Absotlute beginner

IwannaSMASHthis wrote:

Hi everyone.  I am about to start my very first model at the age of 35, yes its true. I recently had a heart attack and my wife and assorted family members thought that if I had a hobby it would help keep me from moping around the house. (doctors say I will be laid up for a very long time) My question for you people who all seem to be expert model builders is what basic tools am I going to need to embark upon my journey into the world of modeling? And also i do not own an airbrush and compressor so any tips on how to make a kit look half decent by handpainting would be most appreciated.

Welcome!

Well, for the most basic stuff you'll need:

Sprue clippers for separating parts fropm sprues

Liquid Cement (or whatever glue you prefer)

Assorted sand paper

X-acto knife

A few really good paintbrushes

That should start you off really well on the "absolute beginner" level. 

Welcome to the Forums .  Hope modeling gives you the needed therapy.

Regards,  Rick

Hi Smash

I know this is long but bear with me,over the years I have helped quite a few people get into this hobby ( I have been building for about 35 years now)  and I have the following advice:

1: Use quality tools and a sharp knife. Knife blades are cheap, dull blades skip and usually wind up cutting you. Wear eye protection when using your shears to cut anything metal or that can fly way. Wet/ dry sandpaper in 220/320/400/600 grits plus some 000 steel wool are invaluable. I have clothespins that date back to when I was a kid, plus all sorts of hemostats, clamps, etc  from various places (including radio shack). I like Tamiya liquid glue, but have used just about everything on the market avialable in the US.  Putty is a subject in and of itself, a search of the forums here will find dozens of threads on that topic alone. HAVE FUN!

2: Building models is really about building and mastering tasks, primary assembly,basic seam fillling, mastering clear parts installation  and finally mastering finishes and decals. Take each step a chunk at a time, learning as you go.  I try to build for an hour or so a day. When you have got some experience with less expensive kits and feel comfortable moving on, then its time to get those pricey Acamiyagawa kits. Smaller kits may actually be a bit harder to build than larger (depending on what you are building) kits when you are starting out. For planes 1/48 is a great place to start. Autos are less "choosey" while ships can vary widely in price and size. The October 2006 issue of Finescale modeler has a good article on filling seams using a variety of techniques that I currrently use. Back in the '80's Finescale Modeler had a continuing series called BASIC TECHNIQUES<-->ADVANCED RESULTS that ran for some time, and was a fanstastic primer for many of us. HAVE FUN!

3: I used to help out with a class on Friday afternoons for anyone that wanted to learn, and we found that more people learned more skills with less expensive Revell/ Monogram kits (learning seam filling, learning proper alignment) than with "shake and bake" Tamiya and Hasegawa kits (throw in a bottle of glue, shake the box and you are done) . I find you won't gain as many skills in the long run by learning on these kits at first (I'ts like learning to fly by letting the autopilot fly the plane for you).   HAVE FUN!

4:Don't worry about airbrushes at first. Work on the basics first and spend your dollars on kits and good tools, an airbrush will come in time. I have been airbrushing for twenty five years but I shot a motorcylcle with a spraycan yesterday (I build mainly helicopters and sci-fi, but break it up for variety).  I have learned techniques and skills from Auto, Figure, Armor, Wargame miniature and SciFi guys, even tho I may have no interest in what they are building, there is something to be learned there. HAVE FUN!

5: Try to find a copy of the older book "building scale plastic models" It was an IPMS collaboration put out in the early 80s by Kalmbach Publishing, and while much of the material in it may look "dated" and perhaps even "antiquiated" at first, but I have gone back and re-read that book time and again. The basics have not changed over time and this is many perpsectives in one format. HAVE FUN!

6: The Shep Paine modeling books have been invaluable to me over the years even tho I do not build tanks. His insight into the state of the hobby in the 80s and late 70s, and how to make things on your own (there was no resin other than your own dental resin and PE was just on the horizon) has helped many established modelers over and over again.  It's easy to drop a Aries,B/B or C/C resin set into a model, but far more satisfying to make something on your own. HAVE FUN!

7: Dont be afraid of being seen in the craft aisles . I have purchased so many useful things in the jewelry/beading aisle this past year it is not even funny. Be creative in solving problems. Beading wire is awesome and easily bent to shape. Motors stripped for wire last for years. Things you may think are junk (packaging inserts, broken parts, etc) may find some use in time, I have a organizer box of odd shaped parts, motor gears, etc. HAVE FUN!

8:  Sometimes a little failure helps out in the long run.  Dont let a percieved "failure" get you down for long. There are ways to fix just about any problem.  Overcoming this is just one more skill you will add to your knowledge base.  Just today I knocked the tip of an elf assassin's ear off of a 1/5 scale figure, and cannot find the chunk that came off. I am using epoxy putty to sculpt a rough shape of a new ear tip so I can file out the replacement. HAVE FUN!

