Kit Acquisition--Informal Poll

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year? 6 to 10 kits a year.

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting? I typically wait a while..depends on the subject.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination? Combination

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

a. Sprue Brothers

b. Ebay

c. Great Models

wbill76

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

Fluctuates wildly, but I average buying about 4-6 kits per year.  Last year i bought around 4, but received another 4 or so for birthday/Christmas presents.  The year before I only bought 2.  Overall, my stash is sitting at just under 30, which i would to try and dwindle (via building), so am trying not to buy too many more.

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

Normally I wait.  The only kit I bought as soon as it was released was Dragon's 1/35 Huey  UH-1D.  Why?  Because I'd just gotten back into the hobby and had always wanted a Huey kit as a kid, but never got one.

Otherwise, i wait.  At the moment, i'm saving for Trumpeter's 1/32 F-14A.  Given it's price tag, i think it'll be my only kit purchase this year, so i'm prepared to wait.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

Both.  I'd say, in the past year, 40% LHS, 60% online.  When i first got back into the hobby, online was far cheaper, however, (probably because of our dollar strength), i'm finding there is only about a $5 - $15 saving online.  For that amount, i prefer to support my LHS.

All supplies are LHS sourced.

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Used to be www.hlj.com, but i'm finding them too expensive now, so i've switched to www.luckymodel.com - they take a little longer if not in stock, but seem much better priced.

 

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year? 4 - 6

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting? I wait for reviews about the kit.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination? 90% online. I would support buying at my LHS but the Internet is a Brick and Mortar killer when it comes to getting the best price.

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites) Amazon, Sprue, Ebay, GOOGLE the item for competitive pricing ,

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

I got back to this hobby after a long break in last December and now I have 31 kits!

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

I'd buy ASAP. I had to hunt down discontinued kits.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

Online because (1) prices at LHS are way too high and (2) local inventory is laughable.

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Mostly, scalehobbyist.

1) 3-5, but I've been trying to cut back, as I have a stash of 20+, the majority of which I'm VERY MUCH looking forward to building. I have begun buying little more than accessories (PE and tracks mostly) for the kits I already have.

2) If its a really cool or limited-release kit I will buy it right away (I instantly bought the first Dragon Neubaufahrzeug, the trumpeter B-4 and Voroshilovets, and the AMG NKL-26 aerosan, for example), but usually I wait until I see a great sale price or a nice price on eBay to pick up a kit. I am not picky about my kits, though. If its 1/35 WWII and it looks like a fun kit, and I can get it for a good price, I will buy it, regardless of whether I am particularly fond of the vehicle. I'm not methodical about what vehicles I build.

3/4) I buy from a fantastic hobby store in the Denver, CO area (about an hour from my house), but more often I just buy on eBay for something specific, or from greatmodels or spruebrothers if they have a nice sale.

Hi Guys,

An interesting thread Bill, I'll give it a shot:

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

I currently have 4 in my stash and will probably buy another 3-4 during 2012. The kits in my stash are all ones that I'm itching to build so I know they'll get done so what's the point in spending money now on a kit that I probably won't start until 2013! Two are big Dragon kits that will take a lot of time - I can only build on weekends which doesn't help! If I see something I really want and I have the funds I'll buy it but at present my stash has me well covered. Also, as I live with my parents stash space is limited.

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

I usually wait, safe in the knowledge that it will be there to buy when I'm ready to think about building it. Like I say, space is limited!

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

My LHS as they can get me any kit I need very quickly and they give me a 10% discount. I dread thinking od a model kit going through the UK postal service! It would never make it! 

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Remember these are UK stores:

• Creative Models (personal favourite) for my Weathering stuff (AK, Mig and brushes).
• I use my LHS for all of my Tamiya paints and I use Creative Models for my Vallejo paints.
• MDC (Model Design Construction) supply my Mr Surfacer and Gunze paints.
• I use Armour Models for my Friuls, Aluminium barrels and resin parts/upgrade sets.

Thanks guys,

Ben

VanceCrozier

 

dupes:

 

 

... Have 1443 kits of all types (armor/ac/sci-fi/figs) in the stash room ...

 

 

 

 

And THAT's why he rides that bike so much, no room in the garage for a car!!!

Garage? Shoot, man...I don't have a garage. Spent too much money on kits and bicycles!

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

I got back into modeling around 2000, and I have a stash of about 200 kits or so, so it averages to around 16-17 or a year.  However, I've gone on binges where I bought a number of kits at once, and in 2009, I went 7 months on a New Years resolution, before I broke down and bought a kit.  I'm back on a kit-buying moratorium again.

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

I'm a nostalgia builder, primarily, so I don't tend to look at new kits as they come out.  I guess a good illustration is the 2 new aircraft kits from Great Wall, the P-61 and the TBD, and  Revell's PV-1.  I bought the PV-1 as soon as it came out, because I figured I couldn't beat the quality for the price.  For the Great Wall kits, I am more than happy to wait to buy them at much-reduced prices on the secondary market, especially since I am happy with the existing Monogram kits of those subjects.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

A combination of online and live.  I like to buy at shows, and flea markets, where I can find the older kits that I like, and where I can haggle.  I do like to throw the local shops my business, but if they don't have or can't get what I want, I'll go online.

