Most common mistakes new builders make.

# 1 problem: Rushing things.
New builders tend to get very excited ( I know I did) and rush through their builds.
#2 problem: Estimating build times wrong.
I still do this. If you think it will take you a day to finish something, plan for it to take 2. This also feeds back into problem #1.
 
Been mentioned before but, change out of good clothes, too many tines have I thought 'oh I'll be super careful, I can get this tiny bit done before we go out'
I'm changing clothes before I know it, much to my wife's dismay.
 
Never be afraid to start over.
I have had a few things half way done and not going the way I intended or thought so I just started over (normally after a small cool down period hahaha). It is not wasted time or wasted material it is building experience :)
 
Filler primer and sandpaper/sanding sponges of all grits are gold.

A lot of new builders sort of just assume that primer doesn't do anything, but that's mostly because they assume that it's used like spray paint. It's not a final coat, prime your surface, sand it, prime it again, sand it with a higher grit, prime it again, higher grit still, prime it then wet sand that puppy. It's night and day.

...The other advantage of the cycle of priming is that friends and family will think you're crazy when they watch you seemingly do the same task over and over and over again. They tend not to ask many questions after that.

-Nick
 
Let's see...

Have a clear plan with all the reference images/drawings and diagrams (and estimated cost) finalized before you start.

Know your materials! If working with something new, research it first. Make sure all the materials are compatible (it is a sad day when you ruin something because of poor material knowledge).

Don't underestimate a project (time, effort, or cost).

And don't overcomplicate it either! That's even worse (I do this too often) makes more pointless work in the long run for a sometimes less than ideal end result than if you did it more straightforward. Innovation is great, but to a degree.

Don't be afraid to fail, because if you toss a project in your reject bin you've probably learned what led you down that road and can avoid that next try. :lol
 
well ive been doing this a little while now so i recon i could single-handedly fill this thread with things not to do! trying not to quote everything everyone else has said, my main points are
1.spend your time researching the prop, methods, previous work, best materials, techniques, best and cheapest places to source stuff and spend time getting to know sites like ebay like the back of your hand! you will need them!!!!
2. do not buy the cheapest tools, brushes and paints you can, you will only hate them and need to replace them!
3. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE TIME OR PRICE! DOUBLE YOUR ESTIMATES AND BE PREPARED!
4.buy safety gear. just do it.
5. you can never measure something too many times
6. citadel paints are gorgeous! and have some of the best golds i have ever used
7. if your interested in going pro, a good camera is the way to go and spend some time sorting a photo booth
IMG_0869.JPGView attachment George2.jpg
8. and finally before a basically write a whole novel on my mistakes... superglue may not stick everything but it will stick you to everything and hot glue is actually quite hot!
 
When you get frustrated that things aren't going how you expected...STOP. Just stop and walk away. If you get worked up trying to fix a problem you probably won't think it through all the way and then bugger it up even more. Then the piece gets thrown across the shop and you have to make a new piece AND patch the drywall. Take a day or so and think through what happened, why, and then multiple ways you can fix it.
 
Chrgr440RT said:
When you get frustrated that things aren't going how you expected...STOP. Just stop and walk away. If you get worked up trying to fix a problem you probably won't think it through all the way and then bugger it up even more.
Click to expand...

This, so much this! The number of things I ruined because I just kept building on mistakes and frustrations kills me anytime I think about it. Sometimes walking away from it for a bit will not only help re-center you mentally to go back and get it done right, it can often help you see a new way to do it even better.

I did a lot of stuff that had hard deadlines on them and I would end up working until the wee hours of the morning the day the item was due/needed to be shipped because of having to fix and re-fix mistakes I made out of frustration because I thought I had to just keep pushing through to meet the deadlines. But when I started finally recognizing when things were going downhill, and learning to just take a breath, step away for a bit, then go back to it, I was finishing things ahead of deadlines because I wasn't spending all of the extra time trying to fix what I messed up (or starting completely over from scratch).

It also ties back into what others have said about patience. There were plenty of times that those mistakes started happening because I was impatient. Wanting to lay down another layer of paint before the previous was dry, trying to sand apoxie before it fully cured, and other things like that.

In the long run, you end up saving time by taking your time.
 
