18375
Post by: AndrewC
Please define "pro painted"?
Cheers
Andrew
52059
Post by: Johnny-Crass
I like to paint so no
52433
Post by: el_groovatore
No way, José. For me, the most fun thing about the hobby is the assembling, converting and painting of the miniatures. So there's no way in the seven hells I'd let someone else attack my model with a brush. But that's just me.
22413
Post by: mwnciboo
No way, whats the point? one mans Pro-painted is another mans Table top quality. Are you talking pre-painted mini's such as AT-43? because some were awful.
It's all about ownership, I own my Mini's they represent me, they are painted by me, in my colour scheme and represent my skills and conscientiousness.
19445
Post by: Warboss Gutrip
See for me, it would be entirely cost and miniature dependent. The only answer I can really give is 'sometimes', because I like to paint most of the time, but for something like a horde army... maybe.
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Post by: necrovamp
No, Mainly for reasons suggested above but when you a model painted by someonelse it never ever looks right in your army
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Post by: kitch102
Never, I want my models to be representative of my skills and abilities.
I wouldn't want someone else to have sex my wife because I think they can do it better.
Now there's an analogy! Hahaha
22413
Post by: mwnciboo
kitch102 wrote:I wouldn't want someone else to have sex my wife because I think they can do it better.
Some people actually quite like that, standby for some wierd PM's
I think we can conclude this is an overwhelming no. Yet, we love (at my local club) pre-painted Flames of War terrain? Maybe terrain is different because it is background.
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Post by: Viktor von Domm
el_groovatore wrote:No way, José. For me, the most fun thing about the hobby is the assembling, converting and painting of the miniatures. So there's no way in the seven hells I'd let someone else attack my model with a brush. But that's just me.
and me too^^
and tho i probably never will make a mini above(if at all) tabletop quality...i would never want a mini painted by anyone other than me... well with the odd mini made by a freidn of course...but thats the total exception of the rule...
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Post by: mingus89
i wouldnt be as 'connected' with my models if they wernt painted by me, i think all the hard work and effort always pays of as you can say at the end (in a smug voice) "yea, i painted them"
25668
Post by: ChaosxVoid
Id say no I love to paint aswell but i mean if it was a friend of mine trying to sell their painted models id pay more for it if they needed the support
12313
Post by: Ouze
I hate painting, and I wouldn't buy pre-painted because I love assembling and converting.Yes, I even enjoy carefully scraping mold lines. Pre-painted would hold less value for me.
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Post by: Sharkvictim
There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers. If they have the excess money to blow on "pro-painting", then they also have every steamroller and leaf blower list at their disposal.
"I've made sure I have a stable of unbeatable army lists, now they need to look the part."
I assume "pro-painted" means at or near Golden Demon. Why on earth would anyone pay for that level of paint job unless they were going to run them in some kind of painting contest?
I'm rambling. GW is over priced as it is, so no. Automatically Appended Next Post: ChaosxVoid wrote:Id say no I love to paint aswell but i mean if it was a friend of mine trying to sell their painted models id pay more for it if they needed the support
I agree with this, though. There are exceptions to every rule.
I think I mis-read the OP. I guess if we're talking ebay or something they would have to be exceptionally well painted for me to pay more than normal for the GW model, because I do so enjoy my conversions. For some reason I thought we were talking about paying for your stuff to get painted. Just woke up. Sorry. Automatically Appended Next Post: mingus89 wrote:i wouldnt be as 'connected' with my models if they wernt painted by me, i think all the hard work and effort always pays of as you can say at the end (in a smug voice) "yea, i painted them"
Too true. I have a Daemon Prince I bought solely for a tournament. Painted him up pink skin/purple armor. Was going to run him as a lash prince. Changed my list, ran him as a Tzeentch prince. He's a total beast as a Tzeentch prince, and I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I was thinking about repainting his Thousand Sons blue, but the resounding reply was no, because it wouldn't be the same. Long story short I love Pinky, my Slaanesh looking Tzeentch prince. If I had bought a pro-painted Slaanesh prince I could never believably run him with a different build, whereas when I look at Pinky all I see is Tzeentch prince (wings, warptime, and BoC or WoC, depending, in case anyone wanted to know )
38915
Post by: The Epic Chaosdude!!!
Yes, if they are 'eavy metal standard. Otherwise no...
52525
Post by: Sonophos
If it was a friend in need of some extra money I would offer pay for a paint job on a model to help him out.
I wouldn't want to hurt his pride by offering charity.
51913
Post by: Ravnak
NO!!!!!!!!!!
I love the painting
51661
Post by: NL_Cirrus
No, Its almost guaranteed that you won't get them in non-standard color schemes, and I like to paint my own models, Its just better that way.
52540
Post by: Bluetau
I voted yes solely on the basis I despise painting kroot, and would love to have kroot that actually looked decent.
50685
Post by: Skippy
Glad lots of people on ebay think differently! I can usually get twice to three times the cost of the model
7361
Post by: Howard A Treesong
I see some of the commission painters here, and yes if I was rich I certainly would pay them more than retail for their work.
There's a scale on eBay, most 'painted' work is actually fit only for stripping. The models are devalued because their new owner actually has more work to prepare them. But once the standard goes above average and the figures are being bought to keep their paint job - then they get their value back, and when they genuinely painted to a high professional standard then they are worth many times their retail value because the value is all in the painting and not in the figure. You might as well ask if a good landscape painting is worth paying more for than the canvas on which it is painted!
I'm unlikely to see something randomly on eBay and feel the need to pay more than retail for it. I have bought painted figures in the past, but they have always been cheap. Even well painted figures often have little value as I have seen at wargames shows. I wouldn't have bought them for a lot, but now I have them, I'm very happy to keep them as they are. The only way I could imagine paying a lot for is to hire a commission painter to paint something specifically to my tastes.
36094
Post by: DickBandit
It's like buying a fully restored classic car.
The restoration is where the fun is.
47467
Post by: The Mad Tanker
Creating unique paint schemes is half the fun, so no.
44340
Post by: danpieri
I enjoy the painting far too much to have someone else "professionally" paint them for me. Plus, the way the "professional" paints them might not be to my liking and then it would be wasted money.
55135
Post by: evildrspock
I would prefer to be the professional painting others' miniatures, although I take too long to make it a career.
47728
Post by: Gutstuf Ugfang
ild buy them if they a different selection of clans, chapters, septs, kabals, etc. and only if they were painted well and had a clear protective coat already on them. but at the same time i still want to paint my own army.
25927
Post by: Thunderfrog
The only reason I haven't had certain armies painted for me ( See: Eldar and me being terrible at painting the smooth colors on their tanks with an airbrush ) is because I always change my army lists around .
I'd never be able to match the paint job, so I'd be dependant on my painter to always be able to be ready to paint my new additions.
If I really liked it, I might buy an HQ or a IC painted by someone else.
57098
Post by: carlos13th
I can understand for people who don't enjoy painting or want a certain style they cannot achieve alone. Personally I got into this for the painting so if i buy a pre painted model it is to get it cheap and strip it.
44591
Post by: LumenPraebeo
Only if I wanted it on display in a cabinet, or for a really special game.
57235
Post by: Daemonhammer
I would, but only if it was master-class.
58098
Post by: PurpleEcho
I wouldn't personally pay for a model or models to be painted by somebody else, half of the enjoyment is constructing and painting the models yourself, I understand that many people believe they have neither the skill or time to paint models therefore they opt to get somebody else to do it but I'm quite happy going at my own pace.
A friend of mine works for a painting studio that specialises in minatures (GW products being 90% of their workload) and it's absolutely nuts the kind of money some people are willing to spend to have their models painted for them.
55184
Post by: King of the Elves
That takes away 1/2 of the hobby, no way!
30520
Post by: deejaybainbridge
Nope.
But that is for one simple reason. I'm in the hobby to paint. Painted models do not interest me. However I can see how a market for them would exist.
55324
Post by: bibblles
I really wouldn't, only because I actually like painting my models myself.
48693
Post by: Tesunie
I wouldn't pay more for a prepainted model, as I like painting and modeling my army myself. If I was someone who wanted an awesome looking army, but felt I didn't have the time/talent/skill for it, but had the spare money, then maybe. But as I take this as the hobby... no. Most prepainted models I get end up being torn apart and repainted anyway.
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Post by: heroscaper1515
Maybe if it was amazing. But what is the fun of using miniatures that you haven't painted yourself.
44232
Post by: DijnsK
i would... it doesnt state how much extra i should pay though, that will effect my opinion
9808
Post by: HoverBoy
I'd rather butcher my models trying to get better.
50832
Post by: Sigvatr
Yes. I hate painting with a passion...I'm a general, not an artist.
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Post by: Adrian Fue Fue
I am surprised to see that many "No" votes.
It said marked up above GW price. Go into any GW vendor and the price is already marked up. Add the price of paint and lack of skill and it is win win to buy painted.
Pro... Well lots say they are pro but pro means business and contest worthy pro.
Price. No more then double, seriously, this is an expensive hobby. I laugh when I see average painters try to sell a squad of their "Pro" paint jobs, or "Pro" conversions for like $50+
32828
Post by: Some_Call_Me_Tim?
I'm not quite sure what this poll is about, as the question in the OP is really vague: is it asking if gamers would be willing to buy prepainted models directly from GW? Is it asking if gamers would pay GW retail price to have a commission done?
And for that matter, what qualifies as "pro-painted", anyways? Because "pro-painted" is a really loose term; I have seen people on eBay who just basecoat/wash models and sell them as pro-paints, and I have seen amazing, award-winning models sold as "pro-painted".
60450
Post by: Kris Knives
I would but only for models with enough detail to actually be worth the extra money spent to see them pro-painted.
58806
Post by: Douglaspocock
Painting is the best part. But, I guess there are a lot of people who don't even paint because of (insert bs excuse here). So they may need to pay wayyyy to much for someone else's ideas and paint job.
42040
Post by: grayshadow87
Absolutely not. I love painting, even if I'm not especially great at it. Plus I'm a bit of a cheapskate.
27004
Post by: clively
First off: no, for the simple reason that I enjoy the painting and modeling aspects of this to the point that I wouldn't play the game if the models were already put together and painted.
And I'll go one further: I would much rather play a game with someone who was color blind and had shaky hands and STILL painted their own army than play against someone that paid to have their army painted.
37420
Post by: Jensvejmand
Pre painted models wouldn't fit in with the ones I have allready painted, and they might make the models I painted look ugly. plus there is a big chance that the pro painted model is painted in another paint style, than the one I use. therefor a big NO. but I guess it would be nice for the gamers that just want to play.
55015
Post by: The Shadow
No, mostly because what's the point in having a pro-painted model if you're not the one who pro-painted it? I mean, you can hardly brag about your painting skills with it. (It's going to be suspiciously better than your own efforts)
I can see that there'd be a big market for it though, and I actually thought about going into painting up people's units for them. While i can't paint to an awesomely high standard I'm still pretty good and don't mind painting entire units of models to said standard.
