Hoarding !!
 

I was called a "hoarder" by my brother, who obviously does not understand kit building and the need to collect things. Midwest, Carl Goldberg, PICA, Caft Aire, Global Hobby, House of Balsa, Great Planes, Royal, just to mention a few. I think of myself as a collector of valuable items. What do you think? This was in my 2 bedroom apartment. Now its all in one place in my new house. Did I mention I have a few other kits and planes in my 2 storage lockers, but just a few more. Pictures of storage to follow. Yes, SINGLE ! LOL

RE: Hoarding !!
 

In this day and age of kits becoming less and less available on the open marketplace I would say you are more like somebody who wants to ensure a steady source of building for the foreseeable future!!!!!!! ;)

Oh, by the way, I'm in the same boat as you!!!! I stock up whenever I can!!!!! :D

Ken

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Looks absolutely "normal" to me!

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Oh "Young jeddi":D

RE: Hoarding !!
 

There are lots of people out there who collect the old classic plastic kits. New in box with unbroken factory tape or shrink wrap. With the kit market drying up, we may see more of this with RC kits.

Tom

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Have you seen the prices on EBay?? A few years back, I was looking for plans for an orginal Quicke 500. One of the guys here on RCU offered me a full kit which I took. Late last year, Isaw a kit on Ebay that went for someting like $150. Icouldn't believe it. Kinkd of wish Ihadn't built it now.

Don

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I've got a whole bedroom filled with kits! To name a few: Quay Barber Cosmic Wind, Krick SG38, Combat Models Pfalz DIII, Mini-Flite Rivets, Ikon Stinson 108 and Rosenthal Ka6E to name a few! So, Vpresley, you sound 'normal' to me!

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I can help you with your recovery.

Step one:
Ship me all, I repeat, all of the kits in your stash!

Step two:
Do not hold kits in the special place, I know where the special place is!!! Ship them!!!

Step three:
Upon receipt of the above mentioned kits {including the ones from the special place} you will be cured!!!!!!

You can now go to the ARF place and be like everyone else and live in sameness!!!!!!

YOU HAVE BEEN CURED!!!!!!

T

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I know a number of people with more kits then the good old hobby shops ever had in stock. I also have friends with garages full of started but not completed kits. I would love to have shelves of NIB kits myself, I don't think of it as hoarding but I would be making templates and cutting my own kits so I could build them.

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I THINK I'M A KITAHOLIC!!!

I was looking through my kit hoard the other day (the one here, I've got two storage containers and a gutted travel trailer full in another state). Knowing if I built any they would be gone forever so I actually went online and started looking at lasercutters! No, no.... like buying my own cutter. I've got it bad.[:o]

If you think Ebay is bad on kit prices have a gander through the Buy-Sell here on RCU. Turn on the "kits" filter. For example, there's a mostly built Pilot .25size Cessna. The guy's asking $165!!!! If the kit was still unbuilt this would not be that unusual but a crappily half built one??? Really???

Problem is its only gonna get worse. At least on Ebay you can still find a gem now and then. Well, except for that Leland Wolf guy..... Crazy![sm=spinnyeyes.gif]

Mike

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I've got a few kits myself. The only thing I think is kinda wrong is when a guy has a bunch of kits in "semi-constructed" stage & will never finish them. That's just wrong !!! When they do that, not only do they elimnate a kit from circulation ,They take away the possiblity of anyone ever enjoying that "joy of opening & starting on a kit build." I don't know if my last statement made any sense or not, but , that's the way I feel.

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Kinda makes me think about investing in one of those little Dremel table jig saws and start making my own from plans.

Tom

RE: Hoarding !!
 

<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS">building from plans... can see that becoming the new "kit building" forum one of the days. i say get as many as you can. there's always kids and grand kids to pass them on to. i'm on susspension from my wife for buying any more planes til i crash and total them, or get rid of them. i told her she's done lost her !@#$ mind!!! she's got her own michael's store in her room.</span>

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Other then when I was finding kits at auctions {we don't have them here in this area} I have been building from plans for a decade. My main tools are just a scrool saw and sander. If you have/make templates of all the parts in a kit you can build as many as you like. Cutting and sanding only takes a few hours and you it's a lot of fun plus you get to choose the wood you use. I was taught as a kid to finish what I start so you never see any half builts of anything in my shop. I finish what I started then go onto the next thing. I have friends with half built planes all over there shops. Parts get lost and they neve get finished. No good to anyone. Make templates of all of your kits before you start adding any glue!!

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Best advice in this entire thread, I was tought the same thing...

Bob

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I also have the kit sickness. I have been collecting, building and flying them for over 20 years. Most definitley will keep doing it till i am physically not able to.I dont think kit collecting is any differant from coin, gun, stamp collecting etc. and so forth. We all have our idiosyncrasies, ours just happens to be kit collecting. Guess I could take up drinking,smoking, drugs, or cheating on my wife. Hmmm, nah, to expensive lol. Kits are cheaper. Just a few shots of my hoard

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Hi Sensei.

