MrStecks
Hey All. I returned to this hobby back in March of this year and I've been loving it! But I have a problem now. I keep buying kits! And they are starting to stack up a bit.
I know this is a common problem among modelers, but it's really starting to annoy me. Last week I bought two kits that I probably won't get to until next year. I was just so drawn by the subject matter that I couldn't resist. Argh....
Is there a support group for this?
What are some ways that you regulate yourselves when it comes to buying kits? Is it just will power? Does your personal budget constrain you? A combination of both or something completely different? I try hard to live within my means, but this hobby is starting to make it difficult. I'm not going to stop building models. So any advice on how to resist buying kits would be most appreciated.
Cheers, Mark
Welcome to the ranks of kit collectors!
You're right, it is hard to resist the urge to buy a new kit, or better, a kit you didn't have before, since it doesn't have to be new. It's fun to look at the kit, and to think about how you want to finish it. But it's easy to accumulate a stash in a very short time.
It takes a lot of discipline, because it's an addiction, and we fall prey to addictions all too easily. As addictions go, it's not like using heroin, or drinking, of course. But the behaviors are on the same spectrum.
One way to kick the habit, if you really want to, is to find others who think and feel the same way, and then to encourage one another mutually.
Over at Agape Models, we have one such group of guys, with our own subforum. We look on our stashes as a stewardship issue, and so, we encourage each other in reducing or eliminating kits we realize we'll never build. Guys sell them, some donate them to groups that send kits to our troops, or to kids' groups and encourage the next generation of modelers.
That mutual support can work for any group, too, so, talk to other modelers who are local to you, or with whom you communicate online (like here). Find other guys who are in the same boat, and make an agreement to help each other kick the habit.