jaymichaelsdesigns Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Hello Members, As a hobby store manager and as a model car builder this is the one question that i have for everyone for years. Where is the Model car industry going where will it be in the next 15 to 20 years? I see a lot of kids on those video games more than everything i started building at the age of 5 years old my son that is 2 1/2 years old is building a little bit he understands what a model kit is and so forth. so my question to all memeber's is where will it be in the next 15 to 20 years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I remember when they were less than that ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymichaelsdesigns Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 Right, But my qusetion to you memebers is whare do you think the industry is going i am going to post a very interesting article Thirty-odd years ago, almost every kid in my neighborhood had some sort of hobby. Collecting and trading baseball cards was a popular pastime (one that's making a strong comeback today), as were coin and stamp collecting. One of my friends was into photography (he's now a photographer), another was into building radios (he's now an electrical engineer). Hobbies benefit children in numerous ways. Because they are expressions of personal accomplishment and a means of self-discovery, hobbies help build self-esteem. Hobbies are educational tools, as well. For example, a child who becomes interested in rocketry -- one of the most popular hobbies, by the way -- learns about propulsion and aerodynamics. By working on hobbies, children learn to set goals, make decisions, and solve all sorts of problems. Finally, hobbies often mature into lifelong interests, even careers. How to Find a Hobby for Your Child If all of that sounds good, and you'd like to help your child develop and sustain a hobby interest, try these suggestions: Set a good example. Scott Harris, a hobby shop buyer and hobby workshop leader in Gastonia, North Carolina, finds that children with hobbies tend to have parents with hobbies. Be prepared to sacrifice space. Your child will need work space for his or her hobby projects. Designate a particular room, a corner of the basement, part of the garage, or similar area. Regardless of where you set up the space, your child should be able to walk away from the hobby and come back to it later. The work space should also allow for plenty of paint spills, scratches, and other hobby-related accidents -- the inevitable by-products of creative activity. Provide some guidance. "Nothing will kill a child's enthusiasm for a hobby quicker than lots of frustration during the learning stage," cautions hobby expert Harris. Help your child get off to a good start by demonstrating how to closely follow a set of directions, and how to handle sometimes-delicate hobby materials with proper care. Limit television watching. Since 1955, when it became a fixture in America's households, television has come to dominate the spare time of the American child. By age 15, the average child has spent more time watching television than sitting in a classroom. Let's face it, it's impossible to work on a hobby and watch TV (or play video games) at the same time. For want of spare time, a hobby may never develop. But find a hobby, and a talent may be born, a life enriched. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbs Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 sad to say, my boys have very little hobbies unless it's tied to some sort of screen. tablets, phones, gaming systems, hard to compete with. there is no real failure, you loose, you play again. no risk. don't have to worry about glue blobs, bad paint, missing parts, just shut it off when your done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymichaelsdesigns Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 sad to say, my boys have very little hobbies unless it's tied to some sort of screen. tablets, phones, gaming systems, hard to compete with. there is no real failure, you loose, you play again. no risk. don't have to worry about glue blobs, bad paint, missing parts, just shut it off when your done these gaming companies are making millions for kids to play a game then go to school and shoot there classmates we need to get these kids back into it i remember when model building was a kids thing but it has taking a huge turn around . the reason why i know i run a hobby shop and i see the older folks bulding and buying not kids Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Buckaroo Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 That is a well thought out article and a lot of great tips. Sadly my kids have grown up and moved away. I tried for years to get my son into modeling with easy kits but the electronic games beat me out. That is what all his friends did so that was a common bond for them to talk about. After he went into the Navy and had time to reflect back on his youth "he claims he wasted so much of " He is now starting collect and read older "Hot Rod " magazines (1970 - 1980 era) he is now talking about finding a hobby shop and trying a model or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High octane Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Get the kids back into building plastic models? NO way. This isn't the 60's anymore and times are changin' a whole lot. Hobby shops are shutting down all over the country. 