finding a kit that hits that "sweet spot"

I generally read the reviews about a kit before I buy,that usually keeps me from getting an unmanagable kit.And i know my limitations and how much of a challenge to take on..

As far as the Dragon kit you build,the newer ones are easier to manage,detailed but well engineered,so don't swear of all Dragon kits.

To be honest, I don't have much trouble at all finding a sweet spot kit  - I seem to find WAY too many of them, according to my wife!

Have to ask - what Tamiya kit did you drop $35 on? If it's 1/48 aircraft, I can only think of a few single-engines that I'd pay that for - the Storch, Il-2, and MAYBE the P-47M. You can snag their P-47D kits for around $30, and they are certainly more involved than the two-sprue wonders that Hobby Lobby stocks (those are great kits, but yeah, not much to them).

In terms of sweet spots...for aircraft check out Revell's PV-1, Zvezda's La-5 or La-5FN, Eduard's Hellcats (I got the Mk I/II Dual Combo Profipack awhile back for $35...that's two full kits + PE + masks + awesome decals). And definitely Tamiya's Thunderbolts - in my opinion just some of the flat-out best kits ever put out in 1/48. 

Armor is harder to keep at $30-35. The Dragon T-34 kits are pretty good and detailed without going overboard. I'm also a huge fan of their Panzer III and IV Smart Kits, and the Cyber-Hobby Orange Box value sets impart all that awesomeness usually at a slightly cheaper price. Honestly I don't know why everyone dogs on Dragon so much. There are some fiddly bits, sure, but they all fit well and I've found most of their kits to be much less PITA-worthy than the AFV Club Achilles I built. If you keep an eye on Dragon USA's online shop, they also run crazy specials all the time, and you should be able to find some amazing armor kits (and a few aircraft) for often 40-50% off. Heck, right now they're selling a JSU-152 for $15 and I'm trying very hard to not buy it!

After building (and winning) Model Craft's 1/48 F-82 (which can be had for low $20s...GET SQUADRON VAC-CANOPIES for it!!!!)....EVERYTHING hits the sweet spot....it's just a matter of subject, to determine what I build....kit manufacturer matters not!

PS, not saying that I'm recommending the F-82, just saying I learned A LOT, about making things fit, filling major gaps, aligning misaligned parts and fixing just about everything else that could possibly go wrong.....the kit is rough! I also learned to truley appreciate everything that Revellogram ever put out!

The kit I just picked up is Tamiya’s British L.R.D.G. Command Car.  It is a kit I stumbled upon at my favorite online store, and have been eagerly awaiting its re-release.  It is one of those subjects that when you see it you know you want to build it.  It cost something like $31, + $6 to get it shipped. I would dearly love to build a P-47, but it must be a bubble-top, and I have not seen one under $30, until you pointed me towards Dragon Online.  They have a P-47D bubble top from Tamiya that I have never seen before, at sub- $30. www.dragonusaonline.com/item_detail.aspx

‘course they say “market place” suppliers may not actually have the kit, and I don’t know how often that is an issue.

While I still stand by my comment on the Revel F-5, I can also say sometimes I go into a kit with expectations, and then get annoyed when those expectations are not met.  That is a fault of mine, not Revel,s (though I did not know I was getting a kit quite so rough as that one is).

I really do appreciate suggestions on kits people have built (thanks DoogsATX).  So I cruise over to the Dragon site, and the next thing I know I have a $70 order!  Hey, you want to get the most you can out of your shipping charges right?  I didn’t hit the order button, but I didn’t clear my cart either

My sweet spot holds a narrow range, being "something I like" and "$5 or less".  Haven't bought a kit since my club auction a few months ago, where I picked up a couple for $1 each.  *shrug*

I find Trumpeter kits to be a fairly good balance between price and buildability. They do sometimes cut corners with detail, but that's sometimes what makes them more buildable than more complex kits. Occassionally they do an absolute howler eg. P-40 cockpit but price wise, I find them much easier on the wallet than Dragon or Tamiya.

I quite enjoyed building the Trumpeter Abrams, which was the 5 in 1 kit which gave quite a few options. Compared to a Tamiya Abrams it was almost half the price. While it did have a few inaccuracies about it, the leading edge of the turret being the main offender, but I only picked it out because I saw it on another site. For the average layperson, It's an Abrams.

