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Keeping Tabs...; Caution, geek content!
Topic Started: Dec 31 2013, 03:29 PM (718 Views)
desmojen
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Iwata Goddess
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Hi all, I was just looking at my tally for this year, and wondered if anyone else keeps tabs on their own buying and building over the year?

I never used to at first, and then one year a certain Merlin Jones (some will know exactly who I mean) put a load of stats in his end of year post gleaned from what he called his A-B list. His list was basically Acquired vs Built, but I added an extra column to mine for Disposed of.

So what I do every year is copy my Excel spreadsheet design for a new year with three pages, one each for Acquired, Built and Disposed of. Then every time I buy a kit I pop it in there, every time I finish one I do the same, and every time I sell one - in it goes. Doing this allows me to see whether my stash is trending upwards or not, and also allows me to remember what I've built because I guarantee I wouldn't otherwise!

That brings me on to this years stats, and here they are.

I acquired 20 kits this year, which is an all time low I think! The cost of those 20 kits was £335, and here's the interesting part (maybe)
Of that 20 kits, I have already sold on 3. I obviously didn't really want them then......
Of the 20, I have actually built 2 :lol:

On to built. I have built 11 kits this year (and modified one). 5 of those built kits came from the stash. Again, that is pretty good going, as many of my builds are magazine or commission related they more often than not do nothing to shrink the stash pile!

The big one this year for me was disposal. I have massively shrunk the pile this year by selling off. A lot of the kits sold I really didn't want to sell, but I decided that a big stash was stupid so I did it. Anything that was rare, or would be hard to get hold of in future I kept, along with kits that were worth more to me than the ££££'s I'd get for them on the second hand market.
All in all I passed on 172 kits, for a total of £1615. Most of that cash went on a combination of a new car, a new mountain bike and expensive accessories for Baby Ruth.

When you add it all together the big picture is that my stash is 151 kits smaller than it was this time last year. I haven't properly inventoried what's left, but it is now around 75 kits. Much more sensible :)

Jen.
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Harriet
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Advanced Member
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Quote:
 
Caution, geek content!


You weren't joking were you? I am impressed that you keep such good tabs on everything ... I intend to either 'write a spreadsheet' or 'construct a database' and then sit in the attic and log what we've got :wooo: but it will have to be done in warmer times (well that's my excuse every year, when I think of it anyway).

I've wondered about the buy/build ratio, but put it firmly to the back of my mind because it scares me :(

On a really personal note - it all depends on whether I'm off on a tangent that lasts a while, or not. If I'm enjoying something I will buy kits as I see them, thus ruining any planning or sense of reality in my stash.

So, there you go: "My name is Harriet and I'm addicted to buying plastic" B) and I love it :wub:
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Rocketman1995
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KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN
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I would add another column/page: One's I've started building about 2 years ago but still haven't finished
Edited by Rocketman1995, Dec 31 2013, 05:17 PM.
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desmojen
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Iwata Goddess
[ *  *  * ]
It's one of those things isn't it. If it doesn't matter to you, then it doesn't matter. When I packed all my stash into boxes to move house, I catalogued it as I went so that I would know where everything was. It was at that point that I looked at the pile of boxes and felt a bit ashamed, as with them all in one place it became obvious just how much there was!
I'll be renewing my spreadsheet at some point in the next few weeks so if anyone wants a copy for their own use, just let me know. I'm sure there's a way it can be attached to the forum for downloading :shrug:

Jen.
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The Hooded Claw
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Advanced Member
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My summary:

Far too many in
Far too few out.

The End.
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Rory
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Advanced Member
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Your supposed to build them?
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peebeep
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Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious
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The Hooded Claw
Dec 31 2013, 06:22 PM
My summary:

Far too many in
Far too few out.

The End.
:like:

The cap fits me!

peebeep
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Floyd
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I like to mottle things.
[ *  *  * ]
I build at a rather slow rate, but I have a system I must build at least 6 kits a year (I just hit my mark, close run thing though) I actually only bought perhaps 7 kits this year, and I got 5 as presents, so for me a very small year. Next year will be even tighter as I am now building my stash which currently sits at the 150 or so mark. Trying to up the build rate and reduce the buying rate to a level of 5 kits a year. Not an easy thing, but stash is too large. However the bonus is that I have culled it to kits that I actually want, having disposed of a fair few that were mere whim buys.

I would also like to point out that a good 1/3 of my stash is 109s in various scales.
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Walrus
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A bristle short of a full brush
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Poor year for me even my my own standards.
It started well with lots of good intent, but my energy and motivation bombed out around February/March and I never recovered any momentum.

My only completed build (Matchbox Grumman Panther started 2011) lasted about a month before the cat decided to play North Korean AA and shot the model down off the bookcase :(

The in-tray filled up rather too quickly to put the balance sheet further into the red. I made a lot of purchases thanks to Airfix's 2013 release schedule. The listings don't look as interesting for 2014 if I can resist the Blenheims.

Overall my year was very disappointing. But I would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate everyone for posting their finished works on L&C. Even if I was disappointed in my own performance it has been a real delight to be able to take pleasure seeing the successes of others! :bow:


Edited by Walrus, Jan 1 2014, 05:05 PM.
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Grant
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Italian correspondent
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I have been using Excel to keep tabs of models in the stash/built and dates.

I am currently evaluating "StashMate" as a slightly geekier means of keeping track.

At the moment it looks like it will be quite helpful during a build, as photos/URLs/files can all be linked to an entry and it prompts you for all the necessary info as you enter a new kit. There is a CSV import function which I have yet to try which, if it works, will save a lot of typing for all the 'old' stuff in the loft.

