A person who does not have the confidence (or ability) to do his own sculpting of heads, hands, or whatever else for that matter, is probably over-reaching to try to have his or her work produced commercially.
Plagiarism is a crime. The problem, in this industry, is that the business is too small to make recoveries or litigations a viable proposition. But let's face it, if a thing is generally acknowledged as being unethical enough to be a criminal act, then it simply is not a kosher thing to do.
If a person, as a hobbyist, (making models for his own pleasure) decides to "borrow" parts from existing figures, that is perfectly okay. If the model is not reproduced and sold to others it does not infringe on the rights of anybody. That modeler is not making a profit off of the efforts of somebody else's hard work, or trying to pass off other's work as their own.
If you were writing a book for a publisher and it was discovered later on that you had stolen a chapter from the work of another author, you should expect to be sued. You should also expect that your "professional" reputation will be ruined. Just because that doesn't happen in this business does not mean that it is okay. I do this for a living. I don't have another job. How would you feel if I walked into your office and stole some of your work and sold it off to my employer for a profit? Does such a question really need to be asked?
Some companies re-use parts from their existing line to make new figures. This is solely a propreitary thing and differs from manufacturer to manufacturer. But if a person is unable to undertake a complete model from scratch, then perhaps they should accept the idea that they are hobbyists and leave this kind of thing to professionals.
Mike Good
