How do you deal with limited bench time?

[sportandmiah]

I've taken a slower approach to building on limited summer time. If I find a free half hour, I'll take a few parts and scrape, sand, and completely go over the parts until they are perfect. Once those parts are done, it's back to the honey-do list. It might not be much, a little is better than nothing.

[kitbash1]

School kind of did me in for modeling time. I've got home work every day that takes up 2 hours or more, plus the class time during the day.

[Blown03SVT]

I make time when I can... sometimes I go 6 month to a year with no build time. Life, and occupational requirements definitley take precedence.

[Ognib]

_{The kids are all grown & gone, the wife & I are retired, I'm usually up early, at least 3 or 4 hours before she wakes up, so I get good time to work then.}

_{When still had kids at home, hobby time was scarce & hard to come by.}

[beeRS]

In recent years I've averaged about one build per year (although I hope to improve that in the future). That's all I have time for. I can't bring myself to build curbsides, though I have often tried (I get carried away and add more and more...). I see it as a hobby and it has to fit in with the rest of my life/work. I just wish and prey that by the time I retire I still have good eye sight and a steady hand. Right now, model building fills spare time and if I don't have spare time I don't build

[Agent G]

With a set schedule of four 10's and three days off (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday) I plan ahead. I can dabble a bit each evening, but on my days off I paint. I build sub assemblies and/or start a new project on Sunday and Monday.

I usually paint outdoors, so early in the morning on Tuesday, everything needing paint is complete by 0900. Now it sits all week out of sight in a spare bedroom curing.

If I rotate between two or three builds I never get bored.

G

[caine440]

I try to sneak into the hobby room whenever our 1 year old takes a nap, if the loving wife will let me.

[ZTony8]

Sometimes it's a lack of motivation that keeps me away from the model desk.I come home tired from work and just want to veg out in the recliner after dinner.When I do get motivated to head to down to the desk I'll do it for couple of hours at a shot.Sometimes I get things done,sometimes I just look at some kits and try to brainstorm a future project.Or sometimes I end up rearranging the kit stash in an effort to create more room(aka "rearranging the Titanic's deck chairs").

Edited July 30, 2013 by ZTony8

[southpier]

School kind of did me in for modeling time. I've got home work every day that takes up 2 hours or more, plus the class time during the day.

stick with it. you'll be paid back many times over for the effort you're putting in now.

hobby ain't goin' nowhere!

[Tom Geiger]

I remember when my family was young, I spent a lot of time with the kids, driving car pools to activities and other parenting. Now my kids are grown and we haven't hit the grand child stage yet. In fact, my kids even live in another state so it's just the wife and I (and Ted the dog) here in PA.

I have been out of work this year and spend most of my workday looking for work and networking. I've found that if I knock off a bit before dinner and get an hour at the bench, that has become my sanity. It's something I can do that I can control the results, so it helps me feel productive. I've actually gotten more done this year than any in recent memory.

I don't like to work when it's nice out and daylight. I'd rather be out working in the yard or doing an outdoor activity, like trying to get my money's worth out of my pool. So during the summer modeling is only done in the evening.

A few things I'd recommend... schedule time. I know a guy who is a morning person who gets ready for work and then hits the bench for an hour before leaving the house. You could also do that in the evening. When your wife tunes into "The Bachelor" or "Dancing With The Stars", that's an hour or two of bench time! I've found that even in the evenings where I'm tired and just want to sit, if I go upstairs to my bench and just start touching things, I get interested and the next thing I know I'm working on something and no longer feeling bushed! That bit of focus leaves me refreshed and feeling good!

But as a friend and I agreed, we can't work right up to bedtime! When I work in the evening, I need to walk away from the bench and go watch the news to decompress. Otherwise I'm too excited to sleep!

Edited July 30, 2013 by Tom Geiger

[b_lever1]

As like Tom's wife does so does mine. To get more time at the bench I take her and a kit fishing she fishes I work on a kit cleaning it up for primer or body changes just my way of getting time to build

[kitbash1]

stick with it. you'll be paid back many times over for the effort you're putting in now.

hobby ain't goin' nowhere!

Thanks for the encouragement Joe. Being over 50 and going back to school is not that hard. It's just getting use to the work load in theory, the practical work is easy. But home work is the killer as I want to keep ahead of the coarse.

[Quattro Head]

I'm new here but been struggling with the same thing. My kids are 2, 11 and 13 and it's always something going on- good stuff nonetheless, hockey practice and games, baseball, boy scouts etc. all great but time consuming none the less. That being said, I remember my dad always saying how you'll wake up and your kids are out of the house so enjoy the little things. So true, my kids are my life, my pride but we could do things better -

We caught ourselves whining about not having a few hours to do what we want, sitting on the couch and doing nothing, both us watching kids when we could trade and give each other a break.

My wife and I finally came to the point where we print out a calendar for the month and block "dad time" and "mom time" during the week and weekends. Just two hours each on Saturday and Sunday, one weeknight and suddenly everything was much better.

Apologies for sounding like Dr. Phil.

[gtx6970]

Summer months are 1/1 time for me ( I run my own shop restoring vintage cars) Plus both my girls play on the high school golf team and we are at matches usually 4 nights a week

Plus I travel a lot to shows to sell parts. So most of my bench time is fall / winter time aka down time

I've got several projects on the bench just no time to set down and work on them , and a couple of them I could finish in 3 or 4 hours tops .
Once golf is over ( early Oct ) I'll get back to the model bench

Edited August 20, 2013 by gtx6970

[southpier]

.... Being over 50 and going back to school is not that hard. It's just getting use to the work load ....

understand completely. I knew everything at 18, so I skipped college. at 45, I went to a technical institute for an 18 month associate degree. best thing I ever did.

now get back to the books!

[High octane]

I have plenty of time for modeling, however I don't use all of my time wisely. And no TV does not eat up my time as I'll only watch it 1/2 hour today, on other days about 3 hours tops. I do spend too much time on this keyboard though, and I do keep up with things around the house as my wife is still working. Sometimes I just have to "push" myself to spending time on my bench.

[rustbucket82]

Working 12 hour shifts 6 days a week, I just bring a kit with me to work and dabble on it a little bit here and there.