metals vs plastics

[Protist]

"The difference between men and boys is the price of their toys". Metal has always felt more like models for a gentleman's hobby, whereas plastics have felt more like toys. A bit silly I know, but there it is.

This, and some, hits the nail right on the head!

 

[ramshackle_curtis]

Im like, metal, resin, plastic, kits, sculpts, tooth picks, fluff from under the cooker, whatever! Chuck it all in dem pot! Pour in super glue, mix with a stick and chuck some paint on. For me its always been about conversions, kit bashing and modifying. If I like a bit, a gun or a head or whatever, Im not bothered if its plastic or metal, bring it on!

I like plastic, as its easy to convert and usually you get more army per £. I like metal because it is stronger and does undercuts.

I started on military kits, mainly airfix planes, but also some other military bits. Mum bought some metal gobbos when I was about 9, and I loved the fantasy element. I went through the 30 marines in a box, the skeleton horde and the 3 rhinos for a tenner back in the day. I also really loved epic stuff. I also inherited loads of metal models from mates who went out of the hobby, plus spent a fair amount of £2.50 pocket monies on blister packs, so ran the whole gamut.

 

[snyggejygge]

I like both, plastic is good for gaming, but I prefer painting metal models

 

[Wheeling Turn]

For conversions I prefer plastics but as a whole I look at the model rather then the material. Most metals have more character and most of my oldhammer collection is made out of metal but a lot are plastics. Mainly the rank and file.

 

[Mr Papafakis]

Metal has always felt more like models for a gentleman's hobby, whereas plastics have felt more like toys. A bit silly I know, but there it is.

That's a interesting point you made there Jeff & I think your spot on. More to do with our social programming than anything else.

I like plastic for conversion work, drills easy, can add on just about anything you like (within reason) that ordinarily wouldn't be practicable in metal....weight wise, and it's faster to cut etcetera. But I do enjoy metal, if only for the sculpts from that time. I'm not sure how I would feel if all those old minis had never been made with lead? If we somehow skipped the metal casting era & had only ever known them to be made in plastic. Maybe I'd feel differently? I dunno.

Anywho, l love the artistic side of the hobby, whatever the medium.

 

[stone cold lead]

The weight of metal makes a model seem more substantial and I think has more of a sense of permanence about it whereas plastic in our everyday lives is seen as cheap and disposable. I wonder whether the love of metal castings is more wrapped up with coming into the hobby at a particular time or if it's something that appeals more to people who like glass jars, wooden window frames and tin boxes?!

Do the younger generation of gamers and modellers look at metal as being clunky and unworkable?

 

[Harry]

The weight of metal makes a model seem more substantial and I think has more of a sense of permanence about it whereas plastic in our everyday lives is seen as cheap and disposable. I wonder whether the love of metal castings is more wrapped up with coming into the hobby at a particular time or if it's something that appeals more to people who like glass jars, wooden window frames and tin boxes?!

Do the younger generation of gamers and modellers look at metal as being clunky and unworkable?

What other material does a jar come in??? You better not be talking about squeezeable bottles. Being able to get every last bit out of a pot without having to try scraping around the edge with a knife for an hour to get enough Marmite for a bit of toast or enough mayo for a lettuce leaf and If god had meant us to live in hermetically sealed tombs he would have given us UPVC windows, They don't rattle in the wind they don't let any fresh air in. They don't need repainting ... when does that get fun. Tin boxes> what the hell? I remember my dad used to smoke a pipe and back then tobacco came in a tin. we had hundreds of tin boxes about the place with all manner of things in them. It used to be a right pain because this was before sticky labels actually stuck to anything and you used to have to open 20 tins to find what you were looking for.

The younger generation ... what do they know.

Metal for me ... everytime. (Unless folks want to sell plastics for a fraction fo the price ...like the Reaper bones kickstarters which I could not resist .... I am just not interested).

Citadel set out to make the best miniatures in the world. IMO they did that, did it well and did it for a long time. What they are doing with plastics is great ... but whatever it is ... it is not that.

Whenever I read these debates my sense of it is ...
Converters love plastic, collectors love metal and gamers don't really care.

 

[zoggin-eck]

Whenever I read these debates my sense of it is ...
Converters love plastic, collectors love metal and gamers don't really care.

That is a fantastic way to see it!

The converter part makes sense when people actually convert with plastics. I think the examples you can find of 28mm Inquisitor retinues around online are evidence of this. When people scream that an older unit/kit must be "upgraded" to plastic and then assemble them exactly as per the photo on the box, I feel it's an opportunity missed.

Not to say people don't go to town with Realm of Chaos conversions using metal models, but some can find it off-putting. I do love the "guess what model was used for each part" element that's missing when a plastic model could be using weapon number 6000 from any number of Space Marine kits.

