The Little World

An’ de ones dat build model kits knows dey better pay attention to de beat. Else’n dey gonna be trowin’ dere kits agin’ de wall…

I am rich in time, if not in cash, and know that I can best use this first resource in my scale model building if I apportion it wisely. And listen to the rhythm of reason as I cut and glue.

a. Buy the kit you want when it is there in the shop. Not when it has disappeared into everyone else’s stash – and can only emerge when death or eBay intervene. Either re-seller will be expensive.

b. Buy paints in small quantities. It can and will go solid in the bottle or tin – even if you don’t remember opening it.

c. Buy only as many kits as you can actually make – before you lose interest or your marriage. The blessed may never reach this stage and can build forever.

d. Set an actual time for completion of a kit – and be realistic. You cannot build a multi-media superkit that costs $ 500 in a weekend – but you can build a baggie in that time and get a wonderful result.

Plan out a build in days, weeks, or months. And take into account:

1. The weather that is coming up. Too hot or too cold in your building space will be too bad.
2. Your other plans for the immediate future. If you are going away on a vacation or a honeymoon you probably will not need to take a spray booth and paint rack.
3. The number of steps that will require drying, setting, or just general waiting between the successive layers of work. Some days will be spent waiting.
4. The patience of your family. Once it ends, it takes a great deal of trouble and money to re-establish.

e. Build multiple kits in parallel to use up spare waiting times. Three is about all an average person can handle without busting a valve. Keep the projects separated in containers or at different locations. And remember which one you’re working on before you press the trigger of the air brush…

f. Do not model before 5:00 AM or after 10:00 PM. Reserve that time for binge drinking and doing other things you will regret for years. Keep model building pure and free.