SPA Modeler

- Kari

Can't wait for you to get your hands on the PE set, Kenny! Don't feel compelled to use EVERYTHING that Eduard provides. In some cases, well-painted kit parts will look better than flat PE pieces.

John,

Yessir, a lot of the stuff Eduard provides for the cockpit won’t be used. The Instrument Panel will definitely be used, though. I don’t like decal IP’s. I bought the whole shebang mainly for that and the PE wiring harness for the Pratt & Whitney. I already have a nice set of side consoles in there that I’ve painted up and am 100% pleased with, so I won’t be using the PE parts for that.But it also comes with some nice stuff to dress-up the landing gear and I’m stoked about that, andI’ll be using that stuff definitely.

speedgraflex wrote:I just want to take a moment to pause and consider how you keep leveling up: I believe this is due to how you listen and implement the techniques that intrigue you to investigate them and from a massive amount of chutzpah which I really enjoy experiencing. So, thank you as well as congratulations to you, sir!

Thank you, Bruce! And maybe this might help somebody who might be new like me, and also struggling with where they’re at in their modeling, this process or whatever, of mine. I’ll explain it but go sideways with it.

When I started playing ukulele I had no experience playing any instruments at all. And since I’m teaching myself, I outlined the following things I wanted to practice every day:

1. Rhythm, basically ... just being able to clap along with a metronome
2. Strumming patterns ... I took 15, maybe 20 different strumming patterns and practiced them
3. Basic chords for songs ... C, G7, D7, E7, A minor, A7, and F I learned them and how to move between them while strumming

That was it. Work on that every day.

And I noticed that doing it in an organized way every day helped me tremendously. But sooner or later in my practice I’d feel all of a sudden like I was back to Square 1...

THIS IS GOOD!

It’d usually happen after I introduced a new chord progression, or a add a new strumming pattern, or do something else I wasn’t used to.

And I found that if I let myself hang out in that space, and work on it, BOOM! A day or two later I’d leveled-up again!

And what was my mantra the whole time?

“Dare to suck!”

In other words, I was constantly looking up new things, and adding them to my practice while also still working on the stuff I’d already learned. New strumming patterns, new chord progressions, new chords, faster tempo, whatever, anything to regularly expand my musical vocabulary. I even went so far as to learn how to read music.

And it’s the same with my models. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not a “technique collector”. Because at the end of the day, it’s “Can you play the fucking song?” when it comes to the uke, and “Can ya build the fucking model?” when it comes to the model, y’know?

...So I gotta use the techniques well, on the right builds, at the right time. Like how we were talking about my tank, y’know? Yeah man, real paint chipping is awesome and it looks great on a Corsair cockpit, and on the wings in select places, but is it necessary on a Panzer IV AUSF D? Nosir, so I gotta hold back, and figure out what i want to do with the tank that is appropriate ... that’s what lead me to pigments, washes, and oils. So those are the next new things to learn and implement, to keep me branching out, keep me out of the old Comfort Zone. And I’ll be “daring to suck” the whole time, for the sake of continual improvement.

And I’ve also changed my mind on where I derive the most joy from this too (and this is important). My last two failed Corsair builds were such a bummer, man. That hit me hard. Thing is, I was doing stuff on them that was helping my modeling improve! What’s such a bummer about that? I was still learning, still improving, right? So for me, the joy comes from the learning and the experimenting and the improving. Don’t get me wrong, “Can you finish the fuckin’ build?” is an important question and it is good when the answer is “Hell yes I can!” But it is also good to take one’s time and enjoy the process to the utmost, and I got that from you and a lot of the guys here, you with your amazing engine you built, John with his riveting, y’know?

So yeah man! I’m happy to be doing this!

TRUTH.

Well put, Kenny! Not finishing a build can be disappointing but like you, I don't like to view those as failures. They are learning experiences after all. And short of throwing the kit in the trash, you can always go back and complete it at a later date. That's what I am hoping for on my stalled 262 build.

jkim wrote:Well put, Kenny! Not finishing a build can be disappointing but like you, I don't like to view those as failures. They are learning experiences after all. And short of throwing the kit in the trash, you can always go back and complete it at a later date. That's what I am hoping for on my stalled 262 build.

Same here. I have a few "stalled" builds that I'll get back to when I have more "learning experiences" that will give me the motivation to finish them.

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH BUDDY!