What’s the most you paid for a model kit?

[Alexis]

For me it really depends on the subject matter . For Tamiya's 32 Mustang ( D/K) boxing the kit was 200 bucks , there is another 200 plus bucks of aftermarket items same for the Corsair . I have one Spitfire left and the was 200 bucks . There is also Revells new tooled FW 190 in 32 scale . Kit was only 50 bucks but I have added about 300 bucks in aftermarket items . Next is WNW Hallbie . 250 bucks and there is no aftermarket for it , but I really wanted the kit . It's my favorite two seater , will I pay this for other 32 scale kit's ... Yes !

It does come down to money spent on how much enjoyment you get out it . I can build a vac kit and detail the hell out out it for a very low cost or top of the line plastic one and I get my bang for the buck . I do try and stay within a budget and only subjects that I know I will build .


Terri

[Dave W]

Some fascinating posts in this thread but I'd like to add a question.

Using the Wingnuts Gotha G.IV as an example, with this kit now fetching $1000 plus in sales, if you bought such a kit, could you ever build it or would the price tag deter you from cutting plastic?

So at what point/ value would you be unable to "devalue" a collector kit by building it?

In a few years time it will be most interesting to see how many "rare/ collectable" Wingnut kits have actually been made and how many are wandering in model eternity as collector value objects.

Dave Wilson
Gold Coast
Australia

[pepperman42]

Collector value objects is the best description. WNW kits will move out of the kit building realm (for some) but whatever reincarnation will be the builders. The kits will rise again under a different label with different box illustration etc. Frog, Monogram, Accurate Miniatures, Hobbycraft, Matchbox - none of them disappeared, they just got new window dressing.

Steve

[FokkerFodder]

I’ve collected many things over the years but can’t quite get my head around model kits being collected but not built. Stamps, coins, millitaria, antiques, art etc I get, but not models. So for me, I will only buy up to the point where I know I’m going to ‘consume’ this product. That said, I do tell my wife that if I head west one night, the stash of 20 WNW models in the shed  is worth a fair bit! Helps justify another purchase😉. But that’s just me. Cheers Matt

[Jeff K]

Some fascinating posts in this thread but I'd like to add a question.

Using the Wingnuts Gotha G.IV as an example, with this kit now fetching $1000 plus in sales, if you bought such a kit, could you ever build it or would the price tag deter you from cutting plastic?

i did buy one. it was long since sold out when i bought it, so i paid US$375, including $50 or so shipping, and about $100 worth of extras and books. it's a long way off in the queue but short of financial ruin i can't see me being interested in selling before i'm dead. that said if it goes north of US$3000 that might get my attention, but i still have a hard time imagining wanting to sell. bought it to build when my skills are up for it.

[smperry]

I have the Aurora Gotha for which I paid 50 dollars 20 years ago and thought it a steal as they were going for 125 on E bay. I also have a Stakken vac kit that I paid high dollars for at the time. Subsequent releases made both hard to give away. That may well happen with some high priced WnW kits.  Those who paid a ridiculous price will be out the money with a kit they likely can't build to show for it, (like Dave said, builders are unlikely to pay an outrageous price for a kit). All it will take is for someone to release a kit with similar or better design and engineering. The mold making technology for super high quality injection molded kits is out there and will be out there long after all surplus WnW hits have found homes with builders or collectors. Something better will come along and prices on old WnW kits will go from stratospheric to subterranean in a heartbeat.
sp

[ermeio]

I have the Aurora Gotha for which I paid 50 dollars 20 years ago and thought it a steal as they were going for 125 on E bay. I also have a Stakken vac kit that I paid high dollars for at the time. Subsequent releases made both hard to give away. That may well happen with some high priced WnW kits.  Those who paid a ridiculous price will be out the money with a kit they likely can't build to show for it, (like Dave said, builders are unlikely to pay an outrageous price for a kit). All it will take is for someone to release a kit with similar or better design and engineering. The mold making technology for super high quality injection molded kits is out there and will be out there long after all surplus WnW hits have found homes with builders or collectors. Something better will come along and prices on old WnW kits will go from stratospheric to subterranean in a heartbeat.
sp

Well, there is another possibility coming on ...
with the evolution of 3D printers technology it is likely that no one will build kits in some years, so the WNW kits will take their place among the old things. And we are pretty old, so it is likely that our heirs will not know about their value and a lot of unbuilt WNW kits will show on the market in the next years, like it is happening now with  toy  trains... until some years ago they had crazy prices, while now they go cheap again and at times unsold.