56551
Post by: reckless ryno
Maybe, I run a tyranid army, so of course I love assembling, converting and painting but maybe for the smaller guys if it was in the same paint scheme.
But I would say hell ya for terrain because I love a great looking board. The more realistic, the better!
47495
Post by: mydartswinger
Generally, no. I'm proud of the minis I paint. For me, it's like this:
mwnciboo wrote: It's all about ownership, I own my Mini's they represent me, they are painted by me, in my colour scheme and represent my skills and conscientiousness.
However, I don't enjoy painting countless models, so if and only if I had LOTS of spare cash, then I might think about it.
36276
Post by: Zweischneid
Voted yes, if it's really well painted.
But it never works out.
Those models I would consider paying (a bit) extra - say a custom SC or HQ (example, a Space Marine Librarian who wouldn't need to match the colour of the main Space Marine army except for a shoulder) if they come with really nice paint (and I mean NMM all round, perfect details, scenic base, the full works) are all so ridiculously expensive that it isn't worth it.
The painted models on offer for "a bit" more than the retail price are usually not painted to a standard that I would care to buy them for the paint-job.
5478
Post by: Panic
yeah,
I voted 'other'
I don't think I'd enjoy playing games with armies painted by someone else but I'd buy undercoated models/basic paint jobs to save time...
I refuse to play with unpainted models.
I also have way too many unpainted armies that never get played with becuase they are unpainted.
I probabily would buy minis if they were undercoated with minimal details picked out.. and only if the paint was thin and tidy so that I can finish the model myself.
I would treat such minis as uncompleted and still feel I have painted the mini myself once I completed the paint job.
Panic...
40756
Post by: Fury_00011
Well I'm in the same opinion as most every one else I love to convert and paint my own.
22413
Post by: mwnciboo
I've got to the point in life, where I sometimes buy pre-painted models and then completely re-paint them especially if they are badly done. A good example is 1/144 Aircraft for Flames of War, you buy 3 x 1/144 Aircraft from say Airfix or Revell for like £3 each, and they all have the same Numbers, Symbols and serial numbers painted on them which is stupid. So I either strip them and repaint, or more usually I spray it with primer and give it a new Paint job.. So, actually I often take Painted mini's and redo them...
41998
Post by: angelshade00
No way! Assembling and painting is half the fun!
65162
Post by: TheDraconicLord
For me it's "Yes, but only because I want/need that model quickly".
I love painting my miniatures, but if I need a miniature ASAP that I know I won't be able to complete on time because of work / personal life, I would have to pay the extra buck.
64816
Post by: washout77
Unless it was for a special diorama or something that I NEED it done right (AKA not me screwing up) then no.
Oh, or it's some model like a Primarch that takes up a giant ass Base and it's very scenic that I will butcher...that too...
62622
Post by: NakedSeamus
For me part of the price is the ability and enjoyment I receive from assembling and painting them myself!
30490
Post by: Mr Morden
I can't paint very well and don't really enjoy it - plus I am cash rich and time poor so most of my stuff is now bought painted or I pay someone to paint it.
Have over the last year sold alot of my very many unpainted minis and got nicely pianted minis for the same or less money
Also in the past have "ruined" expensive models with my patehtic attempts at painting
54426
Post by: DarkWind
I hate when I'm looking at something on e-bay and the price is way hiked because it's "pro-painted" when I'm just going to strip it down and repaint it.....
15726
Post by: SgtSixkilla
No. I paint my own stuff.
66265
Post by: bahzakhain
i would say yes for the paiting because i kind of hate that, but i do like coverting and assembling so the best option for e is to sell pre-painted bitz.
40878
Post by: Meade
I love painting and converting, and probably for models in my own army couldn't ever buy one. However as an appreciator of the art, if i had more $$ I would really enjoy collecting examples of other artists I like, but the paintjobs would have to be something worth paying for and different than what I could do, and also something I could learn from.
Also I can only paint/convert so fast, so if I had the money I would pay for a fully painted army from a painter I like, probably of a different faction.
10193
Post by: Crazy_Carnifex
Nah, paintings too fun!
9454
Post by: Mattlov
Considering the exorbitant prices of GW products, they should already be painted to a high quality at the current prices.
65682
Post by: cox.dan2
I would if a needed a difficult to paint/assemble model, especially some of the metal ones.
30490
Post by: Mr Morden
Just picked up a lovely painted army for Hordes at less than the price for unpainted - all win
22855
Post by: djdutton
I really enjoy painting the models and assembling them the way I want so I don't think I would really pay for it. If it wasn't for the painting I might as well just be playing the dawn of war video game.
63805
Post by: SneakyMek
I wouldn't pay anyone to paint minis for me,since that half the fun of the hobby to paint your stuff.
68535
Post by: uk_crow
Like alot of people, modelling and painting is the main thing i enjoy about the hobby so the answer is no.
21056
Post by: jprp
Id like someone to produce mould-line free/flashless minis perhaps with a primer applied - oh hang on that happened 30 years ago but everyone bought GW instead-oops!
67491
Post by: Grimaldus99
Modelling and painting is the best (and for me the most time consuming) part of the hobby.
A box of plastic dudes may cost $45-$50, but 5+ (bare minimum) hours at home getting them ready, and then a lifetime of gaming. I can live with that.
Paying more, for far less time spent on (plus less control over finished product), severe negative for me.
68763
Post by: Mountain-Breaker
That really depends on how much more it would cost, and if I could choose the paint scheme.If it is way more than the cost of paints+brushes then no. But if it is under that, then possibly.
70558
Post by: Nocturnal391
If I were to need the models as soon as possible maybe. Other than that like others have mentioned, painting is all part of it.
Double post*
62835
Post by: IGtR=
kitch102 wrote:Never, I want my models to be representative of my skills and abilities.
This makes your models yours and shows your development- surely the best aspect of the hobby??
20392
Post by: Farseer Faenyin
Yes, but only for a 'secondary Army' that I'd like to field without having to paint. Because I spent plenty of time on my primary army with those paint brushes...
30490
Post by: Mr Morden
Thus far I have spent way over a grand on ebay and not only have 95% of models been as described and well painted but have ALWAYS been less than the cost of buying them unpainted
29408
Post by: Melissia
Other-- I'd pay only if I had the extra money (which means usually no) I trusted the person doing it to actually do it in a timely and professional manner (which also means usually no). Otherwise... no thanks.
34168
Post by: Amaya
I don't see a reason for anything other than TT standard except for characters and perhaps vehicles. Even then...eh, I'm cheap. Even with money to burn I'd doubt I'd fish out the cash for a master class figure or army.
58389
Post by: Orkimedes1000
personally i would. as i am not a painter. to be quite frank i am possibly one of the worst painters out there. give me a few kits or some GS and i'll whip up a storm. never really liked unpainted models nor understood the need to paint them yourself
67148
Post by: jamin484
Don't paint, never have in over 15 years playing so I either have unpainted stuff, pay commision or buy fully painted.
38250
Post by: poda_t
It being the case that I have more armies to paint than time to paint them, I see the value in receiving these models finished. I love converting and assembly, but the painting is tedious, as I've had to find ways to sneak more painting into my day to get things done. I'd love to either hand my army off for painting, or get the army finished, but I don't have that kind of money
67648
Post by: Commander_Nightflier
No because even though I don't do a good job, I live on a college budget, and can afford a model every few months. Even my conversions are usually to save money.....
70486
Post by: sergeant-valentine
No way, painting is my favorite part of the hobby!
72007
Post by: Mad Boss Morgrot
Wouldn't pay for a pro painted model,
1stly it would be mega expensive
2ndly it's unlikely it would be in the style/scheme I'd want.
3rdly why take half of the modelling work/fun/pleasure out of this hobby??
However I think if people wan to go for it, feel free. I know I don't have that much fully painted and finished due to the time it takes and the huge volumes of models I own, ha!
30490
Post by: Mr Morden
Most of the ones I have bought at very high standard have been less than (the ever increasing) retail price..............the few exceptions tedned to be rarety of the model.
37404
Post by: Jordan
No, because painting is an integral part of the hobby (even if it is my least favorite part).
61179
Post by: asbestosmad
mwnciboo wrote:No way, whats the point? one mans Pro-painted is another mans Table top quality. Are you talking pre-painted mini's such as AT-43? because some were awful.
It's all about ownership, I own my Mini's they represent me, they are painted by me, in my colour scheme and represent my skills and conscientiousness.
^This^
54636
Post by: Ambo
I paint my own.
30490
Post by: Mr Morden
Jordan wrote:No, because painting is an integral part of the hobby (even if it is my least favorite part).
Only if you enjoy and/or have the time - otherwise its a aspect of the hobbey that is optional and often inconvenient - to me at least.
63427
Post by: TheArchitect
I prefer to paint my own models.
72055
Post by: TheDungen
Why would i want someone to paint for me? Painting is the fun part. Ok converting is the really fun part but painting is pretty fun too.
73937
Post by: The Original Mafiahitman
No, I can hardly afford GW at the moment, and, whilst my painting isn't brilliant, it's good enough for me to enjoy on the battlefield
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Post by: gossipmeng
If I had a choice (for the same price) between a fresh kit sealed in the box or 1 that was propainted..... I'd go for the fresh sprues every time.
I'd feel a little embarrassed if I bought a painted army and someone said my models looked awesome, then asked me how I had painted them.
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Post by: poda_t
gossipmeng wrote:If I had a choice (for the same price) between a fresh kit sealed in the box or 1 that was propainted..... I'd go for the fresh sprues every time.
I'd feel a little embarrassed if I bought a painted army and someone said my models looked awesome, then asked me how I had painted them.
see, i don't get why that's a point of embarrassment. I will acknowledge that I find building minis a giant hoot, and painting a chore. I don't see why you should feel ashamed or embarrased that you took a shortcut to get a good-looking WYSIWYG army if it sped one along to get to playing if that's what they enjoy.
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Post by: Zanderchief
I enjoy painting but I am super slow (either through process or distractions) so I have had things painted for me.
Do I cherish more the ones (even if not up to a great standard) that i painted myself? Yes!
But my standard is not particularly high so having a few well painted mini's is worth the cost.
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Post by: Cortland_Greyhawk
Define Standard, as far as I know there is no such animal. It's like saying use common sense. What's common for one person, is uncommon for another person.
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Post by: BlackConsulBrother
I wouldn't mind even if it was just table top I really hate painting and building I just like having a completely painted army to field
EX: paid for a 2500 Eldar army from bluetablepainting I love the army and use it all the time
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Post by: Gutsnagga
Nah, I enjoy painting and modelling too much.
That aside, if I wanted pro-painted models, I wouldn't pay over GW prices. I might pay over the price I normally pay for Warhams, but not over GW prices.
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Post by: Lexx
I'd rather paint them shittily myself. Half the fun of the hobby is building and painting your models.
78017
Post by: dakkajet
No.
I like building and painting my own models no matter who painted the one for sale. Looking over your own work is way more rewarding.
