I don’t whether if I am the only one, but posting what other people build and sell on ebay is starting to get real annoying. Last time I checked, this was a hobby and selling every one of your models on the internet to some guy who doesn’t know what you put into this model and the signifigance of this and that… It totally defeats the purpose of this hobby. Sure looking at it is nice and may be some inspiration, but it is just not classy. Excuse me for the analogy but it is like looking at two equal women, both beatiful, but one with a price tag slapped on it. instead, we should be admiring what each other builds and helping those in need. We sure have out standing builders, and we have not so good modelers, but that is what this is forum is for. This hobby is for fun, and seeing that people will fork big bucks for a model they know nothing about is the wrong idea. I’m not saying that we should ban selling models on ebay, we should just refrain from posting them in a constructive forum where the love is in the hobby, not the money.
Thanks
Kris
Well Kris, I can certainly appreciate your point of view, but, I think that a good build is a good build, whether it is on the auction block or not. I enjoy seeing what others are doing, and, in some cases, these postings have raised the bar and someone could gain from seeing the work. I mean, I don’t do E-bay myself, I just ignore the E-bay stuff and look at the models. Anytime you see a pic of a well done model, what is the signifigance of the source?
Plus, there is the entertainment value associated with how many bucks these builds are bringing. Just my [2c]…
Steve
it’s a bit unfair to not have a problem with having to pay for a plastic kit, reference materials and ready-made models that come from a manufacturer but complaining about someone selling their work. i see your point but don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting to make a profit from something you worked so hard on. ultimately it’s the builder’s choice.
Do you see a difference between a master modeler selling his completed models on eBay and someone’s mom/grandma selling off rare vintage kits that the teenage son built years ago? I’ve seen old built Aurora, Renwal, etc. kits go for much more than some of the master modeler builds.
I think it kind of boils down to what one intends to get out of the hobby of model building. I recent gave a 1/72 Spitfire to a British friend of mine as a birthday present. My friend is certainly aware of the Spit’s historical, significance but I would be thuderstruck if he knew half of what I did to actually make the kit. I didn’t think twice about giving away a kit that took six or seven weeks to build, nor did I ever think of skipping details that Dave would never notice skipped. For me the fun is the build. Sitting on my bookcase at work is T-34, and although I am not advertising it on e-Bay, if a co-worker were to offer me a a sizeable chunk of change for it, there it goes. For me the purpose of the hobby, or rather what I most get out it is the fun of actually building the kit, trying different techniques, and making the kit as good as I possibly can. That’s one reason why I am usually loathe to go aftermarket. It’s not that I’m cheap (or maybe I am, but that’s not the reason here[:D]), but rather that I would get more enjoyment by gluing a gun barrel together, and filling the seems so that it looks to be made of one piece, than I would by gluing a turned alumnium barrel to the mantlet, and leaving prefectly good pieces unassembled in the box. The point of my rambling is that at least for me most of the enjoyment I get from building a model occurs prior to its completion, as opposed to displaying it after completion. Once built, I plop it into the display case to periodically admire but mostly ignore. If I was short on cash and though I could get some big bucks for my completed kits, I’d part with most them in a heartbeat.
Andy
I just enjoy the pictures.
I enjoy the pictures and often get inspired by some of the fantastic models that are being sold on Ebay.
I do think it’s funny that a model can go for a $75 starting bid, when the kit costs about 20 bucks with less than $10 of glue and paint.
I also enjoy looking at the ebay pics, but I’d never participate. Buying someone else’s builds would be cheating, and I hate parting with the babies that I built. Sometimes it is fun to give one as a gift, but selling doesn’t seem like that much fun.
From the language of the intitial post, I don’t quite get the point of this thread.
Is it:
- Selling your models isn’t good.
or - Looking at pictures of models that are being sold is not good.
Which one is it?
If it’s #1, who cares? Models, like any property, can be bought and sold by anyone who wants to buy and sell them. If someone wants to sell a model they built, why should anyone else have a problem with that?
It it’s #2, why should the fact that a model is being sold detract from its value as something worthy of looking at? As has been mentioned, a good model is a good model, and I like seeing good models.
This is all just my personal opinion, of course, but I just can’t see how either case (#1 or #2) could cause concern.
[#ditto]
I don’t think it is far from the truth to say that the vast majority of the people who view this forum at any given time (usually the half-dozen or so of us) are not exactly a buyers market when it comes to pre-built models…most of us just get a bit of a charge out of seeing someone else’s really excellent build for the inspiration and enjoyment, and really aren’t into actually purchasing built kits on eBay or anywhere else–in other words, although we might be great for increasing the number of “hits” a listing gets, I doubt that those of us who post other people’s ebay builds (i.e., myself, et al), purely for aesthetic reasons, are really increasing the likelihood that anything’s going to sell–this is the “Finescale Modeler’s Forum”, not “Finescale Model Buyers”. The people who sell their models on ebay appreciate praise and constructive criticism like we all do, I imagine, and I believe they do recognize that many of the modelers on Finescale forums do have very useful information to share.
It is true that “the love is in the hobby”, and I’m sure it is for most of those who sell models on eBay, but how can any of us speak for all of us (“us” as in “model builders”)? How many of us really know each other’s circumstances? I can’t really judge someone who might be a disabled or retired veteran on a fixed income, perhaps, trying to make a few extra bucks…I would have a hard time parting with what I build, but I don’t need the extra money…anyway, regardless of motive, it’s really nobody’s business but their own why they might wish to sell off a really beautiful build on eBay or anywhere else. Does anyone judge an artist who sells off one of his or her paintings in a gallery? Not really–how is this different?
