Nicely done! I did a/c modeling for a long while as a hobby, but decided to spend my money on motorcycles instead.
Modeling's not that expensive, but like most hobbies that involve building things, you have to be willing to make the initial investment in good equipment to get good results. You also have to be willing to screw up a lot and keep going. Modeling's definitely a "learn from your fark-ups" past time. Also requires a loooooooooot of patience.
On the other hand, the research and reading you do also tends to gain you a lot of knowledge about whatever it is you're making. I learned a ton of stuff, technical and historical, some of it useful, some just interesting Ready Room bullshit. How the pre-MacNamara aircraft designation system worked, for example (trivia - what was the F-110? How about the W2F?). Or figuring out what ordinance the Rhino can carry, and on which stations.
Huffing paint fumes is a side perk.
If you're in P'cola, there's a shop called John's Models up in Cantonment. I think it's just something the owner does to make his hobby a tax write-off, but it works. He sells a lot of older, discontinued kits, so you can find some neat stuff and usually cheaper than what you'll find in most stores. John's usually the one at the counter and usually working on something, and he's happy to give advice.
Here's one I did of one of the NASP SAR H-3's.
Modeling's not that expensive, but like most hobbies that involve building things, you have to be willing to make the initial investment in good equipment to get good results. You also have to be willing to screw up a lot and keep going. Modeling's definitely a "learn from your fark-ups" past time. Also requires a loooooooooot of patience.
On the other hand, the research and reading you do also tends to gain you a lot of knowledge about whatever it is you're making. I learned a ton of stuff, technical and historical, some of it useful, some just interesting Ready Room bullshit. How the pre-MacNamara aircraft designation system worked, for example (trivia - what was the F-110? How about the W2F?). Or figuring out what ordinance the Rhino can carry, and on which stations.
Huffing paint fumes is a side perk.
If you're in P'cola, there's a shop called John's Models up in Cantonment. I think it's just something the owner does to make his hobby a tax write-off, but it works. He sells a lot of older, discontinued kits, so you can find some neat stuff and usually cheaper than what you'll find in most stores. John's usually the one at the counter and usually working on something, and he's happy to give advice.
Here's one I did of one of the NASP SAR H-3's.