Help and advice wanted.

Got something to say about the hobby of model making?
IronMan129
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Help and advice wanted.

Post by IronMan129 »

Hey all.
I'm looking for some help and advice about starting up kind of a business around building models for people.
Silly request I know but I really want to spend more time with Sally and Star and this maybe an oprion.
Thought I'd post it here as I have a lot of friends on UAMF and you've all helped me out in the past over a lot of things.
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MarkyM607
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by MarkyM607 »

Maverick231 wrote:Hey all.
I'm looking for some help and advice about starting up kind of a business around building models for people.
Silly request I know but I really want to spend more time with Sally and Star and this maybe an oprion.
Thought I'd post it here as I have a lot of friends on UAMF and you've all helped me out in the past over a lot of things.
Does this mean you want paying for building my Tonka's?? :ha: :ha:
Hoping to return to modelling sometime this year!! :lol:
Owner of Marky's Model Emporium since 2013!.
Saxon
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Saxon »

I imagine you would want to advertise to find clients. Places like military book stores and military/history forums.

You could also build a few and pop them on Ebay rather than wait for commissions and see how they go.

Did you have specific questions or was it just a general query as to how you might find clientele?
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by ShaunW »

I would imagine that this is a very difficult market to break into, Mav and quite a small one at that. I reckon building to commission will come with its own unique pressures, such as meeting lead times for builds, the ability to build specialist models such as those requiring markings/components that might not be commercially available, the ability to build quality models, dealing with builds going wrong whilst a client is eagerly awaiting their model, a whole raft of stuff really. In addition to that, I would imagine that the builder having some sort of pedigree, such as winning golds or being well placed in competitions at SMW or at other well known model shows, would help enormously. Be brutally honest with yourself as to your modelling ability as you are aiming to charge people for your builds, in other words do you think you are good enough? I may sound like I'm trying to put you off but that is not my intention it's just that turning a hobby into a job might not be the ideal that you imagine. Do some in depth research using the interweb, see what builders are charging etc to give you an idea of potential earning capacity and compare that to your current employment - I have the feeling that there are very few fully professional model builders out there and that most building to commission will be semi-pro at best. If you do want to earn a living through modelling, it might be better to try selling kits online or something but the competition there will be quite stiff as well. If you go for it then the very best of luck to you.
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Softscience
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Softscience »

Mav, there are better ways of making a living (while maintaining a home life) than via modeling.

Don't turn your hobby into a job or you'll end up hating both.

I also advise against working from home, but you may strike the balance better than I had back when I tried it.
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iggie
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by iggie »

I have to admit it is not something that I would consider; as Ralph says, a hobby that is a job is no longer a hobby.
I work partly from home doing scaffold designs, which require a fair degree of engineering to back them up; even so, I still get some queried on the basis that "I think it needs more bracing/ties/whatever". And that's something that can be calculated and is done to a code of practice. Imagine the potential for prospective clients turning round and saying "the pilots head is ugly", or "I think it needs more/less weathering", or "aren't those panel lines a bit deep?"......

And, are you really going to be able to charge enough to cover your time (and your bills)? I suspect not if you were to note ALL the time you spend on building a model now, let alone one when your building for someone else.

I totally understand your desire to have more family time, but seriously doubt that modelling is a sustainable career choice for most of us to be honest
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Migrant
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Migrant »

The previous postings might sound discouraging Mav, but believe me they're full of good advice. ;-) I've had some experience of commission builds and after the last one, vowed never to do it again. There is a market for built models, but it's hard to break into it. Even if you do, the financial rewards are rarely worth the time invested – you'd probably make more of an hourly rate working at MacDonalds. And although building models might sound preferable to flipping burgers, it will almost certainly turn a hobby you love into a chore you loathe.

As an example, a few years ago I was approached by a US customer to build a model of an RAF Eurofighter, an aircraft which I have no interest in whatsoever. He wanted me to build the 1/32 Revell kit, which turned out to be a horrible model with poor fit and warped parts. He wanted it with all of the kit's access panels closed – not open as Revell intended – which resulted in a massive filling/re-scribing task. He asked me to use Aires resin cockpit, wheel bay and afterburner sets – ever tried to fit Aires sets in to their intended models? He wanted specific RAF squadron markings which were not available as aftermarket decals, which I had to create. He wanted the model to be heavily pre-shaded and weathered, not my style of modelling at all. And then the completed model had to be shipped to an address in Scotland, which ended up requiring a huge box to accommodate the kit and all the packing, and which exceeded my quoted estimate by almost $100 – which I had to absorb.