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Does eBay count?  That's where I've bought most of my kits.  I also buy from Squadron, occasionally, when they have sales.  I've also bought direct from CMK and Eduard, via the Web.

Hinksy

. I dread thinking od a model kit going through the UK postal service! It would never make it! 

Ben

You would be surprised. I have never had any issue in that regards. And i have had some damn big kits come through the post.

1) kits in a year ? .. Varies.. on cash flow.. and what the subject is.. but from 10-30...

2) buying as soon as released ? depends on subject,, usually no.. I did buy the new PV-1.. but got it at an overflow store for $18.95 !

3-4) buy where ?? mostly online.. mostly ebay... then other online stores.. I do try the LHS.. but there prices are high.. I use it mostly for paint.. glue.. supplies..

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

About 5 a year.

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

I ususally wait. I look at reviews and what other modelers say about it. Occasionally I'll get a kit right away if I think it's gonna be hard to get later (S-3B Viking).

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

Mostly online. I don't have many LHS here anymore. I so get a few kits from show vendors at our IPMS Houston show that's on April 28th!!!

Model Mania 2012!!! (Yes this is a blatant plug!!!) http://www.ipms-houston.org/?page_id=11

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Sprue Bros, Squadron, Royale Resin

Hi Bill,
This is my third marriage
I started off as a kid of seven in the 60'ies
Picked it up again when I was starting to earn my own money in the 90'ies 
Now when the kids are older I am back again since 2005.

I very rarely finish a kit so my stash is growing for that simple reason.
And I really don't mind.
When a kit is finished i usually toss it away anyway.

To me the beauty of this hobby is in three very different areas;
A.) I simply love the feeling of opening the box and starting to examine the sprue's, its a kids joy.
B.) The next bit of fun is to figure out what I want to do with the kit and this is where I start researching the internet and my reference books for a good photo reference.
This usually goes the other way around when I think about it and I start of with the photo from somewhere
C.) It is so very inspiring trying to follow you guys in your new achievements trying out your new techniques.
Right now that means dot fading and PE.

1.) Around 15 / year, stash is at 120 right now so that sounds OK'ish.
 
2.) I usually buy the kit when the talk gets around. If it is a Tiger I will preorder

3.) I try to support the LHS, Kempes Hobby, Gothenburg.  It is great and extremly hard on the ball.

4.) Spruebrothers, Cyberhobby, Hannants and JB Models.

Very Best Regards
Johan 

JohanT

When a kit is finished i usually toss it away anyway.

Ohhhh, I SO could not do that. Ouch.

JohanT

I very rarely finish a kit so my stash is growing for that simple reason.
And I really don't mind.
When a kit is finished i usually toss it away anyway.

I know Hans does that. He takes pictures of his finished build and then breaks it down. I just don't quite get that approach.

Well since you are interested and asking Bill... Here goes:

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

On average one a month with the odd second... so about 15... It is also about the speed in which i build so my stash is modest and usually consists of the models that turned out not to be that good... In times of financial trials and tribulations i turn to that lot. Maybe some 10-15 kits inthere at the moment

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

Nu uh... prices usually are way up there with new stuff. I did buy some newer Revell of Germany stuff though. The seem to grasp lately how to produce good quality kits with "normal" pricetags. I love my hobby but simply refuse to pay the prices some brands ask for their stuff...

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

Paints, brushes and stuff like that at my LHS. He also carries anything RoG and a modest section of Tamyia, Trumpeter and Italeri armor. The bulk of my purchases is done online though. 

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

A great shop here in holland that has literally anything aviation related is www.aviationmegastore.com Another online vendor i buy from frequently is called Mol (www.plasticmodelbouw.nl) from Belgium. They have nice armor goodies as well as paints and supplies. On occasion i have bought from Hannants in Great Britain.

Lastly i buy from ebay. Theres this vendor in china that has anything the asian brands offer for good prices and low shipping. Cant think of the name though.... something like model supermarket or something... Vetteman42 pointed it out to me once and i do like to shop there since. Just takes about two weeks to arrive thats the only downside i can think of.

Richard

wbill76

 

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

Hard to say...  I binge-buy when the mood or subject interest hits me, but the December sales are when I run up the score...

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

If it's something I want right now, then I'll buy it as it is available.   Waiting means it is pre-ordered.

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

Yes.  I travel several times a year and always try support a LHS whenever I can, but online is where I spend most of my $$.  My LHS is OK for consumables. but not so much for kit selection.  The best brick and mortar LHS I've found were in Pittsburgh, PA and in Columbus, OH.

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Great Models and Squadron get the bulk of my money, but I've also used InternetHobbies, Hannants, Aviapress and god knows who else to find what I'm looking for.

