Happy New Year and all that Jazz!

After a few months absense now I'm back, at last.

I've quietly done a few bits an pieces on the blog over the past few days, things may or may not go quiet again for another week, but I'm planning on getting back into things now.

I am going to make a few changes though, I realised the blog was becomming a hobby in itself, which is'nt really what I ever intended, nor wanted, so I'm abandoning any aims for x posts a month, I'll be posting as and when I've something to post from now on.

I've updated my Blog Rolls to reflect the blogs I actually keep an eye on at present, though I'm sure that will grow again now.

The Hobby Fund is dead, yep! I used the Hobby Fund for almost 18 months so that what I spent on the hobby was only what I made through the hobby be that sculpting commissions of selling old things. The main reason I started it was to curb my spending and in that it's been successful, so much so that I don't feel the need to use it any more. It was a very interesting and useful exercise and I'd recommend it to anyone who perhaps wondered if they were spending too much on the hobby!

So what projects do I have in mind for this year? Well the Praetorians are going back to their roots, I'll be adding more fun stuff as I'm drifting away from Tournaments at the moment (not really feeling the urge to go to many), hopefully the English Civil War force I started will see some work and some play this year as will a starting force of Secrets of the Third Reich Brit's I'm gathering together slowly. Oh and Necromunda, must'nt forget Necromunda!

I have got other things I'd like to do, but IF I do much about it, it won't be until after my first OU module ends in May, which will give me a bit more free time again until the later summer when I'll start the next one all going well.

Anyway, breakfast is calling! A Happy New Year to you all, heres hoping it's a good one!

Hobby Fund (1st October)

Another good month for the hobby fund, a few sales on eBay and my Sisters of Battle army sold privately has made for quite a healthy income, much of it has gone out to help fund my OU course though, and more of it will go out yet to boot.

Though there is the probability I'll be trying to hunt down one specific figure to purchase this month I'm not expecting to make any further hobby purchases until November, while I'll be adding some more bits and pieces over the coming week as well as getting back to work on some new projects for a couple of companies.

• Starting Balance 1st September = £31.02


• Sales in September = £219.50


• Sales Fee's in September = -£9.26


• Purchases in September = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£170.00


• Balance 1st October = £71.26

Hobby Fund (1st September)

Well it's been a bit of a busy month for the hobby fund, lots comming in and lots going out! Some free listing days on ebay saw me listing a few extra pieces which all sold and started the fund rolling this past month, but the real nice bit came from the sale of the Pith Helmetted heads to Secret Weapon this month.

A portion of the income from the Pith Heads went straight into a Realm of Battle board from Games Workshop, though purchased through Dark Sphere an excellent online retailer (though they also have a store in london) giving a decent sized discount, I also picked up some Royal Navy figures from my local gaming store (it's two doors down from my house, can't get much more local then that), more on these at a later date.

So where has all the money gone? Well I've decided to do a history degree with the Open University, partly as it's something that interest's me and partly with an eye on future career prospects, it's expensive of course, as are other things happening at the moment so I've ended up deciding to fund half of the degree from the hobby fund - which actually means theres a bit more to go out of it yet, but needs must - it's not like I'm running out of things to paint!

I am downsizing my GW collection further, my Sisters of Battle are going, as are my Warriors of Chaos for Fantasy - I may even offer up some of my bits box, I'm looking at getting into Secrets of the Third Reich however, looking to be getting in my first demo games later this month.

• Starting Balance 1st August = £53.07


• Sales in August = £340.57


• Sales Fee's in August = -£17.12


• Purchases in August = -£130.50


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£215.00


• Balance 1st September = £31.02

Hobby Fund (1st August)

Not such a great month as it turned out, I never quite got round to updating my sales list, though ebay did bring in a little as did a couple of smaller commissions. I really must update my sales list this month as following purchases the hobby fund is now empty basicly.

I'm still thinking about that gaming table, but for the moment at least it will have to wait, still there are some good things on the horizon which should see a nice bit of income for the fund.

