Hi All,

On my recent return back to the hobby after a few years sabbatical, it is with some dismay that I am seeing some of the metal figures on GW showing long lead-times, e.g. Mahud King, Haradrim Horseman Chieftain, Gorbag and Shagrat, Elrond Master of Rivendell, Elf Spearmen etc.... is this a definitive sign of removal from production, or (worse still) the impending doom that is conversion to low-end plastic rubbish?

I really want to restart collecting and painting and appreciate that ebay is superb for OOP models, but some are either very rarely listed or sold at seemingly very high prices, so what would be the consensus of advice from those who may be in a similar predicament?

I may be 'old-fashioned' but I am concerned that IMO Finecast will do for miniatures what Mp3 has done to Hi-Fi......

Many thanks in advance.

Fine Cast is more like 8 track or Laser Disk

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"the same as a duck you must be made of wood"

Most, if not all, metal miniatures are being slowly phased out and replaced with Finecast since they use the same molds.

As for the examples you gave, I doubt they will go entirely OOP, GW are porbably selling off the last metal models they have in stock, before they are re-released in Finecast.

Anything in plastic will likely stay in plastic, but I quite like the plastic models actually...

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If you're looking for an opponent or a place to play regular games of the Hobbit SBG in London, visit: http://www.thetitans.org.uk

By the way, Finecast models aren't plastic, they are some kingd of resin compound, though you would still be mad to think them better than metal models.

If you want anything released in January, or anything from the Hobbit, Finecast and plastic are the only materials you will find them in, metal is as dead as the thylacine.

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"I am the Flying Spagetti Monster. Thou shall have no other monsters before me"
-FSM.

Ha, ha, yes but I loved Laserdisc.......much better than VHS.




This GW strategy then leads me to conclude that I should give up collecting even before I've re-started, although the challenge of hunting down all OOP metals (which sounds like it will be everything) would possibly be quite stimulating as, presumably, new Hobbity players would shun metals as 'old hat' thus rendering them worthless (and hence cheap)?

I've been collecting for about a year and have just about every metal LoTR mini GW produced. 80% of them came from Ebay, so I think you will eventually get the minis you want here (and much cheaper than from GW or the finecast versions). It is fun to hunt down the ones you want and the auctions can be fun too - as long as you set a price limit and don't get carried away (and realise that the same mini will be available again one day) - you can also score some really cheap deals.

I really like metal minis and don't care so much if its not GW or an actual LoTR figure - but still fits the fantasy theme - so I have been getting metal minis from suppliers like Reaper (who make dwarfs, orcs, elves etc - though sometimes scale is not 28mm) and Westwind (who have a series called Dwarf Wars and I just picked up a bunch of dwarfs from them - pretty cool, 28mm and 11 English pounds for a box of 10 metals).

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"...that there's some good in this world Mr Frodo - and it's worth fighting for."

Very true...but it is so tempting to do that 'just one more bid' thing. Just a question on eBay strategy: do you think it is better to go for specific blisters / boxed sets (in terms of value for money), nibble away a single miniature at a time (sounds laborious), or stick to whatever comes along at the right price?

I have looked at generic models, and yes for 'warrior types' I think other metal manufacturers is a good choice. Maybe when I've collected the GW back catalogue..... talking of which, can anyone enlighten me as to the whereabouts of a definitive "Metal Only Back Catalogue", or should I get a set of the original Supplements (I've started collecting a few) and Collector's guides to study?

I have the excellent PDF someone has produced on here, but I am not sure how to differentiate between models made currently from metal, used to be metal or now made from epoxy (or whatever its called) - example being Amdur Lord of Blades on Foot?

Many thanks for your replies to date.

Not sure about a metal only guide - but it would be a great resource!

I've used both strategies on Ebay. The cheapest option is usually bulk sets - for example, I've picked up 50 metals for A$100. Of course, you can end up getting a bunch of stuff you already have especially when your collection builds up (you can always trade these for others you want using the traders forum on here).

Focussing on single miniatures can be the most expensive option, but it all depends on who else is interested. For example, metal elves always seem to attract high prices, as do metal orcs (now well OOP).

Some sellers also lump similar minis together in sets of 5 or ten (or more) and this is usually a good deal (eg 5 metal elf bowmen).

You can get cheap blisters if you are patient - and sometimes even cheap using the buy now option. I always use current GW prices as a guide for how far I am willing to go re bidding. If the price of the package + postage is equal to GW then I don't bid. I try to get a deal that is at least a few $ less than GW. Of course, with the stupid finecast now it's hard to judge a reasonable price for metal minis (since they are all going OOP).

Good luck with your hunt! I've had good experience with ebay sellers like The Last Nazgul, Room 101, Lolober68 etc.

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"...that there's some good in this world Mr Frodo - and it's worth fighting for."

I loved my digital camera with the floppy drive too

GW has already joined them as far as I am concerned.

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"the same as a duck you must be made of wood"

I'll second that these guys are both good. And they were shipping to Canada for me!

That guy is awesome; he got my Knight of the White Tower to me in about 5 days - from UK to Aus.

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Feel free to check out my galleries and painting guides! www.freewebs.com/necromancer7

Thanks for supplier advice. I have looked at a few and they seem to be selling a lot of metals that have been painted and some sort of attempt to strip them has been (badly) applied. Not really that appealing for this collector/painter!

Do any of them actually sell loose figures in an 'as new' condition, or am I more likely to get these from other ex-collectors/gamers selling there stuff off cheaply?

Have a look at items from Room 101 and Lolober68 as they usually sell loose minis that are unpainted. Some may have been painted and stripped, but I have bought from these guys heaps of times and never been disappointed with quality. If you want things in perfect mint condition then you are probably better off going for the blister packs. I noticed Last Nazgul has lots of painted minis for sale at the moment, which is unusual. He usually has unpainted minis mostly. He also has lots of blisters available at the moment too.

There are lots of other sellers to try. Just a matter of searching Ebay for what you want.

Good luck!

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"...that there's some good in this world Mr Frodo - and it's worth fighting for."