Which of the many aspects of our wonderful hobby bring you joy?

[Bertie McBoatface]

Which of the many aspects of our wonderful hobby bring you joy? Here's a few of mine.

 

The discovery of a new kit.

The anticipation of a new kit.

Buying it.

The arrival of the postman.

Opening the box and sniffing the plastic.

Opening the bags and finding those marvelous mouldings, transfers, PE, timber, etc.

Reading the instructions and working out my own way to build it.

The relaxing job of cleaning up parts while watching a movie.

Ditto assembly

Planning a conversion

Research, learning new things

Chattering about it here

Making something, being creative!

Starting a WIP and meeting new people online

Seeing it all coming together as chaos in the box turns into a model

Deciding on a scheme

Masking, always a challenge but rewarded by the dramatic reveal of unmasking.

Airbrushing, the magical way that the paint just appears on the mode out of nowhere.

Airbrushing, finding that cleaning up is so quick and easy now I'm using  thinner paints.

Getting feedback here, getting likes, feeling appreciated by my peers.

Mastering some technique that's been difficult for me for a long time

Coming to the bench in the morning and seeing last night's work with fresh eyes

Imagining myself flying, driving, sailing the model - Zoom, Brrrrrrrm, Splash!

Swapping genres and being a newbie again.

Christmas morning!!!!

New tools.

Tidying and trying to organise my paints. A fun and endless amusement.

Throwing out the ones that fought back too much.

Throwing out the old dusty ones and making room for the new.

Finding that perfect piece is still in the spares box after all these years

Finding some bench time in the busy times of life, so rare and valuable!

Bench time post retirement which is so much better than TV and Bingo

Model making when it's chucking it down with rain outside

Those rare and memorable times when a non-modeller is really impressed by something you did.

 

And so on, and on, and on.

 

 

 

 

 

[RobL]

When I started scale modelling (I don't count the handful of kits I built as a teenager), around 2015, I was always chasing the dragon - never really achieving what I wanted, so, among other reasons, I switched to Games Workshop figure painting.  That bought me joy because it's slightly cheaper at times, and I have more freedom in what I can do with the way they are painted.  What also brings me joy in my hobby is achieving something that looks better than I thought it would.  I've "upped my game" this past few years when it comes to Games Workshop miniature painting, to the point where I am painting figures that are turning out better than they would have a number of years ago.

 

On the flip side what gets me down is regressing to painting something like I'm a ham fisted caveman - I keep having that happen.  I seem to sporadically go through a period of doing half decent looking figures, then I have a run of poorly painted one's.  Which is rather frustrating because I can't work out why.  It is always a joy though to get over that "hump" and have a model turn out better than I expected.

Edited April 27, 2022 by RobL

[Bertie McBoatface]

17 minutes ago, RobL said:

On the flip side what gets me down is regressing to painting something like I'm a ham fisted caveman - I keep having that happen.  I seem to sporadically go through a period of doing half decent looking figures, then I have a run of poorly painted one's.  Which is rather frustrating because I can't work out why. 

 

Stop making with the negative waves Moriarity! Read the title! There's another whole thread in the chat room for being miserable. This one is for positive thinking, enjoyment and fun! 🤪

 

17 minutes ago, RobL said:

It is always a joy though to get over that "hump" and have a model turn out better than I expected.

 

Yay that's more like it! The difficult passages in modelling are what make the triumphs so brilliant! 😁

[Black Knight]

Just getting one finished these days

[Bertie McBoatface]

6 minutes ago, Black Knight said:

Just getting one finished these days

 

Another cheerful chappie. 🤣

[IanC]

8 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

Getting feedback here, getting likes, feeling appreciated by my peers.

 

 

And I would add - providing help and advice, admiring other peoples' work and praising their efforts.

 

[jackroadkill]

Watching my stash grow exponentially compared to my completion rate.

[Bertie McBoatface]

15 minutes ago, IanC said:

 

And I would add - providing help and advice, admiring other peoples' work and praising their efforts.

 

 

Well said that man! (I'm more the selfish type! 😏)

 

1 minute ago, jackroadkill said:

Watching my stash grow exponentially compared to my completion rate.

 

Isn't it nice to have treasure!

[HoolioPaulio]

Most of it I think.  I used to hate the sanding/filling/sanding loop, but forced myself to do it more and improve my technique somewhat and now I don't mind it at all.  Probably the bestest bit of the hobby is sitting back and looking in admiration at my latest completed triumph (its always a triumph in my eyes, which is all that matters really).  But second to that is the feeling of overcoming a shortfall, like getting better sanding and filling for example

[HoolioPaulio]

I should also add, I love seeing other peoples work, no matter the perceived skill level.  As long as you enjoy it, keep doing it.  You don't have to be good at anything to enjoy doing it.

[Ray S]

1 - I really enjoy the time when I start looking for my next project, and going through the stash

2 - I then really love changing my mind and choosing something different

3 - The best bit is going into a shop and getting something totally different after all the previous preparation

4 - The very best thing though is the whole process of modelling, it is a joy from beginning to end, if anything goes wrong it is a learning experience

 

Cheers for such an uplifting topic!

 

Ray

[davecov]

My favourite part of modelling is spending hours masking off, airbrushing and then removing the masking to reveal a lovely demarcation of colours, especially boot topping on ships.

