MrBuick

So, I've never been a big fan of being around kids...I don't hate kids per say, but I've never enjoyed being around them (we're talking little kids here...let's say, under 10). They're loud, obnoxious, selfish, messy, destructive, manipulative, they smell, and I have nothing in common with them. I have none of my own and probably never will have interest in having any, but the problem is, I am now an Uncle, and my Nephew is now getting old enough to do more than just be a baby. He's about 18 months old, and I do want to have a relationship with him, especially when he's older, and I realize the importance of establishing a relationship with him when he's young. I spend time around him quite a bit, as my sister's family and I get together about once a week for dinner. However, I don't really know what to do with him. He sort of plays on his own for a bit, but he also wants almost CONSTANT interaction from whatever adults are around. I can only "fake it" for so long before I just get bored of him and the repetitive stuff he wants to do over-and-over again gets...stupid. I haven't spoken with my sister about it, at least not yet, because I don't really know what to say...I'm afraid I'll hurt her feelings and she'll take it as though I just don't like my Nephew, which isn't the case. I'm hoping some people with more experience than I have, or have raised kids of their own, or just have different points of view can give me some pointers...I really want to be a good Uncle, and I want to be part of his life, but I feel like if I wait until he's older and can actually be fun to be around, that relationship will be that much harder to form.

Thanks guys...after some digging, it doesn't really look like the re-release has many parts the one I have doesn't contain, other than some wheels and tires. I may end up picking one up anyway though, because I messed up the kit I have trying to radius the rear fenders...one came out very nice, but the other.....well, let's just say it didn't. I'll see if I can fix it with some putty, but I may end up just getting another kit.

Best of luck! Being in so much pain or discomfort that you can't even get a good night's sleep is the worst.

That's wild! It'd fit right into the Mad Max universe.

I'm looking at getting the '40 Ford coupe...the re-release AMT Original Art series from Round 2. I have an AMT kit of this model from probably the 90's (beige car on box), but I'm wanting to build a drag version. This one has some parts, but I'm wondering what the recent release has. Can anybody post images of the content of this kit?

Another successful trade with thatz4u (Al Rich), would trade again any time!

Nothing looks as bad as stick on hood scoops...

Man, the work some of you guys do...I hope someday I can have even a percentage of the skill you posses.

This may not be universal across all their stores\employees, but multiple times I've bought 3-4 things and they've let me split it into 3-4 transactions at the register so I could use the coupon for all items. It was when they were slow though...I wouldn't even ask them to do that if there were a line behind me.

I really am trying to be fair...I like the company, and I'm not trying to slander them. I'm simply trying to do my part to help them improve their service in the future. Whether they take my advice or write me off as a crazed troll is beyond my control, but I'd be remiss if I didn't at least try.

That's very helpful already! I've done a few engine swaps in 1:1 cars, but 1 was a literal drop in situation with a different set of engine mounts, and the other was an installation kit, so the only thinking required was whether the impact was in forward or reverse . I think I need to order some square rod...seems like that may be the easiest thing to use.

