[fjimi]

Yet another victim! Reading the posts on the PL board have crippled me back to the hobby I loved as a kid (especially the site redirects for technique-very well done). 39 now, I had all the sets when they came out in the 70's (glow version) and like others gooped and monkeyed em together where they scared me in the night time. Heck I even had to put em back in the boxes. I missed the 90's wave of reissues but am scouring Atlanta for any and all. I lurk in the toy aisles and when asked for help today a young guy looked at me like I was the 3-headed snake model when I asked for just that..."models". none there. Michael's did have lots of dusty cars and I dropped a quick $50 on recommended supplies. I was able to pick up the PL TOS at Target and would like suggestions on building tips & painting. My brother had the original model when the series started-and I would sneak in his room to make it "fly" <<I now cringe thinking of the sound of that plastic stressing>> I have my eye on some of the neon monsters - worth it? Should I even attempt to paint? Monster drag cars?

Looks like I'll be stopping by yard sales more often since I have the (old) newfound bug. I welcome myself back to the hobby, greetings to all and thanks for the hundreds of posts I've already read and the provided links.

Is it normal to feel a little "dirty" like doing something I love but shouldn't be doing, because I should only concentrate on the rat-race??? And-why does my wife call me her "11 year old"!!!

ps. If PL has a tent sale...I'm driving!

 

[A Taylor]

You just missed PL's tent sale, dude!

 

[beck]

welcome to the BB and especially welcome back to the hobby . definately pick up the neon monsters ( they're just our old fiends dressed for blacklight ) they can be primed and painted and ya can't tell the difference 'til ya turn 'em over . also check out the swap and sell BB here and post yer wants . most of the kits also are at the "online auction place " that we're not supposed to mention ( but it rhymes with ebay ) .
if ya haven't already , go to thwe top of the page and click on models and that'll take you to the other BBs like Cult's scifi modelling , swap&sell etc .
i have been seeing a lot of the re releases showing up at flea markets too .
good luck in the hunt .
hb

 

[ChrisW]

Hi there, FJIMI! Enjoy, and relax, you're with others that share the same affliction. If you're in the Atlanta area, check the CultTVMan's board for IPMS events around there, or other modeling events. If monsters and Sci-Fi (especially figures) is your jones you really need to consider Wonderfest in Louisville KY. Great models, great dealers, great guests.
And there are certainly worse things than being a perpetual 11-year-old!

 

[fjimi]

Day late and a dollar short on the tent sale-hopefully they'll have another;-)
Beck - good tip thanks!
ChrisW - I've checked CTV's site-very cool and will look for local events. Wonderfest...hmmm. I have in(out)laws in Kentucky-and BTW I used to live in Towson!
- you're right.

Thanks for the replies!
fjimi-114EVR

 

[beck]

hey man , i forgot to put in a shameless plug for Doll and Hobby . they have just about all the PL kits at decent prices and the turnaround on his mail order is good too .
see if the PL site still has a where to buy section for links to online retailers .
hb

 

[TRENDON]

I bid you Welcome.

Monster guys are always welcome.
I too grew up with the 1970s Glow versions.

 

[Mark McGovern]

Welcome aboard, fjimi!

Another place to look for out of production models is the vendors rooms at International Plastic Modelers Society (IPMS) shows. The 2005 National contest is going to be held in Atlanta. If you can't find what you're looking for there, you weren't trying hard enough!

 

[dreamer]

Welcome to the BB and welcome back to the hobby! Can't help ya finding those OOP kits, but...

Is it normal to feel a little "dirty" like doing something I love but shouldn't be doing, because I should only concentrate on the rat-race??? And-why does my wife call me her "11 year old"!!!

You'd be amazed how few eleven-year-olds ever come here, and how many of us are in our thirties, forties, and fifties! There's nothing frivolous about trying to salvage some personal joy in creativity and fantasy from childhood to balance out the sacrifices we make in conforming to an identity-free world of work and responsibilites. Sure, it's "just fun" - if it isn't you're doing it wrong! But it can also be a lifeline. Some have found modeling to be the thing that sees them through hard times, recover from alcohol, or help as a natural block against recurring depression (my own case). There are also skills involved that can translate into other areas and professions.

