Why you build what you build?

[mozart]

I always find it intriguing when I look through the WiP, RFI or GB sections to see the huge range of aircraft models that are built, and sometimes wonder what attracts the modeller to that particular subject.

 

For myself, I've always modelled to a "theme", initially related to my Bomber Command research about the loss of Lancaster ME453, and then it's kind of spread out to the planes flown in by the crew whilst training, then the Luftwaffe side ditto.  My interest in 56 squadron arose as a consequence of this via Tiger Moths flown by my father whilst he was training, then it was a short hop to the classic aircraft of the 1930s and then to the Hawker lineage.  

 

I've tried to collate/catalogue the ones I have ready to build, are in build, have been built or are on order thus:

 

 

There are of course many gaps yet to be filled!

 

So what ticks your box with choice of modelling material......I'm interested to know! 

[Rainer Hoffmann]

In my case it's not at all a theme. I need to be fascinated by the shape of the aircraft. Some spark my interest, others are simply not my cup of tea.

 

Often it is a certain picture, taken from a certain angle and I'm hooked. I remember seeing an in-flight shot of the first YF-16 (in that famous red, blue and white scheme) in a German aviation magazine (Flug Revue) back in 1975 and I knew I had to build a model. So I scratched one in the odd scale of 1:96 ...

 

I am mostly interested in post war jets but there are some noticable exeptions like the Super Connie, the Hawkeye or the Bronco and some helos.

 

Now actually modelling them is a slightly different story. Back in the olden days when I actually finished my builds I even did some mainstrem WWII subjects (Bf 109 and Spitfire, who would have thought ...). These days I'm still hoping to one day finish my LSP Viggen. One can hope, can we not?

 

Cheers

Rainer

Edited April 22, 2020 by Rainer Hoffmann
Typo

[lawman56]

For me it has more to do with either the aircraft being an "underdog" on the popularity scale, such as the P-39 or HS129, almost everything Italian or Soviet, and more importantly, if the diorama muse strikes me. Same goes for armor. I built the generic M4 Sherman, Tiger, Panther, P-51, Me109, etc. as a teen, so now I expand my horizons.

[Shawn M]

I build whatever  makes me go "ooo that would be cool".

That leads me to cars, ships, tanks, sci-fi, aircraft (all eras) etc

[DonH]

I mainly build aircraft that I am interested in or have a theme in mind:

 

1) Spitfires, spitfires, spitfires. The most beautiful aircraft ever. Don't bother arguing.

2) 74 (Tiger) Squadron theme (two phantoms, a couple of Spitfires - see above- and a Lightning on the SOD)

3) Then a theme of RSAF aircraft - F-15SG, F-16C, F-16D, F-5 Tigereye, Hawker Hunter and Apache helicopter

4) Tonka theme - RAF Tornados (We have a black cat called Tonka, so I will be building a black Tornado F3 in his honour)

5) Another Hawker Hunter just because I can and it is also beautiful

6) Misc stuff that I bought while drunk

 

I have other things in my stash but the list above suggests that they will stay there for a long time

[Shawn M]

#6, I call the "Corona Collection"

[chrish]

Jeez! good question... Looking at my stash of un-built and built models I'm all over the map! I'm sure I like the Luftwaffe stuff as a canvas for paint, civil aviation as well, just to put color on them....hmmmm...I think that's it, yup looking around in here, it's all about the painting not about the type.

I guess I build to have a place to put paint. 

[dmthamade]

Excellent subject!! I find I let group builds determine what i'll build. Pretty wide range of subject matter on this boards GBs, so I get a diverse range of builds. Everything from Swordfish to Sturmovik,  P-38 to JASDF Aggressors. Also lets me use up decals I've had in the stash that I may have never got to. Occasionally I will do a build that I "just wanna do" wil also do the occasional car or armor.

 

Don

[R Palimaka]

Good question, and I've often wondered the same thing. I really enjoy watching the depth to which people engage in their passion, even if it's not an area I'm interested in. 