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Post by: Ralis
No way would I pay for a "pro-painted" model. One I simply don't have the money they seem to watch to charge. and two: most of them aren't going to match my army colors unless I have it commissioned, so why pay pro-painted prices for something I'll need to redo anyway to match?
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Post by: richred_uk
Yes, if it was an outstanding paint job and something I could learn by studying up close for my own painting.
OR, yes if it was scenery (I hate painting scenery and am just starting to talk to people to commission paint my scenery).
Otherwise, no, I'd paint it myself - that's the best part of the hobby for me.
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Post by: DouglasJB
I voted "Other".
I married my 'Eavy Metal Class figure painter.
19860
Post by: mrshl9898
I would pay 20% more in a heartbeat. Time spent doing other things with my kids has value
81782
Post by: Glaiceana
I'd rather paint them myself, buying pre painted ones would take a pile of fun out of the whole thing. Also, I can imagine people get the awkward conversation of: "oh your painting on this is awesome" "umm, it's not mine, I bought it like this"
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Post by: poda_t
Glaiceana wrote:I'd rather paint them myself, buying pre painted ones would take a pile of fun out of the whole thing. Also, I can imagine people get the awkward conversation of: "oh your painting on this is awesome" "umm, it's not mine, I bought it like this"
You know what makes for a more awkward conversation?
"I note your army is still unpainted.... at least you started on the second squad--sort of. At least you tried that New Year's resolution"
or
"changed your mind about how to paint them again?"
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Post by: Imnewherewheresthebathroom
When I first started playing I bought a tech marine off eBay that was "pro painted". The pictures on eBay were excellent and the reviews where all good, I think we all know where this story ends. Of course on receipt of the model it had been based in black and speed painted. It was tabletop quality, but just barely. No highlights, no lowlights, no lense effects, no power weapon effects, and a so-so base (so none of the stuff in the photo). It had basically been dry brushed in about 5 colors. I wish I had the model to post a picture but alas, it has been lost to the perils of the warp.
To answer the question, yes once: no, never again. And I now feel I can produce high scale models. I still have trouble with the brightest colors but, eh.
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Post by: poda_t
Imnewherewheresthebathroom wrote:When I first started playing I bought a tech marine off eBay that was "pro painted". The pictures on eBay were excellent and the reviews where all good, I think we all know where this story ends. Of course on receipt of the model it had been based in black and speed painted. It was tabletop quality, but just barely. No highlights, no lowlights, no lense effects, no power weapon effects, and a so-so base (so none of the stuff in the photo). It had basically been dry brushed in about 5 colors. I wish I had the model to post a picture but alas, it has been lost to the perils of the warp. To answer the question, yes once: no, never again. And I now feel I can produce high scale models. I still have trouble with the brightest colors but, eh. but that's ebay for you. You go to ebay expecting to get scammed.....
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Post by: Sparkadia
I'd pay more, simply because I often think I don't do my models justice. Seems a waste of a beautiful cast when I derp-paint all over it.
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Post by: KingmanHighborn
The way I see it is this:
1. I devalue even 'pro-painted' models compared to NIB.
2. It's not my paint job, nor is it my army, until I've worked hard to make everyone one of my IG guardsmen a unique persona.
3. It seriously isn't hard to learn how to paint to at least a tabletop quality. I started in 2000, with Eldar, by the time I finished my army boxed set (the one with the falcon, vyper, and guardians) I could paint just about anything to a tabletop quality.
4. I can convert, my models and pose them, and mess with them at my leisure without concern of people short changing me.
5. GW is overpriced as it is, I'm not adding more to my bill. Especially when I can go to Wally World and get a shelf full of paint for less then 20 bucks that works just as good as GW's pro gak.
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Post by: Mr Morden
poda_t wrote:Imnewherewheresthebathroom wrote:When I first started playing I bought a tech marine off eBay that was "pro painted". The pictures on eBay were excellent and the reviews where all good, I think we all know where this story ends. Of course on receipt of the model it had been based in black and speed painted. It was tabletop quality, but just barely. No highlights, no lowlights, no lense effects, no power weapon effects, and a so-so base (so none of the stuff in the photo). It had basically been dry brushed in about 5 colors. I wish I had the model to post a picture but alas, it has been lost to the perils of the warp.
To answer the question, yes once: no, never again. And I now feel I can produce high scale models. I still have trouble with the brightest colors but, eh.
but that's ebay for you. You go to ebay expecting to get scammed.....
Never had that problem myself - I have had many models from ebay at cheaper than retail that get remarked on by others as really good paint jobs (everyone knows theya re not mine).
its just a case of looking for the right bargins - there are plenty out there.
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Post by: Kaiserbudheim
I love painting and converting…but there's a little "maybe" in that I might get basic troops and mod the paint to my liking. Foundation layers can be tedious at times, and more often than nought I have had good success "modifying" pre-paint jobs like on Heroclix or FFG's Tannhauser lines.
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Post by: coffsm
I would if it was an amazing one of or a special edition
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Post by: SkavenLord
Personally, not for me thanks.
My painting skills are not that great (in fact, they're probably pretty bad), but I still enjoy looking at the models I painted and thinking to myself, I painted that.
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Post by: Lord Arturius
SkavenLord wrote:Personally, not for me thanks.
My painting skills are not that great (in fact, they're probably pretty bad), but I still enjoy looking at the models I painted and thinking to myself, I painted that.
This pretty much verbatim for me.
I can't justify spending more to have someone else paint them for me. They're mine after all. Also, I thoroughly enjoy painting them whether or not someone else thinks I did a good job or not.
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Post by: 40KNobz11
I would NOT pay for pro painted models. That takes all the fun out of it. I may not be the best painter in the world but im decent and that's half the fun.
Paint em, Game em
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Post by: zombie_sky_diver
GW's product has become so expensive in the past several years that it should already come pro painted.
Hell, by this time next year there stuff will be 20% up in price.
I hope you DE players get your $60 boxes of 10 witches not cause they will be $72 soon enough.
I'm sorry, I had to I'm growing bitter.
Over all, I like to paint my own miniatures regardless. Its not called a hobby to be opening SM boxes like their action figures.
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Post by: poda_t
zombie_sky_diver wrote:GW's product has become so expensive in the past several years that it should already come pro painted. Hell, by this time next year there stuff will be 20% up in price. I hope you DE players get your $60 boxes of 10 witches not cause they will be $72 soon enough. I'm sorry, I had to I'm growing bitter. Over all, I like to paint my own miniatures regardless. Its not called a hobby to be opening SM boxes like their action figures. and what do you say to the person who thoroughly despises painting and assembly? What do you say to the person who just wants to play the game? The painting isn't half bad, but when I improve, and have to go back and fix details.... that's a chore. When I'm working on th 113th guardsmen and I haven't even started on the vehicles... i start to lose focus on who has what painted, what details get what color, and I just want to get the damnable thing done and painted. I don't have the patience or the care to get them done. Will I hand them off to my nephew? No. Might I pay someone else to get the models done to a standard I find acceptable i.e. a professional painter, so that I can do other stuff, like, play the damn game? Certainly.
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Post by: 13whited
If the models themselves didn't cost so darned much, i mint have my tanks and walkers done professionally, but the actual troops i loge painting, and i get a better feel for them and develop them while painting them so as to write my warbands fluff
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Post by: mr.jokaero118
I am unhappy paying gw prices a lot of the time so unless i needed something tabletop standard quickly then maybe (but that is only because i cant always be bothered painting)
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Post by: Bhazakhain
Nope. While I appreciate the time and skill of others, assembling and painting is a big part of the hobby for me and it would lose the personal touch if someone else painted something for me. This is why I steer clear of these highly-priced painted models on eBay. Furthermore, I get annoyed when people sometimes use the descriptor 'pro painted' when trying to sell models if they are actually basically painted and nothing special.
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Post by: Carlson793
Two reasons I vote "no":
1) I've seen tons of so-called 'pro-painted' stuff that was, on close inspection, just 'meh'.
2) The few things that have blown my socks off...well, I'm a cheap bastard who has too many dust collectors as it is, and I wouldn't want to see a paint job I paid through the nose for damaged during game use.
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Post by: dekinrie
I would think about it for a display model e.g. FW horus or the other primarchs but not for tabletop play
though there are some minis I would hesitate to buy because I couldn't do the justice
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Post by: Bomster
I can imagine paying for a nice display piece from a painter whose work I enjoy - similar to a signed edition of a book or an autograph. Having the models I'm putting on the tabletop painted by anyone but myself is utterly out of the question though.
Don't get me wrong - a painting service is a valid business model and useful for many people - but for me the gaming aspect is pretty much secondary to the painting... why would I deprive myself of that?
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Post by: Brennonjw
I like painting my own models, but with 2 jobs and college I wouldnt say no for the right price.
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Post by: Reality-Torrent
What does pay over standard GW retail price even mean?
Would I pay more for a painted model then a unpainted model?
Well.. That kinda speaks for itself no?..
I pressed 'other' because the poll is confusing..
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Post by: CREEEEEEEEED
I try to paint all my models myself, but I am unlike half the people on this thread shouting about how "I love painting and its the most important part!!"
I do not enjoy painting and see it as the unfortunate and unwanted step between acquiring and playing, so yes I have paid for something to be painted, the new forge world riptide to be precise. This is because:
a) I hate painting.
b) I rarely can summon the willpower to paint a squad of infantry in one go, let alone a riptide, so it would span a few weeks of a lot of painting.
c) I'm good, but not that good. Basically with the riptide in I felt I wouldn't do it justice.
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Post by: katfude
I hate painting. I hate wasting money. Gotta be a medium.
I would compromise on paying a reasonable amount for a tabletop quality figure done on a decent time frame.
If I were rich, I would effectively hire one of these kick ass pro painters to simply do nothing but crank out golden demon quality armies for me 24/7.
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Post by: DaPino
I like to paint up to a certain degree. I like painting special characters, vehicles and other bog models in general. What I don't like is painting 30 termagants with a complex pattern just so they match my MC's.
Sometime, I wish I could just spend an extra 60 and get those 30 termagants painted up. This won't get me pro paintjobs but I'll settle for the same quality I produce.
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Post by: moogy
I am saying 'maybe'...
I don't have time to paint and my paint skills are 'meh' at best but having said that, I love building / kit bashing converting my minis so that they are representative of me and my view of a battle force or army.
Last summer I starter building up a Space Wolf army. After a few ebay steals, a good Christmas haul and some decent trades, I now have a 2500-3000 point army. I spent the time building all the minis (except tanks and drop pods as they are standard configs) and it is currently all being painted by a studio for me to a decent table top standard for a very reasonable cost. He's painting the whole army so I don't get any units that don't 'fit' to a standard I am not capable of producing at a time frame and cost that I see as reasonable.
It's a maybe as it completely depends on cost. Some of the minis I bought at such low prices mean that I am actually having them pro painted at less than GW retail
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Post by: luke1705
I can't paint my way out of a paper bag for anything organic, so...absolutely. Hence why there are so many different painting services
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Post by: NorseSig
Sharkvictim wrote:There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers. If they have the excess money to blow on "pro-painting", then they also have every steamroller and leaf blower list at their disposal.
