Thursday, July 30, 2015

Five kits I did not buy at the Nats

Several years I wrote about attending my first IPMS National Convention in 1984. I returned home that year with nearly 30 kits. In fairness, many were incredibly cheap and the enthusiasm of my youth made them irresistible.

Thirty years later I pretty much have everything I want, so in an effort to save money for things like aftermarket accessories and books, I'm making a strong effort these days to limit my acquisitions. That said, I'm still susceptible to impulse purchases and enticing new releases, so I knew it would be difficult last week to attend the Nats and be tempted by so many models. I'm proud to say I bought only one. Here are the five kits I decided not to buy.

I generally build 1/72 aircraft, but I've been intrigued by the detail I could incorporate into a 1/32 jet. I saw this Academy 1/32 F-16CJ for only $75 but decided not to buy it. I already have a Trumpeter F-105D, a Tamiya F-15C, and the new Kitty Hawk OV-10D. I really don't need another large scale kit taking up even more space.


This Academy B-24 was priced right, but I already have on in the stash, albeit a different version. What is the likelihood of my building two B-24s anytime soon? Slim, at best.


I really like the look of this Spitfire with the contra-rotating prop. I'd like to build one in 1/72 scale, but I already have its 1/48 Airfix counterpart with lots of cool aftermarket for it. Do I need to build two? Probably not.

There were several Academy F-4s in the contest, and I heard positive feedback about them from friends who judged the respective category, and as a huge fan of the F-4 Eduard's release was incredibly tempting. I picked one up and carried it around their display area for a while, but then I remembered the new Zuki Moira kit that's in the works. I decided to wait and see how the Z-M kit will ultimately compare.


I like the look of the Vincent/Vildebeest, so having this Azur kit in my hands tested my willpower. But then I recalled my struggle with rigging and decided there are better ways for me to spend my time.


So what did I buy? Here's a snapshot of my haul from the weekend.


My model-buying days are far from over, but for now I'll think twice before buying a new kit.


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9 comments:

  1. Kevin KJuly 30, 2015 at 2:44 PM

    Nice entry. Makes sense to me. But it makes me wonder when I see pics of guy's stashes and I see multiples of the same kits - 5 of this, 3 of that...

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    1. Rex, the accidental CagJuly 30, 2015 at 10:42 PM

      That is easy,,,,,,,think of the USN VFA squadrons. If you are going to build VFA-131, VFA-132, VFA-136 and VFA-137, in the same scale, for a "full set" of the squadrons (or some other guy's idea of "one of each Hornet squadron), then you are going to build multiples of Hornet kits. Those squadrons never used any other aircraft type. Same with A-4 Skyhawks, F-4B Phantoms, F-4J Phantoms,,,,,,any aircraft that had more squadrons use them than possible aircraft versions or "different kits"

      For some collections, it is just not possible to use different kits for every model built,,,,,the only other option is to say, my "one of each Air wing code collection with have to skip NB, I already used an FJ-4 for NA"

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  2. Argentinian Scale ModelerAugust 2, 2015 at 8:23 PM

    Hi, I wanted to suggest the next topic for your next entry, giving a quick review to the plastic modelism webs.
    Or the models you would like to see in the future.

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  3. ReneDKAugust 4, 2015 at 4:49 AM

    I'm on a similar path to you, have been building models for a very long time now, have rationalized my collection over the years and rarely buy a new kit these days, instead I stick to buying consumables and after market bits and pieces. As for the Academy 1/32 Hornet you did yourself a big favor by not buying it, I've just completed two for a customer and they require a lot of work. I never want to build another one of these ever again, unless it's the Revell kit.

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    1. Scale Model SoupAugust 4, 2015 at 8:53 AM

      That's good to know. The work required for those 1/32 kits intimidates me.

      Delete
  4. Black6August 4, 2015 at 5:42 PM

    Drat Steve, I have TWO of the old Columbus Nats decals, I'd have sent them to you for free (stuff I don't build)!
    What vendor had the Mansherob books btw?

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  5. Scale Model SoupAugust 4, 2015 at 7:59 PM

    M&Models in Illinois had the IDF books. Nice folks, too.
    http://www.mmodelstore.com/

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