Just curious how others deal with that Interest shift if/when it occurs.
A) Power through the current project(s) and finish no matter what. The best model is a completed model.
Or
B) Switch to the new project of Interest, best work flows from what your interested in
C) Something else?
I usually favor A) finish what’s started I’ve completed building six models in a row but after going through two bookcases full of old models, I’m really jonesing to build a 1/35 Panther or for the first time in about twenty years.
It depends how close I am to the end, on my T-54 build which is taking a long time, once I reached a milestone (hull fully done) I cracked open my flak panzer and worked on it for a week.
I found I was getting burnt out on all the small fiddly bits on the T-54 and needed a change. My burnout was leading to reduced quality of work and I was starting to get lazy so I decided a break was needed.
After a week of my flak panzer I came back to my T-54 and feel much more engaged in the build. After im done the t-54 I plan to finish the flak panzer before opening anything else
Where I am at this point in the build i.e. primer, paint, awating weathering
If the build was fighting me the whole way I will maybe work on a shelf queen or start a new kit.
All of my main builds right now are waiting for something, Calliope needs next layer of mud, T-34 needs a new coat of paint which are coming in the mail, Grizz is waiting for markings in the mail so I decided to start a new kit.
I wish I knew. I have 3 or 4 builds going at a time because some builds stall due to waiting on paint to dry, or glue to dry, or supplies I don’t have. But I stalled on my 1/48 phantom build because I’ve got to remove a seam from a canopy. Folks here have given good advice on how to do that, and I’ve watched a couple of videos about doing it, so it looks like it’s no problem, but every time I look at it I just sigh.
I generally only ever work on a single project and always try to finish it before I start another. My personal experience is that once I stop working on a model, it might be years (or even never) before I pick it back up to finish.
To that end, I’d developed a number of strategies to help me stick it out the end, things like trying to do the most tedious bits up front (or spreading them out over the course of the build, like cleaning up a dozen of so track links at the end of every build session so that I don’t have to do them all at once.). Another strategy is to alternate between long, complicated projects with quick, nearly OOTB builds in between. I also mentally break really long builds down into stages that I can approach like their own, individual projects. For instance, building and detailing and painting an engine almost as a stand alone model, to be added to the “big” build later.
Guys that can work on several different models, switching back and forth between them, are like some alien species that I simply cannot comprehend! LOL!
More power to them, but if I tried doing that, all I’d wind up with is a shelf full of unfinished models…
I typically don’t like to have more than 3 kits on the go so I tend to power through and finish them up. I am also like a magpie and get easily distracted by new and shiny things. By forcing myself to finish up, I keep my desk in a reasonable state. Starting that new and shiny kit is my reward for finishing up the old one.
A good example of this is where I am currently. I have 2 T-34’s and a 1/350 DD on the go. I really really want to start the new Border Models Crusader so I am pushing through on the t-34’s even though I am not in the mood to deal with the PE on one of them. But that Crusader is calling…
The only time I don’t follow that is when I am working on a Capital Ship. They tend to take me years to complete so they are exempt from the 3 kit rule.
Obviously there are exceptions, sometimes the bug bites you so hard you have to start a new kit
Excellent points made by all. I appreciate the comments.
I agree that capital ship projects are sort of the exception to all the rules as they can take years.
My shelf Queens have gradually been whittled down from ten to three. Getting seven of ten going again was really difficult. The point about stuff going of the shelve taking years to return to is very true for me. I really really shouldn’t start a new crop of shelf Queens.
Still waiting for from the past
DML Panther D - shelved in 2003
Tamiya Panther G - shelved in 1998
Imperial DML/Gunzy Panzer IV F2 - shelved in 2013
Yikes!! Thats not a shelf queen, thats a shelf Queen Mother!
Longest I have had a kit sit is about 11 months before I got back to it. That was a venerable old Tamiya Sd.Kfz. 232. Simple and easy kit until you start throwing all the goodies at it. Just lost my enthusiasm for it. Honestly, I only got back it because I got tired of looking at the box on the shelf, taunting me
The one thing I have found is I don’t really loose enthusiasm for a particular build, I tend to loose modeling enthusiasm as a whole. I will just stop building for a few months to let the mojo rebuild and then will come back and crank out a ton of kits. In the last 90 days I have done 5 kits from start to finish and finished up one of my dock queens. Compared to some thats a slow rate of build but for me, its well above pace.
