The Devil is in the Details

ruddratt wrote:

A lot depends on the quality of the kit.

What he said.  Some kits are so bereft of detail that they just beg for aftermarket stuff.  The Testors OV-10 springs to mind.  Some times you just really want to make a particular kit shine just because you really like the subject.  Not all kits are created equal and not all kits are built to the same level.  While I always try to put my best effort into a kit, not all of them are going to get all the goodies that I might put into others.

For me, it depends on my level of interest in the subject.  If it's a passing interest, I'll do an OOB.  If it's something that I've always been interested in, I'll go all out with resin, PE and scratchbuild.

Right now, I'm working on a 1/32 hellcat.  I've spent more on resin and PE upgrades as well as styrene sheet/rod than I did on the kit itself.

I hate to do a breakdown like this because it forces me to see how much I've spent:

1/32 Hasegawa Hellcat - $38

miscellaneous styrene sheet and rod $35

hypodermic tube for gun barrels - $15

rectangular tube for ammo chutes - $11

Verlinden resin cockpit - $20

Eduard PE set (interior/wheel well) - $15

Eduard Mask - $4

and then throw in books and specialty color paints and tools and you can see how expensive hyper-detailing can get.

-Fred

I agree as well. For me it depends on the build on weather how much detail I add. But most of the time its just a resin cockpit. Since models can never be fully accurate I never really go for that goal. Though I try to get it as close as possible as most of us do. But for me if I try to do too much I get burned out on the project and it ends up going into the unfinished or will be finished some-day pile. So I keep most of my builds some what simple. Sometimes I add a cockpit and all the goodies and other times I take a Tamiya kit and build right out of the box.

Its great that there is so much stuff out there now and I hope more keep coming out especially for older models. I still would like to see someone release a set for the B-24 D and J like True Details did for the B-17G.

I'm with ya there, Thats the way I look at it wheather be otb or loaded with after market stuff.

Thad

I agree, nothing wrong at all to either approach.

Build to your own taste and at your own pace.

If it makes you happy to spend the extra money and put it all in, then go for it.

Mike