Models Models everywhere. What to do?

My hobby room is long and very narrow. From my bench to the back wall is just short of 8' but it is only 40" wide. I had wood shelves up but they created too many shadows.  I was lucky enough to find a store going out of business. Sold me 8 pieces of 8' x 16" glass with brackets and a smaller 2' x 10" section with 8 shelves also. All for $70.

This is a long term project for that I'm trying to do as cheaply as possible.  My original plan was 10 48" glass shelves.  I found some 41" shelves for $10 each and bought 12.  So far 6 are up.  Eventually I'm going to put mirrors behind and on the sides, replace the 3' brackets with 4' ones for 6 shelves aside, 7" apart.  

I've filled 3 1/2 shelves in 4 years, so I should be good for a while yet!

modelcrazy

I just talked to the local veterans home regarding displaying some of my builds. The director asked me to send him some pics, so I did. He wrote back so excited, and said he would display all of them, all eras all nationalities. He is asking one of the vets there to build a display cabinet for the builds and said it should be complete sometime in January.

I am very honored to be able to bring some visual enjoyment to those fine men.

Those guys are really going to appreciate it!  Well done! 

Lately, I've been finding myself buying kits, paints, & hobby tools I never had like crazy and less time building them as well.  LOL!

Just saw the thread and was going to suggest a vets home if you had one close by, beat me to it.

Glad to see they want to show some off to keep the vets memories going and keep them talking about their experiences and hopefully somebody will start either writing it down or recording it.  Those stories and history is being lost at an alarming rate.

We just opened a new 154 bed vet home here in town and I think I will take a couple down and see if they might be interested in doing the same.

I just talked to the local veterans home regarding displaying some of my builds. The director asked me to send him some pics, so I did. He wrote back so excited, and said he would display all of them, all eras all nationalities. He is asking one of the vets there to build a display cabinet for the builds and said it should be complete sometime in January.

I am very honored to be able to bring some visual enjoyment to those fine men.

BlackSheepTwoOneFour

Heh - my problem is I'm buying like crazy NOT doing enough building. :)

^^^^^^^ 

This.

My LHS, Hobby Town,  caters more towards RC , trains and Gaming than Plastics.  Their plastic prices are way out there and they don't display any models, only what they sell.

BlackSheepTwoOneFour

Heh - my problem is I'm buying like crazy NOT doing enough building. :)

Looks like we have the same problem!

@Modelcrazy, check with your LHS and see if they would display them?

@fermis, very impressive display area/war room!

Heh - my problem is I'm buying like crazy NOT doing enough building. :)

Hello! Now that's a hobby room, or as my father would have called it, a "War Room"

I built my own "built in" display cabinet (stash hides in the cabinets below)

Main display...

You can also see some hanging by the tail on the walls. The rest are on shelves I made.

I Like these ideas. I'll give some of them a try (selling on eBay is out. I'm not as near as good as PJ).

Our local library displays a few from time to time.  Usually to showcase a holiday or new novel. They give them back when they change the display so it's just temporary.

I don't know if they have room to display them but what about asking a veteran's hospital if they would like to have them?  (the military ones)

I had some builds that were 20-30 years old so they went on evilbay to help finance the hobby.

I have stopped buying and building the larger models. I am now concentrating on 1:72 aircraft, 1:700 ships (I have one more 1:350 WW1 battleship but that will be my last).  I am trying to find decent 1:32 and 1:35 cars.

For models that do not fit my main themes in modeling I am finding new homes for them. I recently gave a model of a Wells Fargo stagecoach (the Lindberg 1:16 scale model) to my Wells Fargo banker, and am looking for a place to donate a 1:72 scale 17th Century galley.

I haven't thought about the American Legend.  That's a good idea.  Or just about anyplace that would appreciate a model of something related. A military museum?

Devil Dawg

Texgunner

modelcrazy

What do you do with all those completed models?

Steve

Why, I put 'em in my display cabinets!

Show-off!! Great-looking display cases, Gary. Looks as though you might need another one soon.....

Thanks 'Dawg!  I like 'em a lot, but you are right, the planes are getting a bit tight in there.  My buddy would be happy to build another but where the heck would I put it?!?  Our house has about 2200 sq. feet and there's not an empty wall anywhere for another one.  And, I need another gun safe so badly as well.  Shoot, guess we'll have to move...

Gary

If you're tight for space, you can always donate a kit for display at your local American Legion.

mustang1989

Beautiful bird! That's a really well pulled off camo scheme. And you said it looked like a toy!! Whatever! She's a beauty!!!

Oh man, thanks a lot Joe!  Coming from a great model builder like yourself, that means a lot to this ol' guy.  You've already made my day, and it's just started!

Gary

Beautiful bird! That's a really well pulled off camo scheme. And you said it looked like a toy!! Whatever! She's a beauty!!!

Those were built (to my specifications), about twenty years apart, by an old, very good friend who owns a custom cabinet shop.   I had acquired most of the glass beforehand and he just did the rest.  Oh, I did the finish.

Yes, that is Black 10, FW Dora.  It's the atrocious Fujimi 1/48 kit.  I bought it when a nearby Michaels was unloading its scale models, about 25 years ago.  Care to see a few pics?  I was hoping you would say that:

Slide show with more pics:

Texgunner

modelcrazy

What do you do with all those completed models?

Steve

Why, I put 'em in my display cabinets!

Show-off!! Great-looking display cases, Gary. Looks as though you might need another one soon.....

If money's tight, try consignment shops or Goodwill. They sell used curio cabinets of all types. Also keep your eyes open for stores that are going out of business. You might be able to pick up used cabinets for a reasonable price. Good luck.

Jim 

You can find surprisingly good display cases in the curio cabinet section of any decent furniture store. I suggest looking for one with glass shelves, and maybe a light. Oh - and if you have kids in the house, a lock on the cabinet door is a good idea.

You can probably pick up a decent curio cabinet for about $200. It's also worth checking the classified ads in the newspaper. And you may really luck out and find a store that's going out of business and selling its fixtures.

Texgunner

modelcrazy

What do you do with all those completed models?

Steve

Why, I put 'em in my display cabinets!

Wow. There you go.

I need a display case.

modelcrazy

What do you do with all those completed models?

Steve

Why, I put 'em in my display cabinets!

A few kits go on the shelf, the rest go back inside the box, usually I remove the turret and place the tank kit inside. After a while, the ones on the shelf go back into a box as well.