Finecast
When Games Workshop decided they wanted a n w way to screw over their customers, they switched from pewter to Finecast models. Finecast is a t pe of plastic resin that is supposed to offer "finer ca ing" than the pewter mod els do, but the real rea on that they switched is because the price of pewter has gone up as the price of most metals has gone up lately, while the price of plastic resin has gone down. Thus, each inecast model costs them o nly a fr ion of what casting a metal one wo ld.
However, GW, being the mon y-loving trolls they are, they decided not to pa s on these savings to the consumer and actually increased the prices, despite the switch in pr uction actually costing very little, as they sim y used the same die that they used for he metal models for the Finecast ones. This means that the pro fit per model for Games Workshop has gone up, on average, about 300-500%. This pleases Games Workshop. Tau sniper kit taining 3 sniper drones and 1 drone controller (4 simple, small models) went rom £18 to £24 mak ing any smart customer rage and turn to ebay.
However, there are other pro lems associated with Fineca t. The most notorio us problem is that th s first b tch of Finecast has app ntly come out with lots of b u b b l e s that destroy detail or ruin the model entirely. Bubbles are well known to resin modellers as a result of rushed or poorly-handled m olding, and the first Finecast batch semble someone's first attempt at home-casting. While drunk.
As if to make a situation worse, Flash, the l tle plastic li ne that runs along the surface of a model and is a leftover from the Casting process, is notably harder to trim on Finecast miniatures bec se the new material is so much softer. The traditional way of cleaning fla h away is easy - simply scraping it away gently with a hobby knife's edge. Doing this with Finecast Models, of course, tends to leave them with unsightly scratches. In a su rely unrelated note, GW has re ased a new kit for tri mming F ash from Finecast Models - it goes for about $ 20 (PROTIP: Keep your money, and instead use a small toothbrush - that disposable Colgate Wisp thing is fuck-awesome for Finecast work because it's ll and has a hook on the handle that can be used to ca e out any gunk you can't gently brush off, or just throw some m oney at Tamiya or some other company prone to maki ng shit that actually works).
And if th at weren't bad enough, the seco wave of Finecast is doused with chemical s that keeps the res in from sticking to the mold. Fine in theory (red ces mold lines) but it also keeps your paint from sticking to your model.
Luckily, the minis are packed in clear plastic boxes, lea ing to legions of fans to p oke and prod the boxes in order to avoid getting poorly st models. This in turn pissed off the staff, for obvious reasons.
Luckily, GW has a return s policy, and they don't tend to ch ck, which has le ad to less than honest fags reporting multiple faults and getting multiple 'free' models.
Finally many custom zers are up in arms over the fact that you can no longer get at some of the cool metal parts that the old metal models had, because Finecast attaches some of the parts for you. Now you have to saw the mo el apart if you still want those unique and shiny pieces. And it really must be remembered that you might have spent up to 20, 30, even 50 dollars for that one fucking bit of sh tty resin that you now need o saw open. And don't forget that resin dust is hi carcinogenic if you breathe it in.
In any case, Finecast has caused ite a bit of rage among arhammer players and modelers on / g/.
Musical accomp iment for when you assemble your Finecast miniatur s provided by Don Ho.
BUT!
There's a rumor out there, saying that in a couple of years or two (or even less maybe), Finecrap will be replaced by plastic. Take it as you want. If you are ok with Finecast, then "Meh, ok." is the answer.
Update: Not even likely. According to my local store the Finecast process has now been updated to produce cleaner and better quality models. This, apparently, (wait for it) is due to the fact that there's a "computer chip" involved in the process now, which "knows exactly what to do" to get consistent results every single time. So it seems the above notion that it was previously a drunken home-brew job was probably correct.
To be fair, their new Finecast range certainly IS better. I've had a few models from their "new" process and they've been perfect first time, versus previously having to return each model two or three times for replacements because they were so shit. Unfortunately, GW have now put the prices up on everything from this range, so that 3 measly Oblits or a single Juggernaut Lord will now cost you £35 and £30 respectively, which is a joke. They're also started packaging their Finecast stuff in boxes rather than blister-packs so you really CAN'T see what's inside them until you fully open your purchase. Try asking at your local gaming store. Or just leave the store after purchase, go around the corner and open it there if you really must, no fucking law against that, even though it completely negates the point of checking before you buy.
I can't see them moving to plastic if they've just invested in a new system to produce Resin models.
Just for all your information, finecast is dead.[1]
Yes, that's right. Citadel miniatures are no longer made of anything but plastic. Take it as you may, but just be grateful that this awful casting will never again manifest itself in our blatantly overpriced space soldier kits. That article is from 2013. I just bought Typhus and Plague marines earlier this year-both finecast.
Update gw has moved most of their fanasty finecast to 'last chance to buy' so yes they are slowly phasing them out.
Shitcast in action
-
A Finecast Assault Marine backpack. Jesus, look at this.
-
A Chainsword, looking all in the world like a rabbit chewed on it.
-
Games-Workshop charged full-price for this. Think about that for a second.
-
Oh god ;_;
-
This is what Finecast and GW's rote incompetence has brought us. A nipple-gina!
-
Quality Control? What's that?
-
Again, they charged full-price for these. /tg/ hopes to fuck that someone's head got blown the fuck up for this one.
-
Lookie here! Games Workshop decided to put out a series of (naturally ludicrously expensive) tools for clearing away Flash now that your traditional means of doing so are likely to damage models.
-
Accurate depiction.
