With due respect, that can't be a yes or no answer. Well, I guess for the Hanses of the world it can be a simple "no". But in my opinion, each kit is different, some are more justified in charging what they charge than others.

So my answer.

...maybe...

Yes,I will not buy a kit unless,it's one that I really have to have.I have thoroughly researched the reviews to see what people think of it.And it's from a company that I trust.Gone are the days of just picking up a new kit to try it out without any knowledge of it.

I will still spend big bucks on a kit if it meets my criteria,and i wiil pass if I only hav a passing interest in it.

DoogsATX

With due respect, that can't be a yes or no answer. Well, I guess for the Hanses of the world it can be a simple "no". But in my opinion, each kit is different, some are more justified in charging what they charge than others.

So my answer.

...maybe...

I concur with my esteemed colleague from Austin!  To me it also depends on where the kit is coming from; whether it's from a company or someone selling some of his/her stash on eBay.  If it's a brand new Trumpeter kit I'm more willing to pay the higher price than if it's somebody just trying to make a buck.

So I too will offer a qualified "maybe".   

OK, obviously bigger kits are obviously gonna be reasonable to charge $50+. But I am asking about MSRP, the sticker price at a LHS, on a new release kit. Not a rare, old or OOP kit being sold from a stash or some other similar sale.  I am aware of import vs domestic costs, but even there, most US based companies are no longer manufacturing here. And I know importers take their cut to boost the price. Yes each kit is different. Does the higher cost of most average new releases make you think twice about buying said kit?

Yes it makes me think twice. And generally walk away. I've still got a big stash that I aim to build.

Absolutely, unquestionable YES!

And I've stopped buying for all but the most precious "been waiting for" kits!

Besides, just finishing a model properly any more is becoming a financial burden with the price of paints, glues, supplies, etc!

I'm sticking with MAYBE!

I think some new kits are overpriced.

I think some new kits are hella bargains ($23 Zvezda Bf 109F-2, I'm lookin' at you).

I think some new kits justify their price (Tamiya 1/32 P-51...yes justifies is subjective, but that kit is at present without equal in terms of sheer engineering sophisitication).

I think some don't (new Dragon/Cyber-Hobby release that's 90% existing sprues you can buy as another kit for 1/2 the price...full MSRP of Revellogram repops).

Personally? I like new kits. I like manufacturers coming out with new kits. I like fresh blood in the hobby. I don't pay MSRP because 1) online retailers always discount them and 2) I get 20% off purchases over $50 at the LHS. That said, I try to look at each kit as its own thing, and its merits relative to similar subjects or kits in the scale. 

Case in point - I'm not buying the new Great Wall P-61 because I just don't care about the Widow that much, and because that's pricey for a 1/48 kit (and I know it will get cheaper in six months). I did, however, buy the new PCM 1/32 Spit XIV because it's a limited run kit, my absolute favorite mark of Spitfire, and 60% the price of the Tamiya (and comes with color PE and resin to boot).

  But I am limiting my stash to its current 101 total.  It better be good for me to shell money for a while, unless I find a real bargain...but surely I digress and will take my foot away from the soapbox, before it is too late.

..but if you haven't snagged the Zvezda kit yet, get it.   It is outstanding, even if it were double the price.  If HaseMiya offered that one, it would easily be over 50.

Hutch

Yes and no...

I've bought a total of three models in the past year. The pricing for models has about driven me out of the hobby I just can't justify spending $50+ on a model. And like the doog said the prices for supplies is making it hard enough to even finish my stash.

So Doog's,for you the answer would actually be yes,you do think twice about dropping over $50.00 for a new release.You give it some consideration,weigh the factors and decide.You don't just drop $50.00 without second thought

Am I correct in reading your thoughts,because Stik's question was basically,does the high price tag give you pause,and I think we all pause and think about it.Some flatly walk away,others buy their dream kit,and others decide what they want,but just aboutveveryone who works hard for their money" gives it second thought".

stikpusher

 does the $50+ pricing on most new releases make you think twice about purchasing those kits?

...............yes...............

Yes... with the caveat, that kit, subject, etc can sway the vote for me..

Yes

Yes, but you won't find a kit that fits your description in Australia for less than $50.

