Me too, I’ve had several in the stash for over 30 years, and my first two builds last year were from that collection.
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one thing that keeps me grounded is looking back at previous models and seeing the progress made on my skills. We all make mistakes and there is no denying that but the great thing with this hobby it is a pretty tight knit community with a wealth of knowledge and you can always find someone willing to help you learn to fix those mistakes. Keep on building brother it only gets better with time
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Over 4 decades or so I’ve managed to get to a consistent build quality level that I’m happy with. But the tradeoff has been a much higher investment of time, and the need to treat each build as an exercise in project management with a carefully thought out sequence, with all the problems and challenges mapped out ahead of time and a plan of attack to address each one. When I eventually finish a build these days (most often after several months) there is satisfaction with the end result, but I have to be honest that I haven’t enjoyed the journey as much as I used to when I had more simplified expectations of the end result. Much of the build process I force on myself has become drudgery… filling ejector/sink marks, getting rid of even the most minute flash, making seams go away, test fitting, adjusting/trimming/shimming, test fitting again over and over, scratch building missing or incorrect features, and then taking the finishing to the umpteenth degree of complexity with weathering, polishing, whatever. When I attend model club meetings I often have nothing new to show while others have brought several finished kits and they clearly had a lot of fun building them to their own standards. I sometimes feel envious of those folks and feel like a prisoner of my own high expectations of the end result. Echoing what others have said here, don’t let the quest for perfection suck the joy out the hobby for you. Try to make the goal more about progressing your skills and enjoying the build.
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They certainly aren’t as easy as some modern kits but there’s a nostalgia factor involved when building them. Nostalgia can be a big part of modeling for me.
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I’m an excellent modeler. It’s the gremlins that come at night that put the finger prints and crack open seams 
If you want to compete, especially at IPMS, you need to get to those ‘youtube’ levels. These days I build for the fun and no one, outside of my wife and a few posts on line, will ever see them - enjoy the hobby.
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“Finished” is also better than a “10-year WIP”.
Unfortunately, most of my models fall into the second category.
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I find modelling is like writing a story,in your head you know what you want to write but the hard part is putting it down on paper.
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Yup, I hate it when I try so hard to do a great job and something happens. Broken pitots, lost small part(s).
The worse was trying to apply the mouth decals on an F-14 and somehow I let it get too dry before getting it in hits final spot so it tore and adhered to the wrong spot by alot. I couldn’t find replacement decals and the only place I found it was in another kit. Decided to buy it. I applied the new decals and thought all was well. When it dried, one side was slightly smushed probably from me trying to position it. Not horrible but very noticeable…
I display it with the good side. But yeah I totally feel that way some times.
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You are comparing yourself to guys who essentially do filmmaking, they have to present a good picture through good camera lens, under which every flaw is amplified. Every step they take is content, that’s why they can afford to decorate areas which eventually get out of view on a finished model.
A good finished model does not have to be on THAT level.
Also, it’s a matter of what satisfies you — they have to satisfy the audience, after all.
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Every person here, feels this way, from time to time. (To a certain degree). There are several areas that I need improvement on. As an example, canopies. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve put one on thinking it’s good, only to go back, and find a faint fingerprint, or dust on the inside of the canopy. I try and concentrate on one area at a time that I need to improve on. That way I don’t get overwhelmed.
Weathering, figures, filling seams, AIRBRUSHING, and the list goes on. I’m generally happy with the outcome of all my builds. As far as I’m concerned, that’s what really matters. I tried to be honest with myself and my abilities. Somethings, I’ll probably never get to a level that I want to, and that’s all right. Try and have fun, and don’t be too hard on yourself. We’re always our worst critic.
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I’m probably my hardest critic. I’ve received lots of praise over the years for my completed models, and I even have 3 that were accepted into the scale model galley aboard the USS Lexington in Corpus Christi, Texas - but none of that stops me from seeing the flaws in my own work.
I’ve been building models since I was 3 (I will be 60 next year). I’ve gone from glue fingerprints all over a fuselage to “HULK SMASH” on a kit that I couldn’t wrangle into shape to a museum contributor, and back again.
The only advice I have for everyone is just keep modeling. Show off your work no matter what you think of it. If you want tips, just ask - there are lots of modelers here who will gladly talk to you. If you feel frustrated or overwhelmed, step away to do something else. That model will still be there when you decide to return to it.
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Maybe we could start a group build,that way we can all muck in and help each other out.
The only problem might be is we all do different things.
Or anything goes build.
Planes
Tanks
Ships
Cars
Figures
Sci-fi
Just a suggestion to get some motivation as I know I need it as I have over 20 Eduard kits to build 
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I think that’s completely normal to feel that way and something all of us have felt at least a couple of times. Just know that the camera hides a lot more than you can see when you’re hunched over your model with your face 3 inches away 
Not saying that the guys you mentioned are anything short of amazing, but this gives the same instagram vs reality effect. You don’t see the mess ups and when these guys over paint something.
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