15 or 20 years from now some of us old guys that are still left will still be buildin' models if we can still see and arthritis doesn't effect us. Even the model companies are at risk right now, as tooling and production cost have gone up as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymichaelsdesigns Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 Get the kids back into building plastic models? NO way. This isn't the 60's anymore and times are changin' a whole lot. Hobby shops are shutting down all over the country. 15 or 20 years from now some of us old guys that are still left will still be buildin' models if we can still see and arthritis doesn't effect us. Even the model companies are at risk right now, as tooling and production cost have gone up as well. My exact point sir you nailed it right on the head the same old molding the same old way of production is going to china with cheaper styrene the cost will just keep on going up . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I think I fail to see your point, but if it is the obvious one I encourage you to read the billion other threads on a similar theme and perhaps contribute your insights there. jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigphoto Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 This is an interesting topic, As one of my LHS owners wants to do a show and shine type of an event to help get people especially the younger crowd back into hobbies and wants the help of our club to help organize and work the event. So I think it is great that he wants to do this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbs Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Get the kids back into building plastic models? NO way. This isn't the 60's anymore and times are changin' a whole lot. Hobby shops are shutting down all over the country. 15 or 20 years from now some of us old guys that are still left will still be buildin' models if we can still see and arthritis doesn't effect us. Even the model companies are at risk right now, as tooling and production cost have gone up as well.... or they will be building them on 3-D printers. still staring at a screen, watching a machine do most of the work. they will be very cool, accurate builds though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Here we go again. We seem to rehash this subject every couple of months. And hear the same things over, and over, again. Let's move on. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 My first kit cost me $1.25. When I got back in the hobby in 1992, 1/25 kits were about $8 or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
62rebel Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 my take on this: relevance. in the heyday of American muscle cars, which happened to coincide with the heyday of model cars, you had to put some effort into getting a real hot rod powerhouse car, and American kids knew the science inside it. they pored over dozens of magazines catering to their interests, and honed their imaginations whipping models together that, in their minds, expressed their automotive desires. now; fast forward to the present day: automatic instant gratification of every whim is at your fingertips. we don't have to wait a month for a new magazine to come out; we have encyclopedic knowledge literally at our beck and call. we have overnight express delivery of purchases made off internet bazaars, not a summer spent hunting down an elusive limited-run kit using land-line telephones, paper catalogs, and hearsay... and we have factory-direct 500hp pickup trucks in the dealer's showroom. no imagination needed; just check the boxes on the form. there's no challenge left to making high-hp cars, and it's reflected in the antipathy in expressed by modern era kids with no concept of what building a car, or a model of a car, means. no artistry, no talent, just an expectation of excellent results with minimal input. the industry might find a new customer base to expand on; i personally doubt it very much. they've tried several approaches over the past few years to appeal to kids, but each one has simply left retailers with oddly branded re-issued kits that end up on the clearance aisle or at Big Lots, deeply discounted and leaving a bitter taste in the retailer's buyer's mouth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1/24DragAndStreetCars Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 I have started to put down all my electronics ( except for this website, of course!) to come in favor of this wonderful hobby! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZTony8 Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 (edited) I tried to get my daughter interested in building when she was little but after doing two kits together she decided that it wasn't for her.Now,at 26,she has no hobbies except cooking.She does,however,wield a mean iPad. Edited November 4, 2014 by ZTony8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Hall Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Blah blah blah blah..same old, same old. The past is gone, get over it and move on.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobthehobbyguy Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Have to agree this subject has been beat to death recently. Another thread. about this is not going to bring up any new insights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonioseven Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 My kids tried building models. My older son likened it to building computers (after watching me build a couple of our PCs). He spent plenty of time with video cames and many thing electronic. He went on to graduate with a 4.3 grade point average from high school. He earned a full scholarship to a university where he majors in computer engineering with a minor in electrical engineering. I'd like to think spending time with me on my workbench had something to do with it; that and good parenting. I think the hobby will be fine. If not, at least I know I did what I could to boost it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbs Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Here we go again. We seem to rehash this subject every couple of months. And hear the same things over, and over, again. Let's move on.Scottwhy? I didn't see it a couple of months ago.