@McRunty Rory, lol a kit hitting my shelf can be like hitting a black hole in space, never know when or if the kit will surface again Sometimes I get sick of seeing the box and they getting pitched in the bin.
and that G wasn’t the oldest, that honor went to 1994 started Tamiya Pz IV J - I finally got back to the J last year and finished building it - 26 years after starting it
If its a big 1/350 warship,I will plan an easier project to go along with it so that I can switch off if the large project gets stale.
But on a normal plane or armor I will power thru to the finish
I almost always finish what I start. It’s rare that I delegate anything to the shelf. On the occasions that I do its usually because I’ve run into a problem and need time to decide how best to overcome it, or because it’s a particularly tedious build and I just need a break. In those instances its rare for the kits to sit for more than a few weeks or even days. Don’t really know if that counts as lost interest. My problem is more along the lines of deciding what I want to build next. Something I don’t really think about while working on a current project. Used to be strictly one build at a time but over the past couple of years I will start a second when I’m close to finishing, usually during the weathering phase so I have something to do while waiting for the oil wash to dry or while I’m fiddling around with the stowage. In my 50+ years of modeling I have probably never finished a build less then five times or fewer.
I’m like a squirrel chasing nuts, I’m all over the place. Typically only one kit going through major building and I tend to concentrate on painting when I have several stacked up. I’ll do detailing and stowage on a few at a time though right now a bunch are waiting on this as I’m going to dive into playing around casting my own stowage to stretch out some of that generic stuff I already purchased. I have a bunch waiting on finishing touches. My problem is I’ll pause for a few and then one of my kits in my very modest stash will grab my eye then I’ll crack it open, say whats the harm and I’m back chasing nuts. As I am still getting my feet wet, I dont mind setting a more complex kit aside while I sharpen a few skills before launching back into it. I do have a few cheaper aircraft kits that I ran out of steam battling fit etc that I really just need to wrap up and call good enough on and hang them from the ceiling, but the armor since its eye level I dont mind sitting on till I’m primed to finish them out with the attention they deserve.
Judging by the two-dozen half-built kits staring down at me from the shelf, I’d say I’m more squirrel than Rottweiler. All my builds get hit by AMS, and stall somewhere along the way. But with so many on the go, there’s always one I’ve completely forgotten about so it has all the thrill of a new kit when I go back to it! As long as a steady flow comes out the other end, I’m not too fussed about how the process goes…
I’m an absolute basket case. Almost 40 started kits according to my Scalemates profile. Admittedly, some of those are second hand kits I picked up from various swap meets, with minor starts not by me, but the vast majority are kits I’ve started and then put aside for some reason. Most likely because I’m self aware and my skills don’t live up to my plans or ambitions for each kit in some way.
I go through phases where I’m either in construction, paint or weathering moods, but never all at the same time.
My mission this year is to finish one of the WIP stack per month while keeping the new starts to an absolute minimum. I’m on track so far, with 2 more very close to put me a month in credit.
I’m like a dog with a bone with models. Once I start, I don’t put it down until it’s finished. I find it very hard to re-focus on a model once it leaves my bench. When I’m working on an armor model, I get very into “Sherman mode” or “Panther mode” and I don’t switch themes easily. If I have to halt a build to wait for paint or aftermarket, I keep it on my bench and build something that is not a project - like a jeep or a motorcycle - while I’m waiting for the stuff I need. The only thing I put on the shelf are finished models.
I have a half finished 1/200 scale Yamato (model by Nichimo) that I started assembling in 1989.
It got shelved when I realised I would have to improve various areas. It might get built with RC so I need to figure out how to access the interior without damaging details on decks and superstructures.The latest plan was to cut the hull along the waterline.
The lower hull would have a trunk extending up to maybe half an inch below the deck, maybe with a sealed lid.
