After sharing the last post about Practice, I immediately thought of a few ideas about how model railroaders might do just that - practice! In no particular order, here they are:
Fos Scale Models Kit of the Month Club
This is a pretty cool idea from a relatively newer craftsman kit manufacturer who has been making deep inroads into that market. If you've watched Jason Jensen build anything, you've likely seen a FOS Scale Models kit, and probably one of these offerings. For about a dollar a day, you get twelve kits a year. Or to put it another way, for the price of one South River Model Works or Fine Scale Miniatures kit resold on eBay, you get twelve little HO scale structure kits.
Now $375 sounds like a lot all at once. But how many modelers buy a single craftsman kit for that much, only to leave it on the shelf because they're afraid they might ruin it? And ruin it they might - the fear is not unfounded if their modeling eyes have been bigger than their skills! Setting aside the Sunk Cost Fallacy, I think it is still better to practice new techniques on smaller models over a longer time, than to dive in and take on a huge project only to lose steam part way through and leave it to gather dust. Practice can give a person confidence to take on a larger project because the necessary skills are no longer unknown variables.
Another option with a high cost up front is a new offering from Walthers. Designed to build a full range of skills from laying track to building scenery and structures, this is a service that delivers - literally - a box of tools and supplies to your doorstep each month for six months. The modeler follows along with a video series where experts guide them through the necessary steps to complete that month's tasks. At the end of the process the modeler has completed one of three dioramas, (selected beforehand).
Again, $399 is a chunk of change. It is also the cost of a new locomotive with DCC and sound, less than season tickets to the NFL franchise of your choice, and FAR less than season tickets to any NBA team. How many movies can you see for $400? With popcorn? You get the idea. While both of these options could possibly be assembled more cheaply by purchasing your own supplies or small kits, the missing factor in either case would be the pre-arranged delivery schedule. That kit is going to show up each month. That can be a wonderful external stimulus.
Other Options?
I have tried twice to write something positive about model railroad forums and the NMRA, only to end up grouchy and irritated. Suffice it to say, if you find either of those options helpful, whether through periodic "challenge" builds on forums or the Achievement Program of the NMRA, good for you. Personally I have issues with both even though I have only participated in forum challenges in the past. Unfortunately the Attaboy Culture, at least for me, tends to rob praise of any meaning and bury or outright dismiss honest criticism as being harsh or a buzzkill. Neither setting seems to be conducive to any structured form of practicing a technique or mastering a skill through repeated, deliberate activity.
That said, I believe joining with a group of like-minded peers to take on a group build project or learn a new skill together would be a great benefit to anyone willing to give and receive constructive criticism. There are stories, legends really, on old VHS tapes, about "round-robin" groups with contrived names like "Hartford Workshop" or "Friday Night Choirboys" that would work on each other's railroads, visiting a different home each month. Does anyone do this anymore? Sure, many modelers may be lone wolves by choice and some of us by default, but if being part of a small group like this is possible, it could be a venue for the kind of encouragement and feedback that drives good practice.
If it is to be...
...it is up to me! That was the slogan printed on a long ream of printer paper (the kind with the holes down the sides on strips you'd carefully tear away...remember that?) that hung in a middle school band classroom I visited once. Sometimes practice is simply done as a daily discipline, mustered and motivated by a passion within or driven by a performance deadline. Sure, a peer group for feedback would be great, but when the op session is over and the snacks have been consumed and you're left alone in the train room, who do you have to please, ultimately, but yourself?
I for one like the idea of practicing a technique - not just trying out a new thing once - in order to gain confidence in my ability to create what I'm envisioning. For me one such technique is applying static grass. I only recently built my SG-1 static grass applicator and have used it exactly twice, just to try it out. But before I apply even a blade of grass to the Pine Branch Park scenery I will be practicing on smaller test strips to learn how it behaves best and see what I can do with it.
What skill do you need to practice?
No comments:
Post a Comment