GerKonig

I understand your point, because you will build them. There are people that just hoard them (I knew 2). They collect unopened boxes of old pieces of wood and fragile dried paper. They have quite some value for some people. When they finally go and meet the creator, it is junk, sold very cheap (seen it happen).

I helped schlepp stuff to auction to make a profit for the widow. But, since you do not have the time to dedicate a couple of years to sell cheap stuff, normally these "estate sales" sell by pennies on the dollar. Of course, having a network of clubs can help clear the rat nests...

Gerry

Top_Gunn

My Feedback: (6)

I've known a few RC kit collectors, but the real addicts are the plastic modelers. Some of them have thousands of kits. I found my plastic modeling stash growing to maybe 15 or so and decided to fight the addiction. So I sold some and gave the rest away. But the stash is creeping back up again. You see a neat kit, you think you'd like to build it "someday," you know it will be out of production sometime soon, and they do look nice on the shelf....

Hey, I can quit any time!

JS_Electric

Some people bye things just for nothing.

Twin_Flyer

My Feedback: (4)

I have been in the hobby since the early '80s and picked up some kits over the years of projects I wanted and intended to build. A few were duplicates of planes I had already and flying, but for backup.

After a move two years ago, it turned out I had acquired over 37 kits and ARFs!

Now, i am going through and keeping a few to build and the rest are going to be sold...

Plus my tastes have changed so need the room for new designs!

Its a shame there are so few actual KITS today though...

Bill S.

ser00

Hello RCU members. My name is Sean and I am a kit hoarder... let the healing begin. Actually, I have about 40 airplane kits and several arfs in my collection. I bought them for the purpose of building them. I also make it a habit to buy 2 of each kit, in case I crash the first one, I can build a new one. If I did not really like the plane, I will either trade or sell for another one. It is and has always been my goal to build at least two kits a year. I even had a 12'x16' workshop built in the back yard for my hobby. I was set, ready to start building, then I fould out my wife and I were going to be blessed with twin daughters and lets just say that my new hobby is cleaning bottles, changing diapers and loving my little princesses. I might fly once a month if I am lucky. I still have my kits, the workshop is still there (I have reorganized it several times and it gets better and better each time) and I still have the love and desire to build. I very seldom buy kits from Tower Hobbies and now that they have raised their prices so much, it is unlikely that I will buy kits from them anymore (though I might pick up two more Ultrasport 40s since the haven't gone up in price and them to the two I already have. That would bring my total of US kits to 1 US1000, 4 US60s and 4 US40s with a 1000, 60 and 40 built and flying). Lately, I have been buying from EBay or SIG. Now, I believe that most people buy kits with the desire to build them one day. I think some people get so excited about the hobby that they pick up kits when they can, especially considering that it takes effort to find them (unlike ARFS). But, life happens and people have to do what is necessary at the expense of what they want to do. For me, I will get back out to my workshop and build, but the idea of spending hours at a time working on a plane will be out of reach for a couple of years until my girls are older. Yet, I can find 10-20 minutes here and there to got out and glue up a few ribs or glue a few pieces together. It might take me 6 months to build a plane this way, instead of 2 months but isn't my original goal to build 2 planes a year anyway? I never understand how some people (not everybody) says that they have no time to build. If you only glue one rib to a spar every night, you would have a wing built in a month. The same goes for the fuselage. But, I could see people losing interest after awhile, which happened to me on my last build. I ended up giving the half built kit to a friend at the club for a two rolls of ultracote. In the future, I simply need to re-adjust my expectations and goals and enjoy this hobby. Anyway, thanks for reading my scatterbrained thoughts.

Happy flying and soft landings!

airraptor

My Feedback: (66)

+1

Charlie P.

Trying to control their destiny.  Buy lots of kits you intend to build "someday" and that impiles you will have enough somedays.

Folks who as kids could only look in the hobby shop window and drool - a rack of kits that are yours-all-yours is fulfilliment of a boyhood dream.

