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Heads Up to all forum members
Hey gang-
Sorry I've been pretty invisible on the forums. Rest assured I'm alive and well, just completely occupied with work and family. About a month ago, I realized I needed a break (from day to day "priorities") and needed the escape that modeling and this forum give me. The bench is tidied up and I have an unfinished project to complete. My intent is to get back to posting with some level of frequency and building along with everybody. One other thing I realized: I am NOT a scratch builder!
All that being said, that's not what this post is about. I wanted you to be aware of something that I now know was not unique to myself.
I received a very flattering email yesterday (oddly, sent to my work email address). It was overly complimentary of my skills and on one of my models in particular. The person explained that he saw my work on the internet. He lives in Russia and unfortunately has no way to get kits like those from Sierra West. They "don't sell such kits" in his country. It went on to ask, would I be so kind as to "scan the drawings and magazine" and send them by mail?
At first read, it seemed like a very sad tale: How unfortunate to live in a place where the government prevents you from buying the things you want and need to enjoy our hobby. So terrible!
A short time later, I got an email a from another modeler (a friend) who got a very similar message asking for the same thing. "Be careful, this sounds like a scam." Yes, it is. But it's not a typical internet scam.
The only people who get hurt by this scam are people like Brett (and other kit manufactures). While styles, eras, castings and components differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, one thing is consistant across the board: the templates, and instructions. Those pieces of paper summarize years of research, measuring, drawing, adapting, re-drawing and who knows how much other untold work & effort. They're the heart and soul of an individual craftsman kit. Sharing them or "helping out" a fellow modeller is denying the original manufacturer the opportunity to recoup a small piece of the process required to bring it to market.
In the past, I've had other people reach out to me asking if I'd sell my old templates, plans, instruction manuals, etc. from completed kits. I never do and I hope you won't either. A couple years ago I got an email asking for some templates. "Would you mind making me a copy because it's missing from my kit." Same answer: nope. Brett (and most likely ALL kit makers) will send missing parts just by asking. You might be saying "Well, there's a kit that I REALLY wanna build but it's out of production. I'd buy it if I could!" Again...reach out to Brett. I can't speak for him personally but I believe requests like this led to the birth of the Special Order Twin Mills kit. I hope I don't sound preachy or condescending. I'm all for sharing techniques, trading ideas and helping modelers advance their skills. But I also want to make sure this tiny little niche industry (SierraWest first and foremost!) continues to exist for a long long time.
C.C. Crow opened my eyes to this topic years ago. He published a bunch of articles that literally spelled out exactly how he manufactured his hydrocal kits. EVERYTHING that went into the process was all there to take in. The only thing missing was his creative element. Here's what he wrote:
"I must say something about copyrights. The key ingredient to all of this is the pattern work. It is unlawful to make copies of other peoples pattern work without their permission. Even if it is just for your own personal use. I need to speak firmly against all piracy. Please, make your own patterns. Contribute something to the hobby, don't steal it."
Sorry I've been pretty invisible on the forums. Rest assured I'm alive and well, just completely occupied with work and family. About a month ago, I realized I needed a break (from day to day "priorities") and needed the escape that modeling and this forum give me. The bench is tidied up and I have an unfinished project to complete. My intent is to get back to posting with some level of frequency and building along with everybody. One other thing I realized: I am NOT a scratch builder!
All that being said, that's not what this post is about. I wanted you to be aware of something that I now know was not unique to myself.
I received a very flattering email yesterday (oddly, sent to my work email address). It was overly complimentary of my skills and on one of my models in particular. The person explained that he saw my work on the internet. He lives in Russia and unfortunately has no way to get kits like those from Sierra West. They "don't sell such kits" in his country. It went on to ask, would I be so kind as to "scan the drawings and magazine" and send them by mail?
At first read, it seemed like a very sad tale: How unfortunate to live in a place where the government prevents you from buying the things you want and need to enjoy our hobby. So terrible!
A short time later, I got an email a from another modeler (a friend) who got a very similar message asking for the same thing. "Be careful, this sounds like a scam." Yes, it is. But it's not a typical internet scam.
The only people who get hurt by this scam are people like Brett (and other kit manufactures). While styles, eras, castings and components differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, one thing is consistant across the board: the templates, and instructions. Those pieces of paper summarize years of research, measuring, drawing, adapting, re-drawing and who knows how much other untold work & effort. They're the heart and soul of an individual craftsman kit. Sharing them or "helping out" a fellow modeller is denying the original manufacturer the opportunity to recoup a small piece of the process required to bring it to market.
In the past, I've had other people reach out to me asking if I'd sell my old templates, plans, instruction manuals, etc. from completed kits. I never do and I hope you won't either. A couple years ago I got an email asking for some templates. "Would you mind making me a copy because it's missing from my kit." Same answer: nope. Brett (and most likely ALL kit makers) will send missing parts just by asking. You might be saying "Well, there's a kit that I REALLY wanna build but it's out of production. I'd buy it if I could!" Again...reach out to Brett. I can't speak for him personally but I believe requests like this led to the birth of the Special Order Twin Mills kit. I hope I don't sound preachy or condescending. I'm all for sharing techniques, trading ideas and helping modelers advance their skills. But I also want to make sure this tiny little niche industry (SierraWest first and foremost!) continues to exist for a long long time.
C.C. Crow opened my eyes to this topic years ago. He published a bunch of articles that literally spelled out exactly how he manufactured his hydrocal kits. EVERYTHING that went into the process was all there to take in. The only thing missing was his creative element. Here's what he wrote:
"I must say something about copyrights. The key ingredient to all of this is the pattern work. It is unlawful to make copies of other peoples pattern work without their permission. Even if it is just for your own personal use. I need to speak firmly against all piracy. Please, make your own patterns. Contribute something to the hobby, don't steal it."
Comments
Ed—my building skills would allow me to be a decent scratch builder. What I lack is the ability to see a “path” to completion on projects. The logical plan laid out in a SierraWest kit is an intangible that can’t be underestimated!
Jerry