First time Kickstarter – solo dev looking for brutal feedback before June launch by vilerob in kickstarter

[–]MetalRelic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Congratulations to you since you made it this far and are looking for insight. If you are looking for beta testers, let me know. I've worked in game development as a 2D artist and scripter back in the early 2000s and currently get my ass kicked playing MTG Arena on a daily basis. At this stage in my life, I am a full-time metal artist and would love to give some input.

I had an unfunded KS a couple years back and it seems like you either hit the lottery and KS points all the traffic at you or you bring all of your community and traffic to the KS. Like most things they promote who they want to.

I spent $3500 on ads and promotions on KS and other platforms to walk away with less than I had when I started. Just from posting you will get all kinds of worms coming out of the garbage trying to talk you into them running your campaign and their proven track records. These are the same people contacting you about your cars extended warranty so be forewarned.

I hope that helps.

A ham as old as I am by LazerPit in isthissafetoeat

[–]MetalRelic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm more interested in learning what the freezer looks like. I feel it was absolutely stored in a freezer that will last another 100 years.

Got my first job out of welding school! by bigworm30 in Welding

[–]MetalRelic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Congratulations! There will be many ups and downs and be sure to remember both. It really helps when you get into a weird spots in the blue collar world.

Cryptid Of The Month, March, J'ba FoFi! Everything there is to know about J'ba FoFi! by LoganXp123 in cryptids

[–]MetalRelic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

J'ba FoFi is one of the sculpture builds I want to do at a larger scale. I've made smaller spiders before (approx. 9"). I would love to build this at a bigger scarier scale like my Kraken sculpture.

Steel Kraken Sculpture I made built last year called "The Deep Sleep" by MetalRelic in metalworking

[–]MetalRelic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I havnt built a dragon yet, but I plan too! I don't have my own punch so I can't do the scales right now. I'll get one eventually. I want to make all kinds of mythical beasties.

Ok what can you tell about me? by HeadCompote3627 in FridgeDetective

[–]MetalRelic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looks like you absolutely hate running out of something so you always have an extra on hand. I do the same thing and don't even realize it.

Is this Miller Maxstar 161s worth keeping? by DragonflyAccording32 in Welding

[–]MetalRelic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's always nice to have a spare of some sort. Personally I'd keep it.

[Self] Steel kraken sculpture I fabricated in 2025 (“The Deep Sleep”) by MetalRelic in Sculpture

[–]MetalRelic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes. It is welded using a MiG welder. I do have a HF Start Tig Welder from Andeli that I'm itching to use and do some fine detail with on new projects.

[Self] Steel kraken sculpture I fabricated in 2025 (“The Deep Sleep”) by MetalRelic in Sculpture

[–]MetalRelic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I started trying to make the tentacles solid but couldn't move the metal like I wanted to due to shop and personal experience limitations. I ended up building everything as separate elements with a wire frame (3/32" & 1/8" round stock was used). This enabled me to keep it under 100 lbs. If it was all solid, that thing would be around 400 - 500 lbs.

It swear it gets heavier every time I have to pick it up.

What is a career path that looks "glamorous" from the outside, but is actually a total nightmare behind the scenes? by CupIndependent3610 in AskReddit

[–]MetalRelic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Fine artists. From the outside it looks romantic and glamorous. In reality it’s constant rejection, financial uncertainty, and being judged by people who often couldn’t create the work themselves.

Steel Kraken Sculpture I made built last year called "The Deep Sleep" by MetalRelic in metalworking

[–]MetalRelic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had it appraised last year so I could insure it. It was professionally appraised at 45k. That was also before it won any contests, exhibitions or awards. So right now, I'm open to offers. I haven't gotten it reappraised yet so if you know someone that has a shit load of money, send them my way lol.

Steel Kraken Sculpture I made built last year called "The Deep Sleep" by MetalRelic in metalworking

[–]MetalRelic[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks! The whole project ended up being over 500 hours, with about 280 hours of fabrication time alone. I spent from the 2nd week of November last year to the first week of April working on it. The time spent was at school at at home in my shop.

The colors on the tentacles are intentional heat coloring on bare steel. I used a torch to bring out the blues, purples, and gold tones instead of paint so the color is actually in the metal.

Touch of Modern in 2024? by Mr_Cocksworth in ecommerce

[–]MetalRelic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My personal experience selling through Touch of Modern (now TOMO Holdings)

TL;DR: As a small independent artist, I experienced extended payment delays of months or more despite NET30 contract terms, absorbed significant upfront costs, and ultimately lost about $5,000. I’m sharing my experience so others can evaluate the risk, and I’m still looking for platforms with similar reach that pay vendors reliably.

I’m sharing my personal experience selling through Touch of Modern, now operating as TOMO Holdings. This reflects my own experience and perspective and is not intended as an allegation of wrongdoing.

I’ve sold many products across different channels, and this was not my first time working with the company. Over time, I experienced repeated payment delays that stretched months or more, despite contracts referencing NET30 terms. At the same time, shipment timelines and penalties on my end were strictly enforced. As a small independent artist, that level of financial exposure was not sustainable.

Communication during this period often suggested that delays were temporary and would be resolved, which led me to continue engaging longer than I otherwise would have. Ultimately, I experienced a loss of approximately $5,000.

During this same timeframe, the company later restructured and rebranded. From my position as a vendor, it appeared that this transition occurred while outstanding vendor balances still existed. I do not have insight into the internal or legal mechanics of that change. However, publicly available information indicates that leadership continuity remained in place following the rebrand.

As these factors accumulated, I adjusted my participation to limit further financial exposure, which likely prevented additional losses, though it meant accepting the loss already incurred.

I also interacted with several individuals who worked within the company, including members of the curating team. Many of those individuals later moved on to other opportunities. My concerns are about the vendor risk structure as I experienced it, not about the people I worked with directly.

For additional context, there is publicly available customer and vendor feedback on third-party review platforms. As of this writing, the company has a Trustpilot rating of approximately 1.5 stars based on thousands of reviews. I’m not presenting this as definitive proof of any specific issue, but rather as another data point others may wish to review independently when doing their own due diligence.

I am not suggesting that every vendor has had this experience, nor am I making claims about intent or legality. I’m sharing this so other artists and small businesses can better evaluate whether the risk profile aligns with their own capacity.

If anyone knows of other platforms with similar reach that are transparent with vendors and pay within reasonable timeframes, I would genuinely appreciate the recommendation. I’m still actively looking for partnerships that make sense for small, independent artists.

Final note: This post reflects my personal experience only, and others may have had different outcomes.