, since the nearest FLGS is in Shang Hai (2000 miles away), I've had to settle with some crap local stuff. Amount of time it takes to dry on a mini: half an hour, amount of time it takes to dry on fingers: five seconds.

That sounds like typical superglue behaviour when the part you are trying to join has gaps. Also I've never bought superglue from an FLGS, I have no idea what it's like in Thailand, but I've always bought superglue from hardware stores and supermarkets, my preferred brand is Loctite with the long neck applicator.

Superglue starts curing at the surfaces it is applied on and then slowly cures in areas that aren't in contact with a surface. So if there's no gaps, it cures almost instantly, the larger the gaps the slower it cures. So since there's very space between your finger and the model when you're holding it, your fingers get stuck to the model very quickly. If there's large gaps between the parts you are trying to join, your fingers will get stuck to the model long before the model itself gets joined.

The solution is to improve the quality of the join, not only does superglue take longer to cure when there's a gap, in general it doesn't work great as a gap filler so you should try and minimise the gap. If you can't avoid a gap or can't be bothered trying to smooth the part, a tried and tested way to solve the problem is to mix a small ball of greenstuff (make it pretty small, it only needs to be big enough to fill the small gaps between the parts), apply the superglue to one side of the join, put down the ball of greenstuff, apply a bit of superglue to the ball of greenstuff (try not to have heaps of superglue, just enough to coat it all, I often find myself removing the excess with a tissue). Then press the parts together, squishing the greenstuff (which fills all the gaps while the superglue holds the joint together and dries well because there's no more gaps!).

I'm quite lazy, so I actually do this for a lot of my joins, rather than smoothing out all the joins on a model I just have some greenstuff on my work desk and quickly mix some up when I see I'm joining something that has gaps.

Talys wrote:

 Anfauglir wrote:
With how good their plastic kits are, one has to wonder how much longer finecast will survive.

Indeed. However, I can't see myself paying $20+ for a single plastic 28mm. Frankly, I find it pretty tough buying boxes that are over $10 / 28mm plastic model. Likewise, I just couldn't bring myself to buy Logan Grimnar for $70, even though I thought the craftsmanship on the plastic was exceptional.

Had he been white metal, I wouldn't have blinked at $100. I know that doesn't even really make sense, since plastic is often much easier to work with, but psychologically, I just value plastic less.

GW is betting that alot of folks will though. That's why there are so many all plastic characters coming out. Many of them (or units similar to them) were formerly in finecast and/or metal, and quite a few of which are now 20+ bucks. It does look like GW is phasing out resin the same way they phased out metal. I'll bet in 5-10 years everything will be plastic.

As for the felt value of metal, I'm right there with you, though I think there are some good points of metal besides it's totemic value and heft.
-It is actually worth more as a substance.
-It is the most reliably strippable material, so you're not risking breakage or loss of value if you mess up a model.
-Because of the above, it tends to have a much better resale value.

Converting is easier with plastic, but with a razor saw, motor tool and a set of files, converting metal is not really that difficult.