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Someone recently commented that I crank out minis like a machine, which surprised me. I always figured myself as a slowish painter. My goal is 1-a-week, 52 a year, and while I’ve been making that with room to spare the last few years, it’s still in the 60-70ish range. I do maintain a steady pace, which could give that impression.

So I was curious on how prolific Dakka’s painters are in general. Going on pure volume. Models painted are to what you feel is complete, no fixed standard. Minis are one base worth, so a swarm or a stand of 5 epic scale guys counts as one. As does a titan. I know this is going to skew the numbers, as some people work on more tank heavy lists that take longer per model, and some people can crank out swarms of nids with contrast paints. And a Golden Demon level work might be one mini that takes months. Just looking for a ballpark gauge here.

(Funny enough, this is the first time I’ve created a poll here, let’s see if I mess it up)

I swing between 50-250, depending on the year. Last year was a high water mark for me with 263 minis, because I did 2 big projects (Tzeentch and Necrons) with lots of models.

It really depends. Last year I probably did sub 20 ish? But it was a space marine, and particularly primarch and character heavy year, and they take me a while, due to being larger, and all the armour panels and trim. This year since I've diversified a bit and done a bit more lotr and fantasy, I'm probably at about 20 by July? But they are a lot smaller so they don't take anywhere near as long. A primarch would probably take me 4-6 weeks, but a hobbit or lotr dwarf maybe 4 days to a week at the same standard. I'm going to declare my total, 25-50, with it being on the lower end.

I don't think I've had a year where the number was under 100, the numbet has definitely gone up since contrast paints came out, makes it easier to get started and motivated when I know I can get a mini looking pretty good after half an hour.

Wow, that was surprising. I realized that I started almost exactly a year ago and counting my models I'm well over 100... don't feel that much to be honest

26-50 sounds about right. I usually do a handful of quality paint jobs on models I want to see painted along with some more "tabletop standard" models so I don't have to put (too many) unpainted models on the table. If i have a productive year I might slip into the next higher bracket, but since I am more into modeling than painting I don't really crank out models and armies. Painting tires me very easily, especially if I have to essentially paint the same model over and over to get an army done.

Edit: I just had a look through my gallery and if I counted right I'm at 15 models halfway through the year.

I'd say probably 100-150. I have a room with everything permanently set up, which is a big time saver, and I've been doing it so long without really making much effort to improve that over the last few years I have gotten pretty efficient. That said, looking at some of the progress and work that others here have been doing recently has made me want to change that, and paint less models whilst practicing new techniques, so after a couple of projects are finished, that's the plan.

I managed 12 last year, but that was more than the previous 2 years combined.

I'm hoping for more this year. I've been painting a batch of 24 Berzerkers since January which I could probably finish within the next month if I can keep painting consistently.

Motivation has been a real issue for me, I have gone weeks without touching a brush.

Never above 25, dont realy have the patience for painting.

So far this year i am at around 10.

This year so far I've painted 3 models. I'm really inconsistent with painting, I go in and out of stints where I do a week solid then go a month without touching a brush.

That said, the models have been skarbrand and a telemon heavy dreadnought. Perhaps in the latter half I'll get the number somewhere near 50 with my new marine army

At the beginning of the year, I made a goal of painting and average of 3 infantry models or 1 vehicle per week.

I've had to since throw that out the window due to getting carpal tunnel from working from home. I'm only at around 40ish models this year.

20-30 models per year.

Which is about as many as I buy.

During corona, I've only bought 3 models, though. Which have all been painted. I did manage to find a box of abandoned 40k projects (I stopped playing the churn and burn 40k rule format in 6th ed) and start on them. Some eldar. 5 wraithguard, 1 wraithlord, 8 dire avengers, and a handful of guardians.

They're pretty much at tts now and in their cases, in the shed of shame. Where they will spend the rest of their lives.

I'm lucky if I manage more than one a month which has me looking at the pile of unbuilt and unpainted with a degree of annoyance, concern and apathy.

