next »

[DreamKnight]

Back in high school, the time before I really cared about world history (other than the ancient times), there were many things that distracted me from actually doing any studying.  There was Football, Volleyball, Band, theatre, Science Club, Chess Club, Roleplaying Games, the list goes on and on.  It wasn't until my Junior year that I actually started to get into scale modeling.

I remember the exact moment that scale modeling came into my radar.  I dropped by a friend's house to pick him up for a weekly volleyball game.  While waiting for him I was talking to his brother while he was working on a model.  If I remember right, it was a Japanese Zero military plane,

   I was checking out his collection and I was intrigued.  How he took piece of plastic and produced something that looked real drew funny feelings deep inside that I've only first felt when I was much younger on a more personal level. Even better, he worked at a LHS (back in the days when LHS were on almost every corner down here in L.A.) so he was able to hook me up.  I handed him some cash and told him to get me a plane and the paints for it and other supplies I might need.

A couple days later I was sitting in my "garage turned gaming room" with the model and a small toolbox of paints and supplies and off I went.

Then a few weeks later, Mr. Friends Bro introduced me to airbrushing and that hooked me either further.  I whipped out more cash and in return he got me a Paashe air compressor and a badger single action NH200.

Back then, dual action airbrushes were only for those that lived in the hills and ate caviar every day for breakfast.  The compressor was very blue... and VERY loud.  Piston driven compressor for scale modeling was still way beyond the horizon. The first time I turned it on, my cats ran to the other end of the house. I had no regulator on the compressor so the only speed I had was "Sand Blasting" speed.

My first model that he got me was a P-51 Mustang and to this day I still have the model.  It's been sitting in a box and been through tons of moves so it's quite beat up.  I think some of the parts that fell off are still in the box.  Regardless, being a sentimental guy, it's been with me all these years.

When I got into college life got even busier than high school so scale modeling went on the shelf.  It wasn't until recently, less than a year now, I've jump back into the hobby.  I pulled out all my old stuff in my little tool box, upgraded some gear and tossed out dead paints.

I took a trip to the LHS intent on just buying a couple bottles of paint, brushes and start small.  You know, finish up some boxes of models I still had left from the old days as well as some I gathered as gifts in the self promise I made to jump back into the hobby someday. Needless to say, I walked out with a few boxes of new models, whole bag of supplies and 20 or so bottles of paint. After all these years, much advances have been made!

In only a month after rebooting into the hobby, the small toolbox that held my supplies was retired.  Now I have a "workbench".  My 5 bottle selection of paints became a haphazardly stack of many bottles desperately trying to keep from toppling over.  I have access to 5 or 6 different kinda of thinners, 10+ type of paint brushes, variety of tweezers, 4 or 5 different kinds of glues, a mid-line air compressor with a back up Co2 tank to power my two airbrushes and various other piles of tools.  But it doesn't stop there. Don't forget the various household supplies to enhance the experience even more.  We're talking alcohol, baking soda, aluminum foil, hair spray, floor wax, fishing line, vinyl gloves... etc.

This is by no doubt, a monster hobby. It's fun, involved, creative and now-a-days with the internet, a great hobby to share with others.  This is what it's all about.  So in nostalgia, tell use your story! What inspired you started the hobby?  What was the first model you've built? Did you start small or did you start big?

Regardless of whether you started years ago or started just a few minutes ago, let's hear from you. :)  You're on the air with "This week on SMA..."!


Other "This Week on SMA..." topics:
Your First Time Poll
Your tips for first time model construction...
Your tips for first time model painting...
Airbrush crawl or plunge?
Your foray into miniature wargaming...

[Jeep]

Nostalgia:  seems like a good title for a thread. I built me first models when we lived in the hills "literally"  out side of a little town called Shanksville, PA (yes were flight 93 was crashed)  It was 23 miles to Summerset, the county seat and the only real town of any size the only real store was here or you could go to the mall in Windber or Johnstown regardless,  you could not just run down to the store for anything,  but one of the monthly "supply runs" we came home with a pair of snap together jeep cj 5s, one was blue the other was yellow.   I think this was around 1979 or so.  It was not until we moved several more times and ended up near State college,PA  that I started modeling in earnest, I chewed through a "Police" chevy blazer, a 2-1/2 ton truck and them made a error, I picked up a Testors Nebelwerfer 41 that was WAY to advanced for a 4th grader.  There was then a series of models in quick succession all the way through high school and even between college breaks,  I slowed down scale modeling only when I started HO scale model trains and Garden scale 1:20.3 scale trains and table top miniature gaming, but never really stopped building.  I will not say I am the greatest or best modeler, I don't have a wall of trophies on the wall, (the sma was my first real contest) that was not why I build them in the first place,  I build models because I enjoy working with my hands, I like researching and learning the history of each piece. I find it helps me with my patience and relaxes me. 

Someday I will inventory what I have built.

[Atomicdog]

Hey Dreamknight this is a great thread! 

