hehe...
Take this just as a "dump" from what i think about this matter, only that...
well...
You know how much it cost to pay a gfx man -if he's any good, as imho is way more important that the graphics are not seen as crap rather than if tehy're original; it jump into your face quicker a model with short legs than amodel that reminds me a bit to ut2k4 models, and in its perfection also...not encouraging ppl to rip models, anyway...- than the usual amateur developer or house is able or willing to pay.
In my case. I somehow have worked at this with a salary, and you bet what an amateur , home developer, or even tiny company (3, 4 guys with some money) is way not the quantity it'd worth for me...basicly, it wont pay me the hours put in it. It's higly devaluated in amateur field...some people try to get good models for 100$, and seen making the offer of 15$ for a modelled, textured, and rigged CUSTOM model..(geez..) There are some kiddies that fall into this , and then the developer gets some cilinder crap with a pair of extrudings that the artist call "arms"
basicly, for you to have a collection of models looking good... you'd need a load of money, even mores if as u say, you them custom made from drawings. I'd charge a load. been offered lately a huge quantity (never seen in forums anyway) for a collection like that for a game. But is a quantity really big.
Yep, option is grab models out there and modify , heavily or not. I don my models from scratch , my own drawings, or directly from my imagination...
I cannot code a single line. if ur lucky to be an execellent modeller and and a very good coder, then yes, that other theory would be possible, but probably you wont then be able to have a life, then...
Really it's even hard to see good modellers by its own, not to mention that they even may code...
So...I don't see anything wrong in using models free on the net. yep, there are really few, and even less well done...well, is you chance to learn a bit modifying them...with drastic change to textures is quite hard to distingish a model from another, in fact.
But hey, yep, is ideal to have a modeller do custom models for you, even from concept texts and drawings....
I've done that and wont do again unless for a load of money or with certain very goood friends of mine...
Also the atist needda be really relazed and free of compromises, job hunt and stuff...and in artists, this is quite hard to have situation, trust me...
is just like a "hey, be aware of this" but if you already knew all this, please, forgive me...