Desperately Seeking Motivation

[Crazy Snap Captain]

Hi team,

I'm currently building Eduard's Limited Edition 1/48 MiG-29A. In addition to the inbox PE and resin, I got Aires wheel bays, corrected nose cone, afterburner cans and pretty much anything else out the in terms of AM. After a bright and enthusiastic start I can now report that I am ready to throw it against a wall. It's taken the life outta me. Sanding, dry fitting, rescribing, CA glue mishaps, PE blindness, the whole catastrophe! I've packed it up and re unpacked it 4 times. It's the first time a model has ever gotten the better of me. My question to you super modellers Out there in ARC land is this - have you successfully packed it in with a model and then returned to finish it? Or does it sit in a state of limbo or purgatory for all eternity. I've spent a fair deal of my hard earned on this and need some motivation or at least hope that I will come back to the damn thing sometime in the future. Right now I'm seriously considering giving it a new home in my trash can...it doesn't help that it's garbage night either. Heeeeeeeelp!

[warthoglvr]

Nah . . . walk away from it. Get a Tamiya Viper or a Mustang and just enjoy a stress-free build. Then you'll muster up the courage and fortitude to tackle the Fulcrum again.

[Bigasshammm]

Break it down into a series of smaller builds that you can break up with other kits in between.

ie work on only the gear bay or something until you get it complete then go do something else. Then come back and focus on the cockpit. etc etc

[thegoodsgt]

Life is too short, and for most of us there are too many models in the stash, to beat yourself up with a doomed project. I say throw it against a wall. It might feel a little bad at first, but you'll soon feel the relief.

Steven Brown

Scale Model Soup

Edited November 27, 2012 by thegoodsgt

[HOLMES]

Andrew,

Put it down.walk away from the work bench.breathe deeply and go out and enjoy the fresh air.

Do something else that you enjoy doing..walking, hiking, read a book or two etc...relax your mind. Then continue to relax doing other things..leave the plastic well alone.

Your Mind will have other things that will refresh your body and rejuvenate you.

BEFORE you know it.you will be back on the bench...

Don't throw it away..you WILL regret it !!

[stikpusher]

Put it aside. If you still feel up to building get a build that is low stress like a nice newer Tamiya kit and have that recharge your motivational batteries. If you don't fell like any more building for now, take a break from the hobby altogether until the bug bites again. I have had more than my share of the doldrums and then rebounded to do more and better work when I started up again. And satisfactorily finished up those kits that vexed me previously.

[B-17 guy]

Break it down into a series of smaller builds that you can break up with other kits in between.

ie work on only the gear bay or something until you get it complete then go do something else. Then come back and focus on the cockpit. etc etc

Agree with this! This is what I'm doing to get myself going again on my B-17's. I'm liniting myself to just noses right now.

[CorsairMan]

I've come back to a couple after they were boxed. The important thing to remember is that its supposed to be fun!

[Aigore]

+1 on what everybody else sez about backing away from it...

The trick to get the mojo flowing is to get something done, and quick... I usually get me a Finemold STar Wars kit...they are simply gorgeous, no fit issues adn not that many parts, you throw it together in 2-3 days and feel good about it :D

Then you go back to your big project and make it in modules so you can see finished results to keep the mojo flowing!

Cheers!

[cabo91]

I've done both.... I think walking away for a while works better. I've built that kit a few times and its not an easy fit...especially if you're adding aftermarket so don't beat yourself up over it. I didn't just step away from a kit but from modeling for a few years and I've never been happier to be back at a hobby. I also liked the other suggestion in here of building it up in small amounts so you don't get overwhelmed and finally, the suggestion of doing a stress-free kit is always a good way to get your bearings back as well. I've been posting pics of a Revell 1/48 MIG-25 buildup and its really slow. I have to constantly get away from that monstrosity in order to keep sane and not burn out on one of my first forays back into this hobby so believe me....I feel for ya!

[ChippyWho]

I hear this is a beast with (or without, but especially with) a full compliment of resin. Not sure if that is the main cause of your grief, but it is a long uphill slog with no sprint to the finish.

Ultimately, decide if you really want it on your shelf that much -only you can make that call. If the answer is 'yes'*, like the guys say just pick it off one section at a time over as long as it takes.

When it's done, you can celebrate with a large beverage...and a strange, empty feeling inside! :blink:

[Crazy Snap Captain]

Thanks guys.

ChippyWho,

Let me tell you it is an absolute mofo of a kit. It looks fab when finished from what I have seen, and I love the Fulcrum's lines, so I do want to finish it eventually. I think I'm going to park it for now. I can't bring myself to throw it out. I do have a Tamiya Viper that I can do and bring back that loving feeling. Don't know if I can do the dual project thing though. I suck at multi tasking and I'd probably end up putting sidewinders on the MiG. :blink:

Glad to know I'm not the only one out there that considers this kit a beast. I was starting to feel a bit of "short-modeller syndrome" there for a while. Again thanks for the words of wisom chaps...tally ho.

