What do you look for in a kit?

Much of it has to do with my budget, but other than that, it just has to be a subject that strikes my fancy. I've bought very little for myself over the last several years, most of mine comes in as birthday/Christmas gifts.

Glenn

Fit and engineering-very important to me,don't want to mess with too much filling and sanding

Price-I don't mind spending for a good kit,but it has to be good,but i like everyone,I have a cieling

Reviews-I like to hear something about the kit,and if it's real bad,I will avoid it.

I do have a preferance for Tamiya,Dragon,and Hasegawa

 Most aircraft kits are inaccurate in outlines (as are most drawings), and this is especially so for the clear parts. Clear parts are the hardest to fix, so good clear parts are the absolute priority for me.

 With bad clear parts, what kind of kit do you have? Not much...

 Gaston

If a kit is grossly negligent I will for the most part avoid it,  the exception would be if some of the parts were usable and the price was  right.  One of my pet peeves are  molded on details that could have been provided  separately.    and rubber band licorice looking tank tracks.

I look for the correct shapes and dimensions (it is not impossible to do,,,,,it can just be a lot of work to find all you need, sometimes)

I have a fairly large stash of both very old and very new kits,,,,,,so, if something is not going to be as accurate as some other kit,,,,,,,,I just don't buy it

if it is a new release and the only one ever done of that aircraft in my scale, I will buy it,,,,,,,,but, if it is the October 2013 release of the F-4B Phantom by Wooop-Deeeee-Doooooo models,,,,,,and they don't get some key dimension right,,,,,,,it is NO Sale

I am "seasoned" enough to just build and detail out an AMT F-4B again, instead, lol

but, release a Kaiser-Fleetwings XBTK-1,,,,,,and I will buy one, and either build it OOB or with mods to make it correct

Rex

Probably best bang-for-the-buck. I like a kit with all I need to complete it, rather then buy some extras that will cost more. That being said, I do have many in the stash that I have had to add to. Recently, I spent $20 to add AM resin tracks to my $5 Tamiya Semovente. Still a good deal and the kit turned out well if I say so myself.

For me, number one is it a subject matter that I want.

Number two is if it is a well engineered kit; i.e. will it go together without massive amounts of filler, cutting, etc. I want to enjoy myself, not be frustrated.

Number three is the price.

I'm not all that concerned with accuracy since I have decades of actual experience on real armor, I can detail it as much or as little (which is often hard to stop fixing every last thing) as I want.

I've also got an extensive stash full of old vintage kits as well as some of the more up-to-date offerings. I can pick my poison.

As I'm finally reading the April magazine, a submission to the Scale Talk section (sorry to steal your thunder if the writer is online here) was about what are his factors in a kit.

So how do you decide: AM part availability, decal sets, a preferred manufacturer, what's on sale, previous reviews, etc

What are the factors you take into consideration before a kit comes home?

Myself - its mostly price.  Budget modelling is tough, and doesn't leave much room for AM details.  I've never looked at before buying the decals that come in the box.

For me I would say, first it's subject matter.  I'm partial to Star Trek, Corvette's and cars in general and military aircraft.  Other than that if the box artwork looks good/interesting I'd be inclined to take it home.  AM parts aren't a priority with me, but if they exist I don't mind waiting until I can get them to complete a build.

To those of you who have listed engineering/fit as well as accuracy as one of the things that you look for when buying a kit.  Barring reviews, how do you verify that a kit will go together and not need filing or how accurate it will be once assembled?  It strikes me as being all but impossible, again barring a good detailed kit review how well the fit will be or how accurate it is without opening the box.  And what LHS's do you all shop at that allows you to open the box and check these things?

HI :

    As most of you know , ships are my thing .I cannot afford the TAMIYA version of the U.S.S. MISSOURI for instance (Commissions are way down , both in amount and price ). I recently looked at REVELL'S re-release and was grossly dissappointed . The price wasn't bad , but , come-on still no bridge detail after all these years ? Then the kit has to fit together without any or minimal surgery .

    As to decals , I have painted most markings on my aircraft EXCEPT  two in which I chose the a.m. for decals .PRICE , now that's the bugger that is killing a lot of us .I cannot see why EXCEPT that plastic is included in the overall price of crude oil . So I will start working the stash .There many kits in there that will build well .Plus I've already started converting TAMIYA'S version of the NEW JERSEY to the WISCONSIN as she is at the museum today .

  The last part is ,  How does one accept a tighter budget and make it work ? Here's a suggestion . Do you want to part with some models , knowing you'll NEVER build them  ? Put them on consignment at your LHS if they do that . Build up store credit that will pay for paint ,supplies or even another model you'd love to have .This is what I do .