Anyway I ramble–my main point is that I don’t find anything wrong with posting someone else’s beautiful kit build, as long as it is duly acknowledged to the proper builder, on this forum for others to admire, regardless of whether it was found on eBay or anywhere else. On this forum, the Ebayishness of the item is not really relevant.
Something we have to remember folks…is that not everyone out there has the skills or patience, or time, to do what we do. They do however, have two things, money, and the desire to have a miniature replica.
It’s a double edged sword…because I built models professionally for quite some time, and made some great money doing it. In fact, it supported my hobby and allowed me to buy the kits I really wanted, mostly resin ships (which are not cheap). Die-cast put a major damper on the process, because folks (namely my customers) could buy something off the shelf for one-quarter what they’d pay me. From three feet away a die cast model looks just as good as a super-detailed kit.
The trouble with Ebay is that anyone with a tube of glue and a Revell kit can call himself a professional modeler. In the literal sense he is, because he’s getting paid for it, but oftentimes the quality of these “master modelers” or “pro-built” models leaves alot to be desired. In some cases, they’re downright garbage. That hurts those of us who actually build stuff good enough to sell, but caveat emptor is more the rule than the exception on Ebay, especially when it comes to models.
Now on the official side, if you’re posting a link to Ebay about someone’s model, remember that the person who built it could be here, reading what you’ve written. What you do with your models is your own business, so please exercise good judgement when you do post. I will remind folks that it’s against FSM forum rules to promote the buying, selling or trading of models on the forum. Even giveaway stuff (aka Free to a good home) although not against the rules technically, must be handled carefully.
Thanks,
Jeff
Look at it this way.Maybe the guy really needs the money!Also,it’ll probably be some geek(just like us)that appreciates it for what it is and buys it.Sorta keeps it in the family,so to speak.
Actually I don’t really have a problem with it. What’s the difference with building a model for someone and getting paid for it and building a model and putting it on E-bay and getttin paid for it? What I do have a problem with is someone who will pay to have a model built and then enter it in a contest under his/her name as if they had built it. Which has been known to happen.
I guess I’m taking a different point that Tankbuild121 was stating. I didn’t take he was saying selling builds is wrong or that no one should do it. I took it that he was saying this forum isn’t the place to be displaying them. I’m kinda 50/50 on that one. I love to see peoples work and glean whatever I can from the build and the builder.These are people who take the time and effort to photograph, post and participate in the forum.
I’m not fully in agreement with this but I do understand where he’s coming from. It seems to me that all the gushing over these builds are alittle over done. I no longer look at these and say "I wish I could do that"and strive harder to build better.
I’m not coming down on either side, to each his own. I just think his point was not being addressed.
Never thought of this as a problem to anyone. If one chooses to sell their work on eBay, that should be no problem. Its just like selling art, crafts and such. The buyer should also take into consderation the risks of buying build models on eBay, as sometimes models appear different in the picture and in reality. I personally would never auction or sell off any of my built or un-built models or buy anyone`s build models.
[:)]
I agree with alot of the posts here. I’m basically for seeing them. One other thing. Since the model is on ebay we can really be critical of inaccuracies granted there usually aren’t many. For example in the 1/48 tiger I, it’s obvious that the builder didn’t even bother to make an effort to paint the rubber road wheels. If I was considering buying the model, this would be a factor that would cancel the sale for me. I like to see at least some of the rubber road wheels peeking through the mud.
Yeah, that was choice #2 in my post above (“2. Looking at pictures of models that are being sold is not good.”), where I was trying to figure out the point of this thread.
Hey Kris, how about responding to all these replies and letting us know precisely what you meant in your original post? [;)]
Actually, buying someone else’s builds and calling them your own would be cheating…nothing wrong with buying a built model, if that’s what you want to spend your money on, anymore than buying a painting or any other artwork from the original artist. One thing we need to watch for, though, is sellers on eBay stealing other modeler’s photos of their builds and using them in their listings, calling them their own…don’t know how many of you get around much to the Aircraft Forum, but this actually happened a month or so ago–there was a HUGE scandal–some guy on eBay was flagrantly ripping off photographs of several modern jets built by people on a very similar modeling forum (who also posted on the Aircraft Forum) and using them on eBay to represent his models, and it was obvious he was doing so–it was purely fraudulent activity, and he was essentially crucified, castrated, and blacklisted by members of FSM and the other Model Aircraft forum (can’t recall the name)–his listing was eventually struck off by eBay, thanks to all the complaints, and I’ll doubt that the skank will ever be able to wave his username around eBay again…so perhaps it isn’t such a bad thing that we peek in on eBay once in awhile…if for no other reason to make sure that people don’t plagiarize our builds! We need to stick together!
And don’t forget, while we’re talking about the price the eBayer’s charge, the value of art is in the eye of the beholder (that’s why its an auction)…I can see an opening bid covering the $20 kit, plus the $15-$20 worth of paint and glue, plus the $30-$40 worth of aftermarket PE, resin parts, aftermarket decals, zimmerit, scratchbuilt detail, plus the hours of labor…I don’t find $75 all that unreasonable an opening bid…
hobby = fun
business = money