how do you decide?

I only go in to get specific kits or supplies...  I get inspired looking other folks' stuff, magazines, books, historical photos, documentaries, movies, etc.. Then I get a diorama idea and run with it, staying focused on what I need for the build...

Instead of a new kit how are you on the Necessities - Self healing mat ? Razor Saw or Sprue Nippers ?  Compartment boxes for storing small parts and tools ? Airbrush or A/B upgrade ? stuff like that you can over and over...

For me when I get a new kit , it almost has the "Halo" effect on the shelves, everything beside it will be a blurr but that one certain one will be clear and  focused. (tunnel model vision some may call it)

Summit wrote:

Instead of a new kit how are you on the Necessities - Self healing mat ? Razor Saw or Sprue Nippers ?  Compartment boxes for storing small parts and tools ? Airbrush or A/B upgrade ? stuff like that you can over and over... For me when I get a new kit , it almost has the "Halo" effect on the shelves, everything beside it will be a blurr but that one certain one will be clear and  focused. (tunnel model vision some may call it)

I have all the necessities.

Don't look at the kits in the store or online.

Make a list. Prioritize the list. Then go to the store or online and go down the list. As you acquire more kits, those toward the bottom move up the list. 

Last week was the Long Island Figure Show. I had one new kit in mind and I targetted that one first, even before "taking care of business." The rest of the shopping was for targets of opportunity. Last spring at MFCA, I had several kits in mind when I walked in the door but not with the urgency of this particular kit thoughthe previous year at MFCA I did have a main target and picked that one up right away.

Your comment about Christmas shopping brought back memories. For many years, my mother did the same thing for me and my brother and our wives. We were expected to go out and spend the money she gave us then bring her the stuff to wrap then act surprised at Christmas. Unfortunately, she expected a lot of things, so the $100 had to be carefully apportioned. As we got more financially secure, there were few little things we needed but buying a large item was frowned upon. Had SWMBO and I combined the money to get a big something for the house, it would have precipitated a really bad scene. All this just reinforced my humbug attitude I had gained from working in retail.

I'm the same as Hans & the others. I am an aviation fanatic & have a long list of A/C that I HAVE to build from Lancaster's to f-22's, my way of dealing with it is to do groups - like say supersonic twin bombers, WW2 4 eng. bombers or "conflict collections". This makes the whole task easier as I will already have a "priority list" in my skull (somewhere), which I will then work through.

EG WW2 4 bombers No1 is the B24, WW2 twin bombers is the B26, so on and so forth.

I find if I dont do this I end up like the proverbial "kid in a sweet shop", but with an adults wallet - & return with a load of s*** which I may not really want, & some of which I will never get round to building.

I do the same kind of thing, but my lists are less detailed.

When I try and buy for a diorama, it either doent get finished, or changed mid stream.  (IE that kubelwagen dio)

When I go shopping online I have a general idea of what I want.  I want to do a large figure, like 1/16th or something of that nature.  I have the verlinden kubelwagen crew in that scale, but I dont have a kubelwagen to go with them, so Im not gona doem yet.  Some of the other kits I want arent avaliable yet, like the IJA Type 1.

I have a few things set on my list that I am going to get.  WWI German heavy battle tank (Tauro kit, on Squadron's site), Pre War Akagi 1/700 and a set of IJN bi-plane bombers/fighters to go with it (both hasegawa, a few 1/35 figure kits (Masterbox german/russian hand to hand combat).  I WAS going to get the Zvezda red army sniper kits, for the female sniper, but, checking it out online, the figure's face is molded horribly.)  I realised I had enough and put both the samurai warlord, and the French Guard drummer on my list.  But I'm at a loss for what to get otherwise.  I went from no cash, to to much cash.(literally, 0 up... 2oo for christmas, and 180 from my Bday +25$ debit gift card)

Ah well, took a shot...

Look, there's no "magic bullet" you can shoot into something and pull out the right kit(s)... You have to decide what you want to do based on your likes, interests, skill-level, and funding... My kit selections are based on about half-a-dozen sketches in my sketchbook, and copious amounts of note-taking, which usually is made up of a pile of any piece of paper that happens to be close by when I think of something..

I have kits from 20 years ago that still have a plan attatched to them (I drop notes into the boxes)... I also call my answering machine from time to time from my cell if I see something along the road that inspires me, or just get a flash of inspiration...

But... I'm just spit-ballin' here.  Don't take this the wrong way, but you have a tendency to ask for help, folks offer it,  then you come up with a hundred reasons why you can't do something, instead figuring out how you CAN... I've seen it from you over and over since I joined the forums... Focus, young Jedi... This's supposed to fun...    To paraphrase Linus' quip to Charlie Brown, "Smeagol, you're the only guy I know that can take a wonderful hobby like modeling and turn it into a problem."...

The only other thing I can think of to tell you is just go buy some stuff and figure out what to do with it later...    

I do have that tendancy.  I think it comes from more not being able to phrase the question right in the first place.  What I'm really asking is how do you guys decide when there are, lets say, two kits you want, and only have enough for one of them.  Flip a coin? enie menie meiney mo? or some more logical way?

One thing I tend to do is I ask my friend his opinion, when he gives me answer if I say 'but...' at all, I want the other one.  I asked because now there are more then two kits in question, trying to see if I can find something that works better

What I'm really asking is how do you guys decide when there are, lets say, two kits you want, and only have enough for one of them.  Flip a coin? enie menie meiney mo? or some more logical way?

Well, why didn't ya say so..

The cheaper one... That way I may have enough left over for a brush, thinner bottle, bottle of paint, strip styrene, blades, sandpaper, whatever, for the supply locker... 

i am a self admitted mizer

i buy what is on sale( on deep discount)  or clearance

I usually go the LHS and browse a lot, without buying anything...  A couple of days later, I go back and usually the want list is narrowed down to a manageble, non-impulsive level, I then go with the kit that I am most likely to start building that day.  Works for me.