I have an ethics/moral (maybe) question for the GB veterans around here.
I recently spearheaded a Group Build for the F4U4 Corsair. In the course of people signing up, a member posted that he would like to join. Now normally, I have zero problems with anyone joining. But, there is one major caveat - the member who wants to join is about 98% done with their build and will likely be done before the official start date rolls around (April 1st).
Now, like I said, I have no problem with anyone joining and I have no personal vendetta against this member. My only concern is that, what’s the point of joining a GB if you’re already done with the build? Is it just to get a badge? If you’re done, you’re missing out on the important part of the build - the comraderie you develop from working on a similar kit. Granted, you can learn new techniques just from reading about them in the group build, but you can get that from reading any thread or GB.
Personally, I’ve decided to leave it up to the members of the GB and let the majority of them decide if he should join. But what’s your take on this? What if it were your GB and someone who had already completed the kit wanted to join? Do you let them in even though they really wouldn’t be contributing?
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this as I found it to be an interesting area for debate.
Hi Fred…I’m not a vet of GB’s…98% done seems like a lot…there’s probably plenty of time left for the member to start and build another if he chooses.
On the other hand, if you make a big ‘Hey Day’ on the last day of the build…where everyone posts pics of completed projects…it might be acceptable. It could be a poll question for your members.
Entering a GB with a nearly finished model is just wrong IMHO. The member will contribute very little & is probably just wanting to display the GB Badge in his SigTag.
I must concur with Rick. What is the point of entering a model in a GB if it’s not going to be a part of either the build or the group in the first place?
…and I do hope that the member in question knows that the only thing that is being addressed here is his build, not himself. He’s an outstanding young modeler and would be an asset to any GB. I say to him grab yourself another bent-winged bird and join in on the fun. [tup]
I agree with Rick. I was approached not long ago by someone who was running a GB and asked if I would be willing to put a just completed model in the GB. I had not spotted the GB until my subject matter was nearly complete so stayed out of it and instead posted the build in the a/c forum.
I brought these concerns to him and told him I didn’t think it was the right thing to do but if he wanted to ask the GB members for their opinion I’d be willing to add my build to the thread. He said it was no biggie so I added it. I never did claim the badge though. I didn’t feel right sporting a badge I didn’t feel I deserved.
I was ready to begin painting and weathering a Tiger tank when a big Cat build started.
did I post my tiger as a WIP? yes, was it a joke? yes did I say it was a joke? yes
DID I JOIN WITH A DIFFERENT TIGER? oh, you betcha, why? because the purpose of a group build it to share and encourage the group in the build.
I joined the winter warriors build with a specific idea, once I finished I tried some techniques mentioned in the GB and I am much more pleased with that one than my first.
In conclusion I say he needs to make a second one, of course he can display them as a flight of 2 like Pappy and his wingman[swg]
of course I also think that assembled with no paint is about 20% [:-^] but with wingy thingies you have a cockpit that has been built and painted so that would be much farther along[;)]
Many to most group builds require that the subject be totally unstarted or just a little bit. Something along the line of painting the cockpit, cleaning up flash on parts, etc. I agree with that. If I were moderating a GB, I would leave it up to the individual. If they think that they deserve to be included, then so be it. That way, you don’t have to be the policeman and tell someone that they are not allowed in the GB.
I agree with Darwin.They’re too many rules in the world anyway.
By the way I’ve gone off badges, for my own reasons.
But I would like to see a sticky get put up at the top of the GB with a list that could be clicked on by anyone who cares to look, but not always there in the sig line.
Like I said, I’m not looking to keep anyone out, but coming in with a build that’s almost complete kind of defeats the purpose. We have suggested that he start another corsair for the build, but we haven’t heard anything back as of yet.
Hopefully, he’ll decide to take us up othe offer and build with us.
I don’t know, maybe I’m alone on this, but I look at it a bit differently. Now, I’m a rookie at this, so take what I say with a grain of salt, but here’s my [2c].
A member just asked me if he could join a GB, since his kit was mostly done. I let him join, but asked him to post any progress pics he’s taken. Immediately, another GB member chimed in, saying that he was very interested and definitely wanted to see some progress pics, as that same kit was going to be his build as well. Now time will tell on this one, but my guess is that he will probably build another kit, as pretty much everyone who has signed up with one, has tacked more on. The progress pics, if posted, are worth letting him join, as they will help other members of the GB.
So, I’d say if its completely done, don’t let them join. If they have only weathering left to do, let them join. They’ll (hopefully) contribute to the GB, and if they do, you have enriched your GB. If they don’t contribute, what have you lost?[:)]
I would say that you would be perfectly justified denying entry to this build. It’s like the Boston Marathon starts on Saturday and a guy who ran 24 miles on Friday wants to run the last two miles and have his time posted with the rest of the field.
Putting it up to a vote is a good idea, but another option is to just tell him you’ll be glad to have him as long as he builds another Corsair during the build period. You just can’t have too many Corsairs!
The other thing to consider is their rate of building. “Almost finished,” to someone who builds at my glacial pace, means quite a long time before finished. [(-D] —but I’m probably relatively rare in my lack of progress.
I remember there was a P-39 group build, somewhere, that I thought of joining with “Test Bed,” which was about 90% complete. I decided against asking, even though I had progress pics. Ironically, the group build was finished several months before I finished mine. [(-D]
Oh well, a glacial building speed is appropriate for a geologist!
Ask him/her to build another bent wing bird—and then post comparison pics showing how much better the second came out. Besides, is there any such thing as too many Corsairs? (Only if you are a member of the Imperial Japanese armed forces in 1944… [:O])
I’m on both sides of the fence here-on one hand, I can see why the participation is a big thing with a group build; but I can also see letting in someone who is almost done.
[2c][:)] I also build most of my models at a ‘glacial pace’ (nice phrase, mind if I use it? [:D]), wanting to cram in as much detail as I can.
it doesnt matter if a build is started before a “start date” or ends after an “end date” if the goal of the build is accomplished. everyone who starts a group build has a purpose, be it to pay tribute, work on skills, finish a model, whatever. if a builder joins a build with an in progress build and still fits the goal of the host for the group build then there doesnt seem to be an issue. if a person wants to join and doesnt fit the goal of the build then it is the hosts choice whether to allow or not. as this medium allows folks to come together and share like passions and ideas the group builds flourish.
what you could do in this situation is take a peek at the build, determine if it fits the goal of your build. make your choice then. in the end the choice to allow or not to allow is very subjective and yours. if the build fits you could ask the builder to stop working on the build until the official start date. if it doesnt then you could ask them to do something different.
Hi all… The member in question here is me… and I’m sorry I caused such a big “dillemma”… I actually don’t really care about GB badges, they don’t really mean anything to me, so no, that’s not the reason I wanted to join.
Basically, I just like being able to discuss the kit I’m building with other modelers, and recieve comments (good and bad) on my work, so I can improve it. I hadn’t been involved in a GB for a while, and since I was building a corsair, naturally this GB caught my eye. Anyhow, Gigatron, if you look at my next posts, I hope I’ve resolved the situation…[swg]