 

My main focus is the history of the Polish Air Force right from 1918 to the present, which gives me scope to do some unusual and unappreciated aircraft alongside the iconic types. I also slip into occasional forays into Canadian and Fleet Air Arm subjects, and I haven't met a Mustang I didn't like. Although I prefer to have an accurate model, and will do some work to achieve that, I'm much more interested in colours and markings...which is interesting because painting is the one aspect of building models that makes me really nervous. I like to represent the aircraft of a particular individual and I enjoy the research as much as the building.

 

Richard

 

 

Edited April 22, 2020 by R Palimaka

[dmthamade]

59 minutes ago, DonH said:

I mainly build aircraft that I am interested in or have a theme in mind:

 

1) Spitfires, spitfires, spitfires. The most beautiful aircraft ever. Don't bother arguing.

6) Misc stuff that I bought while drunk

 

I have other things in my stash but the list above suggests that they will stay there for a long time

 

[Ben Brown]

I'm all over the place. I have a 4th TFW jets theme, Midway, USAir, and Piedmont Airlines themes, race cars I've seen on the track or just cool-looking race cars, Cars Ben has Lusted After but will Never Own, cool-looking sci fi ships. A lot of airplanes I just like the shape and/or camouflage scheme. Some airplanes I have a personal connection with; I have flown them or know someone who did.

 

Ben

[mozart]

You've hit on something I'll never ever build Ben, sci-fi.  I guess the subject, as in books, films etc doesn't do it for me, so no reason why models would. 

[Shoggz]

My criteria is sort of simple.

 

These are my absolute favourite aircraft.

 

GB

Spitfire

Hurricane

Mosquito

Typhoon

Tempest

Sea Fury

Lancaster

Germany

BF109

FW190

USA

Mustang

Thunderbolt

Corsair

Hellcat

P38 Lightning

B17

 

My ambition is to build as many of each mark of these aircraft in 1/48, 1/32 and 1/24 as I can, whilst I still can!

 

Obviously, the spread and availability on some is more than others which adds to the challenge! 

 

[Tnarg]

I wonder a lot about why I get obsessed about collecting models, much less building them.

 

I think a lot of this had to do with my experiences as a a very young kid and recapturing some of the events that stay in my memory.

 

I have built a lot of the space program models and have tried to make a group in the same scale, which never was possible in the past, but like 1/32 scale aircraft, if they are big enough to see the detail they take over the house. I was in grade school when the Mercury flew and saw them all on TV.

 

I remember seeing the X-planes and built a few of them in 1/48. I wish for the X-20 in a huge scale as that really caught my imagination as a youth. I built a version in 1/48 and it was just big enough to want more.

 

I came back into building models as an "adult" (am I really that old? just 13 inside my head sometimes) when I got interested in the Spanish Civil War and found a mentor who shared so much of history and models with me (Hugh Silvis, who has been gone for quite a while.. as has Tom Young, another mentor). They got me interested in anything Small Air Forces. That fit in to my interest in Polish aircraft because I read "the Trumpeter of Krakow" in one of my early grades and was fascinated with Poland. "What if?" models were only a small step from there.

 

I wanted to recreate my builds as a kid of WWI planes, and Peter Jackson made me change over my 1/48 collection into 1/32 (just came over and beat me into submission until I bought his kits )  I became fascinated by the colors and the rigging as that sort of developed from building all those Revell model ships as a kid. "Magnificent Men and Their Flying Machines" got me to want early aircraft  models as well.

 

I read the old Kevin Munson books and wanted to make every one of the airliners between the wars and all of those US Yellow Wings aircraft.

 

Unfortunately, I don't work that fast, and am too easily distracted by a new shiny object, like a 1/72 submarine, Maschinen Krieger or an old Aurora Knight or anything to capture my fantasy of recreating the feeling of my youth. That seems to be the theme in all of this. Does it have an amazing camouflage? Does it remind me of a key experience of my youth? I just wish I could finish anything and not leave them on the shelf of doom.

 

Tnarg

 

 

[Tnarg]

MY father in law worked on almost every US Navy aircraft of WWII. He later built models of them and hung them up in his home office. He was an Aviation Metalsmith on an itty bitty island and patched up bullet holes or damage to get them back to work beating Japan. He loved the planes and I got him quite a few kits of the ones he worked on... several decades later.

 

Tnarg