"I've made sure I have a stable of unbeatable army lists, now they need to look the part."
I assume "pro-painted" means at or near Golden Demon. Why on earth would anyone pay for that level of paint job unless they were going to run them in some kind of painting contest?
I'm rambling. GW is over priced as it is, so no.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
ChaosxVoid wrote:Id say no I love to paint aswell but i mean if it was a friend of mine trying to sell their painted models id pay more for it if they needed the support
I agree with this, though. There are exceptions to every rule.
I think I mis-read the OP. I guess if we're talking ebay or something they would have to be exceptionally well painted for me to pay more than normal for the GW model, because I do so enjoy my conversions. For some reason I thought we were talking about paying for your stuff to get painted. Just woke up. Sorry.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
mingus89 wrote:i wouldnt be as 'connected' with my models if they wernt painted by me, i think all the hard work and effort always pays of as you can say at the end (in a smug voice) "yea, i painted them"
Too true. I have a Daemon Prince I bought solely for a tournament. Painted him up pink skin/purple armor. Was going to run him as a lash prince. Changed my list, ran him as a Tzeentch prince. He's a total beast as a Tzeentch prince, and I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I was thinking about repainting his Thousand Sons blue, but the resounding reply was no, because it wouldn't be the same. Long story short I love Pinky, my Slaanesh looking Tzeentch prince. If I had bought a pro-painted Slaanesh prince I could never believably run him with a different build, whereas when I look at Pinky all I see is Tzeentch prince (wings, warptime, and BoC or WoC, depending, in case anyone wanted to know )
I could see someone getting pro-painted models if they have limitations that disallow them from doing it themselves. Like their hands shake, extremely poor vision, injury, ect and they want decent looking models. I fell this is a good reason some people use a painting service as well. Army size may be another factor. And maybe some might get the models because they like the scheme and want to reproduce it. It is a LOT easier to reproduce something when you have it in your hands. I try not to judge someone. I would only pay MORE for a pro painted army if it was truly pro painted like level 3 Frontline Gaming standard or better. Otherwise I better be getting them cheaper than NIB since I will probably be stripping the paint off of them anyway to repaint to match my army even if their paintjob is better. My painting skills leave much to be desired with my shaky hands and poor hands and relative inexperience, but having them all the same makes them suck less visually. Automatically Appended Next Post: CREEEEEEEEED wrote:I try to paint all my models myself, but I am unlike half the people on this thread shouting about how "I love painting and its the most important part!!"
I do not enjoy painting and see it as the unfortunate and unwanted step between acquiring and playing, so yes I have paid for something to be painted, the new forge world riptide to be precise. This is because:
a) I hate painting.
b) I rarely can summon the willpower to paint a squad of infantry in one go, let alone a riptide, so it would span a few weeks of a lot of painting.
c) I'm good, but not that good. Basically with the riptide in I felt I wouldn't do it justice.
That is kinda how I feel. I love painting I just don't love painting miniatures. I have too many problems holding things steady and seeing. Painting a portrait I can fake it and have a little more room for error. I enjoy the challenge to a degree and wish to improve, but assembly and painting aren't my favorite things simply because my skills are still lacking and I feel like my results are underwhelming and don't do the extremely expensive models justice. At least not the justice the Iron Hands deserve.
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Post by: Lobokai
I run a large club and own around 50k points of models. Many of these are 10k ish club armies for beginners or those who'd rather just pay the dues and use community models.
So far we've avoided too many grey plastic armies; but prepainted models would be nice for these type of forces. Luckily ebay provides more or less this option already if you're patient.
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Post by: Nate668
Obviously, most people paint their own stuff (or don't paint at all), and a smaller group of people purchase painted models/hire a comission painter.
As for the people who have posted here suggesting that it is somehow wrong to have someone else paint your models for you, get over it. Painting an army is a huge time commitment, and lots of adults who play the game don't have the ability or desire to spend that much time painting. We can all agree that the game is better with painted models, so those people who don't have the time are doing the rest of us a favor by paying to have their armies painted.
Additionally, as some people have mentioned, some people are physically unable to paint miniatures. I used to do comission work in the past, and one of my main clients had been in a motorcycle accident and could no longer hold a paintbrush.
The only potential issue is when it comes to tournament painting scores. I personally believe that if you haven't painted the miniatures yourself, you should not claim the best painted prize.
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Post by: Rugged_Seahorse
To me, the building and painting symbolizes ownership. So no, I would not pay more. A painted miniature is a used miniature. Automatically Appended Next Post: Nate668 wrote:Obviously, most people paint their own stuff (or don't paint at all), and a smaller group of people purchase painted models/hire a comission painter.
As for the people who have posted here suggesting that it is somehow wrong to have someone else paint your models for you, get over it. Painting an army is a huge time commitment, and lots of adults who play the game don't have the ability or desire to spend that much time painting. We can all agree that the game is better with painted models, so those people who don't have the time are doing the rest of us a favor by paying to have their armies painted.
Additionally, as some people have mentioned, some people are physically unable to paint miniatures. I used to do comission work in the past, and one of my main clients had been in a motorcycle accident and could no longer hold a paintbrush.
The only potential issue is when it comes to tournament painting scores. I personally believe that if you haven't painted the miniatures yourself, you should not claim the best painted prize.
I agree with you 100%, I myself am a disabled Afghanistan vet. I can no longer work so I have plenty of time to paint and enjoy it. Now for the painting competitions, it boils down to integrity. I feel if you did not paint it and enter into such a contest with said miniature or miniatures it is a form of plagiarism.
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Post by: ravenflight
kitch102 wrote:Never, I want my models to be representative of my skills and abilities.
I wouldn't want someone else to have sex my wife because I think they can do it better.
Now there's an analogy! Hahaha
Well, what if your miniatures talk to another person's better painted miniatures, and want to try being painted by another hand?
Now... back to your analogy...
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Post by: greatbigtree
I love building and customizing my minis, but I really dislike painting. That said, if someone had a nicely painted Blood Angels Drop Pod, that I didn't have to assemble or paint, and it was table-top quality... I'd probably pay more than retail for it.
I like having painted my own stuff. I don't like doing it, but I like the results. I'd be willing to bend my pride a bit, to have decently painted models to put on the table for a little bit more than GW's prices.
I've got two little kids, and I'd rather have the time with them. I love playing the game, but that's the time I can set aside in a week for my hobby. Besides, I have no interest in finding a bottle of wash spillled all over the carpet because I forgot it on the table one night.
Anyhow, if someone has a couple of Red Drop Pods, or Red Bikers, that are decently painted and they want to get rid of, send me a PM with pics.
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Post by: DarkRaven89
i would but i would only do that for something FW but i like to paint even though my painting skills arn't that great but eh at the end of the day its my army.
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Post by: Dr.Muchachos
I do commission painting, but only tanks, monsters and special characters. As I am not a full time commission painter but rather use miniature painting as a distraction between my gallery and illustration work, I find that I can charge less for more, that is to say I can paint a tank in three or four days including freehanding, small amounts of greenstuff sculpture details, and weathering, all while keeping the cost within a players budget. The business model allows my clients to end up with a centerpiece that would have taken them far longer due to their own time constraints, painting/sculpting abilities whatever, and while I'm working on the tank/monster, they can be hammering out rank and file guys. That way by the next weekend they can have two new units they can bash their friends armies with and not suffer in the wallet department. I think too many commission painters think their work is the same quality as a guy like Brandon at GMM or whoever (insert Golden Demon winner's name here), and so it turns local customers and gamers off because those painters want to charge like they have won those awards.
Further, companies like Blue Table, who do absolutely sub par work for what they charge, and all you have to do to believe that is have eyes to see with, the average gamer is shy about shelling out money and a model and maybe getting nothing really special back. So I think it's a question of what you are expecting and getting from your painter. For me, personally, I don't play $40k anymore because it's boring and the mechanics suck, but I do like converting the miniatures so I am working on a bunch of conversions for a small Lost and the Damned warband. Once the converting is finished I will have each member of the warband painted up by my favorite painters. This way, I not only will have models I worked on, but ones that I can look at daily to be inspired by to make my own work better since they will all be painted by guys and girls whose work I really enjoy, all the while not breaking the bank or worrying about having 2000 points of the same basic guy painted blue in five days so I can throw a ton of dice around.
The whole question of whether or not to pay people to paint for you is a very interesting debate, so I just thought I'd throw my two cents in, but at the end of the day a lot of commission painters should quit charging so much. It's like the local street artists in New Orleans that do $20 spray can art with stencils suddenly acting like they can charge the same prices as Rick Berry or Phil Hale. Charge what your work is worth and make the customer happy.
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Post by: solkan
I think I'm in the "No, because I like painting my own stuff" category, but also in the "What's the cost of the paint job got to do with the cost of the model?" category.
I mean, if I break out my old $2/figure lead Chaos Renegades, or a $4/figure Dark Eldar, or a $12/figure resin figure, each about the same size, it's about the same amount of labor to paint each of them.
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Post by: nekooni
Yes, i WOULD pay over retail since painting a model clearly takes work, this work should be paid. How MUCH exactly obviously depends on the quality. i mean even a basic level paint job takes some time to do, time that i saved right there - so it is clearly worth something.
BUT: While i'm a pretty bad painter i still enjoy it - so personally i don't see the point in buying painted models.
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Post by: mdauben
No, becuase for me the act of painting the miniatures, and the pride of fielding an army that I painted, is a large part of my enjoyment of the hobby. I understand some people don't like to paint, and I've certainly seen plenty of "pro painted" miniatures there are worth a premium over and above the cost of the original miniature, but not for me.
If I do buy painted minis, I consier it a flaw rather than a benefit, as I will end up stripping them and repainting them myself. So, I won't buy painted minis unless I can get them for less than unpainted.
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Post by: lastaly
"Yes, but only if it's painted really well!"
I bought a pro painted Bloodthirster because this is a beautiful model on it's own and my level as a painter is not high enough for this masterpiece of my collection.
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Post by: locarno24
For the most part, no.
I enjoy assembling and painting models.
However, if there's a 'big model', I'd be tempted to - if I buy a superheavy or titan for >£100, I'd hate to imagine ruining it with a shanky paint job - so I'd consider getting someone with a really good painting skill to do it.
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Post by: Redleg
I would probably pay 20 or even 30% above retail for a clean paint job on infantry models. Hold the air brush please.
Termagants, I may want to play with these again someday, but I will never want to paint another one. Not one more gant.
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Post by: brizbraz
The models are expensive enough as it is, and I'd rather paint my own army even if the standard isn't good enough to make anyone go "oooh, nice paint!".
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Post by: Kani
Just no. I love that side of gaming.
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Post by: Miniature Base Coating
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Post by: Hellion
Not a chance, I barely like paying the GW prices for anything so when I do then I want to make sure that it's me who gets the enjoyment out of making and painting the tiny little mortgages. I wouldn't be interested in Warhammer at all otherwise.
