Thoughts on Warlord's new Resin Plus
Recently, Warlord Games has started replacing their specialists and heavy weapon teams for Bolt Action from the traditional metal to a new material, Warlord Resin Plus™. I thought I'd share my opinions on the new material.
My first impressions are very good. This looks like an improved version of the original Warlord Resin. Unlike its predecessor, the material can be filed and scraped with a knife without the risk of burring. The models are cast well and have just as much detail as their metal counterparts. They also have the advantage of being lightweight compared to their metal equivalents.
The models also do not require an undercoat. For me, this is a distinct advantage: skipping a stage in preparation. The models may require some cleaning up before painting to remove vents and mould lines, but these are rare and generally confined to the base. In fact, the new resin model had less mould lines than the metal original.
I use a greyscale colouring method for my miniatures (otherwise known as grisaille or 'slap-chop'), so I was keen to see if this new material would work well with my preferred painting method. I normally start with a grey undercoat - no need! - then a wash of Ali's Brown Liquid. Ali's brown liquid. Once this has dried, I'll drybrush the model white. So how'd did it go?
I used Army Painter's Speed Paints in my test after dry-brushing the models. As you can see, the models do indeed require no undercoat and paint up very well. I'm still experimenting with the 2.0 colours, of which there is now 92 (!) to choose from. I'll do a future blog on Marine painting.
To sum up, the new material is hard but flexible, so is unlikely to break without some effort. It is lighter than metal but captures all the detail that metal has. It can be filed and glued (with superglue), so conversions might be easier. Overall, I'm impressed.
4 comments
They’re using a silo cast process. We were attended the Warlord tour on Friday 11th August and Warlord are running 3 machines. The detail capture is exceptional and doesn’t suffer the shrinkage loss of production metals.
While normal resin is ‘one and done’, the mix they’re using allows miscasts to be ground and added to the next batch! So it mirrors metal in it’s efficiencies here.
The mix is based on canola instead of oils, so may be degradable in some respect. Haven’t dug into the science on that.
Metal can be re melted meaning that any sprues and ingates can be recycled. I prefer metal for figures, but certainly think resin is the way for vehicles where the weight difference is considerable.
@Richard – If they’re saving on weight- (metal vs resin+ there being a huge difference in weight)- then this is going to slash carbon emissions on the road through distribution / delivery!
My first thought is “is it bio-degradable?”
The scuplts are really good, detail looks good, as with all Warlord Games products. But as the hobby seems to gradually switch to “plastics” for want of a better description, are these all eco-friendly or is metal still a better option for the planet?