Kickstarter – Worth It?

If you’re not familiar with it, Kickstarter is a service that allows a creator to advertise a product they want to sell, and see if enough funding comes in to support it. I’ve seen it done with paint sets, miniatures, brushes, airbrushes, music, and so much more.

The big question with any new Kickstarter campaign (or any similar service) will always be “is it worth it?” Regardless of who is behind it, there are always risks involved. And even a well planned campaign can run into problems. For example, Duncan Rhodes first wave of Two Thin Coats had been in the planning for quite a while, but they never factored in the pandemic when they originally planned it. So when it did launch in September of 2021, they had to account for all the supply chain headaches that event brought. Many current campaigns are suddenly facing shipping and supply chain problems because of all the tariff drama.

In all the times I have pledged to support a campaign, I’ve never once encountered someone who seemed to be disingenuous about it. A few have had to deal with some bad planning, or vendor problems. But so far no one has seemed to be “out to get my money” with no thought of delivering a product. And if you support any campaign, read the fine print. Most of them say that the buyer assumes 100% of the risk. There’s always the possibility, however small, of getting nothing.

Here are some things I have learned over the years that help me evaluate a project:

• Who is behind it? This is a huge consideration. When Duncan Rhodes or Emil Nyström post a campaign, we all know that their name and reputation are on the line. It’s no guarantee that things will go smooth, but there is generally a sense that if anyone is going to release a quality product, it would be a known person with a good reputation. Of course, some campaigns are from people we’ve never heard of, and those require a little more discernment.
• Does it sound to good to be true? When I ordered paints during the first two campaigns from Duncan Rhodes, I worked on the assumption that of all people, he wouldn’t release bad paint. And I was fortunate enough to have a little bit of personal connection to he and Roger, so that reinforced my comfort level. Other campaigns I’ve considered have made claims that I questioned though. My rule of thumb is if it doesn’t smell right, it most likely isn’t right.
• Will they answer questions? If I’m not sure of a campaign, I contact the creator behind it. If there’s no response at all, that tells me all I need to know. But generally I get a response, and at that point it is purely a decision of comfort level. Do I feel I’m getting the straight answer? Do those answers conform to whatever I may know with some certainty about the claims they make?
• What is my purpose in supporting this campaign? In a few cases over the years I supported a campaign because I wanted the product. The potential value was enough that the risk would be worth it. In other cases, I backed campaigns simply to help support a friend or fellow creator. And in some cases, it was both. For example, in supporting Duncan Rhodes, I wanted the product, but I also wanted to support he and Roger regardless of the product.
• Am I willing to throw that amount of money away? I’ve never supported a campaign that didn’t deliver – eventually. But I go into each one with the thought that it is a “luxury” spend. While no one likes throwing money away, to me a Kickstarter is way, way, down the list of “needs”. If anything, it is squarely on the “want but probably don’t need” list for me. Thus my attitude is if I lose the money, ultimately I am at fault, because I accepted the risk. Yes, the other end should have delivered. But I’m a grown man. I must take responsibility for my decisions.

Here’s an example of a campaign I supported that wasn’t a known person to me, and the thought process behind how I decided to support it.

There was a Kickstarter from a new entity called Minotaur Hobbies. The creator, a very nice fellow named Rory, wanted to bring affordable sable brushes to the US market. While Kolinsky sable brushes can be acquired in the US, they generally come from companies outside the US, increasing costs. So Rory wanted to address that gap in the market. I thought from a business perspective it made perfect sense.

However, I had done quite a bit of research on brushes a few years prior in a nearly two year testing process. (My own effort, not related to the Kickstarter.) And as far as I knew, the primary source of US made Kolinsky sable brushes was Dynasty, an American company. And I’d tested their brushes. They were OK, but I’d found that ordering pure sable brushes from Rosemary and Co in the UK delivered a better brush at a lower price.

So I simply contacted Rory and asked if Dynasty was doing his brushes. He replied that they were, and he’d already been sent test samples, and felt they were high quality. Wanting to support him in his effort, I backed the campaign.

