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Sogogi

What’s your rule on purchasing a new kit?

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After reading a comment here 

 about 1in, 1 out rule, It made me think I need to have some sort of rules since I have acquired 12kits in 5months…

I am thinking probably 1 kit per chassis type would be a good start.

What’s your rule if there are any?

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My rules are rather simple:

1. consider whether and how many of them I need
2. check whether I can afford it.
3. Go ahead and buy

I must admit, however, that point 1 and point 3 are often used in reverse order as well.:D

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First on the list must be, can I afford it. No matter how good the kit is, if I can't pay the heating bill, and we're all sat in woolly hats and scarves ,a new kit turning up isn't probably a good thing....🥶😳

I don't think I've ever paid full price for a kit, so #2 for me, is it on offer ,includes free upgrades etc.

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1 hour ago, Sogogi said:

After reading a comment here 

 about 1in, 1 out rule, It made me think I need to have some sort of rules since I have acquired 12kits in 5months…

I am thinking probably 1 kit per chassis type would be a good start.

What’s your rule if there are any?

I am RC newbie but from much more expensive cycling experience, 1 in/ 1 out rule is quite good.

It is nice to have many bikes/ RCs/ anything but what for?

RC is not static model, should be used. In that case, what is the reason to have e.g. twenty? You will not have so much time to run and maintain them all.

The same situation with bikes. I had four at the same time. Total waste of money, because you are not able to use them equally. It is fine to have road bike and MTB or any combination of different bikes, but there is no reason to have e.g. two road bikes unless one is for racing and second for training.

The same with RC. Buggy 2WD, Buggy 4WD, Road etc, why not. What is the reason to have five 2WD Buggies on similar performance level?

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I don't really have any hard-and-fast rules.  For me RC is a hobby, it should be enjoyable, it should give me some excitement, and if life is bogged down with rules, it loses the excitement.  I'm also a very impulsive person, which can be both good and bad, but does require me to have some control, and I've learned to think things through a lot more now than I did when I was younger.  But sometimes it is good to say yes to the impulse and follow a sudden train of thought that ends with a great result.

Obviously, I only buy if I can genuinely afford it.  That's not a rule I always followed, especially when I was younger, I landed myself with heaps of debt.  Getting my finances properly tightened down was key to understanding how much disposable I really have, and in the last couple of years I've started forecasting - that means I can see how much money I'll have not just next month, but by the end of the year, and allows me to plan out projects properly, instead of saying "ok, well, I'll buy this £300 big rig kit now, and worry about the £800 worth of MFU / trailer / multi-channel radio sometime later".

So - with that in mind, and within the bound of available funds, my decision process generally involves the following:

  • can I afford this right now, without impacting existing commitments?
  • is it a rare item, or a rare price?
    • will it still be there next month, or next year?
  • is it worth saving over a period of months
    • will I lose interest before I've saved enough?
    • will it impact other things I've been planning for the future?
  • will it require parts that I had earmarked for other projects?
    • do I care more about this project than those other projects?
  • do I need to start work right away?
    • have I got time alongside other commitments?
    • do I care more about this that those other commitments?
  • am I committing to more spending down the line?
    • will I still care about it when I need to make that extra spend?
    • see big rig anecdote above - a £300 kit can quickly turn into a £1500 project
  • do I want it because I want it, or because I saw someone else with it and thought it looked kinda cool?

I keep telling myself that space is a consideration in a purchase, but so far, it hasn't been.  I have almost completely run out of space at home, but if I want something, I'll still find space for it.

I once had a rule (actually, it was more of a goal) to have just 2 of every chassis type (2wd buggy, 4wd buggy, rally car, touring car, m-chassis, monster truck) so there was one for me to use and one for a friend, if I ever happened to have a friend nearby and we wanted to bash together.  But that quickly fell apart when I realised it's fun to have various options to play with.  I've got 7 4x4 solid-axle monster trucks (5 of them on clod-sized wheels) but they've all got their own unique character to drive and their own project plans for future tinkering.