I believe my neighbor introduced me to scale models in 1979-80. I seen his WW2 models/dioramas and I was in awe! I always loved playing war games and watching how he added his military models to this earthlike styrofoam base was all it took to get me really hooked.

I remember my mother worked for K-Mart at the time and I would beg my mother to get me a model after her shift. She did not disappoint. My first model was a WW2 Corsair. I thought this plane was the best ever! I remember after I built the plane, I began to brag about the wing structure of the plane. I did paint it a dark Navy blue and the decals were decent. Well, I wanted more!

My mother soon brought home some battleships and a B-25 Mitchell for my little brother. I remember the Mitchell because I was so jealous that my bro had it. Anyways, after we finished building the kits…well we decided to play with them. They were trashed after we were done. My mother was furious with us and I believe that was the end of my scale modeling experience. Then, I was too involved with high school basketball and never returned to the hobby until 2009!

I am basically a beginner and I find more enjoyment in this hobby now. I do not possess the talent like the talent on SMA. But, that’s alright. This hobby really gets my mind off of life’s pressures and relaxes me. Also, my wife is thrilled about my hobby and thinks it does some real good for me.
I value the tips and fellow builders of SMA and YouTube. I have learned so much! The comments I receive really give me a boost of confidence. Thank you builders! Thank you Mr. Scott Girvan for your website!

Keep Building!!!

Brian
Atomicdog

[Scott Girvan]

I couldn't have been more than 8. Summer vacations to my aunt's place in Nova Scotia. Back then the 5 hour trek seemed so long to my brother and I. We'd usually visit every summer and while my folks did the grown up stuff my cousin and I would have adventures: sticking fire crackers in small fish, hiking in the woods, playing in the barn lofts.

He had a huge collection of model cars and proudly displayed them on shelves in his room. It was cool - really cool.

After retuning home from one of those visits I - all of a sudden - had some Testors paint, a brush, tube glue and an AMT Xwing. I would sit in the TV room with a TV tray and build. Man I can still smell the glue! Great memories. I did build some choppers and a plane plus I seem to remember a ship in there. No filling seams, no primering, Just glue, paint and brush. Totally fun.

At 13, girls, playing keys in a rock band and partying stole me away...but I kept collecting kits. In '99 I found the internet. Starshipmodeler.com! WOW! WOW! WOW! - soon after I found eBay....and $1000 later I had just about every AMT Starwars kit that was made. 3 of some of them (after bidding and winning multiple auctions)

I spent most of the early 21st century studying and reading magazines, online. Then enough, was enough. Either build em or sell em.

Well you know what I chose.

[MrNatural]

My pops tried to get me into it when i was a little kid, he didn't build models but he is a carpenter and wanted to see me do something productive with my time, and I gave it my best effort but the attention span of a 10 year old is shot when there are video games to be played, comics to be read, and cartoons to be watched. So i gave it up. Then once I hit middle school and high school, i started getting into art, girls, skateboarding, playing in punk bands, "being cool", all became priority over building model kits. model kits? are you kidding me? like, what nerds do?!? no way. not me. But my interest in art is key to me getting back into the hobby later in life. So I got out of high school and floundered around forever trying to make it as a punk rocker and a professional party-er, while still doing art consistently (drawing, painting,) and holding down various jobs cooking at restaurants. I eventually got back into school, I'm currently a graphic design student. So, in the the beginning of 2009 the restaurant I was working for went out of business and I wound up being unemployed for a while, and during this time I had a lot of time on my hands so that's when I started to think about building a model again, so i started looking up stuff about scale modeling on youtube and i started watching those plamo tsukurou videos, you know the japanese modeling videos on sleepylafiels channel. I really started to see the amount of skill and what a great understanding of technique it takes to make a great model. I think the same way about a beautiful piece of art. So to me, scale modeling is just another artistic medium. Anyway I was watching these videos one day and I happen to see a link for scale model addict, I kid you not. And so, I started watching Scott's show and eventually i got inspired enough to head down to the hobby shop and the rest is history.

[Scott Girvan]

I really started to see the amount of skill and what a great understanding of technique it takes to make a great model. I think the same way about a beautiful piece of art. So to me, scale modeling is just another artistic medium.

Well said. I think the same way. I think most of us modelers do. I think of it like a fine furniture maker requires skill, attention to detail, understanding of the tools, patience. It just a different medium...and there can be lasers.

[Vanhammer]

hi there, Vanhammer here or just Van if ya like.   think ive alwas built car models dad collected real ones i got the plastic ones. never really had the skills of the builders here, actually never knew they was people like on here, think you all got a shrinkray hidden in the back somewhere ya not showed me yet, you all got skills. 
  anyway ive stayed mainly with cars for the most of my life might build one or two a year do some mod work everyonce and a while, try new wheels and rim different motor that kinda thing.  then in the early to mid 80's i found lead figures at a hobbyshop and it was downhill sence well sort of, the rest of the 80's and 90's were spent painting them anyway.  took a few years getting real, house/wife that sort of thing but now ive found you-tube and figs again.  so im older and a little beatup from life but hey got my figs and feel young again so its all good.  i even got a couple cars built the last year.. got a soft spot for Mustangs      wife got me a ford Cobra for christmas to build might have to watch a few of ya all maybe i can find the hidden shrinkray and ill show ya all after i get her done.

