You either have it or you don't!

I have to put in my two cents here .

    Most folks I know that do crafts and models , woodcarving etc. complain ,thet it isn't good enough .Know what , to us it will NEVER be .  We are our worst enemy in that sense. I still look at photos of my builds and think ," I could've done that better , I know " .  See ? So build to the best level you can and love the building , painting and completing the model you worked on .   There will always be those who CAN'T do what we do . Hang in there ! !    Tanker-builder

Honestly, I suck at this hobby.

But I enjoy it and it's cheap so I keep doing it. Some of my models turn out better than others. If I am unhappy with a kit, I use it as an excuse to try it again later.

Some days you win, some days you lose, some days it rains.

HAHA, good to know! yeah dropping the model is never good.... unless you are lowering suspensions.

LedFut390, we can begin the skills tranfer as soon as we find that planet of women with the brain machine.  Oh, and a starship.

In the mean time, the foum will have to do!  Share ideas.  Teach.  Learn.

IMHO, even the best modelers probably think their stuff isn't perfect.  The better you get, the more critical you become.  So again, the point is not the destination, but the trip.  Except when the trip involves dropping a model!  I had a couple of those.  Sucked.

Man G, That is a good trade! when works for you?

LedFut390, how about a skill trade?  I can't do a gloss job to save my life, but I am good at tricky filling/sanding (and pre-empting the need for such).

Where is that knowlege transfer machine from "Star Trek" when you need it?  "Brain?  What is brain?!" 

I have found that I am my own worst enemy on this subject. I do not see my self as good as other people say I am. I build everything but to this day and no matter what I do pulling off a really good modern jet is almost imposable, but I can make a awesome gloss paint job on a car. I need to work on my airbrushing and on the over all construction of the aircraft because I hate sanding on an airframe because you loose surface detail and thin that to find away to scribe it back it that looks good. With all that said I always will try again.

Well said Real G

I think modeling is about the journey, not the destination.  Above all, you must get enjoyment from building stuff.  If you get too worked up about not measuring up to others' work, you will never enjoy the hobby.  I have noticed that the happiest, most productive modelers I know just crank out models without caring if they came out perfect.  The ones who obsess on every little detail are the ones who are the least happy and finish the fewest models.  I am sad to admit I lean towards this second group.  And you know what?  It sucks.

Research is good, but when all the "fatal flaws" start to come out, the fun factor begins to diminish.  When I was a kid, it was great tearing into a new kit and slapping it together without worrying if a nose was misshaped, or if a panel line was in the wrong place.  Knowledge is a two sided sword; it can be used to enhance a model, or it can bog down the build.

So long story short, don't worry, be happy.  Build for yourself and for your own enjoyment.  If you want to improve, then challenge yourself to make one improvement on your next model over the last one.  I think that is the way to better models.

geez doog. maybe you should just do warwheels. certainly enough of them out there. i'm getting ready to do a couple of 1/350 ships w/ PE. will be amusing if nothing else.

As you can see most of us don't HAVE IT as you put it.  But that is not what it is about, it is the enjoyment you get from completing the model or diorama.  I have friends and family who say I build great models and dios but in my eye they don't muster.  Does this mean i don't have it.  No, it means that I have way to high of standards of trying to compete against true masters.

I have been lucky that I have had met a couple of people I consider masters in our art albeit online only as they live across the pond, but they have helped me through out the years and have made me challenge myself in my building.

So after all this long wind the end comes to this.   1. do you enjoy building?  2.  Are you willing to take constructive criticism to help you grow as a modeller?  3.  Finally are you doing this for you or for acclaim?

Not many of us are up to par with the masters never compare your work with theirs, only compare your work against the last one you built,  Use the books, websites, forums to your advantage, I don't post a lot but I read a lot,  I have never entered a contest but have a few dioramas on display outside of my house.  I build for me and sometimes for family or friends.

Lastly if you are going to give up modelling can I have your stuff?  J/K  start another thread or threads addressing your issues and I can bet that you will get the help you are looking for on each and every topic.

I too are not perfect. But who cares. You say that you enjoy the hobby, and in the end that is all that matters. I think we all have left permanent scars on projects that we are not proud of. Keep at it, learning from life and good luck.

I too, "Don't Have It!" I'm in the group "Do one really nice, Then the next one is F*** up."  I'm doing a P 38 Lightning for "My First Time" GB. My opinion on it, is It looks like the first on I did. So, now I'm at the point where I don't want to pick it back up. I was going to make it a crashed P 38 on a diorama, but I don't even feel like doing that.

