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Unfortunately most of the Eldar range I hadn't yet purchased has been changed form metal to fine cast. As we're all aware the quality control is kind of none existent and there are a lot of miscast models.

I don't want to get into a rant about the material itself, but was wondering if any of you have had any luck in taking models back that clearly aren't worth £11 a pop for a single figure. The wings on my Autarch model are dreadful, the bottom row of feathers have so many bubbles and actual holes in them. The harlequins I bought had many of the fine details miscast, the details on the back of the hand, gem stones and in one case a harlequin kiss. They were so thin and in some cases hardly attached to the model. The thin lines on the back of the hand of one one miniature was only attached by one knuckle and the rest of it was just floating in the air.

I've heard of people taking them back to the store and demanding a refund, anybody had any luck doing this? I wasn't going to bother, but when you think about it, I wouldn't let this slide when making other purchases.

I've ended up buying most of my mini's in metal off ebay, but was wanting to get some of the newer aspect warrior squads. I'm not comfortable handing over £23 for a bunch of miscast models though

I would say that it varies from storemto store, but most have a decent refund or exchange policy.

I have heard that GW customer service is actually pretty good. I would expect them to often get complaints about finecast so I imagine they would not be too surprised if you make one.

In any case, whether you buy a GW model, a car or a bookshelf the item you buy has to be of satisfactory quality for its purpose. A miscast model simply isn't so you're entitled to a refund. I do think that there's a distinction between buying a model unpainted which you can then paint and adapt as you like against buying a model you have to make alterations to in order to bring it up to an acceptable level of quality.

If you have a bad finecast model, GW will give you a new one, no questions asked.

You even get to keep the old one.

With that said, Finecast quality has gotten much better. I havent gotten a model I had to fix bubbles on in a year!

Easiest if you buy in store, open in store. If multiple parts are needed, you can then mix and match to get decent bits to build from.

Last model I did was an Obyron, which took 4 attempts to get a decent enough model to build from, and even that needed some repair work, and had well dodgy legs (which I didn't need, luckily).

Mail order is a pain for turnaround time, but I've had no issues with getting replacements other than having to get many, many replacements for some models (the 25th anniversary marine holding the all time gak-casting record IMO). You'd think they'd check what they send out properly, but they don't.

I guess I'll have to try my luck, I don't think I still have the receipts though, I don't want a refund I just want a bubble free mini, so hopefully they'll let me swap some parts . It's mainly just the wings on the autarch, but I think only one out of 5 or 6 harlequins was OK.

Luckily I have a store (Middlesbrough) which is only about 5 miles away from home, and I actually go past it to get home from work. I'll have to see what the manager says. I have the store on my Facebook, so might try messaging them on there

One of the fire dragons in the box I got had a massive bubble in his leg. I called GW, the only info they needed was the lot number on the box and my address, and a few days later a new one was in my mailbox.

Which has been the same experience I’ve had every other time I needed to deal with a problem with them over the years. Considering my time in the hobby, these have been surprisingly few.

Well I got a prompt response from the guy at the Boro store.

He said they're aware of the problems with the earlier finecast models and if I bring them down he'll replace them for me. I mentioned that the death jester was undercoated before I realised most of the detail on his back was missing. he said that didn't matter.

I'll take them down to the store when I get an opportunity

Gragga Da Krumpa wrote:
If you have a bad finecast model, GW will give you a new one, no questions asked.

You even get to keep the old one.

With that said, Finecast quality has gotten much better. I havent gotten a model I had to fix bubbles on in a year!

i just got three Finecast Ultramarines characters, two months ago, that are covered in fine bubbles, and miscast details (whole tubes missing, and really bad casting on the edges of pouches and armor)...
i thought they would be fine, because the sprues were not covered in the ridiculous amounts of flash that we saw in the beginning...
wrong!!!
as soon as i looked closely at all the models, so many flaws jump out...
the staff on Tigurius, and the Crozius on Cassius, are also very bendy...
if that is what qualifies as "much better", than there really is no hope for this material and casting process...

for myself, personally, i will stick with old metal sculpts...

