Hi, I’m Eric. I’ve been a professional prop maker since 2005 when my wife and I started our company, Hole in the Ground Productions. But what I’ve been for my entire life, is an avid action figure collector.
A few years ago I noticed frustration that some adult collectors, like me, had with a lack of environmental pieces for 3 3/4" figures such as tables and chairs, or even playsets. As adult collectors, we tend to be less interested in “play” and more into “display” but even as children we appreciated these kinds of accessories. As a business venture, I figured that diorama parts are nothing more than miniature props so I decided to make a few parts and gauge interest. It turned out that a lot of figure collectors loved having these types of parts available. Four years later, we now produce over 50 different diorama components that are being sold worldwide.
Here’s where this campaign comes into play... Currently, I make almost all our parts in resin using molds. There are a few downsides to this. Some parts are too thin or too complex to cast successfully, rubber molds wear out over time, and color variations due to the tinting process. Finally, there is the issue of time. I want to create new products; however, I spend a good portion of my time simply casting to fill current orders. I’m spending all my time on production instead of what I really want to be doing; creating new things. The best way for Hole in the Ground Productions to move forward is to move some of this production to a factory level and have these parts injection molded.
This is not an inexpensive process. The tooling required is costly and there is a requirement of large minimum quantities per each part. We can’t afford to move the entire line of parts into injection molding in one shot, so we are starting off with some simple items that can be used across a broad range of action figure themes such as crates and boxes.
We will be starting with six parts that will be injection molded to start with; an ammo crate, a larger "ridged box", two "cubes crates" with removable lids so accessories can store inside, and a new "long crate" with a removable lid for storage. Then there's what I refer to as a hanger bay light which comes with decals. Using this factory process will allow these items to have unparalleled precision, consistent colors, and open the door for more complex diorama items in the future. I fully intend to follow it with items like tables and chairs along with a few items we’ve never offered before. One day I’d love to not only bring you great diorama parts and display pieces but perhaps an original line of action figures as well. For now, we feel that this is a necessary step to keep doing what we’ve been doing, only better and bigger. If you love action figures and dioramas, please support this campaign.
PLEASE NOTE: To provide combined shipping on orders of multiple perks, and to allow us to ship worldwide, we will be invoicing shipping once the orders are ready to go out. This will ensure contributors the most cost effective shipping and ability to add insurance to high ticket perks.