Also vintage racing kind of put paid to the "one chassis rule" - this year I entered in 4 or 5 class choices for both 2wd and 4wd race days at the Revival, just to be in with a shout of getting a place.  The classes I got entered into are way down the order of first-choice.  If I stuck with just one vintage 4wd buggy, I'd probably not have got an entry at all.  Having multiple cars to choose from means I have more options for entry.  But then, Revival is a tough competition, it's a long drive, it's a big commitment, and I don't want to come home on Friday afternoon if I break both cars in practice, so I generally have a spare car for each class, too.  Nominally these are "wet" and "dry" cars, but only in as far as one tends to have the tub chassis so is better for wet racing, and one will have a carbon or FRP chassis for better handling.

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My thought process goes along like this

1. Have I owned a kit before. If yes and I sold it, why did I sell it. Did I regret selling it. If I didn't then I'm not buying another one. 

2. Do I really want it. It normally takes months for me to make a purchasing decision weighing up whether or not I will get value for money from it. For instance, I really liked the Optima Turbo, never owned a belt drive car before and I really liked the Ultima's I had back in the day, but in the end I didn't buy one as I knew I would just build it and hardly ever run it.

3. Can I buy it in the UK ? I'm done with the stress of wondering if something I've ordered from half way around the world from EBay is going to turn up, and if it does are customs are going to gouge me on the import duty. If I buy in the UK (Usually from Modelsport or Fusion Hobbies) I get the model in a couple of days and I'm supporting UK model shops to stay afloat so they'll be there in the future.

 

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2 hours ago, Sogogi said:

I am thinking probably 1 kit per chassis type would be a good start.

What’s your rule if there are any?

That's generally what I do for kits that I'm building, but I do have duplicates where I've bought kits to keep NIB.

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My process now, is simply to accept that I will buy it at some point😂

The only rule is that it must be purchased cheaper than anywhere else. So often I wait for the kit to come up somewhere and pick it up at usually a bargain price, if not at the very least under retail value🤔

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25 minutes ago, Twinfan said:

That's generally what I do for kits that I'm building, but I do have duplicates where I've bought kits to keep NIB.

I am getting to the point with some of my cars where I think I might get second kits to be runners where I want to keep the other as a shelf queen. Or at least get a second set of wheels, tyres, shell and maybe even arms and chassis to then be able to convert to shelf queen by removing the road rash.

🤔🤔🤔...man this hobby is so f**kin' weird!😂

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34 minutes ago, MadInventor said:

3. Can I buy it in the UK ? I'm done with the stress of wondering if something I've ordered from half way around the world from EBay is going to turn up, and if it does are customs are going to gouge me on the import duty. If I buy in the UK (Usually from Modelsport or Fusion Hobbies) I get the model in a couple of days and I'm supporting UK model shops to stay afloat so they'll be there in the future.

I very much agree with this. I do buy little bits from abroad but the charges lottery is just too much. I try and use @Fusion-Hobbies as much as possible for our mutual benefit. If not it tends to be Modelsport. I don’t think I can give an honest answer to the original question  as any rule I seem to set myself usual gets broken!!!! I have a PayPal credit account that is paid off at a fixed limit per month so that limits me. If I want something big, TRX4 etc I have to have paid off enough to cover it. Other than that I just buy stuff.

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My rules (also set by my wife)

1. Never the same kit (chassis)

The reason for this rule is I am relatively new to RC, so looking for the build experience. There is little point in building the same thing over and over again. The same apply to my static kits, it become boring. This rule, however, had been broken twice. Once with, MST TCR-M, where I bought 2 kits to get 2 drive systems, so that I can make it into a 2 motor 4WD MTC monster. Second time I broke this rule is I bought a Farm King (WR-02) when I already got a Comical Hopper. However the Hopper was bought on Rule 2 below and there is actually a good reason I bought the FK, for a model exhibition in a largely farming community.

2. Is it significantly cheaper than anywhere else?

Usually FH and TTM is the cheapest. However sometimes due to dynamic pricing, Amazon can be far cheaper. If so, I may grab it. Or if it is on a genuine offer, like when the GF-01TR was on clearance with MIBI, I very nearly hit buy until a roof leak stopped me. Or sometimes a kit may pop up on JK for really cheap. I suspect they pick up their stock from liquidation or garage sales.