 

Built a stash much too quickly when I started. Didn't really know the difference between brands and scales. So recently I've been selling off 1/72s and "classic" kits - anything with raised panels and rivets. So, I'm going to rebuild some basics in the stash. I buy carefully so I know it could be liquidated by my son the eBay junkie with little loss if I drop dead. I'm not sure why, but I just like having the kits I think important around. Aaron Skinner wrote a column for FSM about "mental builds" that describes the feeling. I look at a box and think, "how will I do that one?" A lot of fun, and like a lot of Americans of my generation I can't possibly afford big things like a real boat (my tagline is literal) or a Porsche but do have what my wife calls "fritter money."

That said, once the stash has been reoriented, I'll be only buying to replace. So maybe 6-8 in a year. (Not counting paints, masks, PE etc. That's long become the biggest bite from my bank account.) Sprue gets a lot of business because of their selection of everything and sometimes fantastic sales. White Ensign and Squadron for specialty stuff. Most kits have come from Scale Hobbyist, easily the cheapest site on the net and one of the best. I'll be going to eBay to fill the "required" list of Pacific War aircraft and maybe a Stuka. Ships live in their own world. Now I do heavy research before buying any major ship - maybe one a year. They take two months a pop moving fast, so I don't buy one lightly.

Eric

tigerman

JohanT:

I very rarely finish a kit so my stash is growing for that simple reason.
And I really don't mind.
When a kit is finished i usually toss it away anyway.

 

I know Hans does that. He takes pictures of his finished build and then breaks it down. I just don't quite get that approach.

I'm in the hobby for the building, not the displaying..  They're just models, and they will never, ever look as good again as they do when you first finish them.. And it's also a big reason why I don't buy high-dollar kits...  Much rather toss a 12.00 kit-hulk than 120.00 one... Plus, I got one hellluva parts box... It's a regular salvage yard.. 

Oh well.. I'll play..

1) How many kits (rough estimate) would you say you buy in a year?

Hmm.. Not sure, but since my return t the hobby after a ten-year break in 08, I've accumulated around 200 kits, and roughly 100 figure sets..

2) Do you buy a kit as soon as it is released or do you wait a while? If you wait, what's the main reason for waiting?

The only kit I bought that had been a new release was the Revell PV-1...  Other than that, I hae no interest in these over-priced, over-hyped new releases, prefering instead to purchase the classics and build them...  I cancelled my pre-order of the Arado kit, deciding to wait.. It was worth it to wait. Just got one on Ebay for 14.00...

3) Do you buy online or from a physical LHS or show vendors or combination?

I've bought mainly from Ebay, Hobby Lobby, and my other LHS...

4) If you buy online, from who? (feel free to list more than one if you have multiple favorites)

Ebay, more than anything, althugh I've bought a few figure sets from Great Models and Sprue Bros., as well as a large majority of tools from Model Expo.

It's good to see that the styrene-acquisition addiction is still alive and well among the forum members here. Thanks to everyone who posted!

Who won the prize, Bill? 

You did Andy. Please see Herr Manstein for ticket and accomodation information.

wbill76

You did Andy. Please see Herr Manstein for ticket and accomodation information.

But Manny's in the cooler or so it always seems he is.

tigerman

 

wbill76:

 

You did Andy. Please see Herr Manstein for ticket and accomodation information.

 

 

But Manny's in the cooler or so it always seems he is.

...........Maybe..................

I've taken to shooting my 1/72s with an air rifle. There are a few of my wonders that I'm kind of fond of and want to keep around. That said, I think pretty soon the 1/48s will be headed to the shooting range. Now that fireworks are legal again, could also try to reacquire my boyhood skill of booby-trapping all kinds of things with mini-mines. (Maybe you could work that into a dio?) On Top Gear I once saw them shoot a small car a few hundred feet into the air with a big rocket: their Shuttle. My kid never really took to models (the left-overs were the ones I started on a couple of years back and got me into the hobby again) but he did like model rockets. So did I. We even built some dual stage things that went way the heck up there and came to earth with a parachute. I'm wondering how high that rocket could have taken a Zero strapped to the side. Might find out. No question that unless you're one of the lucky few that can work on commission, this hobby is one where the journey is the point, not the destination. Zen. Like making road wheels.

Eric

Shellback

Oh please tell Carl.

tigerman

 

Shellback:

 

 

 

Oh please tell Carl.

I deleted my reply ............i wont tell a lie .............

wbill76

It's good to see that the styrene-acquisition addiction is still alive and well among the forum members here. Thanks to everyone who posted!

It is an addiction. I've started selling some of the more vintage kits on eBay; ones that have more collector's value than builder's value. For instance, I have the old original Tamiya Jeep kit with an old Eduard PE set made for that kit (it was Eduard's 2nd 1/35 scale PE set and a collectible in its own right). I sold them for more than a new MiniArt Bantam Jeep kit goes for on eBay including shipping. Tamiya's original Jeep kit was outdated when Italeri's Jeep kit arrived in the early 1980s.

Bottom line, I get rid of an old, outdated kit and replace it with a modern up-to-date tooling kit of a similar subject, pocket a few extra dollars and someone gets a vintage kit for their collection.