Signs of the times......

[Tim Nolan]

Yes, we are dinosaurs. We had 5 people show up today to start a model club. They had been soliciting about it for about a month I guess at a hobby shop near Stan. We had 2 military guys, a figure modeler, and three of us car guys. They contacted about 8 more folks on the phone who couldn't make it. Go figure. Sad isn't it?

[RatRod]

Make it happen.....They will come!!! ;D I know how this goes, it's hard to get a club going, unless you live in a hub where a lot of modelers live, I've tried!! I have been thinking about doing this here, and in conjunction with the local hobby shop. There are a bunch of military guys here, and model railroaders too, but I know there are car builders here as well, so I'm going to at least try on my side of the world.

[barten]

YEa. . .I know. . there is just to much focus on quick and no work! We are getting older!

My wife invited my sons entire class over for a snowball fight . . and there were several kids who want to try building. . . so that was good. . and a single mother looking for the "male" influence on her twins. . .so I was thinking.. .give it a try with these kids. . and them offer a class to teach kids to build. . . little extra dough on the side! We will see if it works!

What do you think?

Any Suggestions on. . . .
What about length of each class ? ? ? ?
The number of weeks ? ? ? ?
And a fair price ? ? ? ?


GB
Barten

[fredmellini]

Yup, the writing is on the wall. There are kids today that have never played with electric slot cars, trains, etc, and even worse!!!!!........never built a model!!!. The days are gone and probably will never return.

The models being bought today are adults who built models as kids and if by some chance a youngster is building today it is because their father, uncle, friend etc took the time to introduce them to the hobby.

Kids today and people in general have no real down time, think about it. Kids today are starting to play soccer, t-ball, kickball at 3 yrs of age!!!!......when we were kids (talking the 60 and 70's) we couldn't even play any organized spaort until you were like 8 or 9 to play junior league baseball and football, there weren't any other sports to play!!! It's bad enough when the regular season ends now, they have indoor leagues during the bad weather so soccer (and I hate soccer) goes all year now. Kids do not have any real down time to think for themselves anymore.....to preoccupied with cell phones, internet, video games etc. I have always said that todays kids will be lost if the power ever went out for a long time because they will not know what to do. Everything is done for them electronically!!!!

I am so glad I grew up when I did being a kid in the 60's and 70's and got to enjoy occassional TV, playing with hotwheels, h.o. slot cars, lionel trains, motorific sets. Going to numerous stores with toys--Nichols, Ames, Big N, Hardware stores with whole isles of models, getting introduced to the only monsters at the time--Frankenstein, Mummy, wolfman, dracula and even getting scared seeing the first godzilla with Raymond Burr.

No cell phones!!!...no Computers!!!, .....no GPA's, ........It was actually a great time to be a kid and let me tell you..........I miss it so bad every day!!!!

[dbash2006]

got that right Fred!!

[Alan Alexis (stavanzer)]

Tim
Our Model Club here in Bakersfield meets every two weeks.
There are the 'Core' guys, the same faithful 7-8 that attend every meeting.
Then there are the "sometimes" guys. Some Times they make it, Some Times they don't.
There are another 5-6 of them.
Population in Bakersfield?
Right at half-a-million.
We support 4 hobby shops.

From what I see, your numbers look about right, really.
Keep meeting, and keep the faith.
You'll get more.

[Psychotic Hillbilly]

Fred you are so right. I agree with you 100%...


Ken...

[Pegleg (Hotwheels Bob)]

I feel the words Fred, couldn't have said it better

[Deleted]

Right on Fred - the main ingredient that todays ahem "children" lack?


[glow=red,2,300]Imagination[/glow]

From what I see around here (Nanaimo) it's a case of immediate gratification - "what - take the time and create something?"

But on the plus side - there always seems to be a few of the younger set to take over the torch - like your son Fred - maybe not in the numbers like when most of us were spilling glue on the kitchen table but at least some. We just have to keep trying to spread the word whenever we can.

Lance

[bobpaeth]

It looks like when I read the posts here, the kids are being damned if they do and damned if they don't. What am I talking about ? You hear about the kids today being over weight because they just sit around playing on the computer, meaning they are not exorcising enough. Then we are complaining because they are not sitting down and building a model. Should we help them make up their minds ? Fat builders or "in shape" athletes ?

