I don't really think that these subjects are "minority" subjects any more than most other manufacturer's figures are. In fact most of them look pretty "mainstream" to me, with a good "something for most folks" mix of subjects.
And as for the Russian postal service, I disagree that it's no worse than in the UK or Belgium. There are customs issues and delays for a start, and I've also had an order from Russia vanish into the ether (from another company, not MGM). I think the fact that a lot of sellers on eBay won't post to Russia (and Italy) also tells you something.
I do agree that it would be very useful to also hear from anyone who has had good experiences trading with this company, although it appears that "Ogr" himself is only an infrequent visitor here - which could be part of the problem.
I'm not going to name names (although fellow AFV enthusiasts will probably have a good idea who I'm talking about), but in the AFV modelling community there is a company that has been the subject of many similar compliants and accusations on the AFV forums to those expressed in this thread. This company too is a "one man band" with a dismal reputation in terms of service and for "taking the money and running".
However, the proprietor isn't a thief. He's just got a very haphazard approach to running his business, and not much concept of customer service. Hence the many and loud complaints he gets. Nevertheless he pitches up as a trader at UK shows, people who order kits off him pretty much always get their stuff (eventually), and those that don't get them end up with a refund (eventually). And in view of this I'm prepared to give "Ogr" the benefit of the doubt ... for now.
But make no mistake, MGM Miniatures has now been red-flagged and will be closely watched. It's now up to him to put his house in order if he wants to continue using pF to market his figures.
- Steve
Pissed but if a legit company has the masters and were to release them later, I would be interested.