• Starting Balance 1st July = £0.70


• Sales in July = £55.50


• Sales Fee's in July = -£4.98


• Purchases in July = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £1.85


• Balance 1st August = £53.07

Hobby Fund (1st July)

Not such a great month as it turned out, I never quite got round to updating my sales list, though ebay did bring in a little as did a couple of smaller commissions. I really must update my sales list this month as following purchases the hobby fund is now empty basicly.

I'm still thinking about that gaming table, but for the moment at least it will have to wait, still there are some good things on the horizon which should see a nice bit of income for the fund.

• Starting Balance 1st June = £38.14


• Sales in June = £31.00


• Sales Fee's in June = -£1.48


• Purchases in June = -£36.96


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£30.00


• Balance 1st July = £0.70

Hobby Fund (1st June)

Well that went pretty well, some sales, including a few on ebay saw an income of almsot £120 for the hobby fund, which combined with the chunk left in it at the start of May has let me pay off the Reaver in full now putting it firmly in the black. I also treated myself to a pre-order on one of the new Imperial Guard Manticore kits, but combined with a discount voucher and accumilated 'money back' from Maelstrom it only cost £19.00 - even better!

I'm planning on updating my sales list this month, I've a few more bits and pieces to add, but I'm also going to start hunting down a few new bits as well to help finish my Plague Marine army - that said I'm going to avoid any serious spends until the summer now, when it'll be time to sort myself out a gaming table.

• Starting Balance 1st May = £98.03


• Sales in May = £117.00


• Sales Fee's in May = -£8.04


• Purchases in May = -£18.85


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = -£150.00


• Balance 1st June = £38.14



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £0.00

Hobby Fund (1st May)

A good month for the hobby fund, plenty of sales and income from the Praetorian Ogryns which are on the verge of being finished - two models remain with work to be done now, update soon. More importantly no out goings though, so the hobby fund is nice and full, sadly thats all going on repayment on the Reaver Titan which will bring me down to just over £50.00 'in the red' for the fund as this month gets going, fingers crossed that'll be cleared this month!

• Starting Balance 1st May = £12.85


• Sales in April = £89.00


• Sales Fee's in April = -£3.82


• Purchases in April = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = -0.00


• Balance 1st May = £98.03



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £150.00

Hobby Fund (1st April)

Not a bad month, zero purchases, and a reasonable number of sales, though I'll admit not quite as many as I'd hoped having chucked a chunk of my Praetorian spares on the For Sale list. I may just chance my luck with the whims of ebay towards the end of next month, will see how it goes, as I'd like to try an finish paying off the Reaver Fund, hopefully though I'll be seeing the rest of the income from the sale of my Space Marines and from a few commissions which would get me most of the way there.

I've also, as I'm sure you may have noticed, succumbed to adding a single Google Ads banner to the top of the posts section, I hope this is'nt too detracting from the blog, I do have plans for any funds this brings in, but google ads terms & conditions means I can't elaborate on them which is a shame really.

Once the Reaver is paid off I'll be saving up with the Hobby Fund for the purchase of a Realm of Battle Gaming Table and the equipment to begin metal casting for a future endevour, time to practice my boat building skills...

• Starting Balance 1st March = £3.26


• Sales in March = £71.46


• Sales Fee's in March = -£3.87


• Purchases in March = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = -£58.00


• Balance 1st April = £12.85



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £150.00

Hobby Fund (1st March)

Not a bad month all in all, the hobby fund saw the purchase of my English Civil War army, or the first 1000pts of it anyway, while a few sales and the completion of the Vostroyan Nork conversion brought some money in - with much of the remaining proceads going towards the Reaver Fund which I'm chipping away at slowly. This has left it looking a bit empty as we move into March, but with more commissions near completion and several sales pending (including the Space Marines I had stashed aside for my Imperial Fist's - now replaced with the ECW stuff), I'm hoping to pay off something like half of the remaining Reaver Fund monies this month.