So don't think of it as a midlife crisis but as necessary to your well-being!

BTW, you're just a year older than me - I too found the monster kits during the glow years. Did you do the ones in the square boxes? If so, you might not have had (or like me never even knew about) The Bride of Frankenstein. Aurora did that one in the Sixties but didn't rereleae it with their glow lineup. Ya gotta look for that, it's a very cool kit! I was amazed, found out PL had re-issued it only a couple of weeks after learning it had existed in the first place!

 

[Ravenauthor]

You're lucky. I'm coming up on 39 this year and just discovered about the old Aurora models a couple of years ago when I discovered Polar Lights and their models. All we had in my little hometown growing up was an occasional car or showrod model. But I'm trying to make up for it now.

Larry

 

[fjimi]

wow-great post dreamer, and yet so true. Thanks for taking the time, I appreciate it. It is necessary...I stopped modeling when I ran into a brick wall with a Deusenberg SJ Town car - metal - shock trauma! oily as hell.

Yep, square boxes and never had the option for The Bride. It is indeed a cool kit and that's probably 3 down the road once I polish my skills (same with the witch). I'm starting with 1) Godzilla or Wolfman (locally available) then Drac/Frank. The 1/1000 TOS I'll tinker with at the same time.

Beck:tks for the Doll n Hobby tip.
Mark: I'll have one up to par by then - I'm there!

This place seems like a wealth of knowledge-glad I found it. I'm already considering mixing acrylics and oil finishes. Why do I see myself plugging in a compressor ???

 

[lonfan]

"You'd be amazed how few eleven-year-olds ever come here, and how many of us are in our thirties, forties, and fifties! There's nothing frivolous about trying to salvage some personal joy in creativity and fantasy from childhood to balance out the sacrifices we make in conforming to an identity-free world of work and responsibilites. Sure, it's "just fun" - if it isn't you're doing it wrong! But it can also be a lifeline. Some have found modeling to be the thing that sees them through hard times, recover from alcohol, or help as a natural block against recurring depression (my own case). There are also skills involved that can translate into other areas and professions.

So don't think of it as a midlife crisis but as necessary to your well-being! "

FIRST Welcome Fjimi You're gonna Like it here! NOW,

Dreamer, Hit it RIGHT ON! I've Been Back into the "Monster Thing" for 5 Years now I Never really left the Hobby BUT tried to Share the Modeling Additction with an Alcohol Addiction! (made for some REALLY Sloppy Kits lol) anyhoo I started to "Clean Up my act" JUST as Polar Lights began to get full swing into Releasing the Aurora Repops I just wish I had some of the Resin and Vinyl Pieces I Sold back in the Early Ninties (for next to NUTHIN') to a Fla. Comic Shop JUST so I could buy some more "Ta Kill Ya" you know the stuff with the Worm in the Bottle?! lol Anyhoo I'm Thrilled to be able to say in the last 5 and a half Years I haven't touched a DROP! I have THREE BEAUTIFUL BRATS! (8 years 6 years and most recently an 8 Month old!) and Since I've been Cleaning up my Karma I'm also delighted to have been able to Recover almost ALL of the Kits I Foolishly Pissed away!! The ONLY reason I haven't gotten them all back is cause some of the more popular "Out Of Production" or OOP Models go for Tremendous amounts of $$ on that "e -Place" lol BUT don't give up hope! See most of the Older Pieces I've needed I've found RIGHT HERE! These Guys are Great,Just go over to the Swap & Sell Fourm on this BB there you can leave want ads and list things you might have Avail. These Folks understand this Addiction of ours! lol BUT You are STILL gonna pay a small Fortune for an Unbuilt Horizon Creature! lol (some things just can't be helped! lol Anyhoo again Welcome to the BB and remember "One Day At A Time"
JOHN/LONFAN
PS. I'm 38 and I grew up with the "Glow Boxes" as well! also loved the "Prehistoric Scenes" Line

 

[Mitchellmania]

Welcome!! There a a few Monster Modelers that still hang around here!
I've had the bug since I built an Aurora Frankenstien when I was 5 in 1967!
Believe me, I've had many heated discussions with my wife about my hobbie!
She says things like "When are you going to stop playing with toys and act
your age?!!". I tell her how is a 41 year old supposed to act? :freak:

 

[Mark McGovern]

Yew pore chilluns!

