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As I enjoy painting but have little spare cash floating around due to being at school but not having the time for a regular job due to lots of commitments, ive been toying with the idea of simply buying things like BattleForces, painting them up to a reasonable standard then selling them on Ebay or the equivelents. This would satisfy both my need for money and my hobby intrests.
However is their a market out there for this sort of thing or would I just be wasting my money? Ive started painting a box of Tau Fire Warriors that ive had lying around for ages as an experiment to see if it works.
Also what advice would you give for pricing them?
Cheers for your responses/ advice

It depends really on how well you're able to paint. Generally though you won't see as much as the retail price for it. If I recall correctly you'll be looking at something like 50% of retail.

The best way to go about it would be to work on commissions rather than buying, painting and reselling. Try taking pictures and uploading them to build up interest for it.

Hmmm. Didnt release I would lose that much - in fact I was hoping for a profit.
Whats the best way to get someone to offer you a first commision?
Cheers Ben

Post gallery pics of your work- someone's much more likely to give you a shot if you have a wonderful portfolio to show them!

Starting off, price your work competitively (read: cheaper than other painters). You need to give initial clients a reason to take a chance on you-- competitive pricing can help a lot with that.

Get your name out there. Don't spam up message boards, and always follow fora posting guidelines, but definitely spread word (and images!) of your work. As you gain clients, ask them to refer others to you. Add a sig that links to your gallery/website. Business cards to handout at your FLGS or cons.

Good luck with it!

I started my own little ebay store a while back as a 'front' to sell some painted minis I didn't need, as well as to sell ones I just felt like painting. I've never not sold anything and am still learning but I'll share my own experiences:

There is a market out there, there are people with money willing to pay for nicely painted, neat looking models. However I've seen many models sell well that aren't that great (IMO) and others that are reasonable to good not sell or sell for surprisingly low amounts - it's not a consistent market. Some people seem to do well out of buying/selling what they like - but they are few and far between. Unfortunately I can't guarantee the time for any commission work until my back is sorted - but that is worth pursuing.

Obvious point: Really well painted models sell - as do neat, clean well presented models. You are best off sticking to generic schemes that are either clean 'eavy metal' style or else really well done 'dirty/realistic' style - nothing in between. If you have the time/ability then it may be worth while going 'all out' and producing a very good, themed army or unit for sale - I don't know yet but I'm going to try it at some point.

On selling: If you can, open a store. I've found that the £15 a month is well worth the investment, even though I may have little in there. Auctions are never sure things and the minimum £50 reserve can be too much for many units - use auctions with caution. You have to factor in shipping and packaging - don't be cheap on packaging. Invest in boxes, tape, bubble wrap and void fill - £20-40 will get you a lot of stuff. You also have to factor in the 10-15% that Ebay take as tax - before you know it you could be down £'s - so add the extra 10% on what you feel you're work is worth. It'll either sell or it won't. Take good photos - present them as well as possible. Be honest in your description and with yourself - you aren't a hallowed 'pro-painter' until you make a living from it. Advertise your wares on any forums that allow it. If I have a meaningful amount of stuff, I'll post it here on Dakka.

On pricing: It's tricky - you don't want to sell them for too much money, but you don't want to sell yourself short or make a loss. Decide what the models are worth to you. If you've had a kit for years then factor in a reduced cost for it. Most commission painters ask for £3-4 per figure at a 'basic tabletop rate' - so start there. It'll either sell or it won't. 'Test the waters' and see - it may be you could ask for more, it may be not worth your while if you can't sell them for a profit. Look online for commission painters and services, check their quality and pricing and be honest - where would you put yourself compared to them? Check ebay regularly and see what sells/what doesn't - although as I said above, it's not that stable a guide - some people pay a lot of money for mediocre to poor (IMO) models - yet others that are well painted don't sell or sell for comparitively little or vice versa.

Don't equate your time to price like an ordinary job. For me it is a hobby that pays, although at times it can be frustrating - be patient. I've sold a few things too cheaply because I felt I 'needed' the money. Stick by your guns, if after 6 months something doesn't sell, then lower the price a little. Hope this helps and good luck

Take a look on ebay. there are a few services that sell painted battleforce sets at a profit: three that I know of are Dragon Painting Service, Blue Table Painting and Spectrum of War.

Cheers for the comments guys - Ive decided to paint up the Tau and sell them too get an idea for the process and see how their received. However any further advice and encourgment would be greatly appriciated

If you want to get commissions, you need to put yourself out there - I spent some time here on Dakka promoting myself as a commission painter, posting a lot of threads of painted minis and saying I'm willing to do stuff for commissions as well. I even have a big ol' commission thread in my signature. You can't just wait for people to come and ask.

Buying minis then painting them to sell them off is only a good way of making money if you're REALLY good. I mean significantly better than tabletop quality good.

Not really worth it. Unless your really good.

Aye depends on your ability level.

For example, my wife Aurelia has sold 10 Marines from Battle of Macragge painted as Ultras for £55 before, her Orc Blood Bowl team sold for £130ish. Also single Warhammer character figures for between £20 to £30.
We also used to sell painted common/uncommon Heroclix figs for about £5 each.

If you look in my Gallery, the painted 'Druchii' Ork Nob, is her standard, although that was a rushed 24hrs job.

Although we figured a long while ago, due to the time sink, its not a brilliant way to make a long term living. Just if she's painting for herself, she might do the odd model to sell, in between the drying periods of her own figs and so on.

I've sold some of my own models but never painted for commissions. I've been asked several times but I just don't do it, mostly because I knowing how long it takes me to paint my own stuff, I'd pretty much be working for like $1.50 an hour.

But if you can paint really good really fast then you could probably make some side cash, making a living would probably be kinda tough but there are some folks out there that can do it.

I dont actually play anygames due to a lack of opponents and a general dislike of the rules. However I like painting the models so i figured that being able to paint and make a profit was a decent idea. Give it a couple of weeks and ill start posting stuff of mine and try and build up enough intrest to get a commision - cheers all keep the advice coming please!

I can start to see why randomly buying/ painting and selling models is unlikely to make a lot of money so mabye getting into the odd commision might be best.