Throughout the process, which took several months, I kept the customer updated with progress photos and in the end he was delighted with the model, which arrived intact. He paid for the kit and the aftermarket parts, and after taking into account the extra shipping, I think I made about $500.00. However, I estimate I spent 75 hours on the project – not a viable hourly rate at all.

Having said all that, if this is something you feel you could do in your spare time to supplement your income, the hourly rate becomes less of an issue. Perhaps a good place to start would be to put some of your existing models on eBay, and see what kind of response/price you get for them. Just make sure you have lots of good quality photos for each build so the customer can see exactly what he's buying, and be prepared to spend a fair amount of time just packaging the models for shipping. I've successfully shipped a lot of built models and have a good (though not perfect) success rate, so PM me if you're interested and I'll describe how I do it.
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jssel
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by jssel »

I can only echo Migrant's comments. I have done a couple and while being great kits to work with, it became a real chore. Not missing real life events, the projects did nag at me. A guy by the name of Pat Hawkey seems to done well for himself and has written books of some of his projects.
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by JamesPerrin »

A quick suggestion (not my own) that if you sell built models on eBay don't put them in the model kits section but in Avation/Military etc memorabilia. Modellers generally don't buy built kits
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IronMan129
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by IronMan129 »

Thanks for the advice everyone its really appreciated!
After a full assessment I think the best way forward is to start my selling models on ebay to see how much interest people have in my models and to gauge a price of what everything is going for then if all works out just do it part time instead of just completely quitting my job.
Saxon
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Saxon »

Type "1/72 built" or whatever scale appeals to you into Ebay and check the quality of builds as well as prices. I have seen them quite high for museum quality as well as pretty high for worse than a 7 year old could do.

If it were me I would be building different and difficult subjects like a Viggen in fields and meadows scheme they always attract a lot of bids as not many people will be willing to try it. As a opposed to say a Corsair in overall blue.

I really wouldn't be quitting your job to pursue this but it could be an ok way to make some extra money.
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beany
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by beany »

I'd also be considering how you intend to pack the model to sufficiently withstand the rigours of the postal/courier service you employ. This is another factor that may eat into your profit margin.
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Saxon
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Saxon »

And where relevant put armament on them! I saw a couple of nice RAAF F-18's but they had nothing on them. No fuel tanks, no air to air missiles. They looked boring and naked.
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Chuck E
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Chuck E »

Not sure about being able to make a living at this, but there may be some mileage in becoming a Cottage Industry, manufacturing good quality conversion parts and detailing sets in resin. There are already some really good manufacturers out there, so it won't be easy. You would need to either produce something very popular and not currently available, or something very popular, good quality and cheaper than others. Maybe a niche market. You would need to be a good scratch builder, as you won't be able to copy existing items, though there may be some way that you could reproduce some very old and long gone subjects. Maybe a replica of the original Airfix Spitfire? The FROG 7" wingspan, Fit the Box kits. Very rare these days. Just watch out for Copyright issues. I've seen people offering replicas on Ebay.

As for offering your services as a kit builder, I think the guys have covered this quite well, already.

Here's an idea. How about getting an add into an RAF Journal offering to build a model of Your Aeroplane? There a thousands of people out there that are ex services that would like a model of a plane that they flew, a ship they served on, a tank that they once drove. Just an angle. They contact you and you get the details together and send them a quote, based on available models, level of detail and markings.

I regularly see completed models for sale at model shows. Here are some that I photographed over the weekend with you in mind. He wasn't doing a roaring trade.

Image

Image

Image

More here . . . . https://www.flickr.com/photos/23594891@ ... 8565182395;


You could combine a number of activities under one roof. Maverick Model Services.

You will need a simple, but very good looking website, too.
So many models, so little time.
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Chuck E
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Re: Help and advice wanted.

Post by Chuck E »

So many models, so little time.
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