Finecast
(Citadel) Finecast is the Games Workshop company name for a light-grey, somewhat flexible resin. It was introduced in 2011 as a replacement for
White Metal, accompanied by a price increase. The stated reasons for the change were improved workability and crisper casts. The latter claim was,
for a while, the subject of fierce discussion within the community.
Shortly after its introduction, Finecast developed a bad reputation within the community due to quality concerns. Missing parts caused by air bubbles in the
casting process, as well as missing or broken components, were more widespread.
Today, Games Workshop is still casting some figures in a resin that closely resembles Finecast, for
example Blood Bowl Star Players. Presumably because of
Finecast's bad reputation, the material is no longer marketed under the Finecast name, although there are no quality drawbacks anymore.
Weblinks:
Greens
A wargame miniature was, before the advent of digital 3D modelling, handcrafted using modelling putty. In the Games Workshop/Citadel Miniatures company environment,
this modelling putty was called Green Stuff, due to its green color. As a result, master models made from it came to be known as Greens.
There are many other modelling putties available under different names and in different colors, but master models made from these materials are nevertheless sometimes
referred to as Greens within the wargaming community.
Weblinks:
Master Model
A Master Model is the original model from which a production mould is made. It can be a hand-modelled Green, or nowadays
a 3D-sculpted and printed model. It can even be a 3-up wooden model, like those Games Workshop used in the 1990s for plastic injection casting.
A negative mould is made from this model using silicone, rubber, sand or, in the case of plastic injection casting, steel. New production models can then be cast or moulded from this negative.
Recast
A mould is usually made from a Master Model. If one makes a mould from a model taken from regular production, models cast in that mould are called
Recasts.
A Recast is usually associated with lower quality because of the supposedly inferior mould. In reality this isn't always the case, especially when the mould was made carefully.
In addition, most of the time when Recasts are discussed, unlicensed ones are meant. But there are plenty of licensed ones as well. Sometimes companies have to Recast
their own models because the original mould and/or Master Model has been lost. I am somewhat convinced that this might be the case with some of the very
old “Made to Order” products from Games Workshop.
Undercut
An Undercut is a part of the model that prevents a two-part mould from opening in a straight line. Since most moulds are two-part moulds,
Undercuts can be a problem during the casting process.
How much of a problem they are depends on the type of mould being used. In a single-use sand mould, Undercuts are not a problem at all,
but these moulds are not suitable for mass production. Silicone and rubber moulds, used for pewter and resin casting, are flexible to a certain degree, allowing some Undercuts.
In steel moulds used for plastic injection casting, Undercuts are generally not possible without additional moving parts in the mould.
In the past, this limitation led to much higher levels of detail being possible on pewter and resin models compared with injection-moulded plastic models.
Weblinks:
White Metal
White Metal is the Games Workshop company name for a lead-free tin alloy used to cast pewter figures. The exact composition of this alloy is unknown to me, but it is safe to
assume that it is not pure tin. Tin is a somewhat valuable metal, and a pewter made from pure tin would usually be promoted as “100% tin”.
White Metal was introduced by Games Workshop in 1997. The stated reason was health concerns regarding the use of lead. It also came with a price increase.