Your Most Expensive Kit ? or What's your Limit

The Tamiya 1:32 Mustang $128.00, Tamiya 1:32 Corsair $115.00, and a Tamiya 1:32 Zero $110.00.  Mrs. Toshi doesn't give me a limit amount, but I figure if I stay within the $100.00 to $150.00, I'll be safe.  

Toshi

Hmmmm ;

        Promise you won't get upset ? There was a time , Price was no object .Yeah Really ! So I bought a Kit of a Car .Took me five years to build it .And $ 27,000.00 bucks later I had a 1;1 replica of a Austin 3000 . Just like the one on Revell's old box cover . Except Ford powered  . Yep . Put a 289 in it !

      Nowadays if it's more than say , twenty five bucks I have to watch the old budget. To say that there is a limit is the truth now .My client wanted a Trumpeter 1/200 Arizona along with his other build . Knowing I would want one too,  he made a very simple deal here's yours , if you'll build mine . I usually , now , buy off the consignment table at my L.H.S. and usually that is a once in six months deal .

     I get a lot of books now and enjoy reading about the past in modeling , and the genres we went through . I still can build mean scratch-built stuff and this is what drives my client nuts .If I can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear , I scratch-build it instead .Takes longer , but is dead on correct !

I would say that between all my hobbies .Trains , Ships and Cars of the model variety the trains are the costliest so I always look for orphans .( Non - Popular rail lines or engines etc.) So what I have is eclectic , but fun !  My main budget for a show is always $ 250.00 and that includes gas , round trip , and food for the day .

    I still find some wow ! yard sale goodies . Like a 1/8 scale Jag Coupe for a buck ! Yeah , I said a buck ! .Lotsa work ahead but now I have a body for my running gear !  After all , you can't really hurt any level of glue bomb , can you ?       T.B.

I spent $200.00 Canadian (about $175.00 U.S.) for the Airfix 1/24 Typhoon. Worth it by the way. Generally $75.00 was my upper limit and usually a lot less.  But now that a precident  has been set??  

So far my most expensive kit was the WW2 US Navy Fleet sub in 1 72 scale.
If I remember right, it was about $90.

Sometime this year (I hope) I want to get a resin Yak 1B Soviet fighter in 1 32 scale. Were talking in the neighborhood of $140 plus shipping from England

That will definitely be my limit

Most expensive is the Fine Molds 1/72 Millennium Falcon, after that 1/24 Airfix Mosquito and 1/24 Airfix Typhoon, then the Tamiya 1/32 series of warbirds at around 100 each.

That Falcon was about 300, the Mossie was more than 200 and the Typhoon came in around 130

Aggieman;

I usually find the planes I like fairly reasonable . I found out that one a friend sent  me , sells ( if you can find it ) for around $45.00 bucks . Considering It's a Fleet Air Arm FR 46/47 - A carrier-capable Spitfire . It is unique . T.B.       Oh ! it's 1/48 scale too .(That's my preferred aircraft scale )

I'm like Sprue-ce, cant go past $100.  The 1/32 Heinkel 111 and  Ju 88 came close, including postage.  Guess I'll never get that 1/24 Mosquito or Typhoon

I have a top three,

Tamiya Yamato 1/350 which cost £180 but add in the extras and I'll be over $300 easy

Wingnut Wings 1/32 Felixstowe which was £170

My biggest is a Space 1999 Swift scihighmodels.com/swift.html which cost me £220

one day they will all get built (honest)

Phil

My limit is no more than $65 for a kit unless there's one I really want. I will admit, I once spent $125 on four kits as part of a package deal with a LHS owner a few months ago.

Although I don't have a limit, the most recent biggest purchases have been the 32nd Academy F-18A+ at $170 and the 32nd Italeri Starfighter at $160 - both in Canadian funds.  I have enough kits, as others have noted, to keep me busy until the Final Exit.  I don't think I'll be spending $250 + tax for the 24th scale Typhoon or the 32nd Mosquito and the likes.

I bought a Model Shipways 1/64 Prince De Neufchatel for around 300 bucks many years ago.  These days my max is around 50 plus AM but I don't build nearly as much stuff as most of you guys.  I've vowed to build a big Wingnut Wings kit before I take the dirt nap but there's a lot of stuff to hack through before I get there.

I guess I get a little heartburn past $150. Funny thing though, I won't bat an eye for $250 + for an RC aircraft or $100 + for batteries or motors. They don't give near as much pleasure.

I think I'm going to have to rethink my priorities.