Financial divestiture.  Probably $1,000 spent on kits in 1995 is worth as much now as $1,000 spent on mid-cap stocks. 

Or just to have fun daydreaming about eventually building the kit(s).  What a luxury! 

bigstick60

My Feedback: (3)

vince, you hit it right on dead center, useless post! what's it matter how many kits one buys, if thats what he likes to do than have at it.

Teachu2

My Feedback: (133)

I recently left the hobby, after over 20 years (THIS time!). I had a substantial collection of kits, ARFs, and equipment still NIB - and 40+ airframes from framed to flown-to-death. I actually started in the hobby in the early 70's, building with Titebond and Monokote, having left silk/tissue/dope on u/c planes. Over the years, I saved up and bought what interested me. When kits started leaving production, I started hoarding ones that I loved, intending to build when time allowed. Ones I REALLY cherished would merit multiples.

When my plans changed, and I decided to leave the hobby, the kits held their value far better than anything else did. I got more for UltraSport 1000 kits than for ones built with engines. And kits are MUCH easier to ship!

Buying and selling kits enriched the hobby for me. I got to know several great guys on here - Vince Presley being one - through buying and selling. Lots of sharing of nostalgia, appreciating craftsmanship, history, and great designs evolving over time.

Ugly Stiks and Super Sportsters FOREVER!!!

LesUyeda

Then again, it you think you MIGHT want to build it, you better buy it; because when you do want it, it will probably no longer be available. I think PILOT, for instance.

Les

Twin_Flyer

My Feedback: (4)

Pilot, Goldberg, EZ Arf's, VK, Royal, Pica and many many more!

Bill S>

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

After seeing the Jump in kit prices that just happened I'm going to jump back onto my Soap Box and start preaching again!!! MAKE TEMPLATES OF EVERY AND ALL PARTS OF YOUR KITS!!!!!!!!!!! Save the plans and instructions!! When you get your hands on a kit, old or new make those templates. Now you will be able to trade copies with other people. I use Kinko's and have copies made. I do ask for the cost of the copies plus the shipping. The copies can cost quite a bit depending on the size of the plane.
I will come across an old kit and depending on what it is I will build it or make the templates, save the original and cut my on kit to build.
Trading kits like this can also just be a lot of fun, It is easy to do when you are ready to build the plane. I won't mention the kit I have waiting to be built because I will be getting a lot of requests for it and I'm not ready to start the build yet. I'm not going to pull it out and make the templates for it yet but I will post up when I start the build and give friends a chance at it.
GUNS: I get a kick out of being called an old fool and having people try to screw me out of a gun when I'm at the check out at a wild life refuge. I guess I'm not supposed to use a Winchester Model 12 Heavy Duck Gun to hunt ducks with any longer. If I say I know what I have then I'm a fool. If I play stupid and say I don't know anything about my gun then I love all the types of offers I get. I'm not a collector but I love the old M-12s and have different types . Because I used to deal in M-12s I do know a bit about them, like about everything!! I do know there were only 18,800 of the 3 incher made and I know every special that could be had on this gun, like the 32 inch barrel.
Go ahead, make me a deal, I would love to trade you for that plastic Nova!!

markhamregular

This thread is so interesting.
There's also another issue of buying things you don't plan to use, and it's money.
When I started in this hobby about  2 years ago, I thought only rich people could choose that hobby.
Most people at the field were bragging having 20, 50 or even a hundred planes.
OMG! I thought I picked up the wrong hobby.
One time, someone driving an old beaten pickup truck told me that the kit I bought was cheap and you cannot go cheap on this hobby.
Let me repeat, the guy drives a $250 pickup truck and his t-shirts have holes in them.
I asked a question last week about an O.S. 75 beeing a little weak for my plane. Most of the answers were to buy a 95 or a 120.
I wish those guys were my friends. Maybe they would give me an untouched old kit in a box once in a while.

Luftwaffe Oberst 13

It's called investment. Some kits are worth more in the box unopened, and to a collector some will pay big bucks for it. But when I buy a kit, I wanna build and fly it, so collecting old kits isn't my cup of tea. I do however like old glow engines and I do collect some of those.


