Yup. I build aircraft. And maybe going into the lions den and swatting the sleeping cats with a switch is a bad idea.[;)]
But I’m curious. First, a story. I recently built my first armor piece, the Tamiya 1/48 Sherman M4A1. I enjoyed it and was rather impressed with the ease of the build. I was proud of the little piece, having never done anything like it before and thinking I did a decent job. Correct colors and all. Added an antenna made of stainless wire. Weathered slightly and used a fair amount of Mig pigments on the wheels and tracks to add a little road time. Even used a little on the exhaust.[:D]
So proud of my first attemp was I that I took it up to the LHS where a friend of mine works who is an avid aromor guy but does a fair amount of aircraft too. I bought it with his encouragement and he wanted to see it. As it sat on the counter being scrutinized and studied one guy I didn’t even know just blurts out “To clean. Way to clean. Not dirty enough.” I was kinda taken back by this. A total stranger and I kinda felt dissed. I didn’t ask his opinion but myself and the others sure got it. He knew I built it as he was there for the entire conversation but paid no mind at all to the fact I was standing there.[:O]
After this guy leaves my friend startes to tell me a story. This friend occasionally does builds for a popular online mag. He reviewed an armor kit once and put in the text that he built it out of the box and intended the review to be just that. An out of the box reveiw to give people a chance to see how it went together and what problems, if any to expect. He ends up with the equivelent of an internet stalker! This guy was peeved about the review because the subject was not “correct” and my friend didn’t point out all the deficiancies! “This is to small and there are to many of these! And this and that!” and “How can you call that a decent kit?!” My friend went back and forth for a couple of emails trying to be polite and professional, trying to explain his intentions behind the review. The guy just would not give up.[B)]
I was flabbergasted. Needless to say that was the end of article writing for my friend. He said screw it because of this guy and one or two like him that he had problems with.
I know that there are those out there that forget that this is a hobby. I see people go to extremes with it and get, IMHO, way to over stressed about how many rivets are here or how many panels are there. Spending hundredes of dollars on three or four kits just for a piece or two for a grand poobaah this or that. But I’ve never had any experiance like this from aircraft guys. I’ve had people politely comment on “You might check this out for next time.” or “I think those wheels are not quite correct for that year but that’s just me.” And always those comments come when they are asked for in a general sense. But to have a stranger make a comment about a build out of what seems to be some sort of attitude? Or the problem my friend had with his internet stalker? Seems a bit unusual to me. And a bit unhealthy.
So, is it that armor guys are just that much more passionate about what they do? Or has my limited experiance with them just jaded my views a bit? I’d like your input.[8)]
You’ll run across these kind of people everywhere. Little League, home entertainment, gym, cooking forums; you name it, and these guys are always there. Pay no attention to them, it just acts as fuel to their own belife that they are best. Most guys here are building because it’s fun and it’s a hobby. It doesn’t matter if it’s armor or aircrafts, we all share a hobby and i don’t think anybody is dissing anybody else about what they build or how they build it. /Lars
I’ve seen guys like that in aircraft & armor, its not the subjet, its the person! They just like to criticize more than build. Luckily, they are the minority, so just ignore them and have fun.
Whoa that’s a horrible set of circumstances, for you and your friend.
Don’t be jaded about armor guys. The same problems can be had no matter what subject matter you pic. I’ve heard horror stories from about every genre of modeling.
It sounds like the guy from the hobby shop and the internet stalker have one thing in common. They are both rude. I deal with the occasional (actually rare) rude hobbiest the same way I’d deal with any rude person. I just try to ignore them. Please keep building armor, and make sure you post plenty of pictures. Constructive critisism is helpful, but rude is rude. Just try to ignore those guys.
Yeah… dont get your self beat up by some armor jerk people, just say thanks and let him be.
I personally never cares who he was either a very popular person who writes for a magazine of just someone out of the blue.
In here where I live, rumour said that armor people dont share experience and aircraft people are the nicer ones. Was kinna shocking first time I heard that from my local LHS. But like everyone here said, it is not because he is an armor or aircraft builder, but it is the person it self. Never blame the hobby for this.
If you did something to your model and quite happy with the turn out, that is great and should be happy with because this is what this hobby about – HAVING FUN. —
Ben
Hey hkshooter, don’t sweat it dude. In one of my other hobby interests, railway modelling, we call them armchair modellers. If you want to know the most amazing piece of info that will historically place your model more accurately to the hour/min/sec, just ask these bozos. Pounds to pennies, they’ve never picked up an Exacto #11 in their life.
I got back into afv & a/c modelling when a friend of mine working in my old LHS persuaded me to give it a try, for a change from WRC or F1. He posts a lot of his work on Hyperscale, mainly tanks as he was in aussie armoured corps, & his work is stunning. I showed him a few of my WRC’s & he said “They’re not my bag, & there’s a couple of things I would probably do differently, but if you’re happy with it - then so be it. You’ll know where you did something wrong & how to fix it next time”.
End of story my friend. Forget those clowns. Someone’s signature on here says “build what you like, like what you build”.
As Forest Gump might say, Rude is as rude does, sir. This guy was rude. Plain and simple. And maybe a nutjob, too. There are rude armor guys, airplane guys, ship guys and car guys. So far, I’ really haven’t seen that among figure guys. I’m sure they’re there, though.
Weathering is a matter of taste and style. I am not impressed with an overly dirtied and worn model of any type, especially if it’s not displayed in context. When I’m judging, I want to see you basic skills, not how well you you can make mud. Nor do I particularly care if you accurized a model unless you are in direct competition with an equal build, and that rarely happens.
Sorry you ran across that sort. I think we all have opinions and sometimes can’t resist the urge to “correct” something (like walking past a crooked picture frame). However, how polite are you and are you really doing it to help or to serve a sense of correctness/superiority? That’s the balance we need to find.
For a hilarious article, you’ve GOT to read the following:
All genres of modelling will have anal types like that.It’s just a fact of life.The modellers that really blow my mind are the Star Wars and Star Trek guys that get into heated debates over whether or not a Galaxy Class Starship can whip a Star Destroyer.I’d swear they don’t realize they are arguing about fictitious spacecraft.If you were to discuss the Bismarck vs. an Iowa Class BB I could understand.Besides,any idiot knows the shields on Federation ships are always the first thing to fail![;)]
Model building is, in a way, like other forms of expression such as art, poetry, photography, etc.
Two modelers can receive the same kit and building materials but the completed project will always differ. It boils down to a matter of taste. Like you, I prefer clean builds. Others like to dirty things up. Some prefer to load up the vehicle like a gypsy wagon and others may prefer a factory fresh appearance. No one is wrong. No one is more right either. Just different.
I will admit that some modelers I see in the clubs I join, the local hobby shop I frequent or the shows I enter are what we would call “socially challenged.” The Comic Book Guy on the cartoon The Simpsons is a good example of of what I mean by “socially challenged.” They really nailed that stereotype down pat. Almost every serious model shop I’ve ever gone to has one of these guys who hang around the front counter talking shop with the proprietor. Sometimes he even has a part time job there. Normally he has a hygiene or weight issue.
If I’m looking at someone’s kit in a display case at the store, contest table or club meeting, I may discuss some of the good and bad things if I am with a friend or just striking up a conversation with an unknown person next to me looking at the same kit. But that’s just to make small talk and rather meaningless as a whole.
That person who commented on your kit meant you no harm or ill will. He’s just lacking in social graces and thought he was being helpful in his own clumsy way. Take it or leave it, it’s up to you, but it’s not anything let bother you. Life’s to short to sweat the small stuff. His comment is akin to a mouse turd in the dung heap of life.
It is not just armor and you know what they say about opinions. I build both armor and aircraft, do well at shows, and have fellow modellers ask me for advice at club meetings and the LHS. I feel good about the skills I have developed but that does not make me an expert in someone elses build, especially when I know how many flaws my finished kits have.
The catch is, I build for me and that is what gives me a quality model. If I am happy at the end then the model is good. Same for yours. As long as you like it, then who cares. It is your hobby and for your enjoyment!
Unfortunately some people have not discovered the difference between constructive ideas.criticism and over inflated opinions. Welcome to the wonderful world of armor and please don’t get discouraged or think we eat our young. [:D]
Thanks for the input, guys. It’s nice to see the nice side of armor and I feel much more comfortable with it. And it’s good to know that a few bad apples are not an example of the whole basket! I have to admit that I’ve avoided the armor forums just based on experiances I’ve had in the past. Good to know I have nothing to fear.