...39 now, I had all the sets when they came out in the 70's (glow version)...

I too grew up with the 1970s Glow versions.

BTW, you're just a year older than me - I too found the monster kits during the glow years. Did you do the ones in the square boxes? If so, you might not have had (or like me never even knew about) The Bride of Frankenstein. Aurora did that one in the Sixties but didn't rereleae it with their glow lineup....I was amazed, found out PL had re-issued it only a couple of weeks after learning it had existed in the first place!

I'm coming up on 39 this year and just discovered about the old Aurora models a couple of years ago when I discovered Polar Lights and their models.

I'm 38 and I grew up with the "Glow Boxes" as well!

I feel for you guys. I'm 49 now and have been building since I was 7. I was there when the "Monster Craze" of the late 1950s to mid-60s was in full swing. I played catch up at first building Aurora's Big Four, i.e., Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolf Man, and The Mummy. Then things got interesting as I made return trips to the toy/hobby shop to find new kits - The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Phantom of the Opera, and so on. Unlike many builders at the time I was perfectly enthralled by The Bride of Frankenstein, even if it was a model of a girl. And I still get goosebumps looking at that comic book ad for Gigantic Frankenstein. Need I add that I could buy my models for many $$$ less than they cost now?

On the other hand, it took me most of those forty some years to learn how to build a model with which I was satisfied. So some of you who are entering or returning to the hobby as adults probably have an advantage with regards to the manual dexterity skills of a seven-year-old (I hope!). In any case, the hobby was a whole lot more solitary than it is today; beyond these Internet forums there are the various model shows that allow us to view the work of modelers other than ourselves.

fjimi, you said that you felt a little "dirty" about pursuing a hobby that your wife hinted at being juvenile. First of all, I have to agree with Chris White (who, as you may know, is the illustrator for the boxes of Polar Light's original model kits) when he suggested that "there are worse things than being a perpetual 11-year-old". Who's getting hurt if you're enjoying the same things you loved as a kid? Unless you're pulling a Michael Jackson and turning your home into a styrene "Neverland" ranch, your wife should be happy that you're not spending tons of money on an expensive sports car, drugs, or something (or someone) worse.

dreamer suggested that the hobby can be benefitial as a means of relaxation, and boy, do I agree with him!. I've been through one hellacious summer moving my mother from Tennessee to Ohio, where I live. We're working our way through the Medicare/Medicaid maze, dealing with her medical problems, financial quagmire, planning for her residency, etc. In order to keep sane I spent the whole summer working on The Bride of Frankenstein in fits and starts. She's done, and now I'm working on projects that I had promised for others. But that time working on something just for me was sorley needed.

Is this just a hobby? It can be, but like any creative endeavor I truly believe it can be elevated to the level of art. I'm not going to try to define just what "art" is here, but it's clear to me that plastic model building has many of the attributes of art. Think of the kit in the box as an empty canvas, some unformed raw clay, a stage - in other words the raw material of the artist. Any kit has the potential to be turned into something unique by the builder; even the same builder could never build the same model exactly the same way twice.

Other builders can put their own stamp on the same kit. Check out the "Phantom's...Eyebrows?" thread http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=90527&page=1&pp=15 and you'll see what I mean - there are several photos of Aurora's Phantom models that the various posters have built. No two the same, and no two will elicit the same response from the viewer. There may be approval or rejection of the choices that the builders have made. But they'll stimualte some reaction in you, I guarantee. Now isn't that one of the things a work of art is supposed to do?

