Dumping your vintage r/c collection.

[N2Deep]

Well, I realize that a lot of people were dumping their r/c collection in this bad economic times. When you can get a Tamiya Juggernaut 2 for $200 u.S. dollar, that tells me that some people are really struggling to make ends meet, including yours truly here. Recently today, the senate house is revamping Medicare and Social Security. The gist of it is to limit medicare for people and to reduce social security income...Yes Reduce, while the price of food is going high and unemployment is getting worse (10.5% and going up). To see that a year ago, the price of gold for 1 ounce is worth $900 and then today's value is at $1300, I'm really beginning to feel that something is not right here. If the U.S. government is paying 37 cents per dollar they use (base on yahoo's article) back to the Federal Reserve then why do we need them, and don't they understand that the Federal Reserve is raping the people blindly. I understand that the government is solely working for the big corporations and under the rulership of the Federal Reserve but are we to become slaves lest a third world country? Well, at any rate, I'm sure everyone here is affected by this global meltdown...and the question stand: Should I or we let go of our hobby now or should we keep it and hope that everything is going to get better? I'm seriously thinking about letting go of this hobby and just concentrate my life on the bigger things of life, including studying the Scriptures for what's to come of the afterlife; of course through the Hebrew perspective. Shalom. If any man feels the pain, let him speak.

[peetbee]

Well, from my perspective, I've had to reduce my collection considerably recently, I struggle to afford tyres for the ones I have and only race at the local club now.
But the hobby has more than a simple $ value to me. The enjoyment I get from tinkering and chatting to rc buddies at the track lets me forget about the rest of life for a little while!
(plus a little smug satisfaction when you beat someone with no limit to their budget!)

[michi]

Interesting contribution. I would like to be not too much underlying philosophical. But it is not the little things in life that really matter? No doubt. If my child has to give up something important about my hobby, I have to change something. Then I'd sell my collection immediately. But the hobby itself, I would not give up on it. It is often the hobby room, which forecloses me against many things that run wrong out there.

[kaiser]

you can't "let the hobby go", it will leave you unfulfilled. selling part of a collection is one thing but bailing out completely is crazy.
for me it is anyway, it's the one thing that i have that gives me a little peice of mind.

[civilguy]

I have to agree with the general sentiment here-- rc is something that lets me escape. We don't have a lot materially... my wife stayed home with the kids and her return to the workplace coincided with this downturn so she's still looking for employment while pursuing a photography career/business (which no one has disposable income for-- vicious circle). I am lucky enough to be able to pay the bills and keep my family fed, clothed and safe. Typically my trading/selling pays for any new rc items I may want to get or close to it.

Evenings when my mind wanders it's nice to sit down and build a kit or tear down an old reliable friend to refocus my energies away from the burden of everyday life.

[jwscab]

There is no clear cut answer to what is going to happen, because greed will never die. apathy and laziness will also prevent a mass mindset change too, so that's where we are (and right where the gov and those in power want YOU). As long as hardworking people get paid nothing, while high profile athletes and bankers can rake in multiple lifetime savings of 'normal working class' people in just one year(or months!), you will have this distorted system.

back to the important stuff:

Don't dump your whole collection thinking it will be a positive change because you want it to be. If you are truly bored and tired of the hobby, by all means, ship it all out....

you have to keep something that you enjoy, and if RC is it, then that is what it is......if you already have the collection, and don't owe on it, it's yours....you need an outlet to keep your sanity.....

if you need to offload some of the collection to pay bills, then don't hesitate.

and I also agree with you on the point that if your child/children are lacking due to a hobby or frivolous activity, then that is a problem. And I'm not talking like 'little johnny can't have an unlimited text plan because daddy needs a new lipo', hahhhahhah.....that line of thinking is part of the problem in this country right now....too many 'expected's, and not enough 'earned'

