Best place to get kits

[Guccillama]

Ive been building plastic car kits for a while now and i need some tips

Where can i get them the cheapest

Whats the best paint to use on it

What should i do if the plastic bits dont line up correctly (i.e. bent parts, miss sized, etc)

[bisc63]

This will get more responses if you post in the correct forum: "Model Building Questions and Answers" 

[NYLIBUD]

Try Model Round up.And there’s always Hobby Lobby.Great selection,but kind of expensive.Good luck.

[Mike 1017]

I use Hobbylinc

Hobbylinc

[espo]

This can depend on what retail hobby shops are in your area as well as craft stores such as Hobby Lobby and others. There are plenty of online shopping sites as well. I always try and attend any show/swap meets in the area as well. These seem the best for finding older out of production kits and you can usually inspect what's in the box before spending your hard-earned money. 

[showrods]

On 5/12/2022 at 9:58 AM, Guccillama said:

Ive been building plastic car kits for a while now and i need some tips

Where can i get them the cheapest

Whats the best paint to use on it

What should i do if the plastic bits dont line up correctly (i.e. bent parts, miss sized, etc)

1.  I'm a big proponent of shopping locally.  Go to your local hobby shops first before looking on line.  An on line price may be cheaper but you'll likely have to add shipping and possibly taxes to that price.

2.  Best paint?  What are you using now?  Go on Youtube for paint reviews.  Ask these boards about their experiences.  Go to local swap meets.  Different folks like different paints for different reasons because they're NOT all the same.

3.  Parts problems?  You say that you've been building for a while now.  You've probably noticed that a lot of manufacturers have their missing/defective parts policy somewhere on the box or in the instructions.  Before buying any kit, go to the manufacturer's website and search there.

[1972coronet]

I buy from independent / brick & mortar sellers as much as possible. I'd rather pay more in order to support an individual's overhead (and I will definitely pay more just to avoid Amazon).
Two-cents of advice with a nickel's worth of change.

[Fat Brian]

I don't have any local independent hobby shops so for me Hobby Lobby and Michael's are the go to's for current run kits followed by a Hobbytown that's a few towns over. Sometimes you can find a deal on Amazon, Tower Hobbies and Model Roundup run free shipping deals which can be big savings on larger orders. I do most of my model shopping on ebay, you can do a search for things and switch to sold items to get an idea of the market before buying. You can also look for shows or swap meets near you.

[SfanGoch]

1 hour ago, 1972coronet said:

...and I will definitely pay more just to avoid Amazon

I avoid Amazon just on principle.

[Rodent]

It depends on what you like to build. If you like the run-of-the-mill Revell and Round2 kits, Hobby Lobby will probably be your best bet during 40% week. If your tastes are more exotic, you will need to seek out a LHS and/or one of the online retailers mentioned above. I don't have a problem with Amazon per se, but I have found them to be more expensive than brick-and-mortar for kits so I don't even look there anymore. E-Pay can also be a good source for out of production kits.

[1972coronet]

Just now, SfanGoch said:

I avoid Amazon just on principle.

Exact menudo. I gladly pay more to support , say, Burbak's House of Hobbies... significantly more (not virtue signalling here, haha).

[Rodent]

I will probably be buying less from Burbank's in the future. I was buying MCM from them, but I just subscribed. The shipping for a magazine and one or two kits wasn't a lot more than just for the magazine, so I would add stuff to my cart, LOL. Now I will have to make a point to buy from them on occasion. My LHS charges full retail for kits, but Burbank's knocks a few dollars off of most of them. That certainly helps cover the shipping costs.

[Dpate]

If you want "cheapest" you would have to do ebay and get lucky finds or bids.  Model round up isn't the cheapest.  Hobby lobby isn't either unless they have the 40% off sale.  Plaza japan is the best for tamiya, aoshima, etc cheapest but shipping can be killer.  Hobbylinc isn't the cheapest per say either.  Hobby town if you have one isn't the cheapest either lol.  Megahobby is better than model round up when it comes to getting product faster and cheaper.  There is no BEST paint it's all subjective.  Everyone can give you brand names of paint, but you'll have to ultimately see what line of paint works for you.  Unless you wanna be like most of us and have tons of paint from tons of different brands. 

[Jim B]

I've had good luck with Scalehobbyist

[Dpate]

17 minutes ago, Jim B said:

I've had good luck with Scalehobbyist

I use them for paint most of the time, but there awesome too

[Dr Cobra]

Wes's Model Car Corner is good to mail order from, they also have a retail store in Blountville, TN. Very good to deal with