One reason I like ship models, and used to do quite a bit of model railroading. I love the challenge of making my own detail parts to go along with a basic kit and a little extra stuff. I find that I can just keep adding detail to a model until I feel like stopping.

Never mind the P-47 being sub $30.  It was an additional $7 or 8 for international shipping.

As long as the parts are molded well and fit where they're supposed to it's good 'nuff for my sweet spot.

The ultimate "sweet spot" for me is Tamiya Thunderbolt Razorback....from start to finish.  Actually its more like bliss.  I got one off E-bay for $25.00 so it can be found cheap with persistence and a littl luck.  

About 10 years ago, I picked up a Tamiya Steyr Kommandeur wagon (basically a giant 4-door staff car) from the clearance bin at a local hobby shop for around $10-12 (less than the new Willys Jeep cost). There was also a small Tamiya PE set for it for another $4.

It's not my usual fare, but I was pleasantly pleased with the build. I painted it in German gray from a Tamiya rattle can so I didn't have to mess with the more exotic German camouflage schemes.

So for around $15, I build a nice, well-engineered kit that looks like an over-sized Jeep.

Stick with the Dragon Smart Kits if you can. I have a few in the stash. They are the modern molds, with limited PE, but still contains great detail. Dragon kits generally build up well. They supplanted Tamiya years ago when they released their Super Kits. They have a ton of parts, but are more detailed and come with everything you need. Spruebrothers and ebay are my places of choice to save money on them.

Revell smart kits is a good place to start if you're a novice. There are also many nice Air Fix kits without too many parts. Sadly what they lack in parts, they also lack in details. Dragon is good and offers many parts. I have however noticed that some parts can be made of vinyl. Some come with PEs as well. Tamiya kits specially armour are quite manaegable, Specially the tracks. They are usually made of nice and stretchy rubber. Easy to fit. Look up on reviews for pointers to secure a good purchase. Sometimes going to a flee market can be that place where you find those hidden treasures.

I still say that Revell's 1/32 Hawker Hunter was the kit that hit my sweet spot... A gorgeous build! I have bought two off Ebay for a song each time.

Mine was without doubt the Trumpeter 1/700 kit of the Jean Bart. It had really good seams. The mouldings fitted nicely. hardly no need to use the putty to tweak. Beautiful details, loads of spare parts (about 359). Less 23 £. Such a beauty! Highly recommended to all model builders.

Dang you doogsATX  I got an email from Dragon.  More kits on my wish-list

stikpusher

I still say that Revell's 1/32 Hawker Hunter was the kit that hit my sweet spot... A gorgeous build! I have bought two off Ebay for a song each time.

That is a kit I would like to build, and would like to build a 1/32 scale.  I don't often check ebay, but maybe I should try to so that every so often.

I'd say any of the Hasegawa 1/32 Bf-109's are the sweet spot- small parts count, decent details and they're practically idiot-proof.   And there were enough different schemes and personal markings to make each one unique.

For me, anything by Wingnut Wings. Interesting subjects, great fit, flawless parts (including PE) , incredible detail, beautiful color instruction manuals (including lots of archival photos), and the absolute best kit decals in the biz, not to mention free shipping. Tough to beat that.

bump? No other input? With all of the experience and opinions on this board, there's only one response with only minor input? I thought the knowledgeable on this board would have something to say to help build a kit that fits this need.

I am getting as bad with models as women get with shoes. I buy most of my kits from squadron.com when they have them on sale. Whether I am looking for a particular kit or not if it is on sale and made by one of the top makers I buy it. Squadron recently had a sale on a lot of Trumpeter armor kits and I ended up buying 2 of them because the deal was just to good to pass up. I got a 1/35 Jagdpanzer 38(t) Hetzer-Starr for $19.99 and a Waffentrager 88mm pak-43 for around $25.00. Both kits normally sell in $50 - $60 range. I'm a sucker for sales mainly because I don't have a lot of cash either. Hope that helps. :)

For me, it is a lot of the Monogram 1/48 scale aircraft.  They're cheap enough that I'm not paranoid about ruining a $60+ model, but the fit and detail is good enough that they look good on the shelf.