"Open Letter to Fireforge's Customers" Topic

I don't understand the reasons behind this letter. Have Fireforge been receiving a lot of disparaging remarks or something?

I, for one, am very happy with their products and I wouldn't mind looking into any future resin products.

Personally I don't like resin models. I have a couple of miniatures and altough detail is great I find it hard to glue and more fragile than plastic. I can be wrong of course…

I did stop buying Black Scorpion minis when they wen't "all resin". I love their stuff but not in resin…

I don't know the Fireforge resin miniatures but the plastic ones are great and highly recommend them.

Cheers

Go metal not resin! Wargaming with resin is a recipe for disaster. It makes sense to have "show piece" models made in resin due to the superior quality and the probability it will just sit in a cabinet or on a shelf. But to push around a unit of resin figures you'd have to be mad.

I can't afford resin, simple as that.

They originally said that they had a new resin process and that would be a little cheaper than metal – I would like metal myself but when I get around to that Mongol army I will buying their resin heavy cavalry …..

I don't facebook so don't even want to know how to post there

John

"I don't understand the reasons behind this letter"
- Only because our company like to talk with his fans. Some people think that we will not make new plastic box set. We instead will do more and more new plastic box set in our future :)

"Go metal not resin!"
- we can't we are sorry.
We made tests with metal production and the details of our sculptures come out too flat with metal.
Shipping costs from Italy (where we cast our figures) to the rest of the world are too high for a metal production.

"a new resin process and that would be a little cheaper than metal "
- our resin is more expensive than metal production, but we have a huge savings on international shipments.

I don't see what the fuss is about. I've reviewed the Fireforge Mongol Heavy Cavalry in the next edition of WSS. I personally like it, its a good as metal but without the weight. Price-wise its the same as most metals.

This is not GW finecast – the models I received showed no signs of bubbling – and they were perfectly well detailed.

If Firecast means more and more frequent releases from Fireforge, I'm all in favour.

Cheers,

Guy

I'm more concerned about the brittleness of resin and problems finding glue that works.

I'm more concerned about the brittleness of resin

It isn't brittle. Its pretty flexible and has a lot of 'give in it – as good if not better than metal IMHO.

and problems finding glue that works.

I used the same as I would with metals – super glue. Slo Zap for the win…

Guy

I'm with BigHagar on this, But and here's the caveat, if the resin can handle my misuse similar to the plastic product (a fall or two a snap of weapon etc) and can be easily repaired I'm inclined to rethink the product, the price is a problem if I want a box of 12 (the standard is 12) in plastic why should resin be more? Is this a materials cost thing or just because there is more labour involved? The FF guys could have looked further into the product and cross sold it to the fantasy genre as well (I would want these as a Kislev type force too) yes plastic is expensive initially but if I'm right that mold lasts a lot longer than a metal/resin mold, and everyone is then happy and FF can cross that troop type off the list, thus making it stupid for others to do them too.
My 5c worth.

"the price is a problem if I want a box of 12 (the standard is 12) in plastic why should resin be more?"
- To start a plastic production giving you a very good product, like we did, the cost is between 20-30.000 GBP.
Then, the single sprue/frame is cheap.
- To start a metal/resin production giving you a very good product, like we did, the cost is ten times less. But the production of the single figures costs more.

"The FF guys could have looked further into the product and cross sold it to the fantasy genre as well "
- We NEVER made one of our products with the intention to sell them to another market different by the historical wargame market.

How many decades i need to wait before to recover the money spent to produce a plastic heavy mongol cavalry if in each army you can deploy heavy mongol cavalry units about the 20% of the entire army? Too much.

Why isn't resin as cheap as plastic? I'd guess mould life for a start… Plastic moulds are very expensive to start with and you have to sell a lot, plastic resin is a good stop gap, particularly for models you'll only need a few of.

I stress tested one of the horse tails. It took quite some effort (a LOT of wiggle-ing) but I broke it off. Metal would have broken much sooner under that sort of abuse. I stuck it straight back on with super glue.

My 5p's worth.

Guy

Not convincing me here it took me 15 years to sell myself on plastic ( I now do like it as a product material) but resin needs a lot of sell if everyone has their own principle as to product and whether they are to te period etc fine but if your going round in circles trying to hard sell the product in resin it must concern you. I dot know the answer to be honest actual sales are the final arbitrator. As an aside all the 1/56 WW2 vehicles are being moved away from resin (and here I do own some so resin but worry every time they are used;) OK you may never sell many Mongol HC but it seems that a HC upgrade kit would have been a better idea for the plastics.

I'm with GECOREN. I have the resin Mongols, and besides being incredibly beautifull and detailed : No they are not bristle. Mongol heavy cavalry is only a small fraction of the Mongol horde, therefore you will need quite less of them and logically are therefore not made in plastic (cost). For 16 heavy's I'll probably need between 10 and 15 plastic mMongol boxes to make an army. Make the math…. The manufacturers knew that also. I do not buy metal anymore if I can avoid it. Please do not tell me the weight is not a problem…. I use Loctite on resin without any problem. Metal is on the way out, no doubt about it.
I remember when people did not want surround because it was not considered hi-fi. I'm probably one of the few who remembers it today.

Zargon, the only thing I'm trying to sell is magazines. :-)

Guy
Editor WSS Magazine

And a great magazine it is Gecoren :), as said the caveat was the actual product used, 'plastic resin' if its holds up it holds up and the chaps from FF are right and proud to have a good hardy product, not so Lord Ekard:) anyway good luck and if I get a chance to build a 28 mm Mongol hoard I will want to use FF anyway as it is superior to all competitors
Cheers happy gaming all.

Zargon, if you will be at salute 2016 (or if you will make a travel to Naples), come to visit us :)
it will be a pleasure offer you a beer :)