OB10 said:
Document. Write things down. Take photos.
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This is really important. If you are going to follow someone else's build go through the thread and create your own how to guide from it. From the ones that I've followed the first post left out a tremendous amount of detail, which was revealed through people asking questions. So take all of that knowledge and consolidate. Then when you do your build be diligent in writing down your steps and what you bought, for how much. I also agree with someone else who said if you thought it would be cheaper to build it yourself versus buying it. Generally cheaper to buy. I did a project where I could have bought the kit for $100 and thought I could make for $20, ended up spending $60 and failing, then just bought the kit.
 
Ask for forgiveness not permission :angel. coming from married guy of 18 years. Just buy the tools and supplies you need a little at a time, but kind of hard to hide the big stuff. I came home with a table saw one night and just told my wife to just not ask. of course she did, a man needs his toys.

Bayouwolf said:
Always clear the re-purposing of old bath towels or seemingly broken kitchen utensils with your significant other/roommate BEFORE you start working with them in your shop.

Also, probably a good idea to not say anything at this point if you have indeed broken that rule and the item in question hasn't been missed yet...
Click to expand...
 
This is all some fantastic advice.
Something that stuck out for me this week was listening to the Still Untitled podcast and one of the episodes they talked about not buying tools you don't know how to use. I'd say the same thing about bulk materials. To any first time builder I can't emphasize enough the need to understand your materials before you go out and buy them. If you're unfamiliar with something then test it first make sure it's what you want to work with before spending the money on it.
I mostly build theatre props and sets and it's been a long period of discovery for me figuring out what materials I'm not only comfortable with but capable with. Too much time and money wasted on projects that could have been done smoother and cheaper.
 
I am so tickled with all the feedback!
Any little tidbit helps us "newbies". I am sooooo excited to get started, but I am doing all the preplanning I can to hopefully encounter less obstacles and (fingers crossed) build my first of many projects!
Thanks to everyone so far for the advise!
Thoramyre
 
One thing I find helpful is to have more than one project to work on at a time. So much of a good build involves waiting: for things to cure, to dry, to set, etc. Often you discover you have to buy or order something you may have forgotten in order to proceed, which also takes time out of the process. So if you have another project or two to jump into to fill those gaps, it works out well all around for each project and so much time isn't wasted and you never get overly anxious to work on something before each step is completed properly.
 
Rushing, I've done it so much. And because of it I have had to repeat steps or even restart projects because of it. So don't rush things, they'll come out sloppy, you'll miss steps, or with painting you can ruin the finish.
Another thing is keeping the work area clean and making sure everything gets back to where it started. It sucks when you forgot where you put a forstner bit when you are working on something and cant progress until you drill the hole with it. And accidentally ruining the finish on a project because you kicked up dust when you were walking around the shop.
And a big thing is I see so many people on youtube and boards, being extremely unsafe with chemicals and dust. I see way too many people not getting respirators to work with bondo and resins. A dust mask will not work, it won't filter out the organic vapors from resins and you are really going to hurt your lungs like that. And with sanding at least wear a dust mask, or just wear the respirator you should have again. Especially when sanding anything with fiber glass, WEAR A MASK. A lot of the stuff we work with is really harsh stuff and will eventually hurt you if you keep exposing yourself to it without any safety gear.
 
if you are going to build multiples of something, complete your prototype before buying the parts. I have a box with first 10 AA battery holders and then 10 AAA battery holders for a project that now cannot fit a battery inside and needs more power than a single battery can supply. So I just bought 35 Jameco DC power jacks... they should probably work ok.
 
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Set up your work area before fiberglassing with all needed materials BEFORE you mix your first batch of resin. Tear your fiberglass pieces and place them into piles, small-sized chunks, medium-sized chunks, large chunks. Wear nitrile gloves.

I see many people mentioned researching before committing to the build. I agree that this is very important, but I've often become entrapped in what's known as "analysis paralysis," where I realize that I could approach some aspect of a project is many different ways, so I research it to death hoping that the one best method will eventually emerge. I should have just picked the best option I had after a reasonable period of time and kept up the momentum of the project.

Take notes. I have often researched original props and come to certain realizations only to forget them later and have to research and discover it all over again because I didn't record my findings from before.

Realize that lens and parallax distortion exist, and that they suck. I've replicated many things from pictures, and because of these two types of distortion, I've made myself mad trying to come up with accurate dimensions of a single part using two different photographs of it.

There are more, but they've mostly been covered in the previous posts.
 
Before you cut, shape, glue, fill, sand or paint anything, think and be sure.

Then think again.

Then again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Only then do it.

Sanity will be preserved :lol
 
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