• Starting Balance 1st February = £43.24


• Sales in February = £71.00


• Sales Fee's in February = -£3.24


• Purchases in February = -£60.20


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £9.46


• Reaver Fund Repayment = -£57.00


• Balance 1st March = £3.26



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £208.00

Hobby Fund (1st February)

The Hobby Fund is starting to come to life again, after a couple of months of near inactivity I've made a single sale and a couple of purchases this month, these being bits for my Nurgle CSM army (cost's reduced with the aid of my remaining voucher from Dark Sphere) and for casting services from TrooperPX for the Praetorian Ogryn Ripper Guns and some Praetorian Heads - news on these soon. I've also finally started paying off the Reaver Fund.

This month I've updated my For Sale list for the new year, and already this is starting to pay off with a number of transactions pending, this combined with the fact that completion of both the Praetorian Ogryns and the Vostroyan Nork Deddog being imminient will hopefully see the Reaver Fund paid off sooner then I'd expected - which leads me into breaking one of my New Years Hobby vows very shortly too - opps!

• Starting Balance 1st January = £117.41


• Sales in January = £12.00


• Sales Fee's in January = -£0.61


• Purchases in January = -£25.56


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = -£60.00


• Balance 1st February = £43.24



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £265.00

Hobby Fund (1st January) and 2009 Summary

Well yeah... nothing to report in December, not entirely unexpected as it's been a bit of a month(!).

• Starting Balance 1st December = £117.41


• Sales in December = £0.00


• Sales Fee's in December = £0.00


• Purchases in December = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = £0.00


• Balance 1st January = £117.41



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £325.00

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The Hobby Fund, originally inspired by Lone Pilgrim's New Model Fund has been quite successful overal, it's certainly helped me keep track of my hobby spending, and made me clear out some of the bits and pieces which I simply did'nt need and were just taking up space - though as I total it up now I'm still quite astounded by how much I made over the year through selling such stuff.

The blip in the years spending was the Reaver Titan I purchased at a bargin price - but still one which blew the budget. I really need to start work on clearing that particular blip now and would like to see it completely cleared by this summer. However that said if I had not occasionally taken funds out of the Hobby Fund for other purposes, something which totalled up to over £260 over the course of the year I'd actually be comfortably in the black.

I'm really looking forward to continueing this into 2010 and would certainly recommend it to anyone and everyone in the hobby, if nothing else it's interesting to see and at best can really help you keep control of what you spend.

2009 Summary

• Starting Balance 1st January 2009 = £37.85


• Sales in 2009 = £1047.02


• Sales Fee's in 2009 = -£79.90


• Purchases in 2009 = -£623.18


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£264.38


• Balance 1st January 2010 = £117.41



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £325.00

Hobby Fund (1st December)

Well November was damn quiet on the blog front as I found myself snowed under getting my Grand Tournament list ready in time (more on this soon) - added to which I've been house hunting for a place to rent, just awaiting references and I'll be on the move.

The hobby fund saw very little activity, a couple of minor sales and one purchase for my WFB Chaos Army which thanks to the first of the vouchers I recieved following success at the Dice & Dagger tourny came to a staggering £1.15 - I suspect that things wont change much in the coming month either as I've once again got my hands full needing to finish the Praetorian Ogryns and of course with Christmas just around the corner. The New Year will see the Hobby Fund reach the grand old age of 1 year and a resurgence in it - hopefully.

• Starting Balance 1st November = £106.15


• Sales in November = £13.00


• Sales Fee's in November = -£0.59


• Purchases in November = -£1.15


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Reaver Fund Repayment = £0.00


• Balance 1st December = £117.41



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £325.00

Hobby Fund (1st November)

Hobby Fund update time, not much to report really... Except blowing the budget on that Reaver!

So then, rather then emptying the Hobby Fund an being in debt I've decided to run a seperate Reaver Fund, which basicly means paying it back over time to my suffering bank account, I'll aim to start paying it off this comming month, which will probably be quiet again bar a few random purchases I need to make for various projects.