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Post by: Cleatus
Nope. I enjoy the painting aspect of the hobby, even if I'm not very good. I am not interested in showroom quality minis. I just want something I can throw on the tabletop and play a game that looks halfway decent. I like scratch-building too, and money can't buy that kind of fun. I rarely buy new; I am perfectly happy to buy minis second hand, strip them, and paint them at my leisure. Honestly at current retail prices, if I did have that kind of money to spend pro-painted minis, then I would probably spend it on something else (house, car, travel, savings, charity, etc.). If the NIB kits cost 75% less, then I might be willing to pay a premium to get a few models painted. I would pay per model to remove mold lines, but no more than $0.25 each. No offense to the pro and semi-pro painters out there. I respect people who can paint better than me, and I have seen a lot of quality work, but I'm not your target audience.
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Post by: poda_t
Cleatus wrote:Nope. I enjoy the painting aspect of the hobby, even if I'm not very good. I am not interested in showroom quality minis. I just want something I can throw on the tabletop and play a game that looks halfway decent. I like scratch-building too, and money can't buy that kind of fun. I rarely buy new; I am perfectly happy to buy minis second hand, strip them, and paint them at my leisure. Honestly at current retail prices, if I did have that kind of money to spend pro-painted minis, then I would probably spend it on something else (house, car, travel, savings, charity, etc.). If the NIB kits cost 75% less, then I might be willing to pay a premium to get a few models painted. I would pay per model to remove mold lines, but no more than $0.25 each. No offense to the pro and semi-pro painters out there. I respect people who can paint better than me, and I have seen a lot of quality work, but I'm not your target audience.
wait a minute. Who said show-room quality? professional does not have to mean showroom quality. I've seen pro-grade paintwork done to achieve tabletop quality miniatures. It comes down to color selection, confining the paint to where it belongs and how the paint is applied. There's something to be said for knowing how to control a brush and how much paint to put on the model. I've seen people thrust a model in my face with pride on their face, and i've struggled to smile and share their pride because so much paint was slathered on that the model actually lost it's definition. There's something to be said about applying so much paint on your tank that you can actually use the additional millimeter of paint to represent an upgrade of "extra armor" on the model.
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Post by: Maniac_nmt
1. No, as I like to paint my own for the most part.
2. No, as GW prices are ludicrous. $30 for a single marine figure? Then pay for painting on top of that? I suppose if you vacuumed my brain out.
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Post by: Cleatus
poda_t wrote: Cleatus wrote:Nope. I enjoy the painting aspect of the hobby, even if I'm not very good. I am not interested in showroom quality minis. I just want something I can throw on the tabletop and play a game that looks halfway decent. I like scratch-building too, and money can't buy that kind of fun. I rarely buy new; I am perfectly happy to buy minis second hand, strip them, and paint them at my leisure. Honestly at current retail prices, if I did have that kind of money to spend pro-painted minis, then I would probably spend it on something else (house, car, travel, savings, charity, etc.). If the NIB kits cost 75% less, then I might be willing to pay a premium to get a few models painted. I would pay per model to remove mold lines, but no more than $0.25 each. No offense to the pro and semi-pro painters out there. I respect people who can paint better than me, and I have seen a lot of quality work, but I'm not your target audience.
wait a minute. Who said show-room quality? professional does not have to mean showroom quality. I've seen pro-grade paintwork done to achieve tabletop quality miniatures. It comes down to color selection, confining the paint to where it belongs and how the paint is applied. There's something to be said for knowing how to control a brush and how much paint to put on the model. I've seen people thrust a model in my face with pride on their face, and i've struggled to smile and share their pride because so much paint was slathered on that the model actually lost it's definition. There's something to be said about applying so much paint on your tank that you can actually use the additional millimeter of paint to represent an upgrade of "extra armor" on the model.
Are many pro-painters skilled? Yes. Am I willing to pay for their services? No.
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Post by: thegreatchimp
No, but only because I have no interest in using models I didn't model and paint myself. That point aside, given the time and effort that goes into pro-painting, I'd think twice the recommended retail price is a good figure, more like 3 times if the painting is of a very good standard.
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Post by: WaaaaghLord
I enjoy painting too much to pay someone else to do it for me. I also believe I'm at a competent tabletop standard level of painting so I don't see why I ever would.
I understand why people do though, maybe they don't have time to get painting done (I also share this problem but try to persevere), don't enjoy it, or simply want an army painted far beyond their abilities. I don't do it myself but all respect to them.
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Post by: argonak
I would rather put a poorly painted model on the table that at least I did myself than one that I paid someone else to do. Even with x-wing I had to give them my personal touch. its just not fun for me otherwise.
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Post by: Mantorok
I'm unreasonably bad at painting, and I don't want to spend money on "practice models" so I would.
It needs to be a 'eavy metal standard or equivalent though, and I need to like the colour scheme they went with.
Bonus points (but not money) if it's custom coloured.
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Post by: Tinwhistle
No I would not. Why?
Because this game is as much about painting and assembling as it is playing. If it wasn´t the mini´s would come pre painted like the xwing variety and GW wouldnt bother with all the effort they put into the selection of paints, books and videos about painting etc etc...
Assemble. Paint. Play.
Give it your best effort and field your painted mini´s with PRIDE.
Your opponent and community will respect you all the more for it.
Plus I guarantee you will get better and better as you paint up your models.
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Post by: korbenn
I consider myself a better builder/converter than a painter.I would still preffer to paint the models myself. Even though I get more fun out of the building part.
For me to buy a pro painted model it would depend on a couple of things, such as would I have preferred to paint the model myself next to the quality of the painting and my mood at the time.
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Post by: daddyorchips
No, because the painting is the bit I like best. I have taken so much pleasure over the last few years in watching myself get better, trying new things, seeing it come together. If I got other people to paint my models for me, how am I going to get better.
That said, of course, I am not critical of those that do. There are many different hobbies all tied up together in the world of Games Workshop and if someone elses isn't like mine then so what.
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Post by: dragqueeninspace
I don't understand how having someone paint a minature for you stops you painting yourself. I have yet to meet a wargamer who didn't have a massive pile unbuilt/painted grey plastic and metal.
I had my mantic undead painted on commission (never had any GW stuff done) and it was not for the benefit of a tourney list, in fact it has never been anywhere but the cabinet.
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Post by: curran12
I regularly pay for painting services. This is because I have nerve damage in my dominant arm. Holding a brush for anything longer than a few seconds will make it start to tremble and shake, making painting beyond the loosest of drybrushing effectively impossible for me.
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Post by: ZergSmasher
Hell no! I wouldn't buy painted models unless I was willing to take the time to strip them first, and I certainly would not strip a nicely-painted model (therefore I would not buy it). I only buy unpainted stuff, and that is because of my philosophy about painting my models: no one paints them except me!
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Post by: Dregstar
It just seems like cheating...
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Post by: Sword Of Caliban
I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
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Post by: Mr Morden
Sword Of Caliban wrote:I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
The Hobby is whatever you want it to be
Some people just like the modeling,
others thepainting
Others the gaming
Some one or more
Whilst its right to say what you enjoy about the hobby its not for any of use to say what is the right way to enjoy it.
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Post by: Battlesong
Mr Morden wrote:Sword Of Caliban wrote:I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
The Hobby is whatever you want it to be
Some people just like the modeling,
others thepainting
Others the gaming
Some one or more
Whilst its right to say what you enjoy about the hobby its not for any of use to say what is the right way to enjoy it.
Thank you. When I got into this game, it was to play a cool, fully customizable game with a number of my friends who I found out played, not because I enjoy building models or have any desire to paint anything; at that time I didn't even know other options existed and if I tried another game I wouldn't have had any opponents. I hate to paint, however I wouldn't pay for a whole painted army because the price for that gets ludicrous, but I'd certainly pay for certain special characters or big models painted. I don't mind ruining infantry with my awful painting skills, but I do mind ruining a 50+ dollar model, not to mention I view painting like a job I don't get paid for.
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Post by: Sword Of Caliban
Mr Morden wrote:Sword Of Caliban wrote:I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
The Hobby is whatever you want it to be
Some people just like the modeling,
others thepainting
Others the gaming
Some one or more
Whilst its right to say what you enjoy about the hobby its not for any of use to say what is the right way to enjoy it.
I'm sorry I just don't agree with it, if you buy a you should be the one to paint it otherwise what's the point? You may as well play something like X-Wing where everything is already painted... Automatically Appended Next Post: Painting is a fundamental part of the hobby just like Assembling the models are...
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Post by: Guildenstern
Sword Of Caliban wrote: Mr Morden wrote:Sword Of Caliban wrote:I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
The Hobby is whatever you want it to be
Some people just like the modeling,
others thepainting
Others the gaming
Some one or more
Whilst its right to say what you enjoy about the hobby its not for any of use to say what is the right way to enjoy it.
I'm sorry I just don't agree with it, if you buy a you should be the one to paint it otherwise what's the point? You may as well play something like X-Wing where everything is already painted...
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Painting is a fundamental part of the hobby just like Assembling the models are...
Err sorry nope. Obviously it is to you, and that's fine, but everyone has their own amount of time, money and desire related to what they'd like to do in the hobby. Some only like the gaming part. Or don't feel good enough to paint their own, although I would argue for them to give it a go.
Some people can't paint. I mean, literally, cannot see to do it, either due to eye issues or other handicaps. Are they supposed to just not wargame rather than enjoy the aspect of the game that they can actually enjoy? Some people don't have the time and considering the amount of models required for most wargames, simply would never get to play if they didn't pay someone else to paint them.
I do not want anyone painting my models except me, but that doesn't mean I think that's the only way to do it. I encourage people who think they can't paint, to give it a go, and have fun with it as much as possible. That doesn't mean it's required however just because I enjoy it greatly and get a huge sense of satisfaction from it, doesn't mean everyone does or will.
While we're on the subject - what about making terrain? Everyone should do that as well. It's ridiculous to pay the kinds of prices for things when there are many better and cheaper alternatives when you make your own. And actually, you know what, forget the artists who make the miniatures. Everyone should sculpt their own as well, it's silly to buy premade ones when you can just make your own.
Obviously this is sarcasm, but it's not too far off what you are saying about painting, either.
The beautiful thing about this hobby is you can enjoy so many aspects of it, and everyone can and will enjoy different ones.
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Post by: Mr Morden
Sword Of Caliban wrote: Mr Morden wrote:Sword Of Caliban wrote:I don't agree with buying painted models it just seems to be pointless as the hobby revolves around painting the minis yourself. I'd rather play someone who has painted their army themselves rather than someone who has bought it already painted.... There is nothing better than creating a custom colour scheme, painting the models and getting that feeling of achievement afterwards. That feeling is priceless....
The Hobby is whatever you want it to be
Some people just like the modeling,
others thepainting
Others the gaming
Some one or more
Whilst its right to say what you enjoy about the hobby its not for any of use to say what is the right way to enjoy it.