 

Dave

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, HoolioPaulio said:

Most of it I think.  I used to hate the sanding/filling/sanding loop, but forced myself to do it more and improve my technique somewhat and now I don't mind it at all.  Probably the bestest bit of the hobby is sitting back and looking in admiration at my latest completed triumph (its always a triumph in my eyes, which is all that matters really).  But second to that is the feeling of overcoming a shortfall, like getting better sanding and filling for example

 

I'm a bit lazy at the sand/fill/sand routine so I get a ton of happiness when I see a kit like the latest Tamiya F-4B fit together so well that even I don't know where the joins are!

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, HoolioPaulio said:

I should also add, I love seeing other peoples work, no matter the perceived skill level.  As long as you enjoy it, keep doing it.  You don't have to be good at anything to enjoy doing it.

 

I like that too. I try to comment on all of the RFIs but lately I haven't been able to keep up with the air side. There's always something positive to say if you try hard enough.

 

I'm not really that altruistic though so don't sanctify me; when I see one that's worse than mine I secretly pat myself on the back and when I see a better one, I steal all the good ideas. 😆

[Bertie McBoatface]

53 minutes ago, Ray S said:

1 - I really enjoy the time when I start looking for my next project, and going through the stash

2 - I then really love changing my mind and choosing something different

3 - The best bit is going into a shop and getting something totally different after all the previous preparation

4 - The very best thing though is the whole process of modelling, it is a joy from beginning to end, if anything goes wrong it is a learning experience

 

Cheers for such an uplifting topic!

 

Ray

 

It's time to show the world that we aren't all whinging poms! 

 

1 - 4? Yep, put all of them on my list. You should see all the plans I've made and changed for my entry in the Entropy GB.

 

 What! Some of you haven't heard of it? Check it out. It's the most inclusive GB ever - Enzo said so!

 

 

And there's another happy - the camaraderie of the GB process.😁

 

 

 

[Bertie McBoatface]

43 minutes ago, davecov said:

My favourite part of modelling is spending hours masking off, airbrushing and then removing the masking to reveal a lovely demarcation of colours, especially boot topping on ships.

 

Dave

 

Agreed, the mask and paint is the longest drum roll ever and then there's a huge crash of cymbals when the tape comes off!

 

My next mask paint job will actually be a hull red, white boot topping sequence as it happens.😁

[Bertie McBoatface]

Here's another one - The smell of the secondhand old books I'm currently using for research. I have a 'new' one today written in 1929 (reprinted 1948) and it's a time machine as soon as I open the cover.

 

 

It even has a centrefold to sniff! 🤪

[lasermonkey]

1 hour ago, davecov said:

My favourite part of modelling is spending hours masking off, airbrushing and then removing the masking to reveal a lovely demarcation of colours, especially boot topping on ships.

 

Dave

When it all goes well, it’s such a great feeling! I recently removed the masking from my Airfix Beaufighter. Full invasion stripes, and the masking worked perfectly. I’m just hoping it goes well on the Tempest I am just about to spray.

 

 

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 minute ago, lasermonkey said:

When it all goes well, it’s such a great feeling! I recently removed the masking from my Airfix Beaufighter. Full invasion stripes, and the masking worked perfectly. I’m just hoping it goes well on the Tempest I am just about to spray.

 

 

 

I hope so too. Invasion stripes look amazing, especially on camouflaged types I think.

[davecov]

Whenever I look at this picture, I need to have a lie down as it is all too much for me, reliving the unmasking process:

 

Dave

[Bertie McBoatface]

2 minutes ago, davecov said:

Whenever I look at this picture, I need to have a lie down as it is all too much for me, reliving the unmasking process:

 

Dave

 

Nice one Dave

[Mark Harmsworth]

Walking away from my desk and feeling that I've just had a good session  - and that would be just before I start to get frustrated by inanimate objects 😁

Mark

 

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, Mark Harmsworth said:

Walking away from my desk and feeling that I've just had a good session  - and that would be just before I start to get frustrated by inanimate objects 😁

Mark

 

Clever timing + self knowledge = satisfaction. 
 

Nice thought. 

[Bertie McBoatface]

One thing that I find fascinating is how my modelling life reflects what's going on in my rather unstable head. I'll notice that I have many models in progress simultaneously and that I'm making little progress on any of them, but making lots of rushing-errors on all of them. My paints will be disorderly, tools all over the house! This alerts me that I'm getting a little manic and that I should watch my spending, drinking etc and avoid excesses.

 

At other times, I might realise that I've shelved or abandoned almost everything and am crawling forward with only one model, working long sessions but not achieving much. Everything will be very neat and tidy and I'll be spending more time trying to arranging my paints in the 'perfect order' than painting anything with them. This is a 'model' of my head in its depressed phase. It's really useful to me to be thus alerted to my mental condition, which I might not otherwise become aware of for weeks, so that I can take the necessary actions to trim my sails and keep on an even keel. (Ship Modeller's talk. 😆)

 

Most of the time I manage to plot a course between the storms and the doldrums and just two projects will be moving forward nicely, on a workbench which is appropriately disordered by the day's work but tidy by bedtime. 

 

Modelling is great therapy, and leads to all manner of joyful experiences both on and off the bench.

[malpaso]

I like decalling, where the plain colours come alive with markings or livery.  I enjoy the stencils, even on a modern jet, it’s kind of a zen process that requires and is calming.