"% Digital?" Topic

Chipping is a result of painting, handling and storage practices.

Yup mine got handled lots, hundreds of games (literally). They get dropped occasionally, twits hit them with die. They get lots of use, they do not stand it well. Plastic no problem, dropped, hit with die and pawed over (I hate bases they look so unrealistic, 18" real world plinth for a tank, really? No issues with 3D printed issues.

I am as I write replacing some 7 year old 3D printed BTR60PB's with new. I lost the turrets, two choices print new turrets and lose them again or print upgraded models with turret locks, end of lost turrets. I opted for the second option. No damage or chipped paint on any of them QED.

In a similar, but lest wasteful way to replacing the tanks entirely; after years of use, stripping and repainting, or just touching up or over painting, the metal figures seems like a reasonable idea.

As part of maintenance like on any project.

Metal figures with chipped paint, fallen off weapons, damaged basing, just like a classic car, just need to go into the workshop for either maintenance or a complete overhaul.

Nothing wrong with that.

While the tanks are destined for burnt out terrain at best, your metal figures can shine again, so to speak.

PS

It's interesting that people complain about the "limitations" of metal, like paint loss and damage, when perhaps most people are yet to realise that the maintenance/overhaul I mentioned are just part of the hobby, as much as buying and initial painting.

People don't seem to complain about it when buying second hand figures. Possibly because they may already be stripped!

This also gives you the option to do a better paint job than you did a decade before, or even pay someone else to do it this time around (hint, hint).

Also you can do a completely different colour scheme, like a new marine chapter, or skeletons in black and red instead of blue and white, so on.

It's all part of the hobby.

Maintenance like painting to me is at best a necessary evil like bicycle maintenance necessary but the worst part of the hobby. Not like metal as the replacement/maintenance is still far less than I used to have to or, more often, live with less than "perfect" minis in stead.

Never bought 2nd hand figures, always to expensive or so bad They would need stripping and re-painting even more hassle.

Actually I lie, I did buy a few painted polythene plastic vehicles at 1/72. Not sure what happened to them.