Hello

The answer to the above question is THEY CAN'T not based on a picture. Unless quite clear signs are present. In fact the letter starts with the word: "we believe it represents" as they can not be sure. 

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In some cases a recast can be spotted by a picture but is quite hard to be 100% sure. But when the model is assembled and premiered is pretty much impossible to tell if it is or not. 

Is this model a recast?

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If your answer is I can't then you are correct. Some will say well it has two/three mold lines. The metal is grainy, a small part is not cast correctly. Let me tell you that I have originals in blister with 3 mold lines, and over decades collecting the amount of metal miniatures I returned to stores or GW it self for miscast or missing parts is countless.

There are a few interesting pages on this:  https://www.chaosbunker.de/en/2020/05/20/oldhammer-spotting-and-identifying-recasts/​ https://bbcollector.wixsite.com/recasters that explains some of the way you can spot a recast. 

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Another example is the below figure. Seems a recast, but are we sure? Can you tell just by a picture?

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The truth is that Games Workshop only has one or two way of spotting a recast.

1) They can analyze the metal composition. 

2) Or spot air vents different from the original models. 

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METAL: This is the only way GW can be 100% sure of a recast. In the past decades they used several alloys, and these varied also by country of manufacturing. In fact they were also produced in the US not only UK. They know the various metals they used and percentages, and with an inspection they can claim it is a copy if a metal does not match the ones they used, for example if it contains bismuth (just guessing) or the percentages used are quite off. Last models produced only had tin, antimony and a small percentage of copper. There was site were a collector did analyze several miniatures mint in blister from various ages and posted the various compositions. 

 

AIR VENTS: If you are familiar with spin casting you will know that all models will require air vents for the air to escape and leave room for the metal. GW in the majority of the cases only had a few of these and never too many, so a miniature with 5 or 6 evident air vents can be spotted as a fake. 

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Evident loss of details, visible metal porosity, missing parts, thin tabs, shiny or dull metals are no factors to prove it is a copy as GW it self had miscast, multiple mold lines, thin tabs....

 

One of our forum members replied to their accusations asking how they could tell they are recast. The answer was: it is not company policy for us to give out the details of our processes. But they were asking for evidence proving they are not recast. How could he provide such evidence if they did not tell him what made them believe they were recast? 

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Many also reported they asked for either copies of the purchase receipts or original boxes. Really? How many of you keep receipts for 5,10 or 20 years? Original boxes? I have a ton of them, but many models I owe don't. Quite unreasonable request.
 

After providing pictures of the original packaging as requested, they requested to have the models sent to them for further inspection at his own expenses. If they do this to you NEVER SEND THEM THE MODELS the lawyers we are talking to all agreed that only a third party disinterested expert can analyze and provide evidence. And only a court can ask this to be done. 

 

 

 

 

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