9: If you have a local club, check into attending thier meetings--attendance will be free while membership will have some small fee. I hear this a LOT: "Nah, Im not up to the level of you experts!" I am NOT an expert! Experts get called onto the witness stand to testify in court. I do this as a hobby with a lower case "h"  I just have a skillset that came with time and interest. Anyone that will not share thier knowledge, or considers anything they have to be "secrets" is a disgrace to this hobby in my not so humble opinion, and I steer well clear of them. HAVE FUN and meet people. Some clubs are more fun than others, but just because a club is small does not mean they are "boring"! Also, it is very important that as a new member you bring your models to the meeting--it sounds odd, but most new members do not bring what they are working on, so us old timers cannot see where we can provide guidance for them to gain that next skillset. HAVE FUN and bring your models!

10: The most important thing is to ENJOY what you do. It is for YOU to enjoy. It is your hobby, and dont ever let anyone tell you that you painted a Acamiyagawa Hestersnotz Mk XXXVII the wrong shade of pink!

Welcome to the hobby, I've had a lot of them and this is the one I have stuck with the longest. Check out my website for some step by step tutorials as well; 

http://www.angelfire.com/ca4/hlmp/home.html 

David

Pat, I cannot thank you enough for taking the time to give me all that great advice. I think I am going to get into building military aircraft so Your point of starting with the 1/48 scale is a valueble one. The reason I am choosing Military aircraft is that my city houses the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum and I have spent many afternoons standing in the shadows cast by these aircraft in absolute awe of them. (we also happen to have as the diamond of our collection one of the only two operational Lancasters in the world, my avatar is a photo i took of it on my last visit). here is the link to their website in case you have any interest in it.

www.warplane.com            thanks again. 

to the Forum! It's never too late to start building models, I been doing it for about 47 years now and I'm still learing new techniques and tricks from fellow modelers of this forum and reading FSM. 1/48th is an excellent scale to work with, you have a huge selection of planes to pick from and more and more armor kits are coming out in this scale now. If you pick out a kit with a simple paint scheme of one or two shades than you can try using can spray paints from Model Master or Tamiya. Good luck on your first build.

Scott

Hi Smash

youre very welcome. I enjoy posting things that I hope will help others.  Dont be afraid to make mistakes, it helps in the long run, and most important, enjoy what it is you do!  I find having the TV on really helps me enjoy, I get to watch what few shows I do watch on TV and get work done at the same time.

I did not mention in mypost, that over the last twenty years there have been SO MANY bookson how to build, detail, superdetail and UBERdetail models that is is dizzzying.  Now we have very nice DVD and some older well-done VHS tapes on modeling essentials.

Send us some photos of work in progress!

David

Welcome Smash!  I hope you'll enjoy your new hobby. 

If I have one advice to give you it would be to thin the paint toroughly before brush painting.  You'll get better result if you apply several thin coats than trying to cover the whole surface with only one stroke.  The paint will look more even and less glossy.

Have fun.  I can't wait to see your first model completed.

Oh, be carefull, that hobby is addictive.  I'm pretty sure you'll have several tools on your workbench by the end of the year and probably a gigantic stash of unopened model boxes.  And several uncompleted model on the bench too.

Awesome! Looking forward to the pics!

What's the first project ya got lined up?

 The intricate details have been messaged to you but these are the really basic rules. Try Not to squeeze the glue tube.If u do wipe it off very carefully with a tissue or a kfc wetwipe before it dries.If u get your fingers covered in glue, clean them! Or You will end up with glue everywhere.Secondly get a magnifying glass so u can find those hard to find parts you dropped on the same coloured floor! Those cheap manicure nail disposable sanding pads come in very handy. A good pair of tweezers and most importantly a lot of perserverance and patience will get u models you will be proud of. One last tip ,buy the fine scale moddeller special how to specials they can teach You what it takes years  fro people to learn in one quick read.And Last dont be afraid to ask fro help.Believe me if u have made some large mistake making a model, there are thousands like you whom did the same.And No doubt we know by now how to reverse the mistake or at the very least work around it.

And for the beginner, you can get a basic tools from your local dollar stores or even at home depot for A LOT cheaper than you get from hobby shops as well.  You can also use nail clipper as a sprue clipper as well.  Don't go too crazy with all the tools from the start. 

Enjoy and hope you enjoy the hobby

Hi,

Welcome to the forums and the hobby.

Main thing to remember. Have fun. Relax. Enjoy. Send lots of pics of the work in progress.

Jim

There is a great deal of good advice in the answers that you have recieved, and over time you will be able to sort it out. 

As one who had a heart-attack at 41, and am still kicking at 65, let me assure you that "restfulness" of modeling is up to the modeler.  Modelers are, by nature, perfectionists, but they are also human, and as such are not perfect.  The trick is to treat each project as a project - not a life goal, but part of an ongoing acquistition of skills and approaches.

As a beginner you lack experience, but experience, after all,  is just another name for having [bleeped]-up and learned from it.  Do the best you can, using the methods and workmanship that you feel best fit the problem at hand.

Top-of-the-line kits from manufacturers like Tamiya and Hasegawa are often worth the difference in price, but you will not be able to appreciate the difference until you have tried other less expensive stuff .

 Above all, modeling is about recovering gracefully from error, not about flawless performance.  Do, however, get in the habit of checking your work so that trivial errors [e.g. 'absotlute' instead of 'absolute' don't overcome your good work.]

 Regards,

Jimf