I think about times when there only where Tamiya kits... andn some terrible Revell and Italeri... then came Dragon and it was like christmas. well, I'm not a fan do DML, but they certainly made the whole model business shake, and for good.

Whichever way you approach the kits and the hobby, chances are it's a lot cheaper than buying new bass boats and burning gas driving around lakes and such, cheaper (and probably less controversial - both at home and in the public eye, and maybe in the eyes of some laws...) than getting deeply into guns and shooting, cheaper than cars as a hobby, cheaper than flying as a hobby, and probably long-run cheaper than spending it in the bars and pool-halls!
:D Safer than booze, and likely cheaper than gambling at the casino, too!

AMPS # 711, 25 years plus...continuous.

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AMPS # 711, 25 years plus...continuous.

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AMPS has only existed for 22 years.

Membership numbers were specifically not used when the club was formed as Cookie Sewell did not care for people bragging about their low IPMS numbers. When the current computer system was adopted all existing members were entered and membership numbers assigned alphabetically, starting with 0100. The number is simply a label on a database field.

Just FYI.

Kurt Laughlin,
Former AMPS Membership Secretary

The cost of Dragon models has been steadily increasing for years, I expect to pay £50 for a model these days which, to me, is very expensive.

I tend to buy PE and Interiors to make them major projects

The other problem is availability of models. Since ModelZone in the UK closed down I have had trouble finding the Dragon model that I want as they always seem to be out of stock on E-models

I pulled out an old DML kit box . . . I reckon they have kept pace and if anything they have got a bit cheaper in the overall scheme of things in this country. Wages increase, Costs of Living Increase, Transport costs increase, Rents increase etc etc.

Due to taxes and customs regulations I purchase my kits at my LHS - apart from PE sets.

I remember very well when once people here brought the prices of DML kits in relation with the high oil price (=styrene).

Now the oil price is at a low level and scale model kits' prices are being kept on a high level and are still about to increase.

My guess:

1. Dragon started around 2005 their attempt to dominate the scale model market. And that happened via the most efftive instrument: Low price (kits).

2. Just take a look at any instruction of a DML kit: A LOT OF PARTS you won't need ever - but you still pay for.
The poorly configurated sprues provide a mass of styrene what are useless. The latest Wittmann Tiger 6730: What to do with three (3) turret roofs though I only need one? Four(!!!) turret mantlets, two front plates etc, etc.

A very expensive spare parts box...

Whichever way you approach the kits and the hobby, chances are it's a lot cheaper than buying new bass boats and burning gas driving around lakes and such, cheaper (and probably less controversial - both at home and in the public eye, and maybe in the eyes of some laws...) than getting deeply into guns and shooting, cheaper than cars as a hobby, cheaper than flying as a hobby, and probably long-run cheaper than spending it in the bars and pool-halls!
:D Safer than booze, and likely cheaper than gambling at the casino, too!

It took me several years to get to it, but now I can freely say that "hey! I LIKE to buy model kits! They are neat, relatively harmless, generally (at least the kinds I buy) related to history (which I love), and I can share that with many other pretty neat folks!"

Cutting molds is horrendously expensive...

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Just wait it out and build something else in the meantime. Before you know it, a year has gone by and that Saladin will be damn near half price.

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John's got it totally right. Wait a bit and the kit will be substantially cheaper. That is... unless you NEED the kit right now.

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Due to taxes and customs regulations I purchase my kits at my LHS - apart from PE sets.

I remember very well when once people here brought the prices of DML kits in relation with the high oil price (=styrene).

Now the oil price is at a low level and scale model kits' prices are being kept on a high level and are still about to increase.

My guess:

1. Dragon started around 2005 their attempt to dominate the scale model market. And that happened via the most efftive instrument: Low price (kits).

2. Just take a look at any instruction of a DML kit: A LOT OF PARTS you won't need ever - but you still pay for.
The poorly configurated sprues provide a mass of styrene what are useless. The latest Wittmann Tiger 6730: What to do with three (3) turret roofs though I only need one? Four(!!!) turret mantlets, two front plates etc, etc.

A very expensive spare parts box...

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I think you've got the wrong end of the stick, here. If Dragon revised each set of molds to exclude unneeded parts every time they offered a new variant of an existing subject, you'd actually end up paying more, not less. Cutting molds is horrendously expensive, which is why kit makers will offer so many subvariants of each vehicle or aircraft. When they only have to add a few extra parts to offer a brand new product, they can amortize their major mold-making expenses more quickly. By reusing sprues from existing molds to provide a few specific parts, they only waste a few cents worth of plastic (and we get a rich store of parts to use in correcting or converting other kits).