I think I'll just chalk it up to experience and move on to the P 47. I will however do another P 38 though.

I'm also too critical on alot of things i do. I try not to be.

Keep up the good work, no matter the skill.

One thing that I would like to do differently this time (as opposed to when I was making models in high school) is to do more research about what I will model.  When I was in school,  all I knew about the models was what was on the package and that they looked "cool".  So, now, while I am waiting for my first model to arrive from Revel/Monogram  (an F-80 Shooting Star),  I am studying all I can about it. Particularly the reconnaissance versions that flew in Korea. My dad was a radio repair technician there so I hope to model it after one of the planes he would have worked on.  I think regardless of my skills, the joy of the process (learning and building) will be enough for me.

Of course building it well enough to be highlighted in FSM is a goal but...someday.  You all are a grand inspiration to me keep up the good work. No matter what skill level.

Peace,

Mark

A couple of thoughts.

First, I read quite a few modeling mags, look at other forums etc. I find that the level of skill shown in the FSM pages is very unusual.  I would expect that's because Kalmbach is a giant magazine empire and they get huge amounts of submissions from which to select from. For whatever reason they seem to select  models to publish with very high levels of skill apparent.

Look at other smaller magazines and sites. In particular look at the british magazines, where many if not most of the modelers brush paint. Not better, maybe not so realistic, but certainly a skill and a different way of judging things.

My point is that IMO (in my opinion) reading FSM and feeling "I can't do that" is on a par with reading Sports Illustrated and having the same self doubts.

I'm a mediocre modeler but I'm perfectly happy with the results I get.

Also, don't sell your wife short on her patience with you. You could be spending the money in bars, without her on the golf course, or on guns (expensive hobby).

I don't enter contests because a) I don't really care to be judged by other people, get enough of that 9-5, and b) it'd be futile. But that's ok, you just have to do your thing.

YOU ARE RIGHT ON !

Now don't get me wrong . If you walk away from modeling , you ARE doing yourself a disservice .I build for clients and it seems when I build for me , It'd just not got that zing ! Doog and the others are right .You enjoy it ! That's what counts .Slow down and don't try to finish that plane or whatever in a week .Stretch it out and then you will be slower , yes , BUT , more in tune to the model and building your skills  , remember YOU CAN DO IT ! !  Shoot , to build for others , a base skillset of over twenty years of building these things was needed ! Go to the U.S.S. WISCONSIN - museum website and you'll see what I mean .    Tanker-builder P.S. I only did the severe details

The fact that you say you love to model, should be all that matters! Don't be discouraged.

I'm far from skilled, but I try. I couldn't even come close to some of the great posters here, but I do enjoy the hobby and it's a great stress reliever. I'm always trying to inprove, but every finished model I do could be better. I doubt any of us will be 100% percent satisfied with a completed build. There is no perfect build. Bottom line is to have fun. Have fun or the hobby doesn't become one any longer.

KIWOMO...

I absolutely could not have expressed it any better than you have!  Spot on to my own experience.

As others have said, enjoy the build.  I have begun WIP's but have always had to give them up because my work looks so awful compared to others.  However, I still get a little thrill each time I open up another kit.  I'm not sure what to do about comparing ourselves to other's work.  Sometimes I have to go away from the forums for a while because I know I cannot come close to what others are doing, but mostly I like seeing what others have done.  Every once and a while I see something that I can maybe try myself.  And folks here are great to converse with, even if all you need is some commiseration over a screw-up 

One thing I have determined to do is finish every kit I start (in fact I have had 3 kits that I did not finish).  I just have to pass over the mistakes and keep going (I have a Tiger sitting on the shelf with no tracks).  But I, like you, still enjoy the build.  I love gluing plastic!

Firstly,I would like to thank everyone for the words of encouragement and I love the fact that everyone is willing to share ideas, tips and techniques and nothing seems "exclusive".

When the going gets tough I might have said "this is the last model I make" but of course I don't mean it. I would never give up because besides being fun and usually relaxing and  like others have said, the research and history behind each build is just as fascinating at making it. And even though I suck, the model was still made by me and I am proud of it. I might have improved just a fraction over time but for the most part I am a below average model maker, but I take heart in hearing that even the pro's have bad days too.  I love making models, especially world war 2 aircraft and one day I might just post a photo for some feedback or a chuckle or 2!

I still don't have it but I am not looking for it anymore.

