If a friend asks you to make a model for him/her...

I have no problem doing it. At the moment I am working, amongs other things, on an M109A2 for a friend who served on one during Desert Storm. He has very few memorabilia of his time in the desert, he lost much of it in a divorce, so I feel good about being able to give him something from his past.

For a friend I would do it for free if it's a good friend I would have no problem doing it and I would be happy to have them display it.I would be flattered to have a friend ask me to do it.

No the questions,is this a close friend,do they appreciate the time and effort you put in,will they value your build,or will it go in a closet or a basement.you know what was it just a whim or do they appreciate your talent

Given the size of the kit, and it is for a friend, yes I would do it, with the only proviso being no time limit - is it a subject you are not regularly interested in?

As far as not being able to keep it on display, down the road you will eventually find you won't have enough room display every build anyways.

regards,

Jack

After awhile you will have a hard time finding space for the models you have built anyway.  I have built models that were intended to be donated to a veteran, or to give to other causes, and never worried about the cost. If a friend asks for a model and agrees to pay for the kit, that is fine. I would not charge for the paint, though.

I've done it dozens of times. When building for a friend, I tend to do a quicker, less detailed build. If I was building a subject not up my alley, like a car, I would do a solid but not superb build. Not that it would be poor, but I'd paint the engine but not detail paint it, interior would look good, but not different shades for different materials on the inside, etc.

Yes, I would. Last year I built a matchbox Chinook. One of the guys in my unit saw it and asked if I could build him one, his uncle had served in the Falkland's. He bought the kit and though he offered to pay me for my time, I wouldn't except. He did pay me for the PE set that I got for it I already had the paint, so that was no biggy. It probably ended up better than mine, maybe because I built it straight after mine, so I knew the short comings of it.

But if it was a regular thing, I would be less inclined to do it only because its taking tie away from me doing my own.

I built the 1/24 Tamiya Mini Clubman for my sister last year for Christmas. It was a pretty easy build but the painting can take an age. Have a look at the Auto side of the forum to get ideas how to do it. I think I spent more time polishing it than anything else and I mean HOURS of polishing

Phil

Tell her you'll do it, but no time limit, as one person already said. Then work on it at your leisure. It's the nice thing to do, for a friend. I make Jenn, my fiance', models every now and then, and it's fun to see the reaction when they get them.

Yeah!That kit should not be bad but I build model cars all of the time!Just do a good paint job.

As others above have said, if it's for a friend, then do it.  If the person is truly a friend (or if you're truly a friend to him/her), then do it for nothing.  He/she gets a great model.  You're doing it for someone who is not able to do it for her/himself.  And best of all, you get to work on a kit that you didn't have to pay for while, at the same time, expanding your area of expertise.  This friend of yours is literally handing you the opportunity to practice your hobby.

I like what Don said.  Over the course of time, you'll eventually run out of room to display your builds.  When that time comes, you'll be chomping at the bit to build something for someone.  That's the point I've reached in my life right now.  I've built models for my friends and relatives whenever they've asked me to build some for them.  I get the sheer pleasure of the build and the pride of having someone else display my work in their house.

I think I actually tend to do a slightly bit better job when I work on a model for others.  If it's for myself, then I can accept my own mistakes.  If it's a build for someone else, well, I have my pride you know.  LOL!  If it's for someone else, then I'm most likely to do a an absolute whiz-bang job on it so I don't embarrass myself AND so that they'll continue to ask me to build stuff for them!

Eric

Hi :

  Well ,now let's see , over the years I've built models for friends and even neighbors .Sometimes they are NOT in my line of interest . I still give it everything I've got .remember My specialty is ships of all types so ,say , a tank might be a stretch .I do tell them that if they want it weathered ,well  ,it will be minimal at best . Never had any complaints .

I would do it in a second. I like 'building' them better than 'having' them anyway. In fact, it wasnt the last model I finished but the one before that I gave to a friend. He seemed to really appreciate it and that gave me a lot more satisfaction than storing it at my own house.

Chris

I've built two kits for friends this year.All I ask is that they pay for the kit and materials unless I already have the required paint.

Hi :

 I find your response fair  .If they don't already have the kit or the paint colors they want then I ask them to supply it  .If they want me to get the kit and paint , I tell them it may be awhile because of being a S.S. recipient .Money is always tight ! Still , I have done four this year as a break from my client's project and my own ships .It was a nice few hours break ever two or three days .Kinda cleared my mind . .     T.B.