How well or poorly modelers finish their work will reflect their skills and also the standards of those who view the models. Those standards can be fairly strict, as they are at WonderFest and IPMS contests, but the ones I think are most valid are those held by the builder. If the builder is satisfied with the finshed work, then that should be enough.

Okay, I'm back off the apple crate. Just wanted to share some ideas with you and that inner 11-year-old. It's always possible to be an adult and still have fun!

 

[Matthew Green]

Yeah, I WISH I could relax again...PL hasn't released any figure kits in years. I'll never build a car nor spaceship kit...So PL is not giving me an outlet to relax because they won't release figure kits anymore so I'm NOT responsible for my actions henceforth...:drunk:

 

[Mark McGovern]

Huh?

Matt...Matt...

Even supposing you've built EVERY Polar Lights figure kit they've turned out (no offense, but I'd have to see legal proof of that), there's still all the variations available to you. Painting the Three Stooges in black and white for example. Doing the "acid-scarred" version of The Phantom of the Opera. On his site Buc Wheat has a couple replacement heads for the Headless Horseman from Sleepy Hollow.

And that's just to tide you over until the Captain America release comes out. Get busy and start relaxing, Bubala!

 

[ChrisW]

Yeah, I WISH I could relax again...PL hasn't released any figure kits in years. I'll never build a car nor spaceship kit...So PL is not giving me an outlet to relax because they won't release figure kits anymore so I'm NOT responsible for my actions henceforth...:drunk:

Hey Matthew - Hulk SMASH! for saying he's not a figure kit! And even as we speak, a certain blue American Captain is getting ready to invade the shores of his beloved country...

 

[beck]

and let's not forget there's about a million and six resin kits out there . us figure guys ain't got it so bad .
hb

 

[fjimi]

Thanks Mark! re(read) the phantom thread and saw your page(s) of work. HOLYFLIPPINSMOKES!!! - yet you make it sound so simple with the explantions given. It indeed is an art. Kinda how I play guitar and "make" something extremely difficult look so easy I guess. The layering, detail and accuracy is beautifully absurd.

Time, patience and practice...

ChrisW-
I just sat and stared at the TOS box cover last night for 30 minutes going back and forth between the box and the main kit pieces. Thinking about paint, box colors and basically how in God's name I'm going to have that level of detail and accuracy. And to think YOU did the box?? Well you get a big HOLYFLIPPINSMOKES!!! too.

I think I've been hit in the head and landed in OZ. Man I need a cig......
---
minor update:Bought the Bowen Wolfman tonight (amazing frame worthy stare box as well Chris :thumbsup: You need to sell A/P S/N lithos-hint) and have completed the parts and had my first green finger putty experience-thick as tar but went ok for the neck fill and seams. I have about four limb pieces left and have a few questions. (should probably be another thread but hey it's my thread and I can ask if I want to :jest:

1) leave the limbs on the tree and prime/paint first?
2) prime/paint base before attaching WM?
3) should the shirt line and zipper line line up or off-set a few degrees?

fjimi

 

[Zombie_61]

Bought the Bowen Wolfman tonight...I have about four limb pieces left and have a few questions.

1) leave the limbs on the tree and prime/paint first?
2) prime/paint base before attaching WM?
3) should the shirt line and zipper line line up or off-set a few degrees?

I'm still working on mine (damned herniated disk), but here are my suggestions:

1) Assemble the trees before you prime and paint them if you plan to get rid of the seams. They're not as bad as the seams on the figure, but they still require some work. It's up to you whether or not you want to attach them to the base and prime and paint it all at once, but there will be noticeable gaps between the trees and the base if you don't.

2) I believe it would be easier that way, but that's just me. That's what I've done.

3) Again, it's up to you. Whatever you think looks best. Remember, there is no right or wrong way to build a kit when it comes to artistic interpretation. Having said that, if you look at the promotional flyer for the 1/4 scale cold-cast porcelain version of this kit (it should have been in the box), the shirt and zipper lines seem to line up. And since Larry Talbot seemed to be a bit of a "natty" dresser, having them line up would be in character.

Hope this helps! Glad to have you back in the greatest hobby ever!!! :thumbsup: