Ever since watching a couple Youtube videos of the Tamiya 1/16 full option radio controlled M1A2, I've been hooked. However, at $1100 plus another $200 for the RC controller and more for some incidental items, I'd be lucky to get it for between $1400 and $1500.

I decided I'd sell off a portion of the stash as well as some other collectibles gathering dust and then "reinvest" the funds. Well, now that I'm close to having the funds in my hobby account, I don't think I can pull the trigger.
Truth be told, sometimes I have trouble justifying a $10 or $15 1/35 accessory set. The M1A2 is on an entirely different scale...literally.

So, I'm curious, how do you guys justify some of the costs associated with this hobby? As I've been teaching my children, there is a difference between things you need and things you want!

I set myself an allowance of $75 for every kit I complete and $150 per month. The more I actually finish, the more I can afford.

I spend what I think I can afford.
I am perfectly at ease with myself that the hobby stuff is strictly on the other side of the fence from "need". Hobby is purely fun and wants, no needs, ever
No smoking, no drinking, no other excesses leaves a sufficient space for the "needs", ahem, of the hobby.
Getting something large means that a number of smaller things will have to be postponed. If my favourite dealer has a sale I might go over budget and then hold back afterwards.
I consider my stash to be a pension fund. In case I don't have the financial means to go shopping when I have retired there will always be the stash, it will last until my 200th birthday, at least ......
/ Robin

We have the same plans for longevity on the planet Robin - and an expectation of steady hands in old age.



There are always luxury items to tempt you. The first question you have already answered Sherb - do I need it? Yes - no question at all. No - then if you have some funds for emergencies, and enough to pay your bills, the next question is, if I don't spend it on this , what will I spend it on?

Life is too short not to take the time to enjoy what you can. IF you have no other pressing needs - ....

Sometimes I ask the Bank if I can get something and she will say yes.

I don't.

Well lucky not into 1/6 scale R/C,as would cost you way more then that. So I do also have a few 1/16 scale kits, all static display, also 5 more 1/6 scale kits , none R/C neither.
So it all comes down to what you want to do or build.
And if you got the bucks, then all is okay, then maybe get it,if in doubt put it into savings, and see where it goes,that is quite a bit for a kit, most I have ever paid was $450.00 for the 1/6 Sherman kit, but all comes down to you, you are the one that has to live with it.
Either way let us all know your decision.

I'm single with no kids. I don't need to justify it to anyone but myself. Having said that, I'm not wealthy. Of course bills are first. Some things cost more than I want to spend, even if I can afford them. I would love to have several different Tamiya 1/16 tanks. I have only bought one; a built King Tiger that is getting stripped and disassembled for a rebuild.

I don't know, usually I do want the things that I need because needing invokes wanting.

I do need a few hobbies to distract from the daily routines and building aircraft models as part of a general addiction to aviation is one of them.

Beng a very slow builder (time limitations), I do not need a "200 year" stash for obvious reasons and therefore I got very cranky at some point for buying more kits that I can build leading to a useless money eating stash. Hence, no more buying and slowly the stash goes down.

The consequence is that I can't sell for 1500 dollar worth of kits (at a huge loss?) to buy a new one but if I am convinced that building a 1500 dollar kit would make me happy without negative consequences for the family then I would not hesitate.

Of course, I know people for whom their stash is their treasure and they enjoy immensly going through the boxes and showing them to other modellers. If that makes you happy then please, if it does not truly hurt another part of your life, go for it and collect.

my humble advice: If you really intend to build that thing and you can afford it: buy it, build it, and enjoy it! You only live once.

I think I bank and the same place you do.

I was showing a friend of mine a clip of the Tamiya M1A2 in action and told him about my plan to sell kits and reinvest the funds to afford it. The banker overheard and simply stated, "That's not how it works!"
I tend to disagree.

Thanks for all the replies guys. It's a fun read.
I've got to sell a couple more kits and then it will be time to decide.... I'll keep you all posted.

In the mean time, I'd love to hear more personal stories to encourage me to buy it or to return to sanity.

I often do the same by trading at my LHS rather than selling kits, but I have some mixed feelings on this subject. If you have to "justify" a purchase (it doesn't matter what it is) it might be time to re-evaluate it in other terms. For now, in keeping it in line with the hobby we enjoy, here's my criteria for making a large $$ purchase (not in order of precedence-- I just use a simple majority system):

1) What will I do with the item when it's finished (including display space)?
2) Does the item have some significance to me other than "it's just cool"?
3) Will it be useful for more than one or two projects (primarily used when buying large ticket tool items)?
4) Would the money spent be better used elsewhere (this is the need vs want question)?
5) How much do I have to give up to buy a large ticket item (I have a large stash, many kits were purchased with the same criteria-- do I really want to give some of them up for just one item)?
6) Given that many of today's finished kits will eventually end up in landfills, is the model, tool, accessory, reference material etc. significant enough that it can be passed on to someone who will appreciate it (including museums, veterans homes, schools, even LHS or other modelers or clubs) or sold for some value?
7) Is the "wow" factor significant enough that I just have to have it, or will that feeling pass after I have it?
8) Do I have the time to build an extravagant or complicated kit, or conversely, is the time I invest in the kit worth it, as in how many other nice models could I complete in the same time I'd build that one kit?