3. Cap of £200 per kit

Box price, excluding anything else. Had not broken this rule yet.

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My general rule is sell one to buy one! Personally because I now have limited space and I have my perfect rc garage so as painful as it is quite a lot of the time that is "generally" the rule:( very painful case in point!......schumacher cat xls sold to buy tamiya egress black edition:mellow: probably a few people are thinking why sell cat xls to buy egress black edition? simply because I bought the schumacher at cost when it was released and sold it for a price I couldn't refuse and although I've had a few egress's (is that the right pronounce??) I'd never actually built one so it was my first egress build 

However!....when I say "generally" that is the clause in my contract to myself because my blockhead hotshot and pro cat I just bought but in fairness they were partially bought with funds which I'd kept from previous sales of rc bits and Bob's on a clear out when Ebay had free listings! Just showing my xls because my heart still aches from that sale:wub:

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You have rules?

 

I guess..

1) can i afford it?

2) Can I get away with it with my wife? She already doesn't know about every kit I have!

3) Yes trying to avoid having 2 of the same chassis (albeit I have a TT02 and a TT02 Type s).

4) After my experience with the DF03, can I get parts. I also expect to have the same issue with the TA05 V2 I have waiting to fix up and the TB Evo 6 MS, albeit i'm not planning on hopping them up, just cleaning and rebuilding.

5) i must implement a new rule of no more looking at eBay for bargains....

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Having some rules it is what has saved me from bankruptcy. I am a touring car collector and the rule is simply, I only have one of each body type. Not multiples in different colours/ liveries. 

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As others mentioned, planning and understanding the need & place in my collection is part of the thought process when I'm tempted by a new kit.

However, as far as actual rules, I have only one: it has to be Tamiya.

The reason for this is to set boundaries. The moment I start buying other brands, I probably will never stop.

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I have reached the limit of time and space. I don't have much time to devote to the hobby (building or running) and I don't really have anywhere to store a newly built car. That being said, when the wanty-wanties hit and the mouse starts hovering over the Basket button, I have started to think...

1. Do I have that chassis already?

2. Does it differ significantly from what I already own?

3. Can I afford it / is it 'worth it' (that's a very personal feeling, not quantifiable)

4. Have I really run out of space?

It has slowed my recent rate of purchase to a TD-4, an M-08R and a pre-order for the MB-01.

Now, if I could ever bear to sell some of my unused cars, I could relax my rules...

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5 hours ago, Sogogi said:

After reading a comment here 

 about 1in, 1 out rule, It made me think I need to have some sort of rules since I have acquired 12kits in 5months…

I am thinking probably 1 kit per chassis type would be a good start.

What’s your rule if there are any?

I ask my wife for permission :P

It might not work if you can do good puppyeyes

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If the car moves me in some positive way, I usually buy it.  Display space is a concern so the car needs to be pretty special in order to win space in my pretend RC shop.  B)

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After obsessing over my ORVs for a few years I thought to get another car.  Now I allow myself one new kit per year.  Two years ago it was a Fire Dragon.  Last year it was the CC02.

The kit I will buy this year?  Last month I was thinking it would be the BBX.  Now I’m thinking of a Clod Racer project.  Next month it may be something else (XV02?).  I’ll wait until summer and pick something…

 

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This is my own set of rules:

1. What terrain can it tackle? So I know where I can run it.

2. Have I owned the chassis before? I like variety with my RCs, and I like trying out different chassis.

3. How much will it cost after the big 3 are factored in?

4. Will I get bored of it?

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My rule:

How much space in the man cave do I have left.

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23 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

This is my own set of rules:

1. What terrain can it tackle? So I know where I can run it.

2. Have I owned the chassis before? I like variety with my RCs, and I like trying out different chassis.

3. How much will it cost after the big 3 are factored in?

4. Will I get bored of it?

The big 3 are?

Bearings, oil shocks and?

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1 simple rule:

Own one each of every nitro kit Tamiya has ever produced, 12 left to get.

After that

Anything I like the look of.

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Rules:

#1 - Finish the kits I currently have before acquiring another.

#2 - Break rule #1 if a different kit comes along that looks cool.  :wacko:

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