Whether it be brass or plastic, the (screwy) mentality of a number of the 'big name', widely-publicised modelers in HO that I have dealt with in the past is that once you simply buy a model and walk out the store's door with it... having never once been even so much as removed from it's box... the model has, somehow, diminished in value to the tune of at LEAST 35 (or more) percent! I fundamentally reject this idiology. (as long as the model has never been removed from the box and used)
Once... not long after I mentioned in a post on one of the HO groups that was considering selling my BRAND NEW, NEVER RUN, NEVER REMOVED FROM THE BOX HO scale Genesis F-3 models... I was contacted by a very reputable modeler, and was told that when I responded to him with a quote of what I wanted for the models that I should - (exact quote) - "sharpen my pencil." I don't think I ever bothered to reply to this person as I felt insulted by his apparent attempt to get something that was essentially BRAND NEW for far less than the models were easily worth. HOWEVER... many of these well known modelers, will go out and buy a $35 freight car of just about ANY brand, take it home and dress it up a little with a little weathering (and maybe a few minor details and/or decals) (making to total investment still less than $50), and try to sell it for well over $100!!! This seems contradictive to me based on my understanding of their 'diminished value' idiology... because based on that, the value of their $35 freight car should have IMMEDIATELY been cut down to somewhere about $20 when they bought it. Therefore, even with the added weathering, details and decals, the asking price for their model should not have gone above the $45 mark... and definitely nowhere NEAR the more-than-$100 price these modelers ask. Isn't it funny that the models these 'big-name' modelers buy and repaint don't seem to diminish in value like the common man's models supposedly do? Does this not seem like a double-standard? Or does it just expose inflated egos? Don't get me wrong... I have boat-loads of respect for these modeler's talents... I just don't agree with the apparent rule exemptions they seem to enjoy. And as far as I am concerned, this makes some them look like opportunists and cheapskates. All of the above is relevant to this topic in that it seems to show that plastc models apparently Appreciate when painted and/or otherwise modified, whereas brass (according to the responses on this list) seems to DEpreciate. So the answer to what a paint job does to model seems to depend (at least in HO) more on WHO does the painting instead of what the model is made of and whether or not it is painted, etc. John Degnan [email protected] [email protected]