I can kind of see where you're coming from, but I still feel like you're missing my point. 1) According to the emails that were sent, the spare grip panel is to make up for the delay in shipping, as the difference in colors was never disclosed to the customer, but the inclusion of the free grip panels was. 2) The grip panels are honestly kind of a big "who cares?" People are unlikely to swap them once they're installed...they're going to pick one or the other, which if memory serves me correctly was originally already an option when ordering back when multiple colors were advertised. 3)...and really my main point...my complaint isn't that you are or aren't offering anything that's fair. My complaint is that you have taken customers' money, the customer thinks they're receiving one thing, now you've changed their order at a later time, didn't notify the customer, and are now shipping a different item, still without notifying them. So, for your customers who ordered a non-grey grip and didn't see the few posts on Facebook, this will still be a complete surprise...they will soon receive a package, open it, and be staring at a product that is different from what they ordered, even if only slightly. Yes...it may be the same grip, but in the cases of people who ordered one in a different color, it's still a different item. No matter which angle you look at it, that is wrong. You could offer a full refund AND let customers keep the grips...that still wouldn't change the fact that it was wrong to change something that somebody'd already paid for without notifying them...there's really no way to successfully argue against that. 4) Here's why it bothers me so much, and I think it's safe to say I speak for many people other than myself. In addition to wanting to support the success of small business, a huge reason I like doing business with smaller companies is because you can almost universally expect excellent customer service from them. They have to care about their customers more than larger companies with more recognizable names or more products available to retain business. Yes, you are currently manufacturing a high-quality product that many customers want and isn't offered by another company, I don't want to ignore that fact, but my point still holds firm. Below is an example of excellent service I've had with Recover in the past. But now, fast forward a year and some months later, and this situation is beginning to make me fear that Recover is starting to focus a little more on their bottom line and less on their customer...which is what the "big boys" do. While I understand that a company is ultimately there to make money, and can't offer service to their customers if they don't exist, at the end of the day, customer service should still be your primary focus. What get's me is, I'm not even asking for anything. I'm not saying you should give stuff away, give partial refunds, ship even more free stuff, or asking for anything of monetary value. ALL I'm doing is trying to offer a solution for how this situation could be better handled, should something like this occur again (which, by-the-way, it appears I don't stand alone on my thinking), but you seem to think it's a situation where since you're offering something arbitrary for free, that it's been handled correctly. PLEASE take my advice...the situation WASN'T handled properly...I don't even feel like that's an opinion, but a fact...no matter how few people actually care enough about the change to be upset, I'd be willing to bet everybody would answer "yes" if asked, "do you feel you should have been notified that the grip you bought might not be as described?" I do feel like I should mention this though. I don't want to give people the wrong idea about Recover Tactical. Generally, I've been very happy with the company and their customer service. In the past when you released the holster for the 1911, you were offering a free set of compatible grips for people who owned the original CC3 grips...I believe the deal was order the holster and you'd send you the new set of CC3H grips in exchange for the older ones. Prior to purchasing, I contacted Recover because I had modified my original CC3 grips. In additional to Duracoating them, I'd inlet them somewhat for fitment because they didn't quite fit my slightly out-of-spec frame on the pistol they were on. Since they were modified, I was just curious if I'd quality for the free replacement set. Simply put, Recover was fantastic to deal with and promptly told me not to worry, just send pictures to prove my ownership and they'd send the free set, which they didn't have to do. So, my customer service complaint is really just about this situation in discussion, as my previous experience has been great, but again, this situation makes me question whether customer service has taken a turn for the worse.

Can I get some examples (preferably with pictures) of how you bash a motor into a kit that it wasn't intended for? Specifically, I'm going to be putting different motors in a few projects...the first one being a 454 from a '70 Chevelle going into a '66 Chevy Stepside Truck. The other is the motor from the 2013 (I think) Boss 302 into a '70 Boss 302. Admittedly, I still need to buy the Chevy Truck and the new Mustang, so MAYBE they'll just drop in, but in the more likely even that engine mounts need to be scratch built, I'd like to see some examples.

This is basically how my parents trained me!

Well, I guess I appreciate that you at least care enough to keyword search the internet and actually respond to complaints, but at the same time that makes me even more baffled that you don't recognize the misstep the company took. It's not about whether you're (Recover, I realize you in particular may not be the decision maker) willing to offer a refund, about whether you ship a free set of grip panels, or any other things that you're willing to do to take care of an upset customer. The point is, this situation should have been completely avoided in the first place by simply putting another sentence in the email that was sent out notifying people of the delay; "In addition to the delay in shipping, we will now only be offering the grip in ___ color," or something along those lines. I've little doubt that there are people patently awaiting their pre-order with absolutely no idea that the product they're receiving is not what they ordered. Maybe think of it this way...you go to buy a new car, but the dealership doesn't have what you want, so you custom order from the factory. You wait for your car, and one day you get a call from the dealership that it's ready to be picked up. You go to pick it up, and everything is exactly as you ordered it, EXCEPT for it's black, and you ordered, let's just say dark blue. When you say something, they just say "oh, yeah, we don't make it in dark blue anymore, but don't worry, if you don't like it we won't make you pay for it." Can you honestly tell me that you wouldn't be upset that they didn't notify you that the car you'd been waiting on wasn't going to be exactly how you ordered it? No...along with everyone else in the world, the first thing you'd ask is "why didn't you notify me that it was no longer offered in the color I ordered it in?" While the scenarios and price points in the example may be vastly different to the situation at hand, the principal is identical...you simply cannot sell your customers one thing, change it without notifying them, then claim "yep, that can happen when you pre-order, buyer beware," and still claim that that's good customer service.

