Cost of the Hobby...

I wanted to speak today on the cost of collecting, and painting, miniatures...

Some who may wish to venture into the hobby may think it too expensive...in reality, it is one of the least expensive hobbies around.  I will admit, there is a substantial start up cost, this is due to paints and brushes.  Even that, over time, will become a minor expense.  Overall, the hobby is moderate to low in maintenance expense.

Startup costs...paints run me around $3.70 a bottle, and I always make sure to meet the minimum order so there is no shipping cost.  I wait and build up enough of an order over time to make it worth the expenditure.  You can start with just the basics, and add more colors over time, which is what I did, spreading my cost out.  For the time I put into the hobby, a bottle of paint will easily last me 4 years or more (it doesn't take much of one color per miniature).

Your real expense will come from the brushes...expect to pay a lot to get a lot - don't skimp on cheap brushes, get the good ones.  I have two kinds that I purchase - detailing brushes and painting brushes.  Again however, once you have purchased these (if treated well), will last a long time.  When I have a "detailing" brush go bad, I just convert it to a painting brush and replace the detailing brush.

Depending on the miniatures you paint (1/72, 10mm, 25mm, etc), cost is minimal all around.  Although I typically buy miniatures as a set, the per miniature cost is small.  I will run through each here (this does include shipping costs divided per miniature) -

• 1/72 (usually 1 inch plastics) = .15 to .20 cents each
• 10mm = .30 cents each
• 15mm = .50 to .75 cents each
• 25/28mm = $2-$4 each

As with the paints, I usually build up an order to get special or free shipping and any discounts.

As for the return..well, believe it or not, it can be better than stamp or coin collecting...

As with any collection item, you do have to find the right buyer...an out of print miniature can fetch up to 4x (or more) the original price.  Prints go out of commission every year...it is not something you have to wait a long time for (meaning you can sell it in your lifetime, and not leave it as an inheritance).

However, the real money is in painting and selling.  An average painter can expect to double their return..whether selling from a website, or ebay.  It does take time to build up clientele though.  As for a master painter, expect returns from $500-$1000 (if painting 54mm and above, especially when you get into the 90mm and 200mm range). 

I like how the guys over at the Army Painter put it - "Real men play with Toy Soldiers...".  Few know, even among the miniature world, that Douglas Fairbanks (Sr) had a collection of 3,000 + miniatures...