GW's replacement policy is great, though...
too bad it would take months (which i don't have due to this being a commission), for a replacement which could be just as bad, to arrive in Mexico...
time to start slicing and Greenstuffing...
le sigh...

after holding off for a few years, with the hope that GW would fix the issues with Finecast, i have to say i am not impressed, at all...
i really want to get Farsight, and the new Commander, but i'll pass due to how bendy the material is...
those ankles just don't seem like they will hold the model up for long, and i can just imagine how many of the armor plates' corners will need resculpting...

cheers
jah

I will be honest, i have found it highly hit or miss.

The last few things looked good up close, but the second you start painting it becomes evident there are tiny bubbles.
This does not help as it seems to be in the detailed areas most of the time.

Only things i have returned though was 3 finecast hive guards.
And thats only because they almost looked fluffy with the way the resin was mixed.
Then a unit of incubi who seemed to have a poor resin mix.
They resin was more than bendy and you could physically bend the model with the breeze from a small desk fan.


However, GW have never been anything but amazing with returns.
All of the above models were replaced the second i showed them the issues.


Still prefer metal though

Yeah I must admit I prefer the weight of a metal mini in my hands when gaming.

I did find resin a lot easier for cleaning mould lines up and for doing conversions......I did have to make a slight conversion to my first finecast mini, as having only ever had metal minis I was a bit heavy handed with the diamond file.

Hopefully I'll get sorted when I take them back to the store, when I get chance to.

Gragga Da Krumpa wrote:
With that said, Finecast quality has gotten much better.

The rate of horrible casting problems might have improved, but the quality of finecast overall hasn't improved at all because even when it is perfectly cast it's still a terrible material. It's way too soft and crumbly, can't even hold up its own weight, and breaks if you look at it too hard. This is the problem with trying to get replacements, your replacements are likely to be just as bad as the original ones. IMO the best thing to do if you make the mistake of buying a finecast model is to get a refund and save yourself the frustration of trying to salvage it.

My first "fine"cast didnt have a head. Got full refund. No fuss.

Haha I feel like I should be greatful mine at least had all its limbs now!

Didn't have a head! They seriously have no quality control at all.

Gapow wrote:
Haha I feel like I should be greatful mine at least had all its limbs now!

Didn't have a head! They seriously have no quality control at all.

Oh, they have great quality control!

They outsourced it to their customers--at a great cost savings--and then chose not to pass those savings on to the customers in the form of lower prices.

I appreciate that GW has great customer service (and they do, they really do), but they can afford to have great customer service when they do incredibly dodgy casting and negligible quality control. I actually wonder if this was a deliberate decision: "Let's find a cheaper production method, minimize the staff and time we spend on it, and then eliminate QC. We can absorb the added returns expenses and still save this much money."

It's a shame that no one figured out whether their reputation for great customer service kept more customers than their reputation for lousy casts lost.

Uh...

Is this for real?

I bought a termie chap from the online GW store and he was messed up, bubbles, the whole nine yards. Looked awful really. I sent GW an email, they asked me to take some pics, purely for quality control he said, and within the week I had a replacement chaplain that had no faults.

If your local game store won't at least replace your fine cast dregs then call GW immediately and let them know that a retailer carrying their product refuses to fix their mistake. Nothing worse than a pissed off brand rep, lemme tell ya!

I look forward to the day when all the finecast models have been replaced with plastic counterparts. Granted, I do like the look of some of the current finecast models out there, but I'll be glad when they're gone. I have one model that I've just had to remove from the table. It's too fragile. Even transporting it around in foam I've repaired it several times, just from bouncing around a little bit in the bag. It sits on my computer desk now :(

It was actually one of the better cast finecast models I've had as well.