Now as far as the future of our hobby is concerned ? I can't really break into a sweat over this. We have been worrying about how the younger set is not following in are footsteps in the hobby of modeling for over 20 years, to my reckoning. The number of "seniors" and "juniors" who compete in the Portland Classic model car contest has not changed significantly in the past twenty years. It may be that the age to join in this hobby of ours has risen over time but eventually they seem to join our ranks.

Maybe it is better this way. The hand-eye coordination is still developing into the teen years. The chance for a better model is greater and hence, the specter of disappointment is lessened when they enter our own little world.

This is not to say that we should not encourage kids to start building at any age, but, all we should do is provide the "avenue", and let them decide on their own timetable.

bob

[scurvy]

The only good news to come out of the sorry state of the U.S. economy is that the hobby business, as it always seems to when a recession threatens, is booming. Local hobby shops claim this was the best January they can remember in the last ten years. Seems like everybody starts concentrating on lower-priced pastimes that they can stay home and enjoy when money starts getting scarce.

[joed]

l have to disagree with that
how many of us built models when we were kids
then went onto to reals cars and girls and
started up again when things settle down
l for one know of two kids building models
in my street and l had nothing to do with
heck the kid that l have working for me looked
at some of my models and has started building models
and my six year old daughter has progressed from
snap tights and is now finishing off the the Mr unswichable gto ( yes the rare one)
so l think the hobby is in good hands

[theflame]

I hope it's in good shape - I'm opening a mail order aftermarket parts/kits business next week ;D

[fredmellini]

Bob you bring up a very valid point..........I get worked up with todays pace and kids not really having time to be kids anymore. They grow up way to fast just like the pace of society.

I guess what I was trying to say after having more time to think about it......is that When I go to model shows, the hobby shop, Toy shows, etc..... The adults far out number the youth. Obviously this is a small portion of the whole picture, but My 15 yr old son builds........but he is definitely a minority of his peers.

I just remeber looking at comic books for kids (not the violent adult comics of today) and seeing the cool ads for the models. Do they even print a normal comic book today??.......the funny kind?......and if they do is there even a model add in there?

I hate to admit it, but when I go to a Hobby Shop, Wal-mart, Target, or K-mart(aren't any other stores to go to) unless it is really young kids with their parents looking at the toys..........it is adult men looking and sometimes fighting over the newest item in the toy dept. I just do not see pre-teen or teen kids bothering with models or diecast as a whole or certainly a large number. Yes, there are some building as we have seenther awesome builds here and in the magazines, but it is a very small number. What I do see and probably why the hobby is still surving (with the aid of life support of old reissue kits of our youth) is because the youth of the past (meaning us! ;D) is trying to relive or pick up where they left off as kids. But the point is they or we built models as a kid. Now we are adults with the income to continue/or able to afford buying models. What is going to happen when our generation stops buying?

I also fly elelctric R/C planes and I have noticed a huge jump in ARF (almost ready to fly) or plug and play style planes. These are planes that you can get in the air flying in less than an hour straight out of the box!!!......I used to have to build a plane over the winter because there was a million shards of balsa to glue together and then cover,,etc before you had something that resembled a plane!! ;D ;D ;D............Nobody wants to take the time to build a plane anymore, another dinosaur (the buildaplanasoarous!! ;D) dying a slow miserable death.

I think everyone here has a valid point either pro or con as to the life line or demise of our beloved hobby. I hope it continues to thrive because I do so love the art of model building, but I really think it will become a lost art/hobby in the future.

[Pegleg (Hotwheels Bob)]

Well said Fred. I think a lot of the cause to the dying breed of builders lie with society, parents & their many FAST life styles, no one taking the time to enjoy their kids growing up and that damn ole big business chasing the almighty buck. It's really to bad that a dollar is more important than a smile on a childs face. I grew up without a father image & housefull of females, still was lucking enough to have a mother that cared more for me than a vacation, car or big house. Thank God for our childhood!

[Alan Alexis (stavanzer)]

O'course one O'the reasons we are all after the Almighty Buck, is because it takes more of them to pay for things now.
There has been no inflation adjusted rise in wages since the 1970's.
It just takes more time,effort and money to do what our folks did.

That might be why we have so little time for our kids.......We are working just to pay for the basics.

[vwcamperman]

You guys drew me in about four years ago! and i'm still here! ;D