discussion What kick-started your return?

[Guest]

I, too, had started as a lad, putting kits together from about 8yrs to 12 or 13 (1950's!), then quickly drifted away during High School, too much "make work" to do much else. Quite a load of time goes by, and 2008 came along. I had been reading on the IMDB about a favorite movie,"The Pride and the Passion," all about a giant cannon being dragged around Napoleonic Spain by the Guerilleros, and needing a wood-work project, and having acquired the DVD, dedcided to model the cannon. After 3 years, entered two cannons and one cannonball wagon into the Sonoma County Faire models and miniatures competition, geting a blue and a red ribbon for the entries.

With all the display shelves at home suddenly empty, I felt that I needed to start making something, and that point really started the return to model building. I even tried a 1/72 plastic PBY kit (too small for my comfort), and a good friend bought me Guillows PBY kit, which is "in progress" along with my scratch built 1:24 sub miniature. I had not conciously decided to get back to model building, it just happened! Entering competitions and winning a few blue ribbons did not hurt!

Regards, John

 

[stona]

This is a great thread,well done Mark.

I've thoroughly enjoyed reading everyone's stories so far. Keep 'em coming.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Guest]

I had great fun building models as a lad in the 70s -I can remember I had a WWI dogfight hanging from my ceiling and a huge (well it seemed huge to me) P51D that had folding undercarriage. Anyway, a little while ago I found a box of my old stuff in my parents' loft. In the box was a model of a Grant tank, that I had been particularly proud of. The little pilot light that was still flickering inside me got stronger, and whenever I was in a toyshop with my kids, I was drawn magnetically to the model section.

A couple of birthdays later I was given two models and the gas burners became fully lit.

I think my wife regrets getting me the two models though.

 

[MORIARTY1177]

I too built kits as a lad but moved onto wargaming and painting figures and then grew out of that. Around 5 years ago me and SWMBO moved to Duxford a stones throw from the IWM and the combined joy of getting free access to the IWM + getting a reasonable view of the airshows from my garden got me all juiced up. (having spits, husa's & mustangs roaring over ones house almost every weekend is pretty awesome) so thought id make a model kti for old times sake. One 1/72 Airfix Spitfire and 5 years on I'm still at it and loving it more & more, especially as I can share my work with like minded folk on this fine forum.

All the best

Chris.

 

[Guest]

My story starts two years ago... I was looking and (I never said it) writing my own Land Rover book (miniatures references), I was bored and ask myself: - "I can do a kit!! Why not?". I has start the Pink Panther that evening, I start the Rover ambulance too, but never end it.

And looking in Google I found the Land Rover "proud" of Tiking (scale model member).

"Wow!!" I think!! "Fantastic people and models!!!"

I decided that made models again, it should be a very nice activity!! And here I am!!

Regards

Polux

 

[mossiepilot]

My story's much the same as you other guys. I'd built kits in my teens during the seventies, the bedroom ceiling was covered, and then I "grew up" and modelling was a thing that kids did. In Feburary 2011 I suffered a minor heart attack, but it meant I was off work for 11 weeks before the Doc let me go back, and I was going stir crazy for something to do. When SWMBO asked me what I would like to do to relieve the bordom, I had a short think and asked for a model to build and she got me an Revell 1/48 Mosquito which I put together, and failed quite spectaculaly. So I had another go with an 1/72 Airfix Hurricane which I built, not too badly, and painted. When it was done i thought to myself I can do better than that, and so the modelling bug bit. I found you guys in July, signed up and ain't looked back since.

Tony.

 

[AlanG]

Built models from age of 6 through until 17. I then was getting posted around all over the world with the RAF so gave it up until i had something more stable. Bought my first kit again in 2000 but didn't start it for various reasons until 2005. It was then only still a very small part of my life as i was mainly into sea fishing and would spend whole weekends away doing it.

I seriously got back into it in 2007 when i found out my wife was pregnant with our first child. I figured that she would like to have me at home more often to help around the house and with the children so i have done so. I now rarely get to go fishing and do models more. Although the modeling has turned out to be just about as much time consuming and expensive as fishing was lol

 

[Dave W]

I started model making when I was 8 (1966).It was quite popular back then.My dad made me a Canberra, an F89 Scorpion and a Douglas Skyrocket.I loved them and soon bought my first kit,a Revell 1/72 Zero.Thats when my love of aviation started I think.I built loads of models through my teens,was in the Air Cadets and joined the RAF as an airframe fitter in 1975.I gave up around then and got into motorbikes.The inevitable crashes occurred over the years and I made the occasional kit whilst recovering.Usually Phantoms because that was what I worked on at the time.Left the RAF in 1988 aged thirty and went to work in Saudi on Tornado's for BAE.Too bloody hot out there for doing much outside so I started modelling again.Found this great shop in Al Khobar that did loads of modelling stuff and I was hooked again.Used to come home every 4 months and having discovoured Hannants would buy stuff to take back with me.Shared a villa out there with two blokes who were both into modelling which was great.Then I got home sick and packed the job in.Came home in 1995 and stopped modelling again as I was working long hours contracting in civil aviation.Went to college and became a Licensed Aircraft Engineer.Now I have a permanent job with regular hours.Got married in 2000 and took on a 6 year old girl as well.Then about 5 or 6 years ago I got fed up sitting watching telly every night and remembered I had a load of unmade kits in the loft from my days I'm Saudi.So I started building again.Then I discovered this site and found I could get help to make better models.My wife reckons I'm obsessed and she's probably right!.

 

[Guest]

I had done a few kits in my early teens and being a typical youngster lost interest, then around seven years ago I had been flipping through a magazine and seen an advert for a ChrisCraft Cobra and that was it. Took me several months to finish it and I have been modelling ever since.