Looking forward to your views but in the mean time Happy Building Everyone

PS: I am currently building a Revell  Lancaster Dambuster and came across a YouTube documentary "Bomber Boys" a BBC documentary during my research. I am sure everyone has already seen it but If you haven't I highly recommend it. www.youtube.com/watch  The actor Ewen McGregor and his brother who is an ex RAF pilot made a documentary about Bomber Command as a follow up to their Battle of Britain Documentary. Lots of history, info, close ups and interviews with surviving crew members  and at the end of the documentary they get to fly in one of the last 2 airworthy Lancaster bombers. Such a beautiful flying machine!

Keep your skills, I'll take the fun.

kiwimo

A stray finger print,

Wear latex gloves. you'll hate it so much you'll swear never to let glue get on your fingers again.

as for 'skill' you have to keep pushing the envelope and also try new techniques. you'll soon find what works and what you like doing.

I don't have any skill in modeling. I can put them together fine because I can follow directions. But when it gets to painting and other detail work, I suck. That is where artistry comes in in my opinion.

I am nowhere near as good as 90% of the people here but I'm okay with that. I build for my own enjoyment, not to enter contests or win awards. As long as I have fun that is all that matters to me. Sure, I want to get better, and with each project I think I do.

You should post some stuff here so you can feedback. Maybe someone will end up sharing a tip or two that makes the difference.

We all "don't have it" sometimes.....  

What a great, thought-provoking thread!

Well, as a published author here at FSM, I have to tell you that--honestly--many of the builds that I have been honored to have been published articles here in the magazine have had disasters of sometimes MAJOR proportions happen to them! The last one that was on the recent cover--my M48 Patton--had a major track malfunction--they broke into like, a dozen pieces when trying to assemble them--it's even documented in the WIP, still here online somewhere. But I didn't let it beat me!

Then there was the Jagpanzer Kanone--different tank, same problem. I couldn't assemble to resin tracks. I just couldn't figure out how to do it. I had to make new, correct tracks out of the incorrect, generic ones in the kit! Then the recent 1/72 Trumpeter Sturmtiger I just finished here--I couldn't get the tracks to join by any Earthbound method known to man!

I royally ruined the one plane I tried to do here---a Stuka. The carefully-applied and masked paint job lifted on the last masking, and I didn't have the patience to fix it. A dirt track modified car that I built a few years ago took me some 8 or 9 repeated finish "fails" to finally get a good finish without the different paints reacting to each other. Car models can just about put me in the looney bin sometimes, trying to get a good gloss finish or to get the proper "sit". And I just completely destroyed a very expensive AMT 1974 Javelin model that had a disastrously bad paint/primer mismatch problem that made the body irredeemable. THAT one HURT!

Like some of the posters here have said---you have to remember that modeling is for FUN FIRST! But on a second level, I think that what makes a modeler "have it" or not is what they do when the going gets rough. When I screw up in a major way, I put the model down,get away from it for a while--maybe even a few days--and then come back to it, more determined and resolved to not let it beat me. And even then, sometimes it does. But more often than not, I get a handle on it and turn it into something to be at least NOT embarrassed of!

As others have said, keep at it if you enjoy it.  Also, keep why you are modeling in the back of your mind.  I, for one, don't have "it."  But, I love the history and modeling, to me, is a way to learn even more.  In some aspects, modeling can be a lot like poker....it is easy to learn, yet takes a lifetime to master.

I hope years from now, when I look back on my early builds, I can smile and see how far I've come.

Enjoy.

Why yes.... I have it!  The ability to screw up a perfect model just as the last paint is going on!    Look below....... my signature should be most helpful.

Not sure if i have the modelling skill, that would be for otehrs to judge. But i enjoy what i do, i am happy with my end results and if others enjoy what i am doing, thats a bonus.

And i am forever breaking a part of putting my fingur in some drying glue.

In my 64 years of building, I have kept saying to myself "The next one will be better". Some have been, and some, well I won't say how they turned out.   I've switched from 1 type to another. Same answer. So, I just build whatever strikes my fancy to the best of my ability. As long as you like building them, keep building.

Jim

I have long spells between builds, so I get nervous when it comes time to start a new one.  I end up buying a cheap to get back in modeling shape, get frustrated and take another long break.  Sometimes, especially with decals, everything goes great but ine little mishap ruins it.  I love having the completed models, but there are some steps that I really dont like: cockpits, painting, masking glueing and decals.  For me the reward comes ( with aircraft) when the wings go to the fuselage and after the final decal is on.  As i do more airbrushing, i am starting to enjoy that step more.  I most definitely do not any any Innate skill, but each one I build looks a little better than the last.  I am 38 and i put myself at a 6th grade modeling level.