I kinda think the 1/48 scale armor is cool, as it adds to my a/c of the same scale. I plan to build more. Maybe I’ll post some pics of my Sherman sometime.
It amazes me when people say an armor model looks “too clean”. Ummmm… I’ve seen tanks buried in mud, and I’ve seem them as clean as I would keep my car. It’s all relative. Let the rivet counters count rivets and never be happy with anything, the rest of us will build our models, practice new techniques and enjoy what looks to us as a perfectly good tank. [:)]
Don’t let a few miserable apples spoil the whole bunch. [8D]
Glad you are not giving up on armor. Those of us who like 1/48 armor can use all the supporters we can get to make sure the scale becomes a viable scale. Would be great to see you Sherman pics
I don’t really think that there is a difference in AC or Armor guys. For every obsessive compulsive armor modeler there is an equivalent on the AC side. To each his own. A lot of people will just readily and hapily share their opinions, whatever they may be. Too bad for you, and too bad for your friend. He should not have been discouraged with that. Anyways, don’t be discouraged by nit-pickers. They’re out there, and nothing we can do about it. Glad you tried armor, and I hope you’ll continue. Try not to get offended at the opinions of total strangers.
I build both Aircraft and armor, and frequent both forums here, and I don’t see that much difference in the two areas. Interestingly because of the similarlty of scale, I see a lot of crossover in techniques. In the armor world there certainly is the debate on how clean or dirty one should make the tank, but in the A/C world I see just as much passion displayed with respect to shaded panel lines. Rievt counters and paint color nazis exist in both areas as well.
Your experience in the hobby shop sounds totally wrong, and the person criticizing your tank for lack of mud was out of line. Aside from the fact that all tanks are clean at least once in their lives, an unsolicited opinion should not leave one feeling dissed or belittled. Idiots are not unique to armor. Ironically, a couple of months back, and A/C modeler reported a very similar tale in which someone at the local hobby shop bagged on his airliner model because of an inaccurate paint scheme he had chosen for his airliner.
Are armor guys more passionate? I think many of us take our detail and accuracy quite seriously, but next time Pixelater posts photos of one his detail builds, you can see that aircraft guys can be quite passionate about detail and accuracy as well.
As others have written here these types are everywhere. No matter what you build it is a hobby and sometimes people forget that.
I recently ran into a few of these Negative-Nancy’s at a recent show. I had a complete scratchbuild (my first ever entry in a competition and my first ever scratchbuild) so naturally, I was proud of my work and the time I spent on it. For the most part the comments were welcomed and appreciative. I had displayed my piece with a few of the available photos of the prototype and the scale drawings from which it was built. A few of the negative comments that I overheard about my work
“I have no idea what that hunk of ______ is” … “It had armour plating here not wood siding” …“Not detailed enough”.
What really ticked me the most though was I did receive a Gold medallion for my efforts and as I went to receive it I heard a final complaint of “The give Gold to any piece of _____ don’t they”
So, yes there are rude people in all areas of this hobby. I choose not to let it deter me. I like what I build and build what I like. It’s just fun for me. I enjoy adding details to my builds, but I refuse to bankrupt myself to do it.
So No not all Armour builders are as rude as you experienced.
The cleanliness issue touched on is a valid one. There is a lot of pride, tradition & honour in tank battalions, so therefore it follows that when not in field, those babies look pretty neat & tidy. These things cost a lot of 000’s, so it pays to look after them. Unless I’m modelling a particular vehicle from a particular war deployment, most of my tanks will only have a little bit of road grime. I don’t want people telling me I model mud really well. But, I dips me lid to those who do that to their work, & do it convincingly.
That is unfortunate, but don’t let it discourage you from modeling armor. If possible, please post your tank so we may fairly critique it.
I agree with the other comments on the weathering. Since my builds are not in dios, they tend to be on the cleaner side, much like a line drawing in a book. LOL Hey, it’s my build and that’s the way I like it and that is all that should matter when you build a kit too.
Personally, I can hear the peanut gallery laughing if I ever finish and post my Zero in the A/C forum. [:D]