I miss this place, but work intrudes...

POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Friday, April 8, 2011 14:02
VIEWED: 5480
PAGE 1 of 1

CHRISISALL

Thursday, April 7, 2011 5:58 PM

I been real busy with a side line possible income- building models that you can't get a 100% accurate model or replica of anywhere else. I'm starting with this:

I'm sure y'all recognize it, even unfinished.
EDIT: D'oh! There's a finished one in the background! *blushes*
It's SO gorram time consuming- 20 hrs or more per.
Plus, I was thinking what other SF vehicles you can't get that I should probably try for. Firefox comes instantly to mind.

Anyway, just an update, Ahl be back!

HAKEN

Thursday, April 7, 2011 8:19 PM

So you're getting paid to build models? That's awesome! It's something you enjoy doing, right? So it's all good.

http://about.me/haken

RIONAEIRE

Thursday, April 7, 2011 9:17 PM

I hope you're enjoyin it, have fun making them.

"A completely coherant River means writers don't deliver" KatTaya

CHRISISALL

Thursday, April 7, 2011 9:48 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by HAKEN:
So you're getting paid to build models?

Well, LOL, not YET.
I put an ad in at a Galactica website offering to build Vipers custom for anyone at a super-fair price, but no one bit. Understandable- not many want to purchase something they haven't seen.
I recently made some Vipers & a Cylon Raider for my own self, and they came out so good that I realized that if I couldn't make my own, I'd pay shiny coin for one of them. The kits are okay, and many have made them to show or sell, but they all are sadly lacking in accuracy. So I'm making five to sell at sites & on Ebay, hoping to get $200 a piece for 'em, which is damn fair considering they take 20-25 hrs each to scribe, sand, fabricate pieces for, paint & weather.
So I'm gambling $200 (the price of 5 kits) on there being at least five peeps out there are as nuts for an accurate Viper as I would be.

Here's a Viper in a diorama I made now showing at the Modelers Miniatures & Magic website:

The response at Replica Props Forum was so good that I realized there may be a market for what I enjoy doing most.

Of course a Serenity is in the future, but not for sale- it'll take me months
& be WAAAY too expensive to buy, though not as much as the Quantum Mech one, heh heh.

BLUEEYEDBRIGADIER

Thursday, April 7, 2011 10:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by HAKEN:
So you're getting paid to build models?
Well, LOL, not YET.
I put an ad in at a Galactica website offering to build Vipers custom for anyone at a super-fair price, but no one bit. Understandable- not many want to purchase something they haven't seen.
I recently made some Vipers & a Cylon Raider for my own self, and they came out so good that I realized that if I couldn't make my own, I'd pay shiny coin for one of them. The kits are okay, and many have made them to show or sell, but they all are sadly lacking in accuracy. So I'm making five to sell at sites & on Ebay, hoping to get $200 a piece for 'em, which is damn fair considering they take 20-25 hrs each to scribe, sand, fabricate pieces for, paint & weather.
So I'm gambling $200 (the price of 5 kits) on there being at least five peeps out there are as nuts for an accurate Viper as I would be.

Here's a Viper in a diorama I made now showing at the Modelers Miniatures & Magic website:

The response at Replica Props Forum was so good that I realized there may be a market for what I enjoy doing most.

Of course a Serenity is in the future, but not for sale- it'll take me months
& be WAAAY too expensive to buy, though not as much as the Quantum Mech one, heh heh.

Great googily moogily! That's spectacular work, chrisisall! Honestly thought they were filming props from the original series for a second!

BTW, what are your prices, exactly? Rather curious, since I'd maybe like to take advantage of your work

"The revenge of the beaten comes in refusing to fall." -- Mal, in "The Losing Side - Chapter 45" by jetflair

CANTTAKESKY

Friday, April 8, 2011 1:06 AM

Chris! Amazing work!

CHRISISALL

Friday, April 8, 2011 2:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by canttakesky:
Chris! Amazing work!

Thanks! Hey- that female flight crew member in the pictures- it started out as a dude wild west figure shooting a gun! LOL!

CHRISISALL

Friday, April 8, 2011 2:30 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BlueEyedBrigadier:

BTW, what are your prices, exactly? Rather curious, since I'd maybe like to take advantage of your work

It depends upon how many hours of research I have to do on a project, but basically I charge for the cost of the kit + $150- $200 for my time & materials. More if it's a big kit, even more if it has to be from scratch. For instance, a 20" scratch Serenity would be a BIG work with tons of research time- like $700. My Vipers are a known & (relatively)easy-to-do-at-this-point item- $200 (and at twenty hrs of work I'm only askin' for like $9.oo an hour!!).
Making an existing kit look shiny is easy- producing a replica from scratch is not.

We can talk.

Just don't ask for a 30 foot Discovery from 2001!!!!!

SAFEAT2ND

Friday, April 8, 2011 11:53 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
We can talk.
Just don't ask for a 30 foot Discovery from 2001!!!!!

Awwww! Now you're getting all unreasonable like! And here I was gonna ask for a 10 foot Buck Rogers Searcher...

Serious though, great work! There is a market for it, unfortunately for me, not one my wallet likes.

I hope it tales off for you! ;) see what I did there? Takes off... yeesh, tough crowd.

Check out my blog for info and updates on my novels
http://drlong67.wordpress.com

PENNAUSAMIKE

Friday, April 8, 2011 2:02 PM

Definitely nice work, Chris!

But why scratchbuild a Serenity,
when you can buy my 36" Rshanko fiberglass version.

36" Rshanko HO scale Firefly for $250 plus shipping.
Mine has a number 4 written on the inside; 4 of? a dozen, maybe?

Mike