I'm sorry I just don't agree with it, if you buy a you should be the one to paint it otherwise what's the point? You may as well play something like X-Wing where everything is already painted...
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Painting is a fundamental part of the hobby just like Assembling the models are...
Then we disagree - which is cool - but you simply don't get to say what is and is not the hobby - I play with pre paints, stuff I have painted (Badly) myself and stuff i have paid people to paint.
Thats people who 1) need the money, 2) often actually enjoy it
People like to see great paint jobs - well most people do............
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Post by: jprp
I have been receiving updates from this thread for a long time but have only just thought about the "Pro" aspect of the painting -now it could be a possibility that GW might do some pre-painted minis but they would likely be like D&D minis AT BEST, now there are lots of supposedly Pro-painted figured on e-bay that are always at best poor beginner quality and have not even had mold lines removed, now for proper "pro" level painting i think most of us would imagine something approaching golden Daemon level quality which would see an average trooper costing several hundred pounds.
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Post by: Frankenberry
I'd drop the cash if it was something like a painting service that I was sending models to - because, y'know that's the whole point.
I would absolutely NEVER pay anything above retail for pre-painted ebay/swap shop/trade stuff. I'm buying it second hand? I get second hand prices - paying extra on top of retail is just insane.
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Post by: AndrewGPaul
Sharkvictim wrote:There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers.
You know what they say about assuming.
I know a couple of people who've paid for painted models. One has a decent income and a young child. He has neither the space nor the time to paint miniatures, so commissions painters to paint his models for him. The other spent a couple of hundred quid on a model painted by the McVeys. And why not? It's as valid a purchase as buying any other painting, because he likes how it looks.
In my experience, it's people who like painted armies, but lack the time, skill or inclination* to do it themselves that buy painted miniatures, although they're more likely to use a commission painter than buying them off Ebay.
* After all, that was a major selling point for X-Wing, Star Wars: Armada and Star Trek and D&D Attack Wing, not to mention Heroclix, Star Wars MIniatures, etc, etc.
Why is this poll restricted to talking about GW miniatures, by the way? Automatically Appended Next Post: jprp wrote: for proper "pro" level painting i think most of us would imagine something approaching golden Daemon level quality which would see an average trooper costing several hundred pounds.
Why? Most "pro" painted miniatures - by which I mean those painted by people making a living by working as a commission painter - paint to a much less demanding "tabletop" standard. That usually still means shaded, highlighted and based, but they're charging a few quid a figure and providing an army-painting service, not one-offs. Automatically Appended Next Post: heroscaper1515 wrote:Maybe if it was amazing. But what is the fun of using miniatures that you haven't painted yourself.
For a lot of people, it's more fun than lining up the lead hordes.
It's also probably more common among "traditional" wargamers. It's quite common in many groups for someone to host an entire game; one guy will have all the forces and terrain to do the battle of Pegasus Bridge, another will do Isandlwana, a third will have a few fleets for Full Thrust, etc.
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Post by: Mr Morden
There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers.
Thats one of the dumbest statements on this thread and there are a number of others dotted about.
Why in the world would a "win at all costs" gamer want to pay for a well painted model when many of those who fit that description are more likely to buy the latest meta figures and barely assemble them nver mind paint them as they will likely be selling them on to pay for the next big thing.
I have not played WFB for years yet have recently commissioned several large WFB models to be painted well - simply because I want them and I want them to look good.
I was/am writing a pice of fiction about female Imperial Knight pilot and so commisoned a specific custom painting of her and her mech.
Guess that makes me a win at all cost gamer huh?
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Post by: Sword Of Caliban
I still don't understand paying people to paint your models..... :-(
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Post by: Captain_Control
If your going to have a collection on display of your favorite models and you didn't have the time and/or skill to paint the models to the level you want on display then purchasing "Pro painted" models would make sense.
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Post by: endur
In the 80's and early 90's, my gaming group only used painted minis. Primed and unfinished minis were not allowed on the table.
We had a guy who painted minis in case you didn't want to paint. He charged the price of the minis (or you could buy two minis and give him one).
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Post by: JamesY
Some people really can't paint, but want nicely painted models.
Others might not have time, but still want new models to game with.
I enjoy painting and like to think I am reasonably good at it, but 2-3 years from now with career progression and probably starting a family, I won't have time to paint more than a model every other month if I'm lucky. I fully intend to commission out my projects at that point.
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Post by: Bishop F Gantry
What GW charges for their unassembled kits, id expect them to be pro painted and magnetized aswell.
Do you grow your own food, make your own clothes, did you build your home?
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Post by: Gerinako
I would but I can't justify the cost. Why else would I started an easy to paint army in KDK !
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Post by: Herzlos
I used to say no, but I don't have time to paint these days, so I'd certainly buy a painted army at around retail. Not necesarily pro-painted, but decent enough for me to field without shame.
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Post by: Formosa
What would you consider pro painted? this?
1
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Post by: BigWaaagh
Yes I would and yes I have. Only so much time in the day.
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Post by: Chef_of_Cadia
I don't want to buy toys, I want to buy models that I can convert and kitbash and totally butcher on my own.
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Post by: Mr Morden
Just spent £200+ on two huge, well painted and magnatised fleets for ACTA: B5 (Space ship combat) and Uncharted Seas (Fantasy navy)
very happy
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Post by: snykyninja
I would, but only on certain models. I'm by no means a bad painter, but I'm not great either so I would probably be willing to pay for a pro painted character or other centrepiece model. For example I would pay for a pro painted Gabriel Seth to lead my flesh tearers or a pro painted corvus corax for my 30k raven guard, especially as thats such a pretty model that I would not want to risk ruining.
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Post by: Nomeny
I suck at painting, but I don't want to buy models assembled and painted by someone else. It's like buying a paint-by-numbers to have someone else paint it. Why bother?
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Post by: Anaerian
I said yes but only in the case of if they are well painted then it'd be worth it... for someone who doesn't/can't paint. I can paint and quite well so I would have no need of such a service
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Post by: morgoth
I personally assemble and prepare miniatures quite well and do a better job with the airbrush than many professionals out there.
However I have 35.000 points of Eldar and most of that is unpainted, which is sad.
I have more than one job and definitely not the time or the motivation to go through all that painting at my very high standards, so the possibility to pay someone for this is very interesting.
However, so far I haven't found anything with a fair price and real customer service.
At this point, it's between cheap and dirty or people who ask for prices worthy of Golden Demon entries without the quality to match (i.e. supposedly 40+ hours on a miniature when the GD painters I know take 20h tops for much better results).
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Post by: Pouncey
I voted other, and I will explain.
I would not buy pro-painted models at all, regardless of the price.
1- My preference in paint jobs means I'm unlikely to find what I want on eBay.
2- If you are a professional model painter, as the term "pro" would imply, you should be doing custom paint jobs to the client's request given the nature of paint jobs. The fact you are not tells me you aren't much of a professional and I shouldn't expect much from you.
3- I enjoy building my own models and converting them, and doing so with a model that comes already painted will destroy the paint job, rendering a pre-painted model a useless feature over a brand-new one I built myself from the kit.
4- Unless I buy my entire collection for this army from you, these pre-painted models are unlikely to match anything that I add to it in the future.
5- There is a legitimate possibility that the term "pro-painted" started as a typo of "pre-painted" that sounded too enticing to ignore, given the variance of quality of stuff calling itself "pro-painted".
6- Your models are likely not converted into furries. If they are, I can likely create better on my own since I have been told my furry WH40k model conversions are some of the best out there. Kinda sad, really.
7- I'd rather buy my stuff from the local GW than you, since they're a local business where I will be playing if my social anxiety problems are solved, and they're one of the GW stores that gives the company a good reputation, so I think it's worth giving them my money for full retail kits direct from GW instead of some stranger on the Internet who will provide models that, according to this list, I see no value in having whatsoever.
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Post by: morgoth
I don't think it has to be crap from ebay, it could easily be commission work.
Also furry 40k... I don't think I'd like playing against that. Not a big fan of anything that feths up / makes a joke of the general 40k context.
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Post by: Blackie
I would pay the GW retail price if I can get models painted with the same level you see in the GW site and codexes.
Otherwise I would only buy boxes with at least a 25% price cut, which is what I always do.
I've never bought a single box at the full GW price.
Paying even more is not an option for me.
Lots on conversion would also become impossible to make and I love conversions, I wouldn't even start collecting an army that lacks the possibility to customize its models.
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Post by: ced1106
This poll asks the wrong question to the wrong people.
Not everyone agrees what "pro-painted" means, but I think KS would be a suitable arbitrary definition. After all, these models are painted not for personal reasons but to sell product, and are painted under deadlines as well. That's about as "professional" as I would get. I read that these paint jobs cost about $200.
For actual gamers, we have pre-painted miniatures, such as HeroClix. That HC has been on the market so long shows there's *some* sort of demand for painted miniatures, at the price of the product. Obviously, these aren't professionally painted, but they aren't professional prices, either. Since these are used on the tabletop, I'd use pre-painted miniatures as a standard for tabletop quality.
I'm saying this because, on BGG, there *are* gamers who are paying others to paint for them. Many paint jobs are better than HeroClix, so these could be called "advanced tabletop". They're not professional paint jobs by the KS definition.
Myself, I'm cheap so don't pay others to paint my miniatures. I'm okay with HeroClix paint jobs, but paint to advanced tabletop, because I feel that a good sculpt should have a good paint job. I don't have the ability to paint to display level (that arbitrary standard means miniatures submitted to contests, and typically have no deadlines otherwise), nor time for it.
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Post by: Haravikk
I put no because, as lazy as I am when it comes to painting, painting is part of the fun for me. I don't think I could ever be satisfied with a model painted by someone else unless they somehow painted it just the way I would have do, but even then I'd rather have my own effort and the (undeserved) sense of accomplishment at having done it myself.
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Post by: AndrewGPaul
Sharkvictim wrote:There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers. If they have the excess money to blow on "pro-painting", then they also have every steamroller and leaf blower list at their disposal.
" WAAC gamers" doesn't correlate with "gamers with the spare cash to pay for a painted army". It's perhaps more common in traditional gaming groups where having a painted army is expected; if you don't have the time or inclination, no problem; commission a painting service to do it for you.
I wouldn't pay more for a painted model on Ebay - in fact it decreases the amount I'm willing to pay because now I need to disassemble and strip it. I would consider getting an entire army painted, but I don't have the money to do it.
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Post by: U02dah4
If the models were painted to a basic standard I would pay a small extra but I don't need them perfectly painted
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Post by: Megaknob
I'd pay to have my boys done to save time but it would have to.mirror my style so it would be dirt cheap
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Post by: Just Tony
Even if I wound up finding models specifically painted to match one of my factions, SOMETHING would have to be changed, which means I'd be painting over the top of "professional" paint standard, so why would I sink extra bank in for that?
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Post by: Voss
I'm actually surprised by the 'want it quickly option.' based on griping from the few people I've encountered that would use painting services, quickly generally isn't an option.
