Citadel Finecast (in case you haven't already heard) is the latest line of models from Games Workshop. Finecast is a line of highly detailed resin models that replaced many of GW's metal classics. I stopped by my friendly, local game store yesterday to take a look at the selection and pick up a Commander Dante for comparison.
I have heard that stores are only getting limited numbers of Finecast models, and I could tell the selection was thinned but nothing was yet sold out. I did see two others buying Finecast models, so it seems like the price isn't keeping too many away. The blister itself was fairly straight-forward, but I did notice there's no foam, so no free-cycling that into a battle damage sponge. One report said the blister plastic is quite thin, but I didn't notice much of a difference compared to the metal blister plastic.
Of the two Dante's remaining, I selected the one with a little extra material, which I figured would be better than not enough material. I've read a few stories about some bad casts, and I was a little worried about miscasts and bubbles.
I'm happy to report that my fears were unfounded and that the Dante I bought is an excellent cast.
There's not much difference between the metal and resin Dante bodies. I used plastic sprue clippers and my fingers to pull off most of the excess. The Finecast model is far easier to clean up than removing all the little vent snakes on the metal model. Away go the metal files; the seam scraper makes quick work of cleaning the new Finecast material.
The metal jetpack was a disappointing cast and there's much more detail on the Finecast version.
The metal pistol hand appears to have more depth of detail on the back of the hand than the Finecast, but the resin hose is much crisper than the metal.
The Finecast resin is very similar color to the Forgeworld resin, but the products couldn't be more different. The Finecast is soft and flexible. How flexible?
That's a piece of sprue bent back on itself. After releasing the pressure, there was just a subtle deformation. Obviously this is a thick piece of resin, but the material is quite pliable. It does not white-out when you bend it too far like plastic, but you can break it and it does fracture like GW's plastic kits.
The Finecast resis in also quite soft; soft enough that I could easily mar it with my thumbnail. I could barely dent the Forgeworld resin, but the Forgeworld resin is much more brittle.
While there is a little bit of sticker shock and some disappointment that moving to resin didn't make for a cheaper product, I think the cost of Finecast models are in-line with the rest of the GW price increases. I think the durability with regard to dropping will be good, because the material is fairly pliable, but I wonder about long-term nicks and dings because the resin is so soft. I think the faster clean-up and reduced weight will be worth the trade-off, as dynamic poses will be much less likely to topple (especially when mounted on a tall base).
Have you tried out the Finecast yet? If no, why not? If so, what was your first Finecast model and your impressions? I'm eager to see how wide-spread the casting problems turn out to be.
