As for me it was my dad who turned me on to modeling.My first kit was a Folker tri wing of Ricthoven.After that it got to the piont that I could not wait for the next kit.Digger
As I posted in a similarly themed previous topic, it was Godzilla. Those flicks had it all: armor, aircraft, ships, spaceships, and of course, giant monsters.
It was dad who bought and built my first Aurora Godzilla kit back in 1966, though.
Thanks, Pop!
My mom, she was building kits as props for her paintings, and to help occupy me, she would give me a kit, some glue, and a bunch of paint and I would try to copy her. This started when I was about three and has never stopped. Dad was the one that taught me how to use the glue, and how to apply more paint to the model than on me, the surrounding walls, and the cat.
although i credit my uncle with purchasing the first kit for me, i would have to say it was a hobby shop owner who really got me into building. no he really didnt do anything to inspire but he listened to me and allowed me to take home catalogs and such from the diferent mfgs. when i saw how much there was and how many subjects that is when i really started to want to build. of course not too long after that i began to really study ww2 and pearl harbor and of course the rest is history.
joe
HEY,
I had never even looked at modelling, and pretty much didnt even know it existed. But on my 12 birthday, a close family friend got me a model car. I cant remember what it was, but about half way through i got lazy and didnt paint the rest. It looked awful, and fell apart after about 6 weeks, but i stiill have the engine on a book shelf to remind me of how far ive come.
Randy
My dad.
My father probably bought me my first kit, and showed me the basics. I built kits like a fiend until high school (early 80’s) then other things kicked in. Built a few more in the early 90’s, then gave it up again until this past Christmas. I never stopped looking in hobby shops but didn’t have the money or time to start up again. My dad must have planted that seed really deep, because it certainly has sprouted again with a vengeance.
My best friend in sixth grade got me interested in modeling. He loved Dodge Vipers and bought and built models of them. So, when his birthday came about, my mom went to the BX on Travis AFB and bought this special, AAFES Testors Spy Plane edition. It had a 1/48 SR-71, 1/48 U-2C, one of their enamel paint kits, a can of Dull Cote and a hobby knife all for $18.95! If I had known how much I enjoy modeling, I would have bought all the sets they had. Anyways, I ended up keeping this spy plane set for myself and got him another Dodge Viper. My mom later bought me some more kits as they went on sale/clearance at the BX. When I moved to Japan (since my Dad is in the military) we made friends with a Japanese couple and he bought me a Tamiya (literally everything is Tamiya over there from what I remember) Nissan Japanese racing car for my birthday or Christmas. Later, he gave me a 1/72 scale F-16 and F/A-18 from Tamiya as well. Unfortunately, I still have the boxes to the two planes, but the actual built model is gone. While there, the only model kit I bought off base was that of a Tamiya F-117 Nighthawk. Some may consider this a crime against modeling… living in Tamiya-land and not buying hardly any of their models…but the prices over there were really high and basically the same as they are here in America. So it’s not like $40 Tamiya models here were $15 dollars in Japan.
I never seriously built kits in all the years described above. I would just glue them together, but not paint them. It wasn’t until last Christmas break in which I had five weeks off I decided to give models another shot in order to kill time. I started work on a Testors 1/72 B-2 and have been building ever since. Between school and work, I’ve only been able to get to five kits. I’m nearing completion on all of them which is a good thing since I start school again this coming fall and I won’t be able to build for three months.
Looking back on everyone elses reply, I realize I went a little long here. But that’s my story… 
Good question!
I think my first exposure to modeling was my uncle Victor. He is my Mom’s youngest brother and is only 6 years older than I am. I can recall visiting and spotting a few interesting subjects in his room. Althoough there may have been others, I can remember the original release mini-sub from Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, a Seaview, a 12" Count Dracula figure, and of course, a starship Enterprise.
I was probably 8 to 10 years old at the time and had never heard of models. However, within 3 or 4 years, I had begun my own exploration of the hobby and suspect that those early models of my uncle’s were the spark that lit the fire.
Enjoy your modeling…
As posted in a similar topic, it’s the movie Battle of Britain. From the moviehouse I went directly to a bookstore/department store selling models. I was looking for a Spitfire but not finding any I settled for the only British fighter available, the Airfix Bristol Beaufighter. This was the start of my 35 years of modeling.
a military aircraft flying over our house…
an occasional trip with my parents to our local airport…
my uncle who was an RCAF / RAF Beaufighter Pilot Officer…
a fascination with those flying things up there…
an inclination to do something with my hands…lol…go figure…
the discovery of plastic models & the box art…
…mighta been just one of those things or the process of those things in some succession but, @ 55 i can vaguely recall all those sensations and none have ever wavered to this day…
My Dad, and I wish he was still here so we could share the hobby again…
Fade to Black…
My dad he was in the army so as a kid i was surrounded by war machines,which led to modeling…J.S.
