How to kick the backlog habit

[Excillon]

I need advice on how to kick the backlog problem. I started building a Hasegawa VF-1J Super battroid. Got it ready for painting. Then, I started a VF-0S Battroid. Got it ready for painting. Then I started an SV-51, got it half painted. How do you keep focus? I get bored or slightly discouraged, and then I'm off on some other kit. I have a 12 kit backlog which the wife says must be done if I want Frontier kits! Maybe I should farm them out to HWR MkII, he'd do 'em in like 6 hours. He's like the Bob Ross of Macross models.

[jardann]

If you find an answer, let me know. A twelve kit backlog is nothing. I've got a whole closet full of kits looming over me.

I do the same thing with painting though, I get a kit built all up, it's just ready for painting and maybe detail parts added, but then it just languishes on my bench while I try to keep them from getting damaged.

Part of the problem is that I don't have a dedicated space to use my airbrush and I don't have much practice with it either, so I'm worried about mucking up the model. I have a model I built last summer that is just waiting for paint and then the canopy to be attached, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. I did take an old airfix kit that I had laying around and just did a straight OOB build and painted it all with a brush just to have it finished. Turned out pretty good actually, but it has no decals on it because the decals were really yellowed and dried out.

[Vifam7]

My problem with building kits is that I don't have much time during the weekdays and I don't want to devote a substantial time of my weekend on models. As a result it takes a while to get one finished.

To me, the most tedious part of building kits is the puttying and sanding part. I absolutely hate it. Which is another reason why my kits take forever to even get to the painting stage.

[Noyhauser]

Stop sniping sellers on here? Two sets recently I wanted had your YGPM before I could reply.

Not bitter (okay maybe a little bit)

[jardann]

Hah! Yeah, I have noticed that he has been very quick lately. When someone else beats me to it though, I just figure that they are saving me some money.

[MechTech]

"Focus Danielson - wax on - wax- off." We need a model sensei column it sounds like ! What I do is keep one model out to work on, and put the other kits in plastic boxes (protects and easy to move stuff around in). I've been working on the Daedalus for like two years now. Tell me I'm not bored - please!?

I used to work on so many kits at once that it burned me out on model building for a while. That's what helps me to keep at one kit at a time - I don't want to get in that rut. I've got like a hundred Macross kits (most tiny 1/200), but I just focus on the one. After two years I'll occasionally work on something minor, but back to work. You guys help too! Like WM Chang said, "he vicariously lives out his hobby through us." "Virtual glue and paint!" - MT

[Excillon]

Stop sniping sellers on here? Two sets recently I wanted had your YGPM before I could reply.

Not bitter (okay maybe a little bit)

Sorry man. But that last one was a hell of a deal, and I wanted to help Rockhound out and get him a quick sale. Can't wait for that Ghost kit, I got a really cool idea for it, that to my knowledge hasn't been done yet. See there I go again! Two battroids, an unfinshed Ivanov and I still can't focus!

[Rockhound]

Here's the best way to get rid of your backlog.... do them all at once. During my first stint at modelling, I built a whole Skull Squadron diorama. Roy, Hikaru, Max, Ben (forgot the true name. don't kill me).I built all the major assemblies for each kit, painted them, then assembled them. Took about as much time as once kit. This works best if you're painting roughly the same colors on different kits, which is why my Skull Squadron was finished as fast as it was. What keeps alot of modelers from cruising through the kits is down time. The best thing to do is simply build the subassemblies of the kits of all the kits you want, then prime all the pieces, then paint similar colors (doesn't work if you're doing a YF-21 and a SV-51 Nora though but you get my meaning).

Simply eliminating downtime between processes will crush your backlog. Also Excillion, since you're getting that Alclad II Steel, you could do all your exhaust ports/engine nacelle/feet/gunpods/etc all at once!

It's when you get to the decals you gotta bite the bullet and push through. Work enough decals and your fingers become raisins.

[thegunny]

Don't let it worry you.

I'm the same but in the end it all turns out. I've had an EZ8 Gundam sitting on my desk waiting for final paint for about 5 weeks and I've just got around to finishing it.

I'll assemble a whole heap then all of a sudden I'll get the painting bug (which doesn't happen too often as I love the assembly part but loathe the painting part which is strange as I'm a pretty good painter ) and finish a whole heap.

The problem then is I have to find somewhere to display them

Edited July 12, 2008 by thegunny

[big F]

My kit back log is masive. 30 plus kits. Technically I have 4 kits and 1 custom scratch on the go at the mo one of the kits has been on the go for at least 10 years. all I have to do is paint the head. I have limited myself to finish the 4/5 kits before I look at the others. plastic crates and a loft/attic help as they keep them away from your eyes and its a PITA to go into the Attic so they get left alone. What makes it worse is one of them was a commision for my Dad of his Nissan Z300 which he has just sold.... so he now will have a model of his car which he no longer has. Focus is the key and when you get bored go find somthing totally different to do. My trouble is that I have too many hobbies.

[007-vf1]

I think we get into backlogs because there's a particular part we like more and it comes easier to us. We like to build..but not necessarily paint and detail because is tedious and is better to finish it all at once.

I had a backlog of 16 models last Thanksgiving. I have finished about 4 of them by now but, and haven't touched any other since Christmas.. My excuse right now is that I just moved so i haven't got to fix the modeling room i am going to use because I am out of my house 12 hours of the day at work.

What I did when i had little time but wanted to get something done was to do a bit of the building process that can be stretched over time..like the sanding or spruce cutting or gluing, color match research, etc. This gives the ability to stop at any given moment to restart where you left off. Painting on the other hand requires lengthy time sessions to complete at once since you don't want to spend time with clean up, set up, set the proper airbrush pressure, color mixing, (you get the point... ) just for one coating of paint. Paint coat drying time anyone.. 24 hrs. wait...? I left that just for the time I can surely invest on, otherwise I rather start another model. Also i would rather get 2 valks built at once knowing I will use the same basic colors and save me set up time..

Don't feel so bad for backloging just don't be stale on your built ups. Eventually you'll get to paint it when you get the inspiration or find a new color scheme you might get into.. and just buy, buy more....

[neptunesurvey]

Like a few others I have a closet that holds my backlog as well as my small hobby room. Once I built a workbench to fit the room, I could keep my airbrush hood and airbrush setup by the window, I have been catching up my backlog. I spend about an hour a night working on the kit so in about 2 weeks I can have one finished. The easiest way to stop the backlog is to stop buying.

[kkx]

I try to resist the tempatation to start more then one or two new kits before I finish my current project.

I can't multi task well and I will mess up my work if I have too many project going on concurrently.

For the problem of too many boxes of model waiting for me to work on it, I do have a sizeable collection that I think I will be hard put to finish in my life time. Got to stop buying models.

One solution to this problem is to sell some off. But I find it very hard to let go of any of my hard won collection.

Anyone wants to buy these:

VT-1 super ostrich (GBP 22)

YF-21 (GBP 21)

VF-1J valk (GBP 17)

VF-1J max and millia special edition (GBP 27)

I live in UK so postage to US could be costly, but UK based member will benefit from cheap shipping and no VAT problem.

Please help me reduce my back log.

[Valkyrie addict]

hmm...I tend to built one model at a time, I've been tempted to built several to try and quit my backlog, but I'm very messy, unorganized and don't have a properly safe work area so I can only built one model at a time and take a looooooooooong break after, hahaha