Pete

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

All of my Tee shirts have holes in them, well, all of my modeling Tees do anyway. My van is 13 years old.I have some very good high end modeling stuff. I'm on a very small fixed income too but I have been doing this for a long time and do a lot of trading. I have done a lot of building for customers that give me money and stuff for my services that keeps me in the hobby. In glow I use almost nothing buy YS and a couple of OS four strokes. My planes are either kit build or plans built. Kits I get at auctions for very little money.
You do not need to have a great job or a lot of money to have great RC planes and gear. My truck was a 67 F-250 and I just sold it last year. I shoot 50+year old shot guns. I like old things, I'm comfortable with old things.

Top_Gunn

My Feedback: (6)

I know what you mean. Just at the point where my clothes start to get comfortable, my wife decides they're worn out and they disappear. I did manage to keep one pair of shoes going for years, though. Goo is great for reattaching the soles!

GarySS

My Feedback: (13)

Well, for the hopeless kit addict here is a kit that is extremely rare? But it is disappearing today!


http://www.ebay.com/itm/DYNAFLITE-Gi...item2a1f6f1566

LesUyeda

"I like old things, I'm comfortable with old things."

Me too. That's why I still have the same wife after 58 years:-)))))))))))))

Les

ARUP

I, like David Agar and a few others, have a bunch of kits stashed away for retirement. They won't get any cheaper! Buy 'em while you can. I have a few in the 'unobtainium' department. For example: ever heard of a Combat Models Pfalz D-III? Well... I have one and I'm keeping it! I've had a Rodelmodel 4.2m Ka6e for over 12 years and I'm planning on building it this winter.

Scar

My Feedback: (3)

I am going to build every single kit in my attic. They are NOT for sale! They are MINE MINE MINE, and I´ll get started on them next week. Or thereabouts.

Really! I´m NOT OCD! Obsessive Compulsive Disorder has NOTHING to do with it!

So there!
Dave Olson

tailskid

My Feedback: (34)

Just finished bidding on 5 kits of flea-bay Maybe I might get one <g>

Twin_Flyer

My Feedback: (4)

If you really want to win an item off of ebay, you need to bid with 10 - 15 seconds left max!

Otherwise your prettry sure to loose...

Bill S.

JPMacG

My Feedback: (2)

Decide upon the most you are willing to pay for an eBay item. Then set it up on a bidding tool like SnipeSwipe and then don't even look at the auction until it ends. It will bid for you at the last possible second. And you will not get emotionally involved and pay more than the item is worth.

I share the kit collecting neurosis. I buy kits that I would like to build, but then somehow I never get around to building them. Or they sit on my building table for years half finished. Buying stuff is fun and fast, but building takes a loooong time.

LesUyeda

"If you really want to win an item off of ebay, you need to bid with 10 - 15 seconds left max!"

I've done that. I will measure the time it takes from one bid to the next, and bid just so mine occurs last. It has worked several times.

Les

Waco

My Feedback: (265)

Kit collecting just happens, I have been in this since 1978 and when I see something I like I buy it with the intention on building someday, If I wait to buy it when I ready to build it it might not be there because of being discontinued than the only option is to pay 2-3 times what it is worth off of some guy on e-bay. Its happen to me, putting off buying a kit and wake up one day and find it has been discontinued. When you do this over years the kits do pile up a little at a time. Than there is that human trait on hoarding, storing for future use like chipmunks. If you don't know what collecting is all about you will never understand, I had a friend who collected guns and had over 300 at this time, he never fired them or used them, he would just get them out from time to time and fondle them and oil them and put them back, one day I went hunting with him and he showed up with an old beat up gun that looked like it had seen its better day, I asked him why he did not put that old thing back and get one of his new guns out to use and he looked at me like I was crazy and had lost my mind. He said there was no way he was going take one of his babies out in this weather and maybe scruff it up or scratch it. I just shook my head and laughed.