[MrNatural]

welcome to the forum Van!

[Grendels]

When I was young, I use to watch my father put together models.  Being a kid, I wanted to help out, so one day, he bought me and my brother a model.  I don't remember what it was a model of, I think it was a plane.  We would have family time in the basement, Dad, me and my brother building models.  Dad's models were usually balsa.  He was into line controlled planes back then.  I think my second or third model was a space 1999 hawk.  I still have that model, and it sits on a shelf in my home office.  It is pretty yellowed with age, being 33 years old, but it is still intact, and I have thought about doing a restore, but like a fine wine, it just shows its age.  Most of the decals are gone, but surprisingly the glue has held up.  Just this week I noticed a one of the glue seams is coming undone.  

I also have to blame Godzilla movies for part of my desire to build models.  I loved the monster Sci Fi movies as a child, and marveled at the detail of those models on the sets. I use to dream of growing up and building those models.   It seemed a shame to me that they let the man in the rubber suit ruin those beautiful models.  My favorite was the type 88 Maser Cannon, and if I remember correctly, not one of those got destroyed in any of the movies.  (I could be wrong about that.)

From there, I did build models pretty regular.  I was in the model of the month club, and didn't really stop until 9th grade where I discovered model rockets.  I pretty much played with those through high school, and even won a blue ribbon for spot landing at an event.  When I went to college I started building models again.  The Robotech models got me started with them.  Here we had models that didn't look like anything else, and the joints can move.  I think I bought all of them except for Aquallo.  The last one of those I got was the robotech factory, which is still in a closet half done.  

The last model I built back then was the Enterprise D.  This was the version that had the fiber optic kit.  The directions that came with the model were fairly good.  But up until that time, I really didn't pay much attention to seam filling.  I did paint details, and was starting to experiment with washes.  But not much on seam filling.  The enterprise required a lot of seam filling.  You had to cut channels in the nacelle struts to run wires to the warp engines.  That was a new concept for me.  But, I learned those lessons, and I have applied them in my more recent builds.  When I look at that model, I still didn't do much with seam filling, but it was a start.  

At that time I took a 13 year break.  A few medical conditions got in the way of building models, and I decided to start my own business.  As anyone who is self employed can tell you, the first five to ten years you work your rear off.  After that you can relax a bit.  I have always like to build things.  I would still stop by the model isle at the hobby shop, but I wouldn't touch them.  I just felt like they took too much of my time, time that I really didn't have to spare.  So to fill that void, I turned to Lego.  I have two closets full of lego to sell on Ebay now.  They are no longer needed because I have started building models again.  

The reason I got back into it was a youtube video.  I was just randomly browsing videos and came across a video of the 1/350 Polar lights refit enterprise.  I was blown away by that model.  And I started looking into how much and where could I get it.  I tracked one down, opened up the box and realized that I probably have lost a few of my skills over the years.  So I got a few starter kits and started to build.  

During these builds, I said to myself, I have to learn about electronics.  I wanted to light the enterprise, but lighting kits, while easy, were expensive.  So about a year ago, I started down the path of building models, and learning the basics of lighting.  I searched youtube for model and electronic models, and here I am today.  

[svinehunden]

back when i was a kid i used to have catalogs from ALL the companies and I just loved all the beautiful drawings. the painting was always some kool action shot of the aircraft in action or something. i was a big fan of the british companies and i used to stare at the pages, hours on end, page after page. i could stare at the same picture for half an hour. the stories those pictures told me was just AWESOME...

every time i opened the catalogs i knew a new movie was about to premiere

[DXM]

Well, I remember bringing 2 stock car models to a grade 2 show and tell day.
I only had one bottle of PLA Gloss Green, so I painted the hood 1/2 green, the roof 1/2 green, the doors 1/2 green., in short,checkerboard. Boy was I proud because mine was displayed in the hall shelf with the older kids models. I remember a few airplanes but my parents stopped buying models because I realized that anything can be made to fly if you threw them hard enough. I remember when I was 7 or 8 spending 2 afternoon in the basement  building a fighter version of a B-52 on pontoons using an old hockey stick. Funny my Dad kept it even when I went to university. I remembered watching a show on TV called UFO a Gerry Anderson production, Loved the Interceptor. I started to draw them and the Space suites. That's  where I got hooked on to Sci-Fi. Funny, when watching the show as a kid, I wanted to see the models... only,after when I was grown up and watching the DVD of the series did I realize that the girls in the show were hot. Purple hair, silver body suites and fish nets

When BattleStar Galactica came out I begged my mom to buy the Colonial Viper and them the Cylon Raider.After that I was seriously hooked. Been building ever since. I love every type of subject, if it had LCF ( Look Cool Factor ) I enjoyed it.