The pandemic that has plagued the entire world has forced us to stay indoors more than ever. It does not only present an unprecedented challenge to our economy and public health, but our way of living too—our collective shift from dine in to take out, office to home, and outdoors to indoors.
We understand that some of us enjoy outdoor hobbies, yet seeing that the pandemic is nowhere near its end, we have to put our outdoor activities on a pause to keep ourselves safe. If you think it’s about time to come up with another hobby without compromising safety, we believe building RC models can be a great pastime! And who knows, a sideline!
If you want to start a new hobby that involves putting pieces together to create a single driving or flying machine and then controlling it, make sure to read further!
What are model kits?
Model kits have been around as early as the ’60s, making it a sought-after hobby among children and adults. A model usually consists of small, plastic preformed pieces that are assembled for display or play. A plastic model kit could be any of the vehicles you can think of—from military airplanes to tanks, cars, motorbikes, and a whole lot more.
Some model kits are intended for display, while some come with remote or radio controls.
Types of model kits
There are a lot of options when it comes to model kits. The most popular model kits are modeled after famous vehicles like airplanes, cars, ships, and other military vehicles. Most model kits are based on historical settings, such as those that were used during the two World Wars.
What to need to get started
Let’s admit it: working too much from home can be insanely boring. However, it can be beneficial for us. For one thing, it has provided us time to catch up with our self-care habits. Also, it has provided more time for those who want to utilize their spare time to learn hobbies!
If you’re working from home, we suggest allotting one or two hours of time for this hobby. Just like any form of hobby, building RC models may take time to get used to.
If you’re dabbling into this hobby, the first thing you need to understand is that model kits come in different levels of difficulty:
Skill level 1: Simple, snap-together pieces that don’t require third-party equipment like paint or glue
Skill level 2: Easy model kits that require gluing and painting. One kit usually comes with less than 100 pieces.
Skill level 3: These model kits contain small, more detailed parts and usually have more than 100 pieces.
Skill level 4: Crafted for advanced hobbyists. These model kits contain more intricate parts that go over 100 pieces.
Skill level 5: Model kits for this level are developed for expert modellers. They have super detailed parts that go beyond hundreds of pieces, which often include moving parts such as rotating propellers for aircraft, working suspension for automobiles and motorcycles, and movable turrets for tanks.
When buying your first model kit, we suggest starting with a skill-level-one model kit. Usually, model kits from this level require equipment such as a file and knife.! Especially if you have a kid in the household, we highly recommend a skill-level-1 model kit. Don’t worry, with adequate supervision, tools for model-building will be safe to use.
For those who have kids over 10 years old, go one level higher. Consequently, this is what we require for beginner adults who wish a more challenging start to their model-building hobby. From there, you can gradually increase the difficulty level once you get the hang of it.
However, if you want to skip the tedious part of putting materials together, we recommend buying a ready-made RC vehicle. Take a look at notable brands like Traxxas, Tamiya, and SGOTA for RC cars. If you prefer RC planes, we recommend Hobbico, HobbyZone, ParkZone, Hangar 9, and Great Planes. You can squeeze in time for your hobby before heading to work, just when the sun is about and out. Do it in your backyard because driving or flying RC vehicles require adequate space for you to enjoy the whole experience.