It really depends on what you're wanting...if you're rattle-canning your models, then there are all kinds of options that don't break the bank. I've had really good luck with Rustoleum, Duplicolor, Krylon and quite a few other brands, and they all vary in price. If you're air-brushing or are in need of a lot of the smaller bottles for detailing, I recommend ordering them all online at the same time. I tend to stick to Model Masters 1/2oz bottles for detail painting, and those usually run $4-5 each in retail stores. But, I can get them online for $2-3 each, and by ordering them all at once, usually with a kit or two, the combined shipping kind of evens things out so I end up still saving quite a bit. but, as Harry already mentioned, I think the best thing is to just buy what you need when you need it...before long, you'll have everything you need and you won't have to take a second mortgage to obtain it.

So, a little back story. There's a company called Recover Tactical that makes firearm grips for Beretta and 1911 style pistols. They have a new product coming out, which many have pre-ordered. When they originally started taking pre-orders, they allowed customers to purchase the grip in Black, Grey, Tan or OD Green. Now that the product is finally shipping, they've inadvertently admitted they only made the Grey one and aren't making the other colors...I say inadvertently because they didn't announce it, someone happened to ask the right question on their Facebook page and it just sort of came out. I kind of take issue with that and stated so on their page, and they refuse to admit they did anything wrong. Basically, they didn't notify their customers who'd already paid that there was a change, even though they had the perfect opportunity to in one of the multiple emails they sent out when the product kept getting delayed, and now they're claiming that they don't think they did anything wrong. I guess I just expected better customer service from a small company. Below is the Facebook transcription. Company's original post - the CC3P production is complete! Getting them packed and shipping them off to our warehouse later this week!Not too late to order yours now Customer - Does it mean that the OD Green CC3P I put an order in for will be shipping soon? Company - Bad news Louis, we only produced the one color above and we are shipping it with 2 sets of panels instead Me - Wait...so you allowed people to order the grip in a variety of different colors, then only produced one, never let anybody know about it, and just plan on shipping people the wrong color without saying anything? I can understand the delays in shipping since this was a pre-order and things happen during the manufacturing process, but selling someone product A and then shipping them product B without the intention of even notifying them is pretty shoddy customer service. In the email you sent out notifying pre-order purchasers of the delay, you went as far to say "we apologize, but we always fulfill our commitments." Well, apparently not...maybe your marketing department should spend less time posting pictures on Facebook and more time helping the company keep their paying customers informed of changes made to their orders after they've paid...I'm sure there are a lot of people who will be shocked and disappointed to discover the Green or Tan grip they ordered shows up and is Phantom Grey. Company - This was a pre-order and we did our best to produce what we intended but unfortunately it did not work out at this time, those are some of the risks with pre-orders. We did offer a free set of grip panels to make up for this which we feel is fair and if you do not you are welcome to request a refund. Anyone who is disappointed is 100% entitled to a refund if they so choose, please email service@recovertactical.com if you would like a refund and we will process ASAP. Another thing to note, by you implying we are doing something nefarious by offering a different product and then also claim our customer service shoddy is not entirely accurate. Yes we changed the color and had some unforeseen delays, but we are offering the exact same product as promised, and as mentioned above we are giving away a free set of grip panels with each order. Once again, please email service@recovertactical.com with your order number so we can give you your refund, I guess that is the only way to make you satisfied. Me - I'm not unsatisfied with the color of the grip, as I plan to Duracoat mine the same color as the firearm anyway, so the color doesn't matter to me, although I'm sure there are others who it will matter to. My personal beef stands on principal...the way you handled the situation was, simply put, wrong. As I already said, I understand things happen, and you did notify people of delays, so the fact that you chose to not mention at the same or later time that the product is no longer being made in the same colors as advertised (that some people had already paid for) was wrong. Free grip panels or not, that doesn't make up for it. In the end, I'm sure you're shipping a quality product, as all your other products have been, and different colors aside, I'm sure the majority of your customers will be satisfied, even if some are initially disappointed with the unexpected change. I just hope you can take this as constructive criticism instead of just a rant on Facebook and apply it in the future if a similar situation should arise again. It's really quite simple and should be obvious...if you've got customers who have paid for something, and the thing they paid for might end up being different, even if only slightly, than what they originally ordered, they should be notified. Company - Sorry but I disagree, so I guess we can agree to disagree