Edited November 28, 2012 by Crazy Snap Captain

[scapilot]

I ran into this same problem while doing a dual build of Italeri's Tornado IDS'. I didn't know much about the kits or the subject matter to begin with, but then when I got the LEX installs, and engines / intakes it about tore away my will to wake up in the mornings. lol. Kidding aside, you have to find anything to be positive about when it gets to that. I typically truck through the frustrations knowing that smooth sailing lies ahead. I used to work two projects at once, but I always felt like I was negating the one that I was more ahead on, and eventually would have a partially started project that wound up taking a full time back seat to what I was invested in.

I do agree with walking away from it when it gets frustrating, because as was already stated....this is supposed to be fun. If we allow frustration to drive it, then it becomes work, not a hobby. Just take your time, and remember that there's typically always something left to be done on another portion of the plane. I've found that when I start some kits, I'll just spend the first day "gluing twos", which is anything that has two parts that join to make a substructure. Let's glue / cement get a head start on curing, and allows for better availability of parts when ready to start doing fit checks. It kind of seems like the build drags on forever, because here you are two weeks into it, and are just getting around to painting, but when you look back, and remember that you did all the other work early on, then the build literally falls together into place once you get the hard parts over with.

I'll sometimes take a break from the hard parts and glue together a bomb or a fuel tank, or something to help me chip away on what I consider to be a secondary build of every build, which is weapons. I hate the feeling of mounting gear, and wanting to celebrate that "almost there" feeling by looking at the box and realizing I still have tons of bombs and missiles to assemble, clean up, paint, and detail.

But if you chip away at them one here, and one there, then by the time you're ready for them, you've got most of the hard part over. Just remember, there's always something else to work on. And if not, that means that you're literally at the end of the build, and should push forward to get it knocked out. But most importantly is to remember to have fun, and know when to fold for a bit.

[breadneck]

I think bigasshamm ooops, my bad..bigasshammm has a very good point. Try to build the damn thing in stages then set it aside(it may even help to set it aside in the trashcan!) And if you mentally snap out of it and "forget" about it for a month or more you will most likely find motivation once again without feeling the stresses first involved. It is an intelligent approach. Just ask the worlds most interesting man. He will say the same thing.

[MikeC]

... have you successfully packed it in with a model and then returned to finish it? Or does it sit in a state of limbo or purgatory for all eternity....

Both, but 90% of the time they get finished. Recently completed Testors' 1:48 SR-71 after 2.5 years on and off.

Nah . . . walk away from it. Get a Tamiya Viper or a Mustang and just enjoy a stress-free build. Then you'll muster up the courage and fortitude to tackle the Fulcrum again.

Put it aside. If you still feel up to building get a build that is low stress like a nice newer Tamiya kit and have that recharge your motivational batteries...

Works for me - I always have a Tamiya Mustang or two in the loft for such an eventuality.

But also remember: if it really is sucking the life blood from you, and you cannot scrape up any enthusiasm, you do not have to finish it. You will not be drummed out of IPMS with ignominy (if you are a member), and the model police will not arrive at your house at 3am to confiscate your stash and haul you off to a dark dungeon in the basement of a hobby store somewhere. Funnily enough, giving myself that permission to bin a stalled build means that whilst I have thrown one or two in the bin - an Academy MiG-21 with a bunch of resin went exactly that way - I am more relaxed about it and actually do continue because I don't feel I HAVE to finish it; hope that makes sense.

[B_Realistic]

I think it's funny to see the comments that when a kit doesn't work that way that we all say take a Tamiya because it's a shake and bake and it will take the stress away.

Tamiya can be proud that their kits brings joy when modelers get stressed by building stressful kits. :)

What I do is to see first if I got the skills to make a model that has everything like extra resin or PE sets.

So maybe first try to add only a PE set on a model. Try on the next model only a resin cockpit set. So you get the handle of it.

Take some steps. I see this type of modeling a lot. Wasn't that called Advanced Modeling Syndrome?

[Jay Chladek]

Now you know why I tend to back away from photoetch and resin in model projects. Sure, sometimes I use them, but if it takes literally HOURS to detail up a cockpit with etch, it can suck the fun out of a model quick.

Even then, I've had projects sap the life out of me. For my cure, 1/72 Airfix kits come in VERY handy because they are so inexpensive and of very good quality. Sure, a 1/48 Tamiya Viper might be nice, but it still demands a certain amount of work to do it right due to its size and price. In the meantime, a kit that costs under $10 that only takes three or four days to build, paint, decal and weather... that tends to recharge my batteries much more quickly. The most important thing for whatever you pick, AVOID aftermarket bits. Okay, MAYBE a resin ejection seat at most (and decals of course), but NO PHOTOETCH. Just work with what you've got in the kit as much as possible and use your skills to make it good. Then you feel like you've accomplished something.