I only really have this year and last year to go on, since that's how long I've been painting having got back into the hobby after a very long hiatus. Last year, I managed a sum total of 18 models.

This year, I'm currently on the princely total of four... that said, I've only been seriously painting in short bursts for a few months. I'm expecting to have another five completed before the end of this month and then who knows?

Inspired by more diligent Dakkanuts (like Nev), this is my first year keeping track. Currently at 60, with 4 more painted but not based or varnished.

First time around the hobby I painted nothing at all (well not true, I did paint one mini, the old metal Cypher ) and with my second time around started in 2017 to paint models and finished a little over 30. 2018 saw 87 and last year a grow to 150. Seeing how I crossed 100 this year I put myself in the 101-150 bracket.
But the goal is to have my backlog done in the first half of next year (preferred earlier) so in 2021 I can get to a point where I buy a box of minis, build it, paint it and be done. I don't want to paint so many minis in a year

When I get 10-15 done in a year it's already a lot. I really like to take my time though.

Between 0 and 100 per year. Think this year it will be somewhat less than last year (c. 70).

Currently? averaging over the last 5 years...between 0 and 1.

Some have managed to get to a base coat stage though!

So, its progress.

Last year was a bit of a jump because I did a ton of board game minis in Contrast and went over 250. I've looking at somewhere around 100 to 150 in 2020, largely because Exorcists and the Battle Sanctum are taking close a month each.

Been kinda slowly ramping up each year--last year was 72, year before 36, before that 18, before that didn't track but hardly any. This year I'm at 81 for now, aiming for 144, but feeling like thats pushing it a bit hard, even with getting extra admin leave for corona distancing, so probably going to dial it back down to 72 next year, maybe try harder on quality.

Not enough!

25-50.

To quote Trainspotting:
"it's never enough. And at the moment it's nowhere near enough"

There wasn't an option for "I start painting lots of minis but finish none of them"

Interesting results, thanks guys.

At my peak my goal was 4 minis a week. I counted tanks as all 4, and things like bikes/calvary as 2 each. Ended up failing a lot, and when your goals seem unreachable, they stop being things to encourage. After a few years, I switched to one a week, which is much more obtainable. At first I kept my counts-as math to help reach my numbers, but found I was still making my yearly goals, so just count them as one now.

Slow but steady works for me. Sit down once a day, put a layer down. If the mood takes me, do more. They add up quick. That said, I’m not winning any awards. But I do field painted armies, so that’s something. And I do miss days, it happens.

How to keep motivated is a big topic, and will often spawn threads here. There are a lot of ways to do it, and what will work for each person is different.

An interesting question as a followup would be how many minis do you start painting in a year? I know a lot of people have a number of abandoned and half finished projects. Or they have stuff that’s good enough for the table, but not “finished” so on hold. I figured I’d keep it simple for the poll. My main issue was how granular to make the brackets, and how high to go. I didn’t want a giant wall of choices, but alo didn’t want too many lumped together.

I rarely leave a model once I start it because I hate having unfinished stuff staring at me from my cabinet, although the new kharn is currently in that situation from this January...

Currently at 54 for this year so far, and normally crank out about 100 per year.
It’s usually a mix of high quality, and quantity. Not everything needs to be a contest-winning paint job. Sometimes it’s nice to take a break and paint 20 troops with Contrast.

well over 300... but I paint 6mm historical (napoleonic and ancients), 15mm historicals, 15mm fantasy, 25mm fantasy, as well as 40K 28mm sci/fi

Hovering somewhere near 450. It helps to have basic, simple schemes that lend themselves to batch painting. Cranking out at least 10 minis per week is the way to go doing this.

I (unfortunately?) paint a lot of armies, so my output tends to be pretty high (I hit 220 ish in 2019, and I'm up to about 100 so far, so I'm fairly on track to hit the same number by the end of 2020. My KO will probably bump that by 50 already, plus another 25/30 from Szeras + Indomitus?).