In this day and age we have to decide what , where and when very carefully . What I do is this .Do you have copies of one model ? If you won't get around to ,say , two versions ,then sell the others off . It will lower your stash count and enable you to use the funds to acquire another choice that you will build and then go for it !

 BUILD AWAY  !  - - -Tanker- builder

Digital_Cowboy

To those of you who have listed engineering/fit as well as accuracy as one of the things that you look for when buying a kit.  Barring reviews, how do you verify that a kit will go together and not need filing or how accurate it will be once assembled?  It strikes me as being all but impossible, again barring a good detailed kit review how well the fit will be or how accurate it is without opening the box.  And what LHS's do you all shop at that allows you to open the box and check these things?

Yes,that's pretty much it,what I do is read the build reviews and follow some blogs if they are out there.But it really is a crap shoot ,some companies have a better rep then others,like Tamiya ,but they all have clunkers and treasures,so I try to research and hope for the best 

Tojo72

Digital_Cowboy

To those of you who have listed engineering/fit as well as accuracy as one of the things that you look for when buying a kit.  Barring reviews, how do you verify that a kit will go together and not need filing or how accurate it will be once assembled?  It strikes me as being all but impossible, again barring a good detailed kit review how well the fit will be or how accurate it is without opening the box.  And what LHS's do you all shop at that allows you to open the box and check these things?

Yes,that's pretty much it,what I do is read the build reviews and follow some blogs if they are out there.But it really is a crap shoot ,some companies have a better rep then others,like Tamiya ,but they all have clunkers and treasures,so I try to research and hope for the best 

Tojo72,

     Agreed, reviews and blogs are a good source of information (and possibly a better source then the manufacturer itself), but given the nature of plastic don't "all" kits have some fit problems?  And isn't it possible/probable that even the best kits from the "best" companies are going to have kits with fit problems?

     What about accuracy?  To me (again given the limitation of plastic) that is where AM parts come into play.  So that a modeler can build as historically accurate a model as they want.

     Speaking of AM parts what is the easiest way of finding out if there are AM parts for a given kit or scale?

Digital_Cowboy

To those of you who have listed engineering/fit as well as accuracy as one of the things that you look for when buying a kit.  Barring reviews, how do you verify that a kit will go together and not need filing or how accurate it will be once assembled?  It strikes me as being all but impossible, again barring a good detailed kit review how well the fit will be or how accurate it is without opening the box.  And what LHS's do you all shop at that allows you to open the box and check these things?

Sometimes it is from personal experience. For instance, both Dragon and Trumpeter released kits of the M1 Panther II mine clearing tank. Both companies had previously produced Abrams tank kits and I was very familiar with both kits as well as all versions of the actual tank. Both kits were buildable, but both had some construction issues. Both kits' main issues were with the turret, which the Panther did not use any ways.

The actual Panther was based on the earlier M1IP tank hull, a vehicle that had not been available in 1/35 scale. Trumpeter just added fittings to their M1A1 tank to make it look cosmetically like an M1IP. Dragon actually created an M1IP hull and added components from their newer tooled Abrams kits to create a more accurate vehicle.

Online reviews are also very helpful. When Dragon created their newer M1A1AIM tank, I received an advance copy of it for the assistance I provided. I used to be very active in providing online reviews (some courtesy of my wallet and others as samples from manufacturers, retailers and webmasters).

My LHS owner is a fellow 1/72 aircraft modeler,,,,,,he really does let me open any new release before I buy one

If I like what I see at the shop, then I usually order more of them,,,,,,,,,,and I can tell if they are any better than previous releases

Once you get them home,,,,,,,the data is out there to "get it right" for most aircraft,,,,,,,,,even some one-off prototypes have more than one book on them

Subject matter for me.  All those other things are way down on my list.  If it's something I really want  I'll get it....well I guess there are limits.  As I have all the older kits I wanted already, the new ones don't seem to be as "flawed".  I build mostly armor kits and the new Dragon, Tamiya, Bronco, etc, are very nice indeed.  But consider,  I will happily build an old Tamiya  Panther or Renwall kit, just OTB and have a blast with the process and not fret over inaccuracies at all.  Weird, huh?

I used to compare the models to photos and plans,  and then I discovered I didn't enjoy that part of the model building process.  I have several hundred built kits and saw that after they were built I didn't notice what I had done to them.  So I have given up that aspect of the hobby.  Now I just build, paint, and enjoy the hobby.  I suppose that's why I can build over 30 kits a year, when I get on a roll that is.

