Model Car kits= $25 WTF?

I've been building models since about 1964.......they were cheap back then because oil was cheap.....that's whats in a plastic kit.......lol........but now we have the wonderful thing called licencing so that every vulture gets in for their cut........I opened Scale Automobilia, www.scaleautomobilia.com.au a hobby shop dealing in plastic cars, trucks, bikes & planes 16yrs ago and the prices for kits have gone up about 80% in that time, irrespective what the Oz dollar is at.........anyway, just thought I'd throw my 3cents worth in, regards, Andy Douglas

 

Not for me. We used real glue and real paint. I was ten in 1973 and I had already built Richard Petty's Electric Blue Plymouth, Grumpy's Toy and L.A. Street Chopper. I saved and saved and sent a money order to AutoWorld for the Revell 1957 Chevrolet Nomad. I found $20 behind Gino's Liquors in 1973 and ran straight to Goldblatt's and bought AMT's 1949 Ford. TM

 

There used to be an Italian deli down the street from me in the early '70's that sold me a tube of Testors model glue... I brought him a bunch of empty pop bottles and he'd give me a tube.. No questions asked... I was 11 years old at the time..

 

get the 40 percent off coupons from Hobby Lobby....

 

Here in Canada they were never $1.49. The $1.49 kits were $2.39. This was a lot of dough when you got 35 cents allowance when Dad remembered to give it to you (not often) and a job paid 90 cents an hour if you were lucky enough to have one.

I dare say kids today can get $20 easier than we could get $2.39.

One thing I am still curious about. Did the models you got in the US say " $1.49 ($2.39 in Canada)" or did they print different boxes?

 

I just sold about 1500 models for a friend . Most where airplane and about 300 where cars. I had 3 guys after them. I sold them for $4.50 a model,He was happy to get them. And my friend was happy they went .

 

I started building in 1962. I never saw any that said anything other than the USA price printed on it . Maybe they did have a different box printed for Canada . Interesting.......

 

I used to build alot of them too. When they got up to $10 you could still get them for $3-$5 at swap meets. Last ones I bought were from a swap meet many many years ago and were $5 each. At that point they were just over $10 in a store which I thought was too much.

 

At the same time the variety and availability of pre-assbled dies cast models has increased. There is a wide range of prices, but I think many die cast models se pretty reasonable.

 

I have paid over $100 for a 1/24 kit before. It wasn't at hobby lobby and it wasn't a new kit....if ya gotta have it, ya gotta have it!

 

Don't tell him the right cars even built up will easily bring four, ten, even twenty times that. I just threw a junk box of the remains of three 1/25th semis on eBay and got $42 for it and thought that was kind of low.

 

I seem to remember that there were 2 prices on them like you mention.

 

I stoped building in 1967 when I got a drivers license, still have a lot of unfinished kits. I often wonder if I should finish them or just let them stay frozen in time. Bob

 

Which kits do you have????...

 

I built a big deuce and it cost about $100 for the kit, then I painted it with a 3 stage House of Kolor in spray bombs that cost another $100, after it was done I thought I might as well be spending this on real Hot Rod parts, that's when I bought my 40 and I haven't touched a kit since.

Here's a pic.

<a href="http://s4.photobucket.com/user/danhay/media/Model%20Cars/IMG_0858.jpg.html" target="_blank"></a>

 

The ones I bought as a kid had price tags on them.... Just like they do today... I used to get mine at Kressgi's and Federal's dept. store in Dearborn... Those stores are now long gone... What a shame!..

 

Hobby Lobby, Michaels and Hobby Town USA are about the only retail stores selling them. The tooling has advanced with newer kits to match the quality of foreign kits as well as the detail older modelers are looking for. Were the ones who are supposed to be able to afford them I guess. Anyway, as stated, Michaels and Walmart have on line coupons If you have a smart phone you go on their web sights and show the 40% of one item in store to the cashier and save a little at least. There are a few independent hobby suppliers who sell through mail order that save a bit and then there's ebay... Lots of deals there if you shop diligently and most I've dealt with have been reputable sellers. The big problem I've had has been getting my sons into the hobby...

 

$49.00 here in Nanny-ville. With a dollar around parity.

 

A 1932 Ford V8 Roadster cost $495 in 1932 ....

 

I learned to scratch build because I could rarely afford to buy a kit as a kid, most of my models were others throwaway's. I built this as I only had a body for one kit.....


This is a 1/32 scale chassis for a Aston Martin DB5, being a broke kid you didn't have much of a choice in what you built.

$24 a kit is 1980s prices here!

Doc.


Sorry, I didn't realise the pic was so big!

 

I feel your pain, I like the large scale as well.

 

I just bought the 1987 release (still new in the box) Revell 1/16 scale Chi-Town Hustler funny car kit for 60 bucks... Ouch!
I believe the body of the kit is based on the '72 Charger body style...

 

That one turn out Beautiful!!!....
I'll clue you in on something.....
I got about 10 chances on getting it right like yours turned out..

 

Attentions shoppers..DOLLARAMA has a crapload of Lindberg 1/32 scale '37 and '40 Ford convertible models for $3.00 each,,picked some up last week

 

My Grandmother owned the local hobby shop. She had my dad and his brothers build all the new models and put them on display in the shop. We had a box of about 100 original still in box 1960s-1970s kits that got wet and were thrown away a few years ago. I haven't built any in the past few years but can't wait til my 5 year old is big enough to build some.

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Hell yeah! Get him started early and keep him away from video games..

 

They now have a "build it day" at home depot. My mother in law takes both my kids every time this is what they came home with.

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Bought this for $3.98 at Woolworths in downtown S.F. about 1980. Still haven't finished it.



I saw one on ebay a couple months ago. "Rare - Hard to Find - Out of print". $99.00 starting bid.

Description: "Started - Box Opened - Think all parts are there"

I forgot to put it on my watch list so I don't know if it sold or not but haven't seen it again so maybe it did.

 

There will be others...
That's what I said to myself when I lost a bid on an untouched Monogram BiG Drag.... Now I have 2 of them...

 

When I was a lad my parents would take my brother and I to Portland, Maine for our annual summer shopping trip....I would stock up on plastic model kits that were about half the price home in Nova Scotia....

Fond memories of building those 1/25th scale kits...but it irked me Monogram kits were 1/24 which to this day is something I've never fully understood...