Asset Drop Nov 2017 Box Quick Look – Part One
December 29, 2017 by johnlyons
We got sent a box from the team at Asset Drop with their box of supplies for November 2017 so thought I'd take a Quick Look and show you inside.
The box came with a selection of paints and effects including:
- A trio of Secret Weapon Acrylics: Rubber Tire Set
- AMMO fromt Mig Jimenez Metallic Colours
- BrokenToad Weathering Pigment
- Coat d’Arms Brushscapes Textured Paint and PaintBrush
I thought I'd pick out a couple of the tutorials I liked and give my thoughts on how they work.
In this video I try the AMMO paints created by Mig Jimenez on Angharad Brightshield from Shadespire.
Have you tried paints from Mig Jimenex before? What do you think of the selection in the Asset Drop Box?
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Nice review… those brass paints look great… It’s a shame there wasn’t a miniature in the box though… At the end are you going to comment on the value of the box ie content compared to monthly cost????
I usually consider any subscription box a waste of money but this looks like its designed around teaching you new techniques and paints so it tempts me. It looks like £23 per month after postage, which is £276 per year, just on paints and brushes I would not have bought otherwise. Thats a lot of money and scares me off. I’d be interested to see a review that takes the cost in to account, along with the idea that we all already have a huge backlog of minis and might not want to buy more to do these lessons. Like… Read more »
yeah, buying this sort of stuff blindly and never knowing what exactly you’re getting is scary/expensive.
At the same time the way they try to explain the content and its use is better than a mere random assortment of stuff.
It would have been better if they’d added a miniature that allowed both sets of paints would have made this set perfect.
Hi limburger, thanks for your comment 🙂 I completely understand about the miniature idea. We kept this box to just paints because they are the most widely applicable hobby product, and so subscribers are more likely to be happy with their surprise box contents. Everyone’s miniature tastes are so different that it would be an impossible task to provide models that everyone is pleased to receive. However, we’ve just launched a new box- Heroines. Instead of receiving any themed miniature, you always receive a badass female miniature, along with a few paints and a scenic base. Then you can enjoy… Read more »
I did see them.
And while it is true that everyone’s taste in miniatures is different.
The same applies to paints.
If you’ve got no need for bronze/gold effects then you’re not going to have a miniature within your collection that would fit that paint.
Hi lawnor, thanks for your comment and for checking out the video 🙂 I appreciate that £23 per month seems like a lot of money spent on paints and brushes you wouldn’t normally buy, but that’s exactly the point of the box. If getting surprise paints every month to try out appeals to you, it will be money well spent. But the box certainly won’t be for everyone – if you have a big paint collection from a variety of brands already, it won’t be useful. But if you’re new-ish to the hobby, or only have 1-2 brands of paint,… Read more »
Incluing the relevant mini might be nice, but yes, I see your guides can be applied to other models too. I do like that its paints I wouldn’t otherwise have and teaching me how to use them. Thats what appeals to me. Its a monthly painting class. I can buy any past boxes too? I saw only 2 listed so this new? If past boxes are always available then it might be something I target buy for for specific projects that come up. I’m keen to see Johns next video and I am very tempted by the concept behind these… Read more »
Hey lawnor, I guess it is a monthly painting class, for beginners at least! We wanted to add more value and purpose to the boxes than just a ‘box of stuff’ each month. Our subscribers do find the guide very useful, so we’re really happy about that 🙂 Yes, subscribers can buy past boxes. Well, we’re currently adding them to our store anyway (the individual paints are already available). And there are only two because we’re a new company- we just launched in October this year! December’s box reveal will be up in January when all our international subscribers have… Read more »
Do you need to be a subscriber to gain access to old boxes ?
Because having to pay a monthly fee for something that may only have something I want a few times each year is too expensive for me.
Even if the boxes may not be available in huge quantities every time it would function as a sort of demo for your service.
I do understand that as a business model a subscription is the most cost effective of doing this sort of stuff.
Hi limburger, deciding whether to allow anyone to buy the past boxes or just subscribers has been a difficult choice. We understand that some people would like to buy one box rather than subscribe. But we’re a subscription based business, and if we allow anyone to buy past boxes, then there’s the possibility that no-one will subscribe. People may choose to wait until each box is available on the store, and then buy it afterwards. If that happens, we become a store selling custom made paint boxes instead. There’s no stability in that from month to month, and as a… Read more »
I understand that business model and it makes perfect sense as it is low risk.
Do you need to be a subscriber to buy the individual paints & parts as well ?
Hi limburger, no you don’t have to be a subscriber to buy the paints. The way we work that is we charge them at RRP for non subscribers. And then subscribers get a discount. We’ve been thinking since talking to you though, and could actually do the same for the past boxes. Sell them at a higher price for non-subscribers, and give the store discount to subscribers. That way it’s still better to be a subscriber, but if you really do only want the one box, there is the option. You just won’t save as much money. I’ll let you… Read more »
Hi limburger, I just wanted to let you know that we’ve decided to allow past boxes to be available to non-subscribers too, but at an increased price. That way, there’s a reward for being a subscriber, but people who just want the one box can still do that 🙂 There’s limited stock at the moment, but if past boxes prove popular, we’ll restock. They’re on the store now if you’re still interested 🙂
This looks good a mix of paints with new technics to try with them the only thing is no over the counter supplyers which may come latter.
