I was recently contacted by a repeat client who wants a customer squad of 'The Eight' created. The Eight are the members of Ta Commander Farsights personal bodyguard, consisting of a handful of crisis suits, a broadside, and a riptide!
Needless to say I was overjoyed at the prospect of building this squad, not only because it just came out ( the Tau Farsight Enclave) but because its so rare that I get to kit bash me some Tau. Tau just aren't one of those armies that get modified that often. Not at least in the same way that Nids, Chaos daemons/marines, or Orks do.
Since I don't have the supplement yet, I was a little confused on what sorts of bits I'd need to do this. I read something about Fusion blades, sort of a lightsaber for Tau, and heard you need twin linked fusion guns to do it. So I immediately tried to find some.
I found these from the Riptide kit and bought up a bunch right away.
However, in doing a little more research only ONE of the Commanders carries a TL fusion gun and thus has access to the fusion blade. So I was stuck with all these extra bits! While I could have hoarded them for future work, I felt it would be better, for both me and community, to turn them back over to the vendor and release them back to the 2nd hard bits market.
I emailed the vendor, explained my situation, and waited to hear back from them. In hours the situation had been resolved amicably and the purchase was refunded.
This is a complete 180 from a situation that happened to me a few years ago regarding Hoard O'Bits, a bits provider.
Now with Spikey Bits no longer offering bits sales, the bits market is getting harder and harder to work through. If a client wants a specific model modeled up, it can be a challenge to get all the bits you need. My situation with the Looming Horror model a few days ago was no exception to this.
In many cases it might actually be cheaper for modellers like myself to buy up several kits, use the bits we need, and then keep the spares on hand for other projects. But this isn't always the best solution, sometimes you just need that ONE BIT. And without the second hand market to make that happen, it's getting harder and harder to provide that service to clients.
So I'd like to make two points.
Firstly, I'd like to publicly praise Bits World for their outstanding customer service.
Secondly, I'm curious how companies like Bits World continue to stay in business with the recent shift in GW policy regarding the second hand bits market.
Are bits providers like Bits World a dying breed, hunted to extinction, and if so, what's a miniature studio to do when clients have custom orders to fill?
I've requested an interview with the owners of Bits World to let us see the men (or women) behind the mask. Stay tuned for details . . .
And until then . . PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!
Caleb, WMG