furledd

My Feedback: (43)

Jester

"The buyers are different; they consider themselves doers, but their real thrill is dropping money on a new item for their hobby. I worked in a gun shop for a while, and I'd say 80% of our business was from people who hardly ever actually shoot guns. They read reviews and lurk the internet to find out what the next cool thing they need is, then they spend hours trying to find a used one. The purchase itself is the thrill; shooting it is secondary. I see the same guys in my RC club. They have 4 dozen airplanes all over their houses and maybe fly 3 of them regularly. The rest just sit deteriorating and waiting to be sold at 1/5 the price originally paid for them when their owner dies. I think those guys have a screw loose somewhere, but it makes them happy I guess."


LOL I think you hit the nail (or loose screw) on the head right there - may have my answer - next best thing but never use it - thrill in the hunt - as guns in the safe as "Safe queens" is a perfect example...

TomCrump

Gene I retired early, too, but it was by choice.

The first thing that I did was throw away my alarm clock. The second, was to start a build. I've been building almost constantly since. (Going on for 6 years.)


This year, I rediscovered flying, which in turn, necessitates more building. LOL

Granpooba

My Feedback: (5)

Sorry, I would not classify it as a mental illness. I have purchased many different things in my life and people have criticized me for it. My only reply is " I have worked hard and long for my money, thus I will purchase what and how many of whatever gives me pleasure ". Thus, it is none of your business, unless of course, you are paying my bills !!

guitarsbanjo

I have a small collection of kits, all out of production. Some I've had since they were in production, some I've found and bought them because I wanted it and might not ever find another. I hope to build them all, but if I don't and I die first, oh well. I have some stuff, like an old Silvertone guitar and an original Ron Popeil "Pocket Fisherman", just because I found them at what I considered a good cost, and I remembered being 8 or 10 years old and dreaming about those Silvertone's in the Sears catalog, or watching the stupid infomercial and thinking how cool it would be to have a fishing pole you could keep with you all of the time. Nostalgia, and I could afford it ($5). The truth is, even though the old silvertone stuff has sort of a cult following and sometimes fetch pretty good money, the box that most cheap guitars come in now would probably make a better musical instrument than that silvertone. And the only way you could catch a fish with the pocket fisherman is if he swallows the hook, because it ain't long enough to set a hook, or strong enough to real in anything much larger than the size of your hand. So to misquote an old song; "but I got it, and that makes me a winner" So the Silvertone hangs on the wall, sometimes I think, that ain't a bad guitar, take it down and play it for a few minutes, and remember why it's been hanging on the wall for six months since the last time I took it down to play it. I've never even tried fishing with the pocket fisherman, sometimes when I'm camping I'll cast a weight around the camp site in case the urge hits me, then if it does, I get out a real fishing pole and go fishing.

One kit I've got built waiting to be covered is an old Dynaflite Corsair, my 3rd airplane, and the first plane I had that wasn't a stick or a trainer, was a Dynaflite P-51. I loved that plane, I have the plans and plan to someday build another. So A couple of years ago I found this corsair in an old hobby shop and had to have it, and bought if for $70; my dad built one from scratch using the kit to cut his own kit. Terrific flying plane. Then I found a Jemco P51 and got it because it is the "same design" as the Dynaflite, i use quotations because even though it's the same design it is totally different construction.

My favorite kit I have right now is an old Sterling Baby Ringmaster contol line plane. Just like the one I built when I was about 8, this one I found at lonestar balsa ,just before it burned down; for $12 I think. By then I think they had even stopped making the Estes version, so this was an old kit. I still have the old Black Widow I put on the original some 35 years ago. Someday! And it will be just as close to my memory of the old one as I can make it. Why? Why not?

Austin

9ballvalk

My Feedback: (13)

I'm very thankful to the kit collectors. After being out of the hobby for over 25 years, I've managed to buy kits for all seven of the airplanes that I last had when I quit. Now retired, I am building these "vintage" planes and continue right where I left off. It's satisfying to me to be able to do this.

The particular kits I really enjoyed building and flying are no longer made due to the manufacturer going out of business. I'm working on completing a collection of at least one of each of this manufacturer's kits just for the thrill of the chase. I do plan to build them, so if a better example becomes available, then I add this to the collection and build the replaced kit. It may sound dumb to some but to each his own. Also, it's nice to have not only the plans, but also spare parts and templates to help repair or replace those damaged during flying.

Thank you kit collectors....I'm joining the club one kit at a time.

carddfann

I have quite a few unbuilt kits that I bought over the last few years and I'm not buying anymore at least until these are built (and I'm doing good with restraint). I have every intention to build and fly these and I'll be starting another in a month or two as the weather here starts to turn cold. I enjoy building in the winter down in my basement shop. To me, a kit is just a pile of wood and I don't get any joy by looking at it. I'm not a kit collector so don't give me an antique kit from 1945 or I'll build it (even if it's rubber powered from back then). I would keep the plans and maybe the old box if it's interesting. These kits are the ones I wanted in my younger days but couldn't afford at the time such as the Sig Liberty Sport, Dave Platt Waco, Sig Cub, etc or just some planes I once had and wanted again.

hrtim

several old kits and I am going to build some of them.
But, just last week, My son gave me an original Goldberg Sophisticated Lady kit. I have wanted that little plane for years. Everytime I tried to buy one, it was gone before I finished reading the post.
Given the prices that they seem to command, I probably won't build the kit.
But, I did have a couple of full size copies made of the plans. I am going to scratch build the plane from those.
Old kits are hard to find and gaining in value. It's not much diferent than a person that buys old guns with no intention of shooting them.
They are a place to put money in an appreciating asset.