My folks have pictures of me playing with toy soldiers, cowboys & Indians etc from as early as age 2+. During this time my Father was stationed at Ft. Bening, Ga. around 1967 +/-. He was the O.B.Gyn on the base…must have been a pretty good gig, we had our own house, etc…I don’t recall much except what was captured in pictures, but I’m pretty sure that early exposure to the Military life must have made a very large impression on me. As for the hobby itself it was a store that I happened upon whiole on Vacation in Maine. the store is/was The Toy Soldier on Front St. in Bath, Me. The owner was a wonderful man(always had a lit pipe in his mouth), and he was willing to let me sit at his table, using his paints & brushes to start learning the intricasies of shading a face the size of a “pea” - 1/32nd! Also loved playing D & D at his shop, along with war games laid out over a large terrain…where else can a 12 year old fit in with 50 & 60 year olds! Gotta love it![^][^]
When I was a young boy my mother was diagnosed with cancer. The last few years of her life were rough so I was frequently sent to stay with my grandparents. They lived two blocks from Rider’s Hobby Shop in Flint, Mi and I found the store one day. Looking in the window I couldn’t help myself and I was drawn into the store. What seven year old boy wouldn’t be? lol
The store staff was friendly and the thing that sticks in my mind to this day was the scratchbuild WW I tanks. The next day I drug my Gramps and his wallet back up there and bought an exacto knife set, glue, paint, and a couple A/C kits. I started with the Aurora PBY and then a Spitfire. I built about four models in quick succession. It was the diversion I need at that confusing and overwhelming time in my life.
As a kid I was really interested in Science and Tech thingies probably because of the books and comics. Back then I make trucks and planes and ships out of tin can, wood and cardboard to be played with. When the time came that I can already afford buying kits…that’s the time I really went full-time in it.
I do not know what the actual event was…as I was born in the late fifties. it may have been hearing on radio and later TV everything going on in the world, the Cold War, conflict in SE Asia, problems in the Middle East. It could also have been that quite a few of my parents’ friends had served in World War Two and in Korea…I remember several of them talking about missions in both conflicts. It could have been my passion for military history, given free-reign by my maternal grandfather, who on early (very very early) morning walks in the neighborhood would “quiz” me on the topic. It could have been the missle base near our SW suburb of Chicago (Homewood), I think it was a Nike site?
It could have been that between the ages of 5-9 Ihad EVERY childhood illness (chicken pox, measles (both), chronic tonsillitis, a broken ankle, ad nauseum) and my poor mom, with 4 other little ones at home would get me a 29c Linberg kit to keep me still…first specific kits I truly remember was an RCAF P-51 with chrome plating (Hawk?) and a Monogram Duesenburg that was WAY above my capabilities.
I do not know what the actual event was…as I was born in the late fifties. it may have been hearing on radio and later TV everything going on in the world, the Cold War, conflict in SE Asia, problems in the Middle East. It could also have been that quite a few of my parents’ friends had served in World War Two and in Korea…I remember several of them talking about missions in both conflicts. It could have been my passion for military history, given free-reign by my maternal grandfather, who on early (very very early) morning walks in the neighborhood would “quiz” me on the topic. It could have been the missle base near our SW suburb of Chicago (Homewood), I think it was a Nike site?
It could have been that between the ages of 5-9 Ihad EVERY childhood illness (chicken pox, measles (both), chronic tonsillitis, a broken ankle, ad nauseum) and my poor mom, with 4 other little ones at home would get me a 29c Linberg kit to keep me still…first specific kits I truly remember was an RCAF P-51 with chrome plating (Hawk?) and a Monogram Duesenburg that was WAY above my capabilities.
I was 7 or 8 and saw the movie Tora Tora Tora and was immediatley hooked on WW II. I loved the BB’s. Fortunately, I met my friend whose dad was on the Submarine Dace during the war and sunk the Heavy Cruiser Maya in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. He had many ships models and that is what got me on my way. Funny, but after ships we went into aircraft than finally into armor, which I proudly reside today.
My mom was the one who started the life long addiction. Just recently she told me that I was five years old when she bought me my first kit. She said that I loved Legos so much that she thought I would like models. I’ve been modeling now for 27 years straight. Boy was she right.
Darren