Steve 

I'd like to add that only applies if one must purchase a much bigger house to enclose the kit.

Now that I think about it...........

I'd like to know what the current record holder happens to be for largest injection molded plastic model kit.

John, I want that USS Constitution too.  Think I'll have to do a lot of laundry and dishes not to get yelled at.  ;-)

Mark Lookabaugh

John, I want that USS Constitution too.  Think I'll have to do a lot of laundry and dishes not to get yelled at.  ;-)

 

You're gonna need to do more than just laundry and dishes. LOLOLOLOL!!!

I don't really have a hard and fast limit, but I definately start to evaluate "need" when I get beyond $75 or so. I think the most I've spent on a single kit was $105 and that was for a resin kit of a 1950s Seagrave fire engine.

I have no problem spending money on the hobby though, back when we were a 2 income, 1 child family I bought myself an ALPS printer for around $800. Now as a 1 income 2 child family, my spending has been reined quite a bit. My wife is applying for jobs again and I've got a $700 mini-lathe on the wish list...  

My top two most expensive kits (and worth to me every penny) are:

Accurate Armour K185S IDF M980/981 & 50 ton trailer $382 USD plus shipping direct from AA.

Accurate Armour K117 Br. Foden 6 x 6 recovery vehicle $268 USD plus shipping direct from AA.

I am working full time but I have a couple of part time jobs the income from which I consider my 'modeling money'.  And I try to stay off of Accurate Armour's website.

I hear you with that one. I as well have a huge stash of un made models. I got back in the 1990 when several hobbie stores in my area closed. I now have about 50 or more yet to build. Mostly US and Soviet era aircraft as well as a few ships. I even got a Super Guppy. Us boys and our toys.

Tojo72

It was mentioned on another thread that someone sold their CyberHobby DAK Tiger for $ 450.00.

So what is the most you spent on a kit in your stash,and do you have a self-imposed or otherwise imposed limit on any future purchses.What is the most you will spend ?

I picked up the 1/350 Hasgawa Akagi for $ 220.00 when it was first released.And I paid $ 95.00 for a CyberHobby Wittman Tiger,but I really can't ever see myself going too much higher then that.Maybe between $ 250-300 if the right 1/200 kit came along,but nothing in mind that I need that bad.

So what about You ?

 

My most expensive purchase(and I've regretted buying it ever since; it sits on the shelf and mocks me!) was Gallery's USS Wasp LHD-1 in 1:350 scale.

I bought it during a bout of retail therapy at Hobby Lobby (before I knew about their 40% off online coupon! DOH!!!!) and paid $329.00 for it. My normal upper limit is $200.00 +/-. 

Sprue-ce Goose

I'd like to add that only applies if one must purchase a much bigger house to enclose the kit.

Now that I think about it...........

I'd like to know what the current record holder happens to be for largest injection molded plastic model kit.

 

Contenders would include the 1/96 Constitution or Cutty Sark, 1/72 B-52 or B-36, or the Revell 1/72 Gato.

I bought one of Trumpeter's 1/16 Tigers for over $400. Can't remember the exact price. I bought it one night after having one too many of these . A really nice kit and great for someone like me who needs magnifying glasses. But, being as big as it is, it really screams for super detailing which I don't have the time or the expertise for. So it sits on the shelf mocking me.

Love Revell, $50 CDN and under is perfect

for me. Sorry Tamiya you guys are "to expense".

299.99 CSS Tenessee ironclad.

Couple of 1/32 Phantoms at around a $100 off ebay, may spend the $100 or so ona 1/72 Gato, and looking hard at the Merit 1/350 CV-6 Enterprise for around $170 or so.

Then I have to add in whatever PE I want and the rest of the materials for them, but that is something else to factor besides the basic kit.

I normally try to stay under $50-60.

I paid 800 bucks for a 1/100 Bismarck semi-kit a couple years ago that is sitting in my storage room untouched.

My current project (1/200 Nelson) was $500 and some change between the kit and detail set.

I got both a Pontos and KA detail set with my 1/200 Iowa + pontos set too... total around $700, the same with the 1/200 Bismarck. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3MamvKeOvg

It sounds like a lot, but considering the 1/200 kits are year-long builds each and that the 1/100 kit will be a multi-year (probably) retirement odyssey,  that's still only about 60 bucks per month spent on kit so I do NOT have a problem...

I do not have a problem... I don't...

Seems my recent limits have been far below my one kit purchase and have leveled off at roughly $5 each kit at swap meets.