Doug

Doug, we hear that more and more, that people are giving up on the accurizing part of the hobby

that does work out well for building and finishing a lot of kits,,,,,,,,,,but, after thinking about joining that trend, I decided to stay with the old way

the only reason I didn't join you folks is because I still want my -6 Cougar to look different than my -8 Cougars, and all the A-4Bs to have the same shape on the nose and rudder even if they were from different model companies,,,,,,,,,and I have to do those things myself, even after 48 years of modeling, some aircraft have never been available OOB (there are at least 50 1/72 examples)

Rex

For me it's price, subject, and accuracy based on reviews.  I'll put up with known inaccuracies for subject (Trumpeter's AVGP's, for example), but not if better is available.  

I'd say for me it is price.  But then again, if kit prices dropped, I'd probably get even more stupid on buying!

Second would be subject.  I find myself wanting the out of the ordinary subjects.  Aircraft you don't see much of, German WW II idea aircraft, armor that is not your main stream stuff (I really like the German 234 and all its variants!).

1 )  Subject

2  ) Price

3  ) Accuracy /  kit engineering

4  ) Available information about the kit subject

5  ) Aftermarket decal availability if kit's decals are known to be of poor quality.

TarnShip

My LHS owner is a fellow 1/72 aircraft modeler,,,,,,he really does let me open any new release before I buy one

If I like what I see at the shop, then I usually order more of them,,,,,,,,,,and I can tell if they are any better than previous releases

Once you get them home,,,,,,,the data is out there to "get it right" for most aircraft,,,,,,,,,even some one-off prototypes have more than one book on them

TS,

     I would presume that at the very least at one time or another that most if not all hobby shop owners are or were into the hobby least why do they own a hobby shop?

     That aside you're very lucky to have such a relationship with the owner of your LHS.  As that is a relationship that I don't think many of us have. :(

     I would also have to agree with you that for most military craft that there is/should be plenty of data out there to "get it right."  Even the "one off prototypes."

Just to expand on why I just pretty much take kits as they are is...I'm not  good at reshaping or modifying kits.   I find leaving kits as they are is better than me attempting to redo them.  I can add the odd little detail, but as far as cutting a kit in half or some such thing will just lead to a junker.  Even using some after market things can only lead to tears.  Forget about scratch building.   I've tried it all in the last 50 years of modeling.  As it has been said..A man has to know his limitations.  I just try to do the best I can on the build and finish etc.  None of my models, even Shermans, look like each other with  a different paint scheme and markings.  Call me an assembler or a modeler, it doesn't matter to me at all.  

After all, if it wasn't for those of us who just buy these kits over and over again to slam together, there may not be so many great kits now to put together.  At least I like to think so.  Probably wrong. No data to back me up. In fact, ignore that last observation.  Not Scientific.   I have over 2,000 of these glue hogs yet to build, and pretty much buy the latest and greatest armor kits almost as soon as they hit the shelf.  I don't read reviews or build blogs either.  

Oh yeah, Colpar Hobbies here in Denver, lets you look and the kit.

Just a happy modeler

Doug

Subject matter is tops on my list.  I pick out what I want to build (as a subject first) then I research what is available.  Price does come down to it, but more-so because I'm returning to the hobby and am using kits to re-learn the skills.  And while I'm researching what's out there, I check out some of the reviews.  But, for me, that's just so I don't get a clunker that will get me frustrated.

First and foremost is the subject. I have to be interested in it or everything else is moot. Second is the manufacturer, and thankfully most of them in my preferred genre are quite reputable. Cost is not really a factor, because those that meet my first two criteria are usually not exorbitantly expensive, falling somewhere in between the $20 to $100 range.

Doug, no intent to shame your approach at all

as for the Assembler vs Modeler thing,,,,,,I have always claimed that I wish there were more kits in my area of interest that I could just Assemble and paint and go

you can bet that whenever I find one that fits that criteria,,,,,,,that kit becomes my favorite for that version

Rex

 Like some have mentioned . being able to inspect a model for quality prior to purchase  is a big plus. Kind of funny how most commodities from something as simple as a toothbrush to a new car are readily available / displayed to satisfy our visual and tactile ques . Yet model manufactures  rely on a  intangible item , sealed in a box with abstract  yet cunning box art . Word of mouth or printed review are our only real insights.

I look for parts that need to be glued and painted!    

littletimmy

I look for parts that need to be glued and painted!    

Ha! 

My primary attribute is Subject Matter. secondary are price, parts count/quality and scale.

i've been known to over spend on subjects i HAD to have and while i don't like scaled-differently models, i have picked up the odd scaled subject because nothing else was available.