I love both though (even resin...). I just love miniatures. Providing the material works for that particular miniature, is appropriate (of course a massive, new-fangled 40k flyer makes sense as plastic over metal) and holds the detail I'm happy. Or, as Harry mentions, the selling price gets to a point where you cut it some slack. For example, I don't hate "restic/sprueless plastic/whatever" because I have some dud (Mantic in this case) models, I just see that it certainly doesn't work for small, multi-part models.

 

[Deathjester25]

I don't like plastic minis at all. Most of the time metal minis have a lot more character. I also find them easier to paint.

 

[Ti Pouchon]

I pretty much hack every figure I paint, in some way. It's why it takes me so long to finish anything.

Yeah, same here. I love converting. I like it better than actual painting.

And that, oddly enough, is the reason why I love metal.
Trying to make a conversion work in metal is a lot harder than doing it with plastic components. Yes, I've had models fall to pieces under their own weight or topple over constantly but somehow, I've always made it work. And knowing that it was harder to do than a plastic conversion somehow adds to my feeling of accomplishment and pride.
The planning and preparation, having to think about the cuts and whether they can be pulled off, drilling pin-holes, always keeping an eye on the static weight distribution - it's all part of what I like about my chosen hobby.
Maybe it's a personal flaw: Things always have to go the hard way.

The only plastic I find acceptable is bases and small parts such as hands, crests etc. The last time I painted a plastic mini, I had paid for it with my after-school paper-route. The plastic minis I still have are completely neglected and slowly but steadily losing all their hands and feet.

To each his own, I guess.

 

[zedmeister]

Plastic models. Hmmmm. They are functional and they definitely have a disposable quality about them. Pick 'em, chuck 'em around, dump them in piles. People also seem a bit more careless with plastic models. Often times I've seen someone's dead pile with plastics just stacked up on top of each other in a careless fashion.

Now metal on the other hand commands a certain amount of respect. You need to treat them well lest they chip, bend and dent themselves (and your furniture/head/window). Miniature pileups weren't really a thing with metal, though I did see it on occasion. There's also a certain amount of permanence with metal. I want my miniature collection to buckle their display shelves!

I'll spare you my love for resin though. Wonderful material for capturing detail, but brittle as hell!


As for conversions, plastic is good for that although I don't count kitbashing in that (mixing up of different kits), However, I respect anyone who can convert metal properly, pinning and all, and blending it together with some crafty filling and sculpting.

 

[Deathjester25]

i totally agree with Zeds comments. Although kit bashing can make some cool minis I don't really see it as a conversion.

 

[billyfish]

Being an undead fan (skeleton army boxset and skeleton horde) I loved the well priced boxes I could buy to fill an entire force for 3rd/4th edition. As far as painting/modelling, I prefer to work with metal. Something about the weight in the hand and models felt that bit more expensive. They also had more variation and character.

I think these days plastic out do metals and resin trumps all

 

[stone cold lead]

Being an undead fan (skeleton army boxset and skeleton horde) I loved the well priced boxes I could buy to fill an entire force for 3rd/4th edition. As far as painting/modelling, I prefer to work with metal. Something about the weight in the hand and models felt that bit more expensive. They also had more variation and character.

I think these days plastic out do metals and resin trumps all

Plastics really have come a long way but I reckon there's probably only a few manufacturers that do them really well (GW being one!). The relative ease of digital sculpting has made 'sculptors' of many people who have little idea of how their digital design will translate into a physical product. Combine with that the usually out of house manufacturing process and it's not surprising that many products don't quite live up to expectation.

Resin can be excellent but really needs to be borne in mind when a model is being sculpted (1mm thick spear shafts not good!) and the moulding and casting quality is very much dependent on the skill of the people involved. A great sculpt can be ruined by poor design choices and a cack handed mould maker/caster.

 

[Grumdril]

I'm a fan of metal through and through (although I prefer my skeletons in plastic).

But... I was in my local GW yesterday and it struck me how much I'd have loved properly big deamon and dragon miniatures in my youth, compared to the relatively small ones that were available back then, and that's only really possible with plastic.

I didn't know about the chicken dragon back then, but even if I had I'd never have bought it (anyone know what they cost originally?). I did know about the Citadel Giant, and £30 for a figure seemed incomprehensible...

Paul / Grumdril

 

[Horace]

Plastic models. Hmmmm. They are functional and they definitely have a disposable quality about them. Pick 'em, chuck 'em around, dump them in piles. People also seem a bit more careless with plastic models. Often times I've seen someone's dead pile with plastics just stacked up on top of each other

Everyone knows plastic models die first

I don't mind a few of the plastic kits although I certainly don't like any of the modern dual kits. They are good for a cheap alternative. Metal is always preferable for me.

Plastic empire halberdiers are a good example of the kits I liked (with a few metals mixed in for character). I generally superglue 1 or 5p pieces underneath the bases of plastic/resin models to give them a proper heft

 

[stone cold lead]

I generally superglue 1 or 5p pieces underneath the bases of plastic/resin models to give them a proper heft

Back in the day my fat friend and his home knit woolly jumper could lift an entire unit of plastic skellies off the table when leaning over.