[Mr. ED]

apathy and laziness will also prevent a mass mindset change too

You forgot 'egocentricity' and that actually covers both and many more aspects that flow direct from it. Unfortunately egocentricity is also a kind of basic instinct intricic to every human-being, life-preservation driven in some cases.
Who really believes people struggling for enough food care much about others, leave alone things like global warming?
Us still hanging on to diserving to have a hobby that costs money and striving to keep that collection growing. I feel ashamed of this sentiment and such statements when I see real third world images with kids dieing because their parents can't afford medicine or clean water.
We're all spoiled brats, and like all spoiled children we'll be unhappy when it's no longer possible to keep up our standards.
Painful words and thoughts, liuckily we have our hobby to make them go away

[proffesso]

i dumped mine once, not even realizing what half the stuff I had was...never again. things of sentimental value (to me, these cars that I raced, or wanted but couldnt get as a kid) is worth it.

recently had a son, so im even more determined to keep it all, so one day he can ask me what car to bring down off the shelf to take on weekends

yeah it costs money, but for me its worth it. (im pretty sparing with kits...only have 1 of everything I want, I dont feel the need to own 14 rc10's) so its not too bad

[jwscab]

yeah, you ain't kiddin'.....I take a giant step back sometimes and say....what am I doing with all these toy cars? You are very accurate with your description Ed.

unless I could PHYSICALLY take food and water and anything else to those impoverished, my efforts to help would probably never get there I fear.

[Charlie don't surf]

too

We're all spoiled brats, and like all spoiled children we'll be unhappy when it's no longer possible to keep up our standards.

This mindset was founded with our generation, our parents wanted us to have all that they didn't have as children and as a result they babied us until we were in out early 20's ( post college ) then
continued to make sacrifices and excuses for us until our late 20's. The important thing now IMO is to break the cycle of entitlement that we were given through our own children.

[Johnboy72]

Well this guy is coming to realization that something has to give in my hobbies. I'm on the verge of moving the whole family from GA to NY and buying a house. However now I'll have to get my second vehicle/project truck running. I'll take a hit for a little while until I recover. I've realized to help offset machine shop and rebuilding costs, I'm going to sell some of my collection. I'm going to keep the dirtoval stuff and the vintage Kendrick sprint car collection. I may sort thru the newly aquired parts and tools and sell what isn't needed. It sucks as I don't want to get rid of anything, but such is life.

[N2Deep]

Johnny, I heard that Atlanta, Georgia had to shut off the lights on the highway so that the city can save money on the utility bill. Those lights were providing ambience to the highway system that were at times 10 lanes across both directions. Now for the city to do that, it just tells me that something ain't right. Plus, I also saw that there were hundreds of thousands of black plastic "caskets" just right outside of Atlanta. The owner of the land who leased this property took a stranger on a tour and it's amazing that there were so many of these plastic tubs. These tubs were about 6 ft long and about 4ft x 4ft. It even had covers for them. Like I said, something isn't adding up here. Am I paranoid, but to think that the government of Japan want to pay outsiders to go back to their country for a few thousand dollars and while yours truly here was working a short time at an aluminum foundry company only to find out that Honda is taking a good size of work back to Japan tells me that they were already preparing for the shortage of work. That was two years ago. So I might consider moving to Australia because that is where Oprah and her fans are going.

[civilguy]

hundreds of thousands of black plastic "caskets" just right outside of Atlanta.

That part lost me... what were the caskets?

[Johnboy72]

I'm in Iraq so don't know what's up with Atlanta. I'm not from GA. But that's pretty sad that they had to turn the lights out. Think they would have did something solar powered. As far as the caskets, you lost me on that too. Where did you get this info?

[kaiser]

we "plan" on selling our house next year so we can move closer to famliy. same state just a few towns closer.

i'm selling my real race car for tow reasons, one is that i don't have time for it (my wife is blind and we have a 16 month old son) and 2 is because i like racing my rc's more then my real car. sounds crazy but between the $$ and time real racing needs it makes rc seem cheap.