Hi zorg, thanks for the kind words 🙂 By over the counter, do you mean Citadel, Vallejo, Army Painter etc? We intentionally aren’t including them because many people will already have a large collection of those paints. Instead, we try to include more unusual/smaller brands so people can add to their existing collection and discover more paint suppliers. There’s also less chance someone will already own a paint in the box. It doesn’t mean we’ll never include a Vallejo etc if there’s an expetional paint we think is worth sharing with subscribers. But they will be the exception to the… Read more »
I was thinking more an independent shop selling the boxes to the public in the future project perhaps?
Hi zorg, oh I see! Interesting idea. What an honour it would be to have shops selling our boxes one day 🙂 I guess you never know!
I kind of like the Assetdrop it seams to offer a nice mix. It offers things you might normal consider trying with new brands of paints and hobby suppliers. This would be great way of getting into the hobby as it gives you something to look forward to each month.
Would it be possible to offer a themed box? like a skin tone painting box or a clothes/leather or even a basing box just a thought.
Hi tanya, thank you for your kind words 🙂 And great idea! We have considered doing such boxes. There are actually many amazing boxes we’d like to create for the miniature painting community! But a series of boxes teaching specific techniques like that might just be on the cards for 2018 at some point 🙂 We always appreciate suggestions from the community, so if you have any more ideas about the type of themed technique boxes you’d like to see, please drop us a line at [email protected] – Andy
You can airbrush those metals straight from the bottle, they work really well.
As an aside, Secret Weapon Tire Black is my favorite black paint of all time. It has a blueish tint that really looks much better that a flat black. I use it on all my minis when I have to paint black these days.
Hey nogginthenog, me too! Tire Black is such a brilliant colour and I love the slight satin sheen- it means it’s perfect for armour. I think all our November subscribers will have really enjoyed trying out that trio especially 🙂
I don’t have funds to jump into blind box buys. Blind subscription box programs like this are probably for people who have some excess funds from their discretionary spending accounts. More power to them, but I am not in the target audience for this one.
Saying that, I do appreciate the idea of not including a miniature, instead including non-generic supplies aimed at broadening the abilities of the subscriber. I find that to be a laudable goal, and I hope they find their audience.
Hi beetle, thank you so much for your kind words 🙂 You’re exactly right.
A blind box like this is for someone without a diverse paint collection already, so you know you’re likely to get new paints you’ll find useful. And of course, for people who have the funds to spare. Our hobby can be an expensive one, and we completely understand that for many people, their hobby fund each month is already spent on something.
We really appreciate you wishing us luck though- thank you so much!
If not for the shipping cost to mainland Europe I allready subscribed 🙁
But ten each month on shipping is to steep for me……..
Would love to see such reviews though 😉
Hi snowyak, we know! Shipping to the EU is crazy expensive- it was shocking for us when we started Asset Drop that there aren’t better options available. That’s as cheap as we can get it right now, but we’re in talks to try and reduce that amount with our carriers. There are many different parameters you need to qualify for, and paperwork to complete, but we’re hoping to reduce the cost of our EU subscribers soon. It seems, unless you’re a massive company already, postage is a big problem internationally! I’m so sorry you can’t subscribe yet 🙁 Please keep… Read more »
Hi snowyak, I just wanted to let you know that we’ve managed to reduce European shipping for one box down to £6.50! 🙂 If you’re still interested, you can buy past boxes on our store at the moment (while stocks last) and subscriptions are now open for February’s boxes. If you want to reserve a box with the reduced shipping price, you can head to the website any time to do that 🙂
I think I need most of the Mig Jiminez metallics range.
Hi somegeezer, they are brilliant metallics! I would recommend all of them 🙂 The Copper is a beautiful colour too.
Wow this seems like a good idea, especially as the theme is set with how to use the various materials in each box. Being in the states the shipping is price prohibitive. $40+ a month plus $16+ for postage takes it out my budget realm. I do like the idea and maybe it will be on of those items that I have a chat with Santa about for next year.
Hi ghent99, we’ve actually managed to get great shipping prices for the States. They are the cheapest international place we can currently ship to. Do you mean $40 for both boxes? The Discovery box (reviewed above) is $27 when converted, and the postage is $11.50- expect for Alaska which is more expensive to ship to. The postage for getting both our monthly boxes (Discovery and Heroines- the female miniatures box) is $16.80, which makes each box only $8.40 to post. I completely understand that it’s out of your budget though. I’m sorry about that! Hopefully Santa will be feeling generous… Read more »
Assetdrop, I’ve had a question for a while now that perhaps you can answer for me. For years now I’ve been getting little bags of Haribo free with the occasional random purchase, usually t-shirts, but I got one with a hard drive the other day. I see you do this too. Everyone loves free sweets from strangers, but is there a reason some companies do this? Surely its just an extra expense. No one used to do this so I’m curious why it started happening. Not that I’m complaining. The first product I bought this happened with I didn’t open… Read more »
Might check it out as I do like my mystery boxes, I already review one monthly here which has a bit more variety in it compared to this.
Where is the BoW backstagers discount 😉
Hi laughingbox, I wish we could offer a BoW discount. But we price our boxes very close to our costs to provide the greatest value for people. That means if we offered even a small discount, we’d actually make no money on the boxes at all!
Please let us know if you have any questions about the box 🙂