Now, my assumption, based on research of the Dynasty website, was that for the brushes to be affordable for Rory at the prices he was advertising, they were not going to be made in Dynasty’s US facility, but in their facility in Thailand. And from my own business experience I knew that would mean cheaper production costs, but also the higher probability of a lower quality product. Producing high quality Kolinsky sable brushes takes years of training, and it basically can’t be done on the cheap. But I drove forward, partly because I found Rory’s enthusiasm infectious, and from a sense of curiosity about gauging my own analysis. And to be 100% honest, a coffee cup that made me laugh was part of the deal. I do love my coffee cups!

When the brushes arrived, my assumption was correct. They may have been Kolinsky sable, but the production quality was horrible. The brushes were just bad. Other backers said the same thing. It was a nightmare for Rory. To his credit, he worked with Dynasty to address the problems, and everyone who requested a replacement set got one at no charge. (I can’t imagine the financial hit he took.)

I never complained (refer to “throw away money” above), but eventually Rory did contact me, and asked if I was happy with them. I told him I’d basically given them to my daughter for use in the 3rd grade class she teaches. He offered to send me a new set, which he said had resolved the problems. A few days later, they showed up.

And they were better – but not great. But I knew before they even arrived that there was little chance they would be better than even the high end Dynasty brushes I’d tested. And those high end Dynasty brushes were not as good as Rosemary & Co. Series 99 brushes, which were pure sable, not Kolinsky sable.

So in the end I lost, but I sort of knew going in I probably would.

Kickstarter campaigns can be a great way to get unique and helpful products, and support some of the most dedicated and earnest people in our hobby. But as with anything else, going into any campaign must be done realistically, with a clear understanding of the risks and responsibilities.

And I must say it… if you have real issues supporting a financial campaign financially, I’d suggest not doing it at all. Of all the campaigns I have supported that did deliver a good, quality product, not a single one of them has been a “game changer”. For example, as much as I like my Two Thin Coats paints, if I need a new bottle of paint, I go with Vallejo. It’s nothing against TTC, but Vallejo is just easy for me to get – and just as good. So I highly recommend you hang on to your cash unless it is truly “throw away” money.

To Ebay, Or Not To Ebay….

For quite a few years, since 2011 if memory serves correctly, I’ve been selling my built models on Ebay. And I’ve sold quite a few. As of writing this, it’s almost 300. And while I’ve never been a “fan boy” of Ebay, I don’t hate it either. It’s just a service that does what I want.

It calculates shipping for me, and on international sales they handle all the customs stuff, etc. In the US, I ship it directly to the buyer. On international orders, I ship it to Kentucky, at which point it technically is owned by Ebay, and they conduct the transaction with the buyer for shipping etc. And it’s all seamless for both parties.

But a few days ago I went to post three models for sale, and did it just like I always have. Yet those three were flagged as having violated Ebay’s rules. Of course, this concerned me, as I don’t ever want to abuse rules for things like that.

I eventually found out what caused the problem.

For years, I have added a line in the title or description of my models for sale that reads “As Seen On YouTube”, and I link to my YouTube video. I figured maybe it would help it sell for a bit more… maybe. (I don’t think it really ever did.) So I did that again for (literally) “the hundredth time”.

And this time that got it flagged.

Now, I get it. Ebay is not targeting me, they’re protecting their business. And many do abuse their policies by selling the same product outside of Ebay. And while I understand the idea of “it’s your stuff, you should be able to sell it where you want”, the fact of the matter is Ebay will tell you upfront that if you use their service, you agree to not sell those products outside of Ebay. If you don’t like that, don’t use their service. That’s the way terms and policies work. (I get this at a business level as I do the same thing in my own day job.)

I wish there was a good alternative to Ebay. I’ve tried Etsy, and that had zero/zilch/nada success. A few friends have suggested Facebook Marketplace, but I’m not going back to social media, for any reason. I feel like the overall price is just too high with regards to privacy and sanity.

Thus, it’s Ebay.

I will adjust my descriptions, sticking to just the plain old, tried and true boilerplate stuff I’ve used for hundreds of sales.

However…

What I will do is simply make an offer here. If you are a subscriber, and you see a model I’m working on that you’re interested in acquiring, contact me. For the most part, most of what I build will start at around $100-$150 plus shipping, though the kit and the amount of work that went into it will add some variation.

And though I’d love to make a lot more money off of my work, I figure after nearly 20 years of modeling, and almost 15 years of sales, the big numbers just aren’t happening for me. And likely never well. So if I can cover costs, and know that my work is on someone’s shelf who enjoys it, I’ll take that.