For, me, buying paint jobs (pro-painted just makes me laugh as concept) just makes me wonder what happened to avalon hill counter-based games. It seems some of the audience/consumer base has gotten lost and confused.
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Post by: AnFéasógMór
Leaning somewhere between "no" and "only if it's painted well".
If there was a gorgeous, absolutely phenomenally painted model that I absolutely loved, would fit into my army, and I was happy to leave as is, maybe. But it would have to be a masterpiece.
For the most part, I laugh when I see people posting their "pro-painted" models (many of which aren't any level of skill above my own, and often actually quite amateurish), expecting to make money off them, because one of the first things I learned in the hobby was "painting you models drops your resale value". For me, painting is a massive part of the hobby, and when I buy already painted models, now I'm going to have to spend the time stripping them in order to be able to repaint them (when I was already probably going to have to spend time remodelling as needed, swapping wargear, etc)
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Post by: CAPTAIN COWARD
I paint to play. I play to paint.
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Post by: thekingofkings
I would consider that pro painted, but I wouldnt pay any price for it as I despise "scenic" bases with a passion, even in my trades, cork on the base or inserts is a deal breaker for me.
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Post by: lindsay40k
Collecting and painting is my primary interest in the hobby
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Post by: Weazel
Not sure if this poll means if I would pay more for GW product if it was pre-painted out of the box or if I would pay over retail for an actual pro painter to paint some of my minis.
No for the former, Yes (obviously) for the latter. Not that I would use pro painting services myself since I like to paint. Well most of the time anyway.
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Post by: Maréchal des Logis Walter
I would not. Even being a poor painter as I am, it feels better to have the reward of fielding painted unit to which you've dedicated time.
So buying them pro painted feel awkward and thus not be worth the spending on them.
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Post by: Zillian
No. Just no, for a few reasons;
1. GW minis are already at the upper limit (and beyond) of what I consider reasonably priced.
2.They would never fit in among the stuff I have painted. Different styles, skill levels, etc.. They would stick out like dog balls.
3. I quite enjoy painting, even though I don't have much time or motivation lately.
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Post by: Scott-S6
Yes, if they'll paint exactly what I want in the style I want and commit to being available to paint more at any future point that I might want more models.
Then I might consider it.
(so, no)
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Post by: Sig Hoovestrong
I would consider it the an option. I myself find joy in painting my miniatures. But if would like something painted in way that is beyond my skills. I would consider it' for some of my crown pieces of my collection.
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Post by: Rybrook
I have considered and even got quotes, never went through with it though prices were abysmal for what I wanted.
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Post by: alienux
I prefer to paint my own, but I just don't have time to do everything I want. If I could get something that matches my own painted models, I'd be OK with paying a little more, but not a lot.
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Post by: tneva82
Nope. I paint my own so they would go to paint stripper anyway. If the paint gets stripped what's the point of paying for paint job...
Don't fault people who use the service though. But for me over half the hobby is painting so not painting would basically mean no point continuing. 40k isn't good enough to interest me just as a game.
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Post by: ccs
Hell yes.
As far as I'm concerned painting is a task best done by someone else.
I can paint. And I do. I just don't really enjoy it & would rather be doing any # of other things (such as weeding the flower bed & cleaning the gutters for ex). I've found that I especially despise painting the 1:100 scale infantry needed in Flames of War. So over the years I've adopted a system of merit. Models have to earn their paint. Preform well/memorably on the table, get painted.
Additionally? Aside from one-offs, models that have earned their paint, or touch ups, I've always found that I do most of my painting when depressed/worried/stressed. The worse I'm feeling, the better my work. So if I'm painting that means something is wrong. If I'm NOT painting =
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Post by: Kroem
Definitely no from me! Building and painting your army is 90% of the hobby, you would effectively be paying to skip participating in most of the enjoyment!
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Post by: Talizvar
I was a model builder before I got into table-top so having someone finish my model for me removes some of the fun, so the answer would be "No".
I have received used models and stripped them down so I cannot say I have a single model painted by someone else.
I can understand some people are more into it for the game so it is a viable thing.
I have an acquaintance (customer...ish) where he HATES assembling models but likes painting so he hires me to do the assembly... he seems to appreciate my dedication for the eradication of mold lines, washing , sanding, magnetizing and gap-filling everything.
He is an opponent occasionally so I like to give him every reason to field all he can, he does a fantastic job painting... I HATE doing "block" painting, the fussy details are my thing.
I could see one day paying to get the initial colour painted down and I do the rest if there is such a thing.
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Post by: cookiesbro
I mean, I would pay more than the cost of the model itself, especially if it was a commission painter, hours of time goes into painting models why shouldn't the artist be fairly compensated? Would you buy a painting and only pay the cost of the canvas? No, you wouldn't. Nor would you sell a painting you bought for the cost of the canvas.
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Post by: Geemoney
Sharkvictim wrote:There's nothing wrong with wanting your models painted.
That being said I would imagine that the only people that pay for their minis to get pro-painted are the win at all cost type gamers. If they have the excess money to blow on "pro-painting", then they also have every steamroller and leaf blower list at their disposal.
"I've made sure I have a stable of unbeatable army lists, now they need to look the part."
I assume "pro-painted" means at or near Golden Demon. Why on earth would anyone pay for that level of paint job unless they were going to run them in some kind of painting contest?
I'm rambling. GW is over priced as it is, so no.
I love it. "They are not like me in this way; so they must be bad in this unrelated way." Thank goodness that I paint my own models, I would hate to be a WAAC player....
Pro Painted/Commission should cost more than retail. That seems fair to me; and I am not talking about ebay "Pro Painted."
I imagine the players who get their armies commissioned have more money then time and/or dislike painting; which is fine.
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Post by: battyrat
It all depends on what you would describe as pro painted. For me Pro Painted means a much higher standard of painting then I can achieve myself. Something closer to competition standard rather then table top. A little something for the display cabinet. For me to buy one I would have first to see the artist and some of his/her previous work to see if I really feel for it then commission a piece that I really want. I doubt if I could afford such a piece. So I won't go there.
When it comes to a high gaming table standard I can do that myself and would not pay extra. I would probably end up stripping the miniatures or repainting to fit in with every thing else. I can understand people paying to get units painted if they have not got enough time on their hands to get involved with the hobby due to a busy life style . This is fine. But I always prefer to paint myself even if it takes all month just to get one guy finished.
I think the biggest laugh at the moment is the amount of so called Pro Painted miniatures on E-Bay that look like the kids have got hold of the pieces. Bring on the Dettol.
With these points in mind I would not pay more for a pro painted piece.
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Post by: deotrims 16th
would really depend how much over I always paint my own stuff but if I needed two knights in 2 days I would pay up too £20 for someone to paint one and only if they are good
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Post by: MKoth
I enjoy painting them myself too much. In fact, I prefer to watch my wallet and pick up models used, and I can count on one hand the minis I didnt strip and repaint despite great paintjobs.
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Post by: admironheart
I always try to field only painted units when I play. I always have. It lessens the experience when I see Custode bikes with no riders or worse...just the bases and not bikes/riders.
I feel the same way with grey plastic tanks and units. I wont complain or even comment but it does lessen the game experiences.
I HAVE ALWAYS thought that a larger percentage of players don't give a crappo about painting and some detest it. I think the game has in ways been hijacked by the hobbyists who flaunt their artwork. (I don't think a Great general should flaunt his wins and I don't think the funnest person to play agains should toot their popularity. I think a nice balance is best for the game.)
With that line of thought GW should make pre painted starter sets. There could be 2 of the popular factions of each race. ONLY the base 1 or 2 TROOP choice would be painted and perhaps 1 weaker unit like a Scout unit.
There would be no Vehicles or Elites or anything special. Maybe 1 minor and lowly HQ like a Lieutenant or Warlock.
What would this Accomplish?
First it would get new players ready to play units out of the box.
Second it would encourage them to add other units that are better than just the base so they have better odds of gameplay.
Third they would be enticed to improve their hobby skills without it being such a daunting task to start.
exp: a Dude buys 6 5 man Tac squads and 1 Lt. all painted... now he wants to add some different heavy weapons and perhaps a Librarian.
So new player now spends money. ..has to build 2 or 3 models...and paint said models...and his on his way to buying, building, painting and playing with his toys.
its a WIN WIN WIN
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ps: I know so many people say that mass produced paint stuff would look like crap.
OPEN THY EYES mates....even when I do see player painted armies...about half are barely table top ready and another half of those are painted quite horribly.
So even it if is NOT up to your standards....It probably would be better than a quarter of the armies you face if you think about it.
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Post by: StormX
Yeah definitely painting my own stuff is just as important as owning the models. Even if it is extremely good painting better then any thing i could ever do, id rather have them painted my self.
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Post by: DeathKorp_Rider
Only if it is something that is OOP that I really want
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Post by: Cybtroll
From my point of view, It's like having someone else play with your army, because he/she has a better chance to win.
But as long as your army is somehow painted, do whatever you want.
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Post by: LunarSol
I do like how many people I know that think painting services should somehow cost less than the materials. It's surprisingly difficult to find an employee willing to pay you for their work.
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Post by: Lance845
Here is my take on this,
1) What exactly is pro painted? Is it 3 base colors and basing? The level of detail varies greatly and that level of detail determines price.
2) GWs model kits are over priced. I am not saying they should be insanely cheap, but they shouldn't be what they are. Especially single model kits that cost like 25 dollars.
3) It's less that I don't think someone elses services wouldn't be WORTH more than the retail price and more that I am unwilling to spend more then the retail price.
Some cars cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Great. I will never buy one of those cars. Even if they are worth the price tag for whatever reason that dollar amount for a vehicle that gets me from a to b is not worth the investment to me.
So, would I pay over retail price for "pro painted"?
No. I never would. It's not worth my money. I might pay UP to retail value depending on the painters quality and work. But I don't even really want to pay twice retail let alone more than.
I have never paid someone else to paint my minis.
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Post by: Pandabeer
I paint all my stuff myself, but if I were to commission someone to paint for me, of course I'd pay them, they'd put time and energy into painiting my stuff.
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Post by: Scott-S6
Geemoney wrote:
I love it. "They are not like me in this way; so they must be bad in this unrelated way." Thank goodness that I paint my own models, I would hate to be a WAAC player....
He also suggests that the only reason most players don't have the latest net list is that they can't afford it.
Lots of very odd projection there.
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Post by: Excommunicatus
No.
I dislike painting, but that's part of the fight.
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Post by: Rob Lee
I've considered buying models that are painted, but only because they are the type that aren't all that commonly available, like OOP Warhammer Quest 1995 models.
However, they're usually not "pro-painted" and I'd end up stripping them, so I wouldn't pay over GW price for them.
Would I buy "pro-painted". No. I enjoy painting models myself, cannot afford some of the silly prices people charge for their work, and a lot of the "pro-painted" stuff you see, isn't. Having said that I did buy a pre-painted resin base for my Imperial Knight, simply because the example photo on ebay looked great and I didn't think I could do as good a job of it. However it wasn't advertised as "pro-painted" and at £10 it was hardly going to break the bank.
