Pre-orders are an option. Given what still needs to be sculpted (the biggest expense) I'd need 1,900 USD with a KS (roughly 210 units). Taking pre-orders instead of a KS I'd be able to do it at 90% of that (1,710 and 190 units).
PayPal allows for pre-orders, I just haven't investigated how to go about them. In a nut shell, someone pays and it gets put into a holding area. I get to withdraw it from that area the day before I ship. What happens if someone cancels their payment or I have to refund it, I'm not sure. I don't think there's much risk for the buyer, but I could be left holding miniatures that people backed out on. Not the worst problem for me, but I try to stay lean and liquid by keeping inventory low. There's also the problem of I get 50% of the cash I need, what then? Can I refund it all without penalty?
Of course, all that's if we do it on the up-and-up with PayPal. If someone were to send me a gift, with the understanding that I'd send them a gift of miniatures sometime in the next 6 months, that would be something to talk about.
All that being said though, every dollar I make selling the products I have goes towards getting the next one sculpted or some form of business overhead. So if you want them sooner, pimping them across the internet and to friends helps just as much.