Just completed a trade with Larry Ray and Allen Wrench (Allen Johnson)...both great guys, will trade again!

Ah, the age-old "if I don't like it, it must be bad" argument. Sure, there may be less young people into the hobby these days than when the older generation here was young...but, there are also more choices of hobbies and entertainment for kids these days than building a model or playing with a stick'n'hoop. But, that doesn't mean there are no young people building models, AND, just because some people aren't into certain materials, doesn't mean others aren't, no matter the age. For instance, the types of cars I enjoy are much different than most people I know who are my age (late 20's). I couldn't care less about new Corvette's, Camaro's, Mustangs, Lambo's, etc...sure, they're technical marvels, faster, more comfortable, etc, but to me they're also boring. However, I know several people my Grandpa's age who have completely lost interest in classic's and are all about the new...when they tag along to car shows with my Grandpa and me they don't look twice and the stuff I like, and almost drool over the newer stuff I don't care for. It has little to do with age, and more to do with personal preference. Further proof of that is, the very first local model show I went to had an admittedly small amount of lowriders, donks, and new-model builds...but, NONE of them were built by anyone younger than probably mid-late 50's, so the market for those kits obviously goes well beyond the seemingly popular-to-hate millennial and generation y aged builders.

Most get tossed...I use a few for separating parts into groups when painting (parts getting painted black go into box A, parts getting painted white go into box B, etc).

I agree, and this is very well put. Aside from being rude and inconsiderate, I really just don't see the point (unless advice is requested), ESPECIALLY if it's in the Under Glass section. So, someone posts a completed build, and you've built that same model? Good for you...feel free to start a thread of your own showcasing it. You can comment on their build and mention you had fun with the same kit without posting a picture of it. I really doubt anyone posting their build in someone else's thread deliberately means to be rude, but it's nearly impossible to avoid coming across as showboating and trying to turn attention from someone else's build to their own. It's NOT about being PC, it's about not coming across as an attention-seeking 15-year-old.

That really sucks. The dog I have now doesn't really get into stuff...she's very well behaved and couldn't have been easier to train...I just sort of lucked out with her...plus, I've got no kids so I have a lot of extra space, and my hobby room happens to be in an area of the house that she's shut off from unless I'm in there anyway. However, when I was a kid my parents dog used to love to get hold of my Lego tires...she wouldn't mess with any of the bricks, just the tires.

I've been happy with FireballModelworks. http://www.fireballmodels.info

Michael's does have models, but not near the selection that Hobby Lobby has. I think you may have seen the thread where the Michael's in someone's area had some kits on clearance. Clearance prices vary by location...just because one store has stuff clearances, doesn't mean any others will. I haven't been in a Michael's forever, but I don't think their prices are really any more than Hobby Lobby's prices are they? And as far as I know, Michael's has the same 40% off one item coupon that Hobby Lobby has. They have it now, and they've always had it in the past when I've gone.

Awesome, thanks for the info guys. The convertible kit is the one I'm looking at.