 

[Guest]

When I was first into kit building the reign of Tamiya with the RIKO importers lable on the box was a must every Saturday. At the age of 15-16 it was a bus ride to the coastal town of Redcar with my mate and then spend hours in the model shop looking at the vast amount of different kits from Tamiya. This got me hooked and up until just leaving the kit building to pursue my career and chasing girls which obviously took over the need to build kits. Returning to the fold about 4 or 5 years ago I was amazed on just how much the hobby had improved with photo etch, resin and the vast amount of kits coming from SE Asia. This got me hooked and to this day I always look forward to getting ino the garage and spending some time at the bench. So in short I can only say that the SE Asia influence on the kit world made me return.........

Andy

 

[Gern]

I too built kits as a young lad - then I discovered the joys of Banks's bitter! Having finally sobered up after too many years, my descent into insanity started when someone bought my grandson a kit .......

Gern

 

[Guest]

I hadn't built anything for 25 years, I started with series one airfix kits as a lad and built everything cars, boats, planes AFVs the lot and eventually graduated to racing cars (mostly Tamiya 1/24, 1/20 and 1/12) having worked in F1 for a while in the seventies. I don't really know why I stopped, the usual reasons I suppose, work, kids etc.

A couple of years ago my son remembering me building kits for him as a kid asked me to build a couple of aeroplanes for him to hang in my grandsons bedroom. I popped into the local model shop and picked up the Airfix Spit MkXII to see if I still had it. (I thought 1/72 might be a bridge too far for the eyesight!). lovely kit, haven't Airfix come up in the world! there isn't much room left on Freddie's ceiling now so I have to admit I build for me now. It's like turning the clock back. And yes Steve despite being an old git I have been known to strafe the bench with the latest build!

 

[chameleon 2009]

For me after finishing rugby I wanted something which gave me an end result, and computer games were just not doing it for me, I still fish but after walking round hobby craft in Nottingham I came a cross the modeling section.

And after buying my first back in February 2012, I am a full addict, subscribing to magazines and modeling sites, what’s more intriguing is that I am not alone, which is really strange to see how many have come back to the dark side in similar circumstances.

Mike

 

[mossiepilot]

What a great thread, seeing how the bug bit each of us. @ Andy (Lancasterb1) I grew up in Redcar and spent many happy hours in the model shop there, on Cleveland Street next to the P.O. if I remember right. Wonder if we ever passed each other and never knew. Small world!

Tony.

 

[Guest]

What a great thread, seeing how the bug bit each of us. @ Andy (Lancasterb1) I grew up in Redcar and spent many happy hours in the model shop there, on Cleveland Street next to the P.O. if I remember right. Wonder if we ever passed each other and never knew. Small world!Tony.

Tony indeed you are right there was also another one on the front opposite the cinema and one further along the sea front near the lifeboat station. I cannot for my life think of the names of those shops all those years ago in Redcar but you can bet your bottom dollar that we would have passed at some stage, like you say small world!!

 

[Alan 45]

great thread :thumbsup:

I made kits from about the age of six until 14 then I started noticing girls and football and such so gave it up until exatly a year today and it only happened by accident realy with it being a mates birthday so we all decided to get him a model of his old boat he srved on during WWII and I offered to build it after I had finished I felt really bored and the it was thee wife who suggested I take it as a hobby I said no at first but realy wanted to lol but none the less she bought me a kit and the rest is history after twelve months and fourteen builds later I still have the bug and I don't see it ending anytime soon :grinball1:

 

[rickoshea52]

The bug has never really been away for any length of time for me, it's kind of like remission!

I used to spend hours in Barlows Models and Farnborough Models & Toys just looking at all the wonderful kits and never having enough money to buy them...all. It must be a bloke thing 'cos I still do it now at 40.

I had a bit of a hiatus from plastic kits when my wife bought me a train set for Christmas but there is always a little bit of detailing, modifying or weathering to be done to RTR models. Then there are all of the kits for the lineside like buildings, bridges and vehicles not to mention wagon kits for those rare or unusual bits of rolling stock.

So for me modelling has always been there it's just that the subject matter has varied. Now I have a pile of plastic kits, of mostly aircraft, to keep me entertained whenever I get fed up of building my railway layout.

 

[flyjoe180]

Like many here I built models as a kid. Loved them, then discovered girls, beer and flying and my time was taken up with those. Then a few years ago, by now in a stable relationship and the flying paying and making beer drinking largely redundant, I moved house again and found my old stash of unmade kits. I could have sold them or given them away but an urge to do a better job than I once had was calling, and the rest you know because I got back into the hobby and found this forum for help. The only thing is, depsite having made a fair few of the old kits, I seem to have actually expanded my stash...

 

[Guest]

It hasn't been that long since I gave it up, (currently the young age of 27) but my return was kicked off by my parents buying me the revell mclaren twin pack for Xmas a few years ago. My dad knew how into it I used to be. Now I have children, (two girls with third girl on the way in 4 weeks!!!!!), between them and work, I don't have the time to do the things most 27 year olds do. Coming home to my kids is the best thing after a hard day, but I love winding down in the evening to a bit of classic fm with my latest project once they've gone to bed.

 

[Guest]

22 years away from the hobby and just bought a "memphis belle" and Bf 109 ( 109 nearly complete) ... In November I found my case of sign writers brushes in the attic, where they had been for 30 years, thought nothing of it except for a " ah forgot about them". Next day while passing our local model shop I noticed the "Belle" in the window and my male logic came up with, now that would be a use for those brushes.. safe to say Im now hooked again and Ive enjoyed testing my hand painting skills. The hobby has changed dramatically since my first addiction all those years ago, but Im learning and enjoying learning. I will post some pics of the bf 109 in the next few days.

Danny