• Starting Balance 1st October = £107.15


• Sales in October = £8.00


• Sales Fee's in October = -£0.47


• Purchases in October = -£8.70


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.18


• Reaver Fund Repayment = £0.00


• Balance 1st November = £106.16



• Reaver Fund Outstanding = £325.00

Hobby Fund (1st October)

Things did'nt quite balance this month, but then it only takes a couple of big purchases and I suppose I did'nt buy anything last month so I should'nt kick myself too hard! I ended up picking up Space Hulk (I wonder how many people really did resist?), and also treated myself to Imperial Armour Volume 7, the third part of the Siege of Vraks completing the set, added to that a bargain to boost my future WFB Mounted Warriors of Chaos army and a few hobby bits and thats £150 pounds gone - oh for a cheaper hobby!

On the bright side I was able to take advantage of an eBay free listing day and shifted a few items which just had'nt sold through my normal channels on this blog and through the forums bringing in a nice little packet, and recieved a part payment on a commission, which hopefully will be the start of my future Hobby Fund income.

• Starting Balance 1st September = £145.27


• Sales in September = £138.50


• Sales Fee's in September = -£11.58


• Purchases in September = -£153.42


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£11.62


• Balance 1st October = £107.15

This month I can't forsee any major spends, as commission work and finishing my own GT army is keeping me busy and for all these projects I already have everything I need to hand. Hopefully income will include some more commission fee's and if I get round to it some more sales. I've realised I've still got quite a few things to list, the only thing holding me back is time and the fact some of them could do with another dunk in the break fluid!

Hobby Fund (1st September)

A few sales again this past month, though nothing spectacular - though having done a little more sorting I'm hoping this coming month will be a little better again. To balance that out I've not purchased anything directly hobby related - though not intentionally, however I decided to transfer another £100 back to 'real life' and did make some misc purchases such as a years Photobucket subscription for this very blog.

• Starting Balance 1st August (Previous Sales) = £250.41


• Sales in August = £55.00


• Sales Fee's in August = -£1.84


• Purchases in August = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£158.30


• Balance 1st September = £145.27

With more sales listings ready to go and a few bits an bobs already on ebay or sold but prior to payment things are looking good for this month - but then I don'nt think I can (or should!) resist buying a copy of Space Hulk!

Hobby Fund (1st August)

Well thats a bit better, after a last months, well nothing really(!), I set down to resume topping up the hobby fund and clearing out alot of my older bits an bobs. The result is a nice healthy total in the fund and a shelf free of box's! Things which sold included the best part of my WFB Orc & Goblin army, a fair collection of Imperial Guard metals (but theres still plenty more of these to list!), several books and lots of various odds and ends from various Fasntasy and 40k armies.

Purchases this month have been hobby supplies, a pre-order of the new Leman Russ Demolisher kit and everything I need (I hope) for the on going Ogryn commission.

• Starting Balance 1st July (Previous Sales) = £5.33


• Sales in July = £344.55


• Sales Fee's in July = -£14.39


• Purchases in July = -£87.78


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £2.70


• Balance 1st August = £250.41

This month I'm aiming to continue selling items, though with the greatest bulk of it now gone I can't imagine I'll see a monthly gross sales total as high as this again based on selling old things alone. I'm seriously considering taking on more commissions once these Ogryns are done. Meanwhile I've got my eye on the new Planetary Empire release, I've wanted to run some campaigns at my local GCN club for a little while and this makes a nice tool for that.

Hobby Fund (1st July) and Half Way Through 2009...

Well I'm actually kinda of ashamed to say I've done nothing with the hobby fund over the past month, nothing has been sold - though as a silver lining I've not bought anything either!

• Starting Balance 1st June (Previous Sales) = £5.33


• Sales in June = £0.00


• Sales Fee's in June = £0.00


• Purchases in June = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Balance 1st July = £5.33

The reason for this inactivity has simply been I've been rather busy(!), but I'm getting off my arse now and getting on with it again, with another push on sales for this month, I've just updated my For Sale Thread on Warseer with amongst other things my WFB Orc and Goblin army, something which never really got going perhaps two years ago now, though I am getting back into WFB now with a Mounted Chaos Warrior army, which I've traded for.

As it's now half way through the year (scary huh?) I thought I'd also have a quick run down of how my 'New Years Hobby Resolutions' have been going which I set myself back in December!

1 - No New Armies
I've not added to the number of armies I own, though as I mentioned earlier my WFB armies have been swapped, success! Be it an easy one.