The downside so far apears to be a lack of date inputs for build time, the fact that every kit (completed or not) is counted as part of the stash - when completed ones are clearly not - and that I don't seem to be able to tell it which browser to use.

The upside is decals, PE, resin can all be grouped with a kit - so I will remember in 5 years time what I planned to do with those decals! It's various outputs and the search should also help me remember what extras I have, which will be a big help.

So far, worth working with (especially as it is free) and we'll see how it goes.

108 in the stash, 5 per year 10 year average - but the stash isn't getting any smaller!

cheers

Grant

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MikeC
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Too many SIGs for my own good
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I'm afraid I've gone for the total IT geek experience, and constructed myself a database. It keeps track of planned models and what kit, decals etc I need to build them; manages the shopping list which I can print off by item or subject; lists the completed models, which box they're stored in and how long they took to build (elapsed time, not actual modelling time, perhaps that's a future upgrade?); keeps track of sales and other disposals of items; and records when I've binned a model.

I was a software and database designer in a previous life, I started it many years ago and it's evolved over the years. For my fellow IT geeks, it's a proper TNF structure implemented in MS Access using lots of Vbasic and SQL.

Yes, I know I should probably get a life, but I'm quite happy with the one I've got thanks. ;)
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Johni044
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Advanced Member
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I'll have a geek moment then, apologies in advance. Yes I use Excel to track my stash/completed models. In short it's a simple table with the following headings.
Manufacturer eg Airfix
Make eg English Electric
Model eg Canberra PR9
Kit Number
Scale
Year bought eg 2010
Cost
Year started
Year finished
Comments eg Xmas present, flying hour redemption, after market items purchased

Now the geeky bit, highlight the headings then click on "format" then "autoformat" and excel puts drop down arrows in the headings. Click on this and the variables in the column are displayed so if I click 2013 in the year started it will only display those kits bought in 2013. If I click on "non blanks" it would show all the kits I've started and if I then click on "blanks" in the finished column it would show only kits I've a started but not finished. To return to the full sheet click "all" on any filtered columns ( the arrows turn blue when a filter is in operation)

To further add to my geek credentials, kits in the shelf of doom are in white bold text on a red background, kits currently being actively worked on are in bold red text. Completed kits Re bold black on a green background with completion dates and a hyperlink to a photo of the completed kit.

A total in the cost column helps my insurance valuation and I keep this up to date after price rises. ( I also increase it by about 15% when built to cover materials used)

Oh my stash is on Scalemates as well.

I thank you (switch adenoid voice of, return to "normal" mode.

John.
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The Hooded Claw
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Advanced Member
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I really must get around to listing my stash.

It scares me though when i consider the numbers.

THC
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desmojen
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Iwata Goddess
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Not just me then. I feel a little better now :)

I found the notepad I had written everything in last time I did stash selling (Telford). I wrote down everything that was left as I repacked it. I've now copied that all into a new sheet, and I am quite gratified that it would seem that my stash is now a measly 69 kits strong. This doesn't include a few kits that are well in progress, but then there are still a few that I'd like to pass on. So 75 all in is about right :D

Jen.
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heraldcoupe
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Advanced Member
[ *  *  * ]
I did pretty well in shifting about 65-70 kits between the kitswap at Telford and a handful through ebay. I really ought to spreadsheet them though, I have a good handle on what kits I have, but the decals, resin and etch often get overlooked.

I quite like the idea of cataloguing what I've got, but it worries me what might happen if the information fell into the wrong hands. The loft is my domain, no-one else goes there to see what I have.....

Cheers,
Bill.
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The Hooded Claw
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Advanced Member
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MikeC
Jan 4 2014, 06:54 AM
I'm afraid I've gone for the total IT geek experience, and constructed myself a database. It keeps track of planned models and what kit, decals etc I need to build them; manages the shopping list which I can print off by item or subject; lists the completed models, which box they're stored in and how long they took to build (elapsed time, not actual modelling time, perhaps that's a future upgrade?); keeps track of sales and other disposals of items; and records when I've binned a model.

I was a software and database designer in a previous life, I started it many years ago and it's evolved over the years. For my fellow IT geeks, it's a proper TNF structure implemented in MS Access using lots of Vbasic and SQL.

Yes, I know I should probably get a life, but I'm quite happy with the one I've got thanks. ;)
Occurs to me that some of us might like a proprietary version of that database!

THC
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Drewe
Amused To Death
[ *  *  * ]
The Hooded Claw
Dec 31 2013, 06:22 PM
My summary:

Far too many in
Far too few out.

The End.
Word!
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Mike W
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Hook down, wheels down... call the ball
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:arid:
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peebeep
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Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious
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Much as I'm impressed with some of the geek credentials expressed above (MikeC, you're on a level of your own mate!), there are factors that mitigate against this whole idea for me:
1. My working days are geekish, it's nice to escape for a bit.
2. Compiling my stash database would use up all the spare time for the rest of my life.
3. My stash is mine, all mine, my preciousssssssss....

:gollum:

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Harriet
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Advanced Member
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peebeep
Jan 4 2014, 11:04 PM
Much as I'm impressed with some of the geek credentials expressed above (MikeC, you're on a level of your own mate!), there are factors that mitigate against this whole idea for me:
1. My working days are geekish, it's nice to escape for a bit.
2. Compiling my stash database would use up all the spare time for the rest of my life.
3. My stash is mine, all mine, my preciousssssssss....

:gollum:

:thumbsup:

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