[Alexis]

With more bands on plastic products taking place around the world it could be only a matter of time as they improve on 3D printing and the cost will come down as it is now within the industry .


Terri

[lone modeller]

Here is a slightly oblique view of this question: I do not buy kits because I do not build them any more. Some years ago I sold all of my stash because I realised that i would never build any of the many kits that I had in my roof space. However a couple of years prior to doing so I did buy some kits, including the Roden 1/72 Gotha GV and I thought that £20 sterling was a great deal! (That reflects the fact that I had not bought a kit in the previous 30+ years).

I have to model on a fairly low budget and I follow Lance's formula of time spent per £ invested in materials for scratch building. When I costed the Dornier RS II it worked out at between £80 and £90 which surprised me. When I costed the Vickers FB 5 Gunbus the cost was a little less, even with some aftermarket parts. However what is striking is that the costs of these models would be approximately what I would reasonably expect to pay for a kit if one were available, which they are not. But given the cost per hour spent I am getting some excellent value for money, not to mention some much needed stimulation for the few remaining grey cells which are functional. Would I pay more than this? Probably not because I simply cannot afford to, but I do have quite a large stock of materials to make sure that I have what I need for the moment, and when I think about my next project and have to buy some more materials or aftermarket, in my mind the new model will only cost a few £! And for me that is the bottom line!!

Stephen.
Stephen.

[Dave J]

I know my wife doesn't read this forum so I am safe at the moment

I am like Kent, its the 1/32 HPH Catalina... I paid just over $1000 kiwi peso's for it. The second one isn't far off that, Anigrand 1/2256 Imperial Star Destroyer around $700

[Monty]

Interesting thread! And it's OK if my wife Vanessa (Lady V) reads it! Yeah, I spend a fair amount on models, in many different modelling scenarios... and yes, many will never get built unless I produce a new record for longevity! And in terms of WW1 models - (well that's what you were waiting for) is the WNW Gotha IV... and well, I have 2.. There is also a Trumpeter Panzer IV that topped this... and a Tamiya 1/16 Panther.. so I won't be bored.. But it's really not about what we spend in real money, it's what we put into the hobby.. much more into promoting our hobby, our club, displays... and most of all enjoying the hobby! And I will continue to do this.... Marc.

[PrzemoL]

Interesting thread, indeed.
But as for me, the answer is obvious - WNW Felixstowe. And with extra I paid for quick delivery from NZ, which still was not quick enough to get it for Christmas, and unevitable VAT added here in Poland, it was well, well over the basic called price of USD269... Yet, I do not regret any cent spent on it - building this model was and will long remain the best modelling experience I had in my 40+ years modelling time. .
BTW, at the Lance's point on value per time spent on building, I do not count per hours but per weeks. And some of you may remember my count which I showed when completeing that 5-month project, where it turned out that price per week of modelling was lower on WNW Felixstowe than on any other WNW kit I built.
As for Dave's question, regarding buying the kits as collector, I do not understand that attitude at all. Me, I buy exclusively with the intention to build, I am lucky to limit my stash to about 10 boxes. Right now I have 10 WNW kits and two other 32nd scale non-WNW ones, and I would have not exceed 10 if it was not for the demise of WNW and my decision to get those kits, which I still would like to complete and add to my collection. I learnt that if I exceed this number, I may change my mind and decide not to build a particular kit. Then I attempt to sell such a kit as soon as possible, for space issues, among others. I prefer to have a cabinet full of completed models, rather than a storage of boxes with untouched sprues. 

[jeroen_R90S]

My most expensive model is the Camel/LVG Duellist I picked up from the local equivalent of Ebay for 150€ sent to my home a year ago or so. No way that would happen now! (the Albatrio was actually more expensive but I split that with a forum member)
Other, for me, expensive models are the WNW Rumpler, DH9, and DFV C.V (mid). I wish I could afford another DFW, quite a few were interned in the Netherlands and this is one of kits that just looks like a labour of love. There's so much packed in there!

I was lucky in the sense that the Weta warehouse is in Amsterdam, so when they had those stock-taking or black friday deals I sometimes took advantage.

Jeroen