What do you make the templates out of? Are you talking about using plywood or something?

Cheers

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Buthcers paper, 20lb. bond paper, end rolls from print shops, card board anything you can draw on and cut out easily. Templates are nothing fancy, just something you can cut out and trace around. Kit plans and builders plans differ a little. Kit plans show where the parts go, builders plans show the same but they have every part of the plane shown full size and in profile. Most of us get a copy of the plans we buy then have a copy made. The copy gets cut up and built on and the originals get stored for later use if you want another of the same plane. Depending on how you build from builders plans you can use the cut out templates over aqnd over. Sometimes I like to just glue the template onto the wood and cut and sand right to that. If I just trace the parts then I save all the cut out templates. Keeping the old kits alive is easy this way. Plans and templates can be shared and traded. When I moved here four years ago I had to toss out all my templates and a lot of plans, another regret because I had a lot of them. I build most the time from plans these days.

RE: Hoarding !!
 

this is called scarfology....scarf it up while the scarfing is good, with this hobby what is availible today wont be later. the collection i have will last my retirement, if not i have a huge stash of plans

RE: Hoarding !!
 

I'm with you eagle. While I'm not a 'hoarder' or have any intent to sell the kits I have saved, it's good to have enough to last at least 5 years after your demise :). Last count I think I had 12 NIB but also about a dozen plans with some templates. That should do it for this oldtimer.

Like some of you, I refuse to have a partially completed kit laying around. Once it's opened, it's finished...whenever. There is ONE exception. I always keep a wooden ship kit 'in progress'. And that can last for 5 years! It's a nice break occasionally from building a new bird and the almost constant repairs/upgrades on the older birds. You would be surprised how working at 1/76 scale for a while can improve your 1/4 scale skills!

PS- don't forget to lay in a supply of balsa! Somehow when you wind up in the 'workshop in the sky' those boxes find their way to someone who puts them to good use.

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Hi,

My name is Robert and my wife believes I am a horder too.
That Hording program on T.V. sure doesn't help my case with my wife, but I know you guy's understand.

I have 10 ARFS, 64 KITS and 220 PLANS.
This is not hording, I am collecting for the future, 10 years from now there won't be any kits left, unless you wan't to spend big bucks!

When the kids figure out building is highly under rated they may not be able to get a reasonable priced kit, scratch building will have to be their norm.

R.C.

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Fellow hobbyists,
The word "Hoarding" denotes the accumulation of items for the sake of having them and making no other use of them. Therefore, someone who "collects" kits simply to have them and not to build or fly them is a hoarder. Those of us who intend on building the kits we accumulate are not.

I have been accumulating kits for several years, mainly because I can afford them now, and may not be able to afford more in a few years when retirement kicks in. At that point, I intend on building and flying as many airplanes as possible in the time I have left to live. With the speed at which I build, the kits alone should put me at the ripe old age of about 218, at which time I'll be forced to build from plans.

All kidding aside, though, I'm also trying to lay in a good supply of balsa while I can. With balsa now being used as cores for windmill blades, and people like Lonestar Balsa and SIG having a hard time getting stock, Balsa is going to become more and more scarce, and quality balsa even scarcer. I have a lot of short kits, so I'll need a good supply. Be advised.

papermache

RE: Hoarding !!
 

Well, that guy with the unfinished projects could have been sitting in a bar night after night. And we all know where that money goes.

I'm glad to see that there are others like myself. While I do have quite a few ARFs, I also have quite a few kits. Most of my kit collection consists of Bridi designed kits. Some are by Bluejay Models, but many are originals.

Those TV shows about hoarding really get my goat. My youngest brother is a fan of those shows. I have to be sure that I am busy elsewhere in the house when he watches that tripe.


Ed Cregger

RE: Hoarding !!
 

You know.... Your right. I've been thinking this wrong all along. I'm not a Kitaholic, or a hoarder at all. I'm an Optimistical Futurist!!!

I'm pretty dang optimistic that I'll have a kit to build in the future :D:D:D

Mike

RE: Hoarding !!
 

It's by no means hording to buy all the kits a plans you can get if one intends to stay in the hobby.. I build mostly from plans but do have a few kits.. Balsa wood itself is getting more and more expensive and less supply as well. I can remember paying $15 for a BUSA stick 40, and $23 for their smoothie back in the mid 80's. And as most of us know kit manufactures have all but disappeared.. due to the ARF craze. Kits may come back if their is a market for them, will see in time.. As for now, their is much more profit to have the china boys make an arfs for $1.5 in labor and sell them for 1000% - 3000% markup..