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Post by: Elian
I would NEVER and i have NEVER brought model painted by other.
My army maybe be small but it is exactly as i wanted to be
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Post by: bananathug
I go back and forth on this.
I suck as a painter but I'm getting better and I actually enjoy it now. I'm slow and like to come up with my own paint schemes which helps (because there's no way I'm going to end up with the exact thing on the front of the box).
But I stress out when painting center-piece models or vehicles (I run one dread in my list because I don't have time to run an air-brush and am scared of brush marks/pooling on the large flat vehicle pieces).
But I hesitate to commission things as I know a few commission painters and would hate to pay them less than I'd value their time at but then it seems it would become expensive (5-10 hours for a primarch doesn't seem excessive but at a decent hourly rate it can get expensive quickly).
If GW comes out with more loyalist primarchs I'd probably see if someone I know could match my color scheme for a Lion or Russ and paint it up for me. I did Gman and was impressed by what I turned out but that was a stressful couple of days (all that damned gold detail).
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Post by: Galef
Why would I pay more for something I can do myself?
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Post by: Darian Aarush
Painting them myself is half the fun!
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Post by: Cronch
I enjoy painting, I'm just very slow at it what with all the boring adult bits. What I'd really appreciate is what AT-43 did (and which I ironically did not appreciate back then!)- simple, quick base-paints that I can leave or touch up as I will, provided the actual model quality doesn't suffer. That way I could focus on painting the heroes or unique models and not feel bad that I have 50 models in undercoat white.
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Post by: Nurglitch
It's like the poll is asking if I want to pay extra for underwear someone else has worn.
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Post by: DalekCheese
Nope, ‘cos I enjoy painting them.
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Post by: Sasquatch
No.
Anything painted to a high enough standard would be too expensive for me to justify buying, and anything below that standard is only worth stripping which of course lowers its value quite a lot.
A good example for me was X-Wing, I enjoyed trying the game but didn't take the plunge partly because they didn't sell unpainted versions of the models and I wasn't impressed with the quality of the paint job. Sure I could have stripped and repainted, but then I'm paying premium prices for a prepainted item just so I can strip and redo them... I just couldn't justify their cost.
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Post by: Statistx
I wouldn't pay someone to paint them, cause I'm only in it for the painting, but if I was, I'd probably be willing to pay more, since you have to add something to the price of the mini itself, can't expect a comission painter to pay for nothing.
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Post by: Golem2God
The way I see it the price matters the most. I'd rather go for the lower price over quality of paint job. If a painted model is lower than a model with no paint on it I'll choose the painted one. The total price is the most important thing to me besides what it is I'm buying.
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Post by: Oborosen
As a stickler for such things. I would never actually purchase an item, that I did not intend to use in play and to that extent. I will not use models in play, that I did not paint myself.
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Post by: Sunny Side Up
Nurglitch wrote:It's like the poll is asking if I want to pay extra for underwear someone else has worn.
I believe there is a market for that
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Post by: Rogzor87
I voted yes. I have zero desire to assemble/paint mini's anymore.
I just want to play the game again honestly. Haven't played since 6th ED 40k and 8th ED Fantasy(pre end times).
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Post by: tauist
I answered "yes" because I thought the question was a one of principle.
In theory, if I wanted a readily assembled and painted miniature, I'd be willing to pay more than what a box of unpainted/unassembled minis cost. This is because labour always has a cost associated with it; If someone is doing something in order to financially sustain themselves and their family, they need to get paid. You cant pay the rent in miniatures, last I checked everyone wants rent paid in money.
However, in practice, I do not collect miniatures as display pieces or anything like that (anymore). I collect miniatures and increasingly terrain, to play, and for that purpose, of course I want to assemble and paint my own pieces. This way, they will look exactly how I want them to look and I wont have to act as a "producer" to someone else who is trying to fullfill my visions. I want both the terrain and my minis to share a unified holistic vision, explaining it all in depth to someone and having back and forth tweaking details would be super tedious.
There is also the dopamine rush you get from pulling off a difficult build, or completing the painting of a miniature in a satisfactory manner, which I still enjoy at times. (I judge most of my mini building on a scale from "not entirely terrible" to "passable"; have never made a mini yet I'd be 100% happy with).
Therefore, I never actually buy "ready" miniatures, unless my plan is to strip them and repaint them for my playing piece collection.
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Post by: ScarVet101
I want it to be "my army" so for me buying a pre-painted model wouldn't count.
I might pay for a display piece but not a table top piece
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Post by: RiderOrk
Absolutely, but I hate painting lol.
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Post by: Morathi's Darkest Sin
Theoretically yes.. but only if I had a) enough money that the excess was totally justified as throw away funds, b) it was of eavy metal standard or better and c) it was an entire force, self contained that once done was finished so I wouldn't need to find a way to replicate the scheme later on. (So more likely Blood Bowl teams, Necromunda gangs etc)
In general although I am slow at painting, clearly low end to middle of the road level, I still enjoy doing it and knowing when I field the models they are my work.
So the likelihood of me ever doing so is very low.. but hey who knows what a lottery win might bring.
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Post by: Jandgalf
Funny to see this poll because I've been thinking about this the past couple of days. I genuinely don't understand why there is such a market for pro-painted models. Surely the painting is the main part of the fun? I don't play the games, I only paint but it amazes me that there are people out there who are only it for the playing and are willing to pay professionals to make their army look fantastic. Also - where do they get their money from? They're clearly earning a lot more than I am. But there definitely is a market because there are a ton of companies doing this. I drool with envy looking at the pictures of their painting but I wouldn't get much pleasure from owning something I'd paid someone else to paint.
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Post by: Mr Morden
Jandgalf wrote:Funny to see this poll because I've been thinking about this the past couple of days. I genuinely don't understand why there is such a market for pro-painted models. Surely the painting is the main part of the fun? I don't play the games, I only paint but it amazes me that there are people out there who are only it for the playing and are willing to pay professionals to make their army look fantastic. Also - where do they get their money from? They're clearly earning a lot more than I am. But there definitely is a market because there are a ton of companies doing this. I drool with envy looking at the pictures of their painting but I wouldn't get much pleasure from owning something I'd paid someone else to paint.
Personal reasons:
* I don't really enjoy painting and I am really really bad at it.
* I would prefer that my (very expensive) models are painted for games and because they look cooler but that they are not ruined by my lack of skills
* I have plenty of cash and little time
* Its now often as cheap or cheaper to buy well painted models than unpainted
I am now mostly just buying painted models and commisoning the painting of the vast unpainted hordes in my residence
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Post by: Ouze
Jandgalf wrote:Funny to see this poll because I've been thinking about this the past couple of days. I genuinely don't understand why there is such a market for pro-painted models. Surely the painting is the main part of the fun?
I am capable of getting them painted - I'm a pretty competent painter - but I definitely don't enjoy it. I like how they look when they are finished enough to soldier through it, but if I could wave a magic wand that turned my grey plastic into painted minis, I'd do that every time. For some people, that wand has a Mastercard logo on it.
Jandgalf wrote:I don't play the games, I only paint but it amazes me that there are people out there who are only it for the playing and are willing to pay professionals to make their army look fantastic
Inversely, it amazes me that anyone could find any pleasure in painting, say, 40+ slight variations same mini for a lousy 2 troop choices - a task I find to be deeply, deeply unfun. Imagine painting a green tide of hundreds of Ork Boyz and feeling anything other than brain-numbing tedium.
Jandgalf wrote:Also - where do they get their money from? They're clearly earning a lot more than I am.
I'm a Exchange administrator for a Fortune 100 company who lives in an inexpensive area with no mortgage or loans. Expensive is pretty relative.
To try and contrast your scarce resource with my scarce resource - where do you get all your free time from? You clearly have a lot more of it than I do
Jandgalf wrote:But there definitely is a market because there are a ton of companies doing this. I drool with envy looking at the pictures of their painting but I wouldn't get much pleasure from owning something I'd paid someone else to paint.
I get plenty of joy from having my oil changed without actually putting my car up on jacks and getting out a drain pan. I've very rarely had a pizza that hasn't brought me pleasure despite the fact I didn't assemble and bake it. And so on.
I don't actually pay for commissioned... anything, really, but that's because I barely ever play and I'd rather waste money on different dumb stuff. As things currently lay, I have painted every single mini I own with my own hand, other than a bunch of Sororitas heads - and that commission was a difficult experience that I am unlikely to ever do another commission again.
That being said, it's hardly difficult for me to understand that there are a great many people who have more money than free time - like me - and who find painting to be a thoroughly un-fun task while also enjoying the look of a well-painted army.
I also totally understand people who just like to play competitively and never paint a single mini, any more than I would paint the pieces for my Monopoly set.
For me, I love the backstory, the fluff, and the mechanics of building and converting the minis. I love taking a sprue and turning into a complete thing, and maybe even a thing that looks cooler or more interesting to me than the intended thing! Painting is just an unfortunate downstream task of that, for me.
The hobby is many things to many people and that's OK.
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Post by: Sasquatch
No.
The quality I'd except would be too expensive for me to justify.
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Post by: cattyandco
The models should be pro-painted for the prices they're charging already.
I'm employed, got my house all paid for, and am doing alright. But since getting back into the hobby in March, my reaction to the prices has been to laugh. And then to put the box back very carefully.
I don't know about pro-painting but some of the old plastic stuff like Night Goblins might have been better if they had put a toy-soldier type paint job on them - you could always paint over if you wanted. Of course, they don't seem to make them like that anymore, so that's neither here nor there.
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Post by: brumbaer
No.
I hate painting - you know there is pain in painting for a reason.
Anyway, if I consider the models not worth to paint them myself, why would they consider me worth to fight well for me ?
'till now that "mutual respect" works out well - most of the time.
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Post by: techsoldaten
Jandgalf wrote:Funny to see this poll because I've been thinking about this the past couple of days. I genuinely don't understand why there is such a market for pro-painted models. Surely the painting is the main part of the fun? I don't play the games, I only paint but it amazes me that there are people out there who are only it for the playing and are willing to pay professionals to make their army look fantastic. Also - where do they get their money from? They're clearly earning a lot more than I am. But there definitely is a market because there are a ton of companies doing this. I drool with envy looking at the pictures of their painting but I wouldn't get much pleasure from owning something I'd paid someone else to paint.
It's different for some people.
Not everyone is a good painter, which removes some of the fun aspect. It's not that they don't put in the effort, it's that they're wired differently. Friend of mine is an accountant. He can recognize a good paint job but he is incapable of creating anything resembling one.
Also, not everyone can paint. I did some commissions for someone who is legally blind in one eye, he has very little depth perception and isn't capable of much beyond priming and base coating.
While I'm never going to pay someone to paint my army, there are perfectly valid reasons someone would want to.
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Post by: BaronVonReichspudding
I might, then again, I might not.
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Post by: Adeptekon
I paid for mine, because I suck at painting, didn't have the time, nor the patience to attempt it. So I'm thankful that even I can own good looking minis.
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