[Cheesey153]

That's quite a thought-provoking post! If you'll allow a newbie's take on this issue I'd like to share some of my thoughts. What follows are simply thoughts and observations - please don't interpret them as being criticisms of any kind.

I've been in this hobby for one whole year now (I feel so old!) having come here from a very different kind of modelling and modelling culture, that of military figure modelling. I still have my old figure habits and I'm still steeped in that culture, so this world is all rather strange to me, if also hugely enjoyable.

My eyes tend to see the whole picture of a model, not just the paintwork, not just the construction, not just the scratchbuilding, not just the presentation - but a combination of all of them. I fully understand the ethos that if the body paintwork is less than inspiring, the model is somehow less good but I am suprised by quite how much store is placed on producing a flawless paint job often at the (obvious) expense of other areas. To my mind, if the paintwork is flawless but the construction (for example) of the kit is slightly lacking in quality, the whole model is also lacking in quality - and the stunning quality of the paint won't deflect that viewpoint. I too believe that applying paint is a fundamental skill of the modeller, but so too are all the other skills. Personally, I don't put one skill above the others - they all need to be present, and present to a high standard.

In this last year I have been (and continue to be) amazed by the number of comments on this and another forum along the lines of "Great shine!", "So shiny!" & "Wicked paintjob!" as if that, and that alone, was all that mattered in a model car. So many times even my relatively untrained eyes will pick out major flaws and errors elsewhere on the model but it seems to me that to many people they don't matter, as long as the paintjob is "wicked".

This brings me nicely along to another point: why do paintjobs have to be so damn shiny?? To my eyes thsoe mirror finish 'wet look' paintjobs look, quite frankly, entirely unrealistic. Other than at national motor shows where the latest Ferraris et al are presented in a mega-polished condition under a billion candle power of spotlights, and photogrpahed form particular angles, where do we see that level of shine and perfection?

I quit ther competitive modelling scene a few ears ago having achieved considerable success in my field on both side of the Atlantic, and I have no intention of becoming embroiled in competitions again. Good luck and best wishes to all those who do choose to be competitive but I will continue to learn what I can from the best modellers around and then sit quietly at home building models to my satisfaction, and mine alone.

Thanks MPWR for raising the topic; I think it's worth discussing and I look forward to reading other thoughts.
Jon.