Model Building

[Erock]

Ok, My question.....Why do you like model building? My wife asked me this and I couldn't pinpoint it to one reason. I Like taking a box of plastic and make it into a car, I like using my imagination and build it my way, It's relaxing....Usually! Haha, and I gives me something to be proud of. What are your reasons?

[Calb56]

Two reasons,  I can't justify a 1:1 model and second, it's one of the few activities I remember doing as a kid with my dad. He died when I was 14 and so I remember him when I build.

Nothing exciting, my wife sees it as just playing with my "toy cars".

[NOBLNG]

I got back into it about six years ago. Mainly to keep track of my eyesight and dexterity…at least that’s what I tell my wife.? I like it because I get to create something and I don’t have the talent to make sculptures or paint portraits.

[oldcarfan]

I've been into models since I was a little kid thanks to my dad and uncle who built. I've gotten into and out of building over the years depending on what's going on in my life. It's a way of expressing creativity. I'm currently in the process of building a new modeling area and looking to start up again.

[ctruss53]

Building scale models allows me to build my favorite cars, or get creative with paint, without spending hundreds of thousands of dollars.

And I can build all these cars, and park them all in a shelving unit instead of a warehouse.

 

If I could afford it, I would be building real cars instead of scale models.

[Pierre Rivard]

Simple, it combines the effort to do something artistic and my love for 60's race cars. I love the chase for information about a specific car at a race venue then go about to replicate this moment in history to the best of my ability. Lastly I very much enjoy all the exchanges with fellow builders, mostly on this forum.

[maxwell48098]

I've always had a love of things automotive since I was a tiny child.  I started building model cars back in 1958 when I was 8 and my dad bought me an AMT 1958 Buick hardtop while we were at the local dime store.  I'd been taking some of my toy cars and trucks apart, and putting them back together, with mixed results.  My dad figured that taking something and just putting it together would be better.  I started using old DuPont Duco cement, and it wasn't the best, but it allowed me to take my build models apart and rebuild them again, like I did with my toys.  I went through the '60's building model cars and pickups, when the first big rig truck kit arrived on the scene in 1965, the IMC Dodge L700, and I got hooked on big rigs.  I then added fire apparatus to my interests in the early '70's with the AMT American LaFrance Custom Pumper, Ladder Chief, and Snorkel arrived on the scene.  And I'm still building today, having added resin, and now 3D printed conversions.  I guess I just loved being creative and models allowed me to do that at a price much lower than a 1:1 car, truck, or fire truck.

[Mopar maniac 74]

2 reasons

I built replicas of my cars that I had in the past

I wanted an extensive car collection and like others stated this is an affordable way to do it and they fit on a wall in the house

[peteski]

I like scale models (miniatures) - always had since early childhood.  I also enjoy the process of creating something from bunch of parts and paint.

This is sort of like asking a painter or a sculptor why they do what they do.  I think it is also about being creative. Granted, with a model kit one is not as creative as a painter or sculptor who start from raw materials, but there is definitely creativity involved in building model kits.  it's fun!

I also think there is a tie to someone's personality.  Some people couldn't care less about some silly model, when others are actually drawn to building miniature models.  I think it is in your genes.

EDIT: I should add that I'm not just into model cars.  I also build non-automotive model kits and N scale model trains.

Edited May 3, 2023 by peteski

[Lunajammer]

It's just another facet of car culture and understanding that part of it that excites us and invites us to learn more about our interest area. For many, if not most, artistic expression deepens the dimension. Your wife could ask that question of anybody, including her friends, about the interests that fill their pastimes. 

Edited May 3, 2023 by Lunajammer

[JollySipper]

Often times it's a good way to shut out the outside world....... Kind of a Zen thing. Plus, I'm a creative, so I need an outlet........

[iamsuperdan]

I'm with TJ above.

I find it relaxing, even when it's frustrating. And when I sit at the bench in the garage, no one bothers me, I can just unplug from everything and build.

 

[Calb56]

2 hours ago, JollySipper said:

Often times it's a good way to shut out the outside world....... Kind of a Zen thing. Plus, I'm a creative, so I need an outlet........

 

11 minutes ago, iamsuperdan said:

I'm with TJ above.

I find it relaxing, even when it's frustrating. And when I sit at the bench in the garage, no one bothers me, I can just unplug from everything and build.

 

I agree, my work this week has me upside down, messing with my sleep as I'm getting home when I'm used to waking up.

I only had 45 minutes today but I brought my 29 out, did some sanding on the body, resprayed the trunk and I'm in a much better space. Still exhausted but happy for the moment. 

[Little Timmy]

I build models of EVERYTHING !

Cars, trucks, planes, ships, trains, buildings, figures, scenery,  you name it.

But for me, it's all about the history of the subject.  I can hold history in my hand.

( plus, ... it's just  cool ...? )

 

[Dpate]

For me it would be the same as my Lego hobby. Following directions, and watching it come to life as you build -While ending up with great display pieces. That since of pride like yes…I built that, Painting is also the great part of it as well. Since I’ve been in the hobby i always look at other car colors on the road, and if something catches my eye I look it up. I Never done that before until I’ve gotten into this hobby. Also just cleaning up a kit, and getting it ready for primer & paint just has that feeling to it that’s kind of hard to explain. 

Edited May 4, 2023 by Dpate

[1959scudetto]

As a car nut from a very early age, I discovered the hobby in my teens - it is totally relaxing for me (with some frustrations from time to time) to create models of cars that are out of reach and I will never possess in real life. Interests have changed over the last decades to mainly classic sports and race cars, but the fun is always there.

[Rich Chernosky]

An interesting topic to be sure.  I see that most of us do it for relaxation or to just get away from the real world.  I do that too.  But I am also a collector and a builder. I will aquire a kit to be part of a collection and then build it to suit. .  It can be a real crappy day but when you add something to your collection all is forgotten.  Then there are the memories.  Each piece completed represents someone or some place I have been. That's why I don't ever trade or sell off completed projects.  How are you supposed to replace that memory.,  I could, and have, bore you to tears with all the stories of some 60 years of modeling and collecting. 

[BlackSheep214]

On 5/3/2023 at 8:33 PM, Little Timmy said:

I build models of EVERYTHING !

Cars, trucks, planes, ships, trains, buildings, figures, scenery,  you name it.

But for me, it's all about the history of the subject.  I can hold history in my hand.

( plus, ... it's just  cool ...? )

 

Ditto here. I can't build just car models alone or I'll go crazy. I need a challenge to build different subjects/genres. 

Why I build models? I started when I was 5 or 6 with snap kits. I guess it kept me interested and wanting to build more models.