2 - Finish What I've Started
I don't think I can really claim much success here, as many of the projects I mentioned originally noteably the Leviathan and Warhound are yet finished, though on the other hand I hav'nt started any other new and big things either, only things which form part of my normal army in lieu of the new codex.

3 - Painting Practice
Again I cant claim much success, though I have had a little, I was especially pleased with the result of my Imperial Thunderbolt Pilot, I've my eye on a few other models just for the pleasure of painting, and indeed trying new things.

4 - Blog
My aim was too make a couple of post's a week, and I've largely succeaded in this, there have been dry spells when time just has'nt allowed me to post anything, at the end of June and during my holiday to the US in April. The rest of the time has seen me making that aim and even surpassing it with the post count up significantly on previous years, success!

5 - Terrain
Nothing to report here at all, I've spent no time working on terrain, though I'd still love too. I can't see any time being free to work on this for the time being though, with the GT run up all thoughts are on this. Still 6 months is a long time.

Overal I'm easily meeting two of my goals, while the other three are still at worst within reach, I'm happy with that! Did anyone else make New Years Hobby Resolutions, how are yours going?

Hobby Fund (1st June)

Another month gone and time for another update on the hobby fund.

It's been quite a month all in all, I cleared out alot of stuff, much of it at the Bring an Buy stand at Exeter Legionarry at the beginning of the month, infact it was so successful I decided to take £100 out of the hobby fund to spend on other things! The result of this after new purchases following the release of the new Codex Imperial Guard (read Valkyries) and some magnets for use on the Titan amongst other things is that the fund is now looking decidedly empty. Though that said given I've actually taken money out of the hobby fund I'm very very happy despite that! This month I'm going to get selling again, I've got quite a few things to go still, I'm fairly confident I can keep this going to at least the end of the year.

• Starting Balance 1st May (Previous Sales) = £131.24


• Sales in May = £126.50


• Sales Fee's in May = -£10.50


• Purchases in May = -£140.06


• Misc Income/Outgoings = -£101.85


• Balance 13th May = £5.33

Hobby Fund (1st May)

Well there's not alot to say about the Hobby Fund this month to be honest, but I'll stick to keeping my record of how it's going. With my American adventure I did'nt do much in the way of selling an absolutely no buying, which suits me just fine as it happens! Tommorrow Exeter Legionary comes around, so I'll be hoping to sell off a few more bits an pieces at the Bring & Buy stand while I take part in the Total Carnage Tournament with my Sisters of Battle, of course tommorrow is also Guard release day, I'll be picking up a Codex and Valk from my local Games Workshop store, one of those rare occasions I buy anything other then hobby supplies from them - supporting my local so to speak!

• Starting Balance 1st April (Previous Sales) = £104.38


• Sales in April = £27.50


• Sales Fee's in April = -£0.64


• Purchases in April = £0.00


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £0.00


• Balance 1st May = £131.24

Hobby Fund (1st April)

Okay, still not back into hobby mode after getting back, I've been ctaching up with a whole host of other things which I need to get done first, one of those is balancing the books so without further ado here's an update on the hobby fund.

March went pretty well all in all with lots of sales including most of the remaining Krieg stuff I had, with a final gross sale of almost £170, of course that adds up to a hefty sales bill on ebay, even worse once Pay Pal fee's are added on. Purchases were actually relatively minor, a few bits an pieces and the killer a Shadowsword which I could'nt resist in the end - opps.

• Starting Balance 1st March (Previous Sales) = £30.94


• Sales in March = £169.13


• Sales Fee's in March = -£22.10


• Purchases in March = -£77.71


• Misc Income/Outgoings = £4.12


• Balance 1st April = £104.38

It's not likely that I'll sell much in what remains of April, more likely I'll concentrate on sorting out more, I'll then line up some sale threads on the likes of Warseer, and maybe pop a post of what I'm getting rid of on the blog for anyone who's interested. There's also the Legionary event coming up in Exeter early next month which offers a 'Bring & Buy' stall, so I'm almost certainly putting some things up for sale there.