patience is a virtue

[jacoballardtattoo]

Okay so I want to get some thoughts here. I just finished my first build, it took roughly a week to complete. I have already read on here what sounds like most people investing much more time into there builds, I am new to the hobby and like to do things right, how long do you feel a good build should take? For ease of varying schedules how many hours about. My one week build is maybe 6 hours I would guess.

[skymnky721]

Mine average about a month,give or take a few days. I work on them in the AM,before going to work,,and then a couple hrs after work. Depends on how in-depth I want the kit to be. I bought a 1/6th large scale Tamiya Yamaha YZ250 MX bike,,and that one will probably take 2 months or more,,EXTREME amount of detail provided in that kit,,{cant wait to do that one!} So,,its up to you how much you want to do,,wire+plumb the motor?,,seatbelts? Roll bars? X-tra scratch built stuff adds time to it,,but has a more complete result. Enjoy yourself no matter how much time you spend,,thats whats most important IMO.

[StevenGuthmiller]

There's really no way to answer that honestly. every build & every builder varies. There's no way on Gods green earth that I would be able to do a build in a week or six hours. It takes me longer than that just to finish up the painting process on the body, not including any polishing, etc. Some guys on the forum get good results in a few hours, others may finish one project in a year. I can usually pump one out in 4 to 6 weeks, probably 24 hours or more of actual sitting at the bench time, & that's just a wild guess. In the end, it really doesn't matter. Everybody is on their own schedule, & as long as you're having fun, it's all good. Steve

[Pete J.]

.

Edited January 27, 2015 by Pete J.

[Mike_G]

Sometimes I won't work on a model for weeks and then I'll get it finished in a few days, usually the night before a model contest.

[slusher]

There's really no way to answer that honestly. every build & every builder varies. There's no way on Gods green earth that I would be able to do a build in a week or six hours. It takes me longer than that just to finish up the painting process on the body, not including any polishing, etc. Some guys on the forum get good results in a few hours, others may finish one project in a year. I can usually pump one out in 4 to 6 weeks, probably 24 hours or more of actual sitting at the bench time, & that's just a wild guess. In the end, it really doesn't matter. Everybody is on their own schedule, & as long as you're having fun, it's all good. Steve

I agree with Steve, mine are 3 to 4 week builds. I spend a week on part clean up and painting. Now everyone has a skill level and everyone improves and some enjoy like myself being mostly a box stock builder. That's basically what comes in the kit. I like changing out wheels and sometimes engine parts but I don't do any custom work. I take my time and enjoy the build and time but some get great results much sooner then I will. Just need to find your comfort zone for the result you like...

[southpier]

until you think & feel it's finished. there is always something which can be added. no one is keeping score or tally.

[hedotwo]

My projects tend to creep in complexity as I go along. What starts out with a resolution to finish a build within a few weeks usually ends up twice that after I decide to add this and change that. Often, I tell myself at the start that I'm going to stick to a "stock" build in order to keep completions and interest going at a good rate. I even sometimes have the wild idea of sealing the hood on a project and making it a curbside to finish quicker, but that has yet to happen. Typically, scratchbuilding rears it's head and another kit (or 2) becomes involved and the time-anchor comes out. Also, I wouldn't want to guess the percentages but I'll bet many here are like me when it comes to part cleanup. I spend hours and hours doing parts cleanup, including parts that I know will NEVER be seen by anyone but me. Maybe it's the inner dentist in me taking over, so I do it, but then wonder why. Bottom line is you work at a pace that feeds your creativity and time availability. Fortunately as we get older we tend to have more of each.

Enjoy!

[gtx6970]

I've seen some builds on here done in under 24 hours that look outstanding,, some,,,not so much

Everyone builds at there own pace ( I am NOT on a time clock thankfully)

Good thing,,,,,,I have builds well in the ten year range and still not done

If your happy with it,, Call it good and move onto the next one .

[disabled modeler]

Jake....It depends on what you want to do with it. Its your build. Me due to the problems i have it takes me quite awhile to finish a build some even longer. The point is to take your time and enjoy the build...and as time goes by your skills will improve...mine do every time i build one and have been building for over 40 years.

[Snake45]

If everything goes absolutely perfect and I'm highly motivated, I can build a model in one week or so. This almost never happens. My builds drag out for weeks, months, years, even decades. Last fall I finally finished up a model that I painted in the early '90s. True story.

I figure a typical build takes me somewhere between 30 and 50 hours, depending on how much bodywork it needs and how tricky the paint rub-out process is.

[tubbs]

I don't think I ever finished a build in under 1....2... maybe 4... no, 6 months. I have spent the last week (at least 10 hours) on making a tail pipe for a thunderbolt that I narrowed the rear end on. the right one I made in a half hour, give or take. the left one, I have gone thru 3 evergreen rods and am starting a 4th.

it's a direct proportion to good luck vs bad luck; how many parts you drop; search time for parts and the infamous "oh, look at that kit". too hard to put a number on it.

[StevenGuthmiller]

I don't think I ever finished a build in under 1....2... maybe 4... no, 6 months. I have spent the last week (at least 10 hours) on making a tail pipe for a thunderbolt that I narrowed the rear end on. the right one I made in a half hour, give or take. the left one, I have gone thru 3 evergreen rods and am starting a 4th.

it's a direct proportion to good luck vs bad luck; how many parts you drop; search time for parts and the infamous "oh, look at that kit". too hard to put a number on it.

[bobthehobbyguy]

Don't judge your model by what others have done. If you are happy with the end product that is what is important. If you build it straight from the box or build to anyother level of complexity depends on what you want to achieve. This is suppose to be fun and not something you do because of what you think others expect you to do. That is called work.

[Snake45]

Don't judge your model by what others have done. If you are happy with the end product that is what is important. If you build it straight from the box or build to anyother level of complexity depends on what you want to achieve. This is suppose to be fun and not something you do because of what you think others expect you to do. That is called work.

Preach It, Brother Bob!

[espo]

Just go at your own speed and what you feel comfortable with. As you gain experience you will also gain speed. Just build and enjoy.

[Pete J.]

I had a really nice reply ready earlier and something happened and I lost everything but the first half of the first sentence which is why there is a blank post above, so we will try again.

Jake, your models should not be assessed by how long you take. When I started, I could build a model in a couple of hours. As I progressed and my skills improved it took longer. As my interest in a subject increase, the research took time and the model took longer. As I started working with other materials such as photoetched, they took even longer. Now that I am into creating parts from raw materials(plastic and metal) it takes even longer. I can still build a model in a couple of days if I choose to or I can take several years to build one(see Mark Jones super seven scratch build or Randys all metal rat rod wrecker). A simple answer is they take as long as necessary to do what you want to do. The model is only as complex or simple as you choose to make it. There are those who say "I build for myself." We all do that and are the best judge of when we are done with a model. Take whatever it takes to make it what you want. It is not a contest to see who can build the most models. It is about satisfying the craftsman and artist that is in your sole. When that is satisfied, you are done.

Edited January 27, 2015 by Pete J.

[southpier]

i read recently someone who spent 5 hours making a jig to solder something in 5 minutes. it's all modeling when you think about it.

[Tom Geiger]

I learned a few interesting things about myself and building when I participated in The 24 Hour Build. First thing I discovered was at the six hour mark, I had piles of primed parts and assemblies. It had taken me that long to clean up flash, ejector pin marks and mold lines on the kit parts, and glue together things like the engine.. stuff that would be painted once assembled. That was an eye opener. I had never added it all up since I did it in different sittings over a period of time.