Pointing out the 19-cent price imprinted on the top of a jar of model paint he's still using, he said he must have bought that in the '70s. His most serious cash outlay is for the new bottle of clear fingernail polish he has to spring for every couple of years. Netsel also likes the challenge of working out the problems that arise as he executes his designs. Another thing Netsel enjoys about the hobby is that, because you design your own ships, you can decide just how meticulously detailed you want it to be. He once put a lifeboat on the back of one of his ships.
Some people design their ships to specific scales.
He's more relaxed about the process. He may work from fairly detailed specifications for a ship. Or he may work from nothing more than a picture in a magazine. Once, Netsel made a ship small enough to fit inside one of those miniature liquor bottles used on airplanes. But that's the last one.