Many, many moons ago I was thoroughly castigated and almost threatened with disembowelling for daring to write that most kits are not quite as good as they purport to be. I also mentioned that building a kit is building someone elses model, which is why I prefer "scratch"....plus the fact that the world is my oyster and therefore not reliant on the offerings of "others". Kits do have a place, but with a few exceptions I would like to consider kits as sort of "starter units" leading the modeller into making his / her own, and not relying on badly produced "instructions". Ho-hum. BY.
So to you all model makers who buy kits are rank amateurs. You did not say so but the implication is there.
Building a kit is not "building someone elses model". It is building "our" model.
As Martin said, the instructions are usually crap and us "starters" have to then use our (dare I say this word) skills in getting the kit/boat/model correct. Usually via a lot of research.
Do you mean to say that all kits are only to be considered good enough as "starter" kits, apart from your select few? Would you also say that for those of us who take joy and pride in the finished result, with many hours work, should not show them as you would consider them to be inferior to scratch built models?
The ones on here who buy tug kits. "Starters"? Learners?
A lot of people cannot afford to buy all the necessary tools and equipment with which to make scratch models. A lot of people do not have the skills to scratch build but wish to make a model as a very pleasant pass-time. Mainly with stunning results and by using "skill".
Aren't scratch builders copying plans, usually made by professionals, of full sized boats? Surely a true scratch builder would draw their own, original plans? (No doubt you will say you do).
Yes, instructions can be crap, but once we get, what is to us, an extremely satisfying result that looks as true to the real thing as is humanly possible,
that is model building at its best. A result that gets compliments, that looks good, that is our own work regardless of it being a kit after working out the instructions and improving on them. As I have done with all my "kits" plus with research.
Model boating is, surely, about enjoying oneself, taking satisfaction in our hobby, and not to read someone putting us down because we can "only" put kits together.
Or am I wrong?
Ho-ruddy-hum!