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbs Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Blah blah blah blah..same old, same old. The past is gone, get over it and move on....all well and good, but I really don't like the way the future looks, so I will stay right here. don't need to move on. I bet you have a few "old" kits in your stash your hanging onto, Rob. and this by no means is a post "looking to stir things up", but the past is all around us and lots of people would like to preserve it. as I mentioned, old kits in our stash, muscle cars, record albums, old tube TV's and stereo equipment. historical building. can't get away from it. it was a much better time than now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaronw Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Like most "video game rants" it is just plain wrong. Video games are a hobby like any other and they provide a creative outlet, they are not all first person shooters, many include problem solving, and critical thinking. Don't just look at Grand Theft Auto, have a look at Minecraft (basically virtual interactive Legos), or the Kerbal Space Program (build your own rockets and launch them, solving the problems of weight vs structural strength vs thrust, and trajectory). Look at most modern automotive games, they allow a great deal of customization of the cars, not just color and stripes, but suspension set up, gear ratios, engine mods etc. Even the shooters require a fair bit of teamwork for success.The online community opens up a whole new world. When I was a kid I had a few local friends, the only person I knew from outside the US was because I had a friend who moved to another country. My son talks with kids all over the planet on a daily basis. Yes they are playing games, but the conversations they have are not really about the game, they talk about school and other stuff going on with them just like kids do when they are sitting in the same room playing with Legos or building models.Anybody who just goes on a rant about video games and computers really needs to just accept the fact that the world has moved on and left you behind. Those who will not embrace the computer age are going to go the way of the wagon builders who refused to be retrained to build automobiles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Hall Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 why? I didn't see it a couple of months ago.... Same drivel over and over. Old guys pining for the past. Can't go back.....I'm going to stay in the modern world. I like it here...wallowing in nostalgia isn't going to get you to the future....I like my old kits, but new releases of new subjects are the future... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbs Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Like most "video game rants" it is just plain wrong. Video games are a hobby like any other and they provide a creative outlet, they are not all first person shooters, many include problem solving, and critical thinking. Don't just look at Grand Theft Auto, have a look at Minecraft (basically virtual interactive Legos), or the Kerbal Space Program (build your own rockets and launch them, solving the problems of weight vs structural strength vs thrust, and trajectory). Look at most modern automotive games, they allow a great deal of customization of the cars, not just color and stripes, but suspension set up, gear ratios, engine mods etc. Even the shooters require a fair bit of teamwork for success.The online community opens up a whole new world. When I was a kid I had a few local friends, the only person I knew from outside the US was because I had a friend who moved to another country. My son talks with kids all over the planet on a daily basis. Yes they are playing games, but the conversations they have are not really about the game, they talk about school and other stuff going on with them just like kids do when they are sitting in the same room playing with Legos or building models.Anybody who just goes on a rant about video games and computers really needs to just accept the fact that the world has moved on and left you behind. Those who will not embrace the computer age are going to go the way of the wagon builders who refused to be retrained to build automobiles.I don't think this was meant to be a rant on video games, I think this was a post to where model building is going in the future. I have embraced the computer age, I have a 5 year old computer at home and a 12 year old flip phone that I get calls on, no texting, no internet and I an doing just fine. if you want to go on the "computer age" we can do that, but I don't think this post is the place to do it. and I tell you that when my son plays online with his X-box or playstation, he is NOT ALLOWED to talk to anyone. only a select few because of the morons (not all, mind you) that are on. it swings both ways. a few idiots ruined what might have been a good thing, like your son is experiencing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddyfink Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 The local Oldies station is now playing mostly 80's Music, yes, we are getting old. Nothing new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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