Scale model building good for the brain

[Ulf]

The great relaxation in model building is that it is not a disaster if you fail. It's what really gives the brain rest and recovery, which it also needs to develop (the brain develops well into old age provided it is stimulated and rested).
You control the design, budget, schedule, forecast and quality.

[OldNYJim]

  On 6/5/2023 at 3:52 PM, Ulf said:

You control the design, budget, schedule, forecast and quality.

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I love that!  What a great way of looking at it!

[Ulf]

  On 6/7/2023 at 3:33 AM, CabDriver said:

I love that!  What a great way of looking at it!

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All of a sudden I became curious to try building a kit from a design sketch, project plan, schedule and budget... Not that I think it will be better or more fun but maybe it will make me a little smarter ? now that I stop working on projects professionally ! One thing is for sure I will not become more beautiful.

 

[Brizio]

Agree with what the article says. I always supported the idea that an hobby can help a person keeping a good brain. 

Years ago I visited a elderly place, we had a uncle there. I notice some people staring a the TV, play some games, without much enthusiasm. After asking the staff, I start to bring some model car kits, you know those kits that at one point or another you get...  Immediately I saw a spark on the eyes of some people. Was nice to see no matter if men or woman, building cars, play with them and tell some great stories, people drag racing in the 50's, traveling with family, first car, etc...  I saw a massive change in this. People from staring a the TV to enjoy build a model car and interact with others telling stories about his Pontiac Chieftain, and that was the best car he owned.

The flip side, yes there is one. Is that some people are not lucky to get old and have a 100% functional body. 

I build scale models for living so I sould be super smarter? No. But I think do a job in my case, or a hobby that a person enjoy is very relaxing. I know there are moment that you have to rebuild something, but a the end the planning, the thinking the enjoyable moment of the construction, and the final product, it is worth. At leat for me.
 

 

 

 

[Rattlecan Dan]

Great forum read gents. I concur with everything positive that has been said. And would re-iterate that there is a great satisfaction in overcoming any of the frustrations encountered in the many facets of the hobby.

[Bugatti Fan]

Shortly before I retired I converted the back half of my garage into a secure dedicated model making workshop.

Best thing I ever did. I have facilities to scratch build, kit bash and make from kits that I did not have before. 

But, the main thing is it keeps my mind active whether researching, working out how to approach a scratch build, sourcing kits and materials, overcoming problems during a kit build or bash  and achieving a good finish. I tend not to be butterfly minded so stick with a project and not end up with part built models kicking around taking up space. So modelling also helps keep my mind focused too.

I have a lot to thank my hobby for down the years, not only on the model car front but other subjects as well. The benefits from talking to modellers of other genres like figures, aircraft, ships, science fiction, railways and armour has enabled me to learn from and adapt many of their techniques to enhance my pleasure that I derive from modelling generally

[restoman]

  On 6/4/2023 at 8:46 PM, carrucha said:

Interesting article.  I started building models when I was 12 years old.  Before then I was getting "C's" for math on my report card.  After I started building models, I went from getting "C's" to getting to only "B's" and "A's" in math.  Model building definitely helped me develop my problem solving skills at that time.

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Same.

But once my mid-teens hit and real cars came into my scene, those marks disappeared. In fact, entire classes disappeared, followed by school itself.

[Straightliner59]

I think modeling most definitely improves, and helps to maintain problem-solving skills and critical-thinking skills. Many times, I figured out a way to solve a real world problem, because of problems I'd encountered while modeling.