I use this criteria when making large purchases or trading kits for something that just "strikes my fancy". I've managed to forgo some things I thought were "neat" and months later look back and think to myself-- wow, I'm glad I didn't make that purchase on a whim after all. Early in my collecting I think I loaded up on kits without even thinking about them much-- if I had the money, I'd just buy it. Now I'm a little more discerning about what I buy, and why I buy it.

VR, Russ

I have "simply" quit smoking and I said "I invest" half in what I want and the other half I put it aside for rainy days, and who knows the price of tobacco in Oz knows that they are not cents ... .I smoked rolling tobacco at 50-60 $ for 50-55g + filters + papers a week... ... now I have a budget of about $ 100 AU per month for my others addictions, however I am happy, children are happy and the wife is happy....and everyone knows that happy wife happy life!...

Hi,
I will start by saying that my R/C transmitter cost almost 2grand!

I have many expensive purchases and I can't really think of any I regret I do not use money that is needed for other things just money that I can spend freely or disposable income.

If you want it get it if the costs are too much try looking for a used one.

Cheers Rob.

I treat my tax refund as "Mad Money" or found cash. I use it to help finance a long vacation every year.
A few years ago the LHS had a Grex air brush system, GCK03, on sale. It was the most that I ever spent at one time on the hobby. Would of never spent that kind of cash if I wasn't working a gawdawful amount of mandatory overtime. OT is kinda like found money to me.
Mi dos centavos worth: Don't go "in the hole" for your hobby !
Have a good weekend everybody !

I tend not to buy one big ticket item so much as a pile of economically priced little items that add up to a huge amount.

I can't be trusted to stop either. It's a compulsive behavior and best treated by removing the opportunity.

Hi, I'm Stephen and I'm a compulsive shopper. Fortunately I tend to build a lot so the stash, though huge, isn't overwhelming and will probably be done since I won't be buying anything in the foreseeable future except maybe a Hobby lobby 40% off impulse buy.

I can think of a couple of things that justify a large ticket purchase. The first is that this type of item usually takes longer to finish, so if you add up the time spent on it, it may provide the same number of hours of enjoyment as several smaller ticket items which go together faster.

The second point is that if the large ticket item is a high quality product (which it usually is), it will last longer once you've finished it. So more time to show off the final result to your friends.

Cheers,
Ivar

www.creativedioramas.com

A picture is worth a 1000 words.....so here are 4000+ words....





1/48 Tamiya M1A2 next to the 1/16 PE fret


1/48 with the 1/16 version

I don't necessarily have a budget or guideline - if I see something interesting or on sale I might pick it up. I had no interest per se in the Takom Grant but I found one for $39 Cdn at my LHS so I grabbed it on impulse. Other than that I just buy accessories and barrels these days, mostly..I have far too many kits already! Apart from the two Takom Berges, I will only buy something if it's really cheap or really cool. As far as big scale/ big ticket I have no interest there. If I had room I might have got the Trumpeter Leopold. I am saving for a condo in Vancouver so soon I won't have too much "extra" money as I live in one of the worst real estate markets.

The only large ticket item I ever bought was the 1/35 Gustav Dora with metal barrel and trunnion, and decal sets.
I was engaged at the time and I gave my fiancee a 1.1 carat perfect diamond with proposal the day before Dora arrived via UPS. Considering the price difference, she considered the Dora a small token to make me feel good too, and we were both overjoyed. That was 11 years ago and the Dora is still in the box. I have to wait for a child to move out so I can appropriate their room to build Dora in.
Good retirement project!

most of us love larger item ..speaking of which i do acquired some of them over the years. However i sold every single of them coz later i found out that i dont really need them. Some of the purchases i did were mainly from the whisper of devil inside me. But its good to have a look at them, feel them, keep them and then u realised u dont have space for them and worst u dont know here to display each of them if they were built. I got plenty of 1/32 plane, a few 1/16 tanks and some bigger 1/35 kits..

but yes life is too short, just buy if u can afford or knowing that u will sell this one day...
my stash now is very small i think it cannot reached my 70th birthday.. LOL...

bootm line, if u can afford it withour breaking the bank, just buy it.. who know one day Thanos will come and no avangers to save the day!!


Sil