Edited November 28, 2012 by Jay Chladek

[Crazy Snap Captain]

Chaps,

The support shown on this forum is fantastic! Many thanks for your words of wisdom/encouragement. I've just finished boxing the Fulcrum. Now for my recharge kit. Ive narrowed it down to a few kits that I think would be easy (or easier), all 1/48:

Tamiya F-16 CJ Block 50

Revel Rafale M

Kinetic Mirage 2000D

Italeri Mirage 2000C

Have never done any of these kits, so any tips would be appreciated. I promise...no AM :rolleyes:/>

Edited November 28, 2012 by Crazy Snap Captain

[bashace]

Chaps,

The support shown on this forum is fantastic! Many thanks for your words of wisdom/encouragement. I've just finished boxing the Fulcrum. Now for my recharge kit. Ive narrowed it down to a few kits that I think would be easy (or easier), all 1/48:

Tamiya F-16 CJ Block 50

Revel Rafale M

Kinetic Mirage 2000D

Italeri Mirage 2000C

Have never done any of these kits, so any tips would be appreciated. I promise...no AM :rolleyes:/>/>

I think my first choice would be the F-16, excellent quality kit with little fuss (I'm building an Italeri F-16 now, how I wish it was the Tamiya kit). My second choice would be the Rafale, because I haven't built one of them either. There's a guy in our modeling group who is on the brink of a nervous breakdown due to major fit issues on his Italeri Mirage 2000C wing to fuselage mounting. And I know nothing of the Kinetic kit, hopefully they didn't use Italeri plastic. For sure, the F-16 would give you the fastest results and keep the model building fun IMHO.

V/r

Ron

[echolmberg]

... and pretty much anything else out the in terms of AM.

See? There's your problem right there. I think we dive so deeply into the downward sucking whirlpool of aftermarket that, before we realize it, we're too far away from the surface where the fun is. Ditch the aftermarket and learn to have fun again.

Eric

Edited November 28, 2012 by echolmberg

[TaiidanTomcat]

Gently set the model aside and step away from the bench my friend!!

I almost always come back to a model, and although it sometimes takes a few years of off and on work I do finish.

But I am going to warn of one thing. I doggedly stuck to a few models. Kept working off and on. I noticed for some tought models sometimes working for a few hours maybe once a month yielded me more happiness than working on a tough one once a week for a year. Sometimes you really do need to get away from it, because you don't realize that it is causing you stress, and things can and will go wrong in this hobby but it shouldn't stress you.

I have also finished models that I really should have give up on. I finished one particularity PITA model and I was happy that I got it done, I liked the way it turned out, but I started to wonder what else I could have been working on with all that time instead. opportunity cost

[Av8fan]

Lots of great advice here. Especially the get out and walk..get some exercise. Do another kit and something else. Do not through out the Mig-29. You will finish it someday and it will look fantastic. I also suggest the Airfix MKX1I, or the MKXVII Seafire. Few fit issues, fast and fun builds. Oh and they do not cost a lot either.

[Postman623]

When I find myself in this mood (once I did not catch it before hand as 120 bucks worth of HH-60H and aftermarket went flying against a wood beam) I walk away- clear off a spot on the bench, and clean one of my AR15s. Its an amazing stress reliever.

[digglyda]

When I was in my late teens I got Tamiya's old 1/35 scale 88mm Flak 36 kit. Some years later I acquired the Tamiya

Sdkfz.7 Halftrack on e-bay. Two kits that I knew could look excellent once finished and sat on a shelf together for others to admire.

I'm now forty one so more than twenty years have passed and the kits are still unfinished and collecting dust despite several false starts!

As long as I have made no major mistake that would "ruin" the kit(s) then they remain a work-in-progress.

All it needs is time + effort and the end result will be a completed kit.

If you have spent money on the kit & bits in the first place and have the room to store unfinished projects then I would suggest you put it away and do something else ...whether it be inside or outside the Hobby. Return to it as and when you wish to continue or complete.

They are after all only pieces of plastic: I could throw them away, get rid of them on e-bay, give them to a charity shop or finally get and finish them.

[cabo91]

Chaps,

The support shown on this forum is fantastic! Many thanks for your words of wisdom/encouragement. I've just finished boxing the Fulcrum. Now for my recharge kit. Ive narrowed it down to a few kits that I think would be easy (or easier), all 1/48:

Tamiya F-16 CJ Block 50

Revel Rafale M

Kinetic Mirage 2000D

Italeri Mirage 2000C

Have never done any of these kits, so any tips would be appreciated. I promise...no AM :rolleyes:/>/>

Just taking a stab at this since I've built everything on your list here.... I would go with the first two, in that order. Tamiya's F-16's are just wonderful to build and make it fun all over again. The fit is really great, it doesn't take much filler and turns out beautiful.

Revell Rafale isn't a bad kit.... there are some (very) minor issues around the upper and lowere fuselage near the front where the canards are. You have to be careful cause it takes some sanding and filler and you just don't want to lose any of that detail. Other than that, it looks great when its done!

The other two, while they build up nicely, are older kits.... same issues with fit and detail.. iirc, the Kinetic is just a reboxed Heller kit with some extra's...