The average LHS price for 1/48s and 1/35s would be $60 - $80 here.

Well, then, definitely I will not consider relocating to Australia.......

Absolutely yes. This is why my stash only has one hasagawa kit, and I only have that one because it was 75% off.  I'm Hans like, I wont pay $40 for a single engine fighter in 48th.  The bulk of my kit stash is revell and tamiya, most of the tamiya kits came from hobby lobby, so those were 40% off. My most expensive kit is the tamiya lancaster in 48th, paid $82 for it, but show me another lancaster in the same scale, and you see why I have it.

Yes!

Jim

A price tag over $30 is almost always an immediate NO!!!

 I rarely ever think twice, I just buy.....or not.

sometimes

Simply, yes.  Stik, question,well put!  $50 price tag on anything should make you think twice.  $50 shouldn't be an impulse buy.  Rick

No. This is my one and only hobby.  I don't have any other distractions to spend my money on.  After bills, etc.  This is applicable to Armor kits mostly.  I can afford them.  And I enjoy them.  I build and add to the stash guilt free.  And I am happily married to a woman who is fine with this.

Doug

Yep.  I understand the molding technology has come a long way but some of the prices seem a bit outrageous.  Especially from certain manufacturers. 

Some usually go on sale online which is when I will buy them.  

anthony2779

 

So Doog's,for you the answer would actually be yes,you do think twice about dropping over $50.00 for a new release.You give it some consideration,weigh the factors and decide.You don't just drop $50.00 without second thought

Am I correct in reading your thoughts,because Stik's question was basically,does the high price tag give you pause,and I think we all pause and think about it.Some flatly walk away,others buy their dream kit,and others decide what they want,but just aboutveveryone who works hard for their money" gives it second thought".

 

Honestly I don't drop $5 without a touch of second thought. Doesn't mean I don't drop it, but I do try to find a good value for the money I'm spending. Hence - it makes a lot more sense to me to buy a lot of paint at once online than to fork over an additional $0.75/bottle at Hobbytown. It makes more sense for me to buy pigments directly from MIG for like $5/bottle rather than $10 or whatever they go for on SB. Everything we buy is a packaged, mass-produced good. Apart from quality control issues, what's in one box is exactly what's in the next box. So why on earth would I (or anyone) pay $50 for something when it's easy to get it for $35 in five other places?

Where I will spend money without hesitation is when I see a very expensive kit knocked way down. Great Models had Trumpy's big Dauntless on sale for 50% off earlier this year and I jumped on it. At the Austin show last weekend, IPMS was giving a kit away if you paid $25 to sign up. One of the kits was Trumpy's big F4F-3 Wildcat. A kit I'd wanted anyway...and $25 for a kit that usually sells for at least $50? Jump.

It goes the other way, too. I will laugh my head off when I see an Academy P-47 with an MSRP of $50 (P-47 Gabreski edition - $49.95). Or when I look at the prices of pretty much any kit on the shelf at Hobbytown.

It depends on the manufacturer. Also I build mostly 1/32 airplanes, so my limit is around $60. Unless, as Doogs mentioned, there's the occasional Really good kit, such as the Tamiya 1/32 P-51.

No, I buy kits on the gray market at deep discounts. So retail prices don't affect me at all.

Yes, no, maybe...

I almost always pick stuff up at hobby shows and on sale. I've rarely paid more than $30-35 bucks for a 1/48th aircraft or 1/35 AFV.

Though when I buy the kit: $30.00

Eduard pre-cut canopy masks $5.00

Eduard ZOOM PE set $5.00

Paint: $10.00

Well, you've got $50.00 bucks right there...

B-17 Guy

 I'm Hans like, I wont pay $40 for a single engine fighter in 48th.  

I have to ask because I'm curious - what 1/48 single engine fighter costs more than $40?

I know there are some that MSRP for well above that, but heck, the Tamiya P-47M is just about the most expensive single-engine I can think of, and Great Models has it for $39.

I've never deprived myself of a model due to price...last few weeks I purchased 5 Hasegawa quarter scale kits--mainly in the $34 - $45 range...

I also popped for a few ref books on Japanese a/c from Amazon...that gold I stole from the salt mines in the Spring of '45 is still holding out...