You will sometimes hear the phrase shake-the-box model kit on a modeling forum or a train forum. But what does the phrase shake the box kit mean? What does it refer to? Hint: It doesn’t refer to the noise it makes when you shake the box.
What is a shake-the-box kit?
Shake the box kit is a bit of a pejorative referring to plastic model kits, frequently made of styrene, that are designed to be easy to assemble, and sometimes snap together without the need for glue. The phrase comes from an allegation that if you just shake the box, there is a reasonable chance the parts will just assemble themselves.
That is an exaggeration, but some model kits are extremely easy to put together. The Plasticville ranch house in O/S scale, for example, is just six pieces: four walls, a roof, and a chimney. And while you can glue Plasticville, you usually don’t need to.
When my dad got his trains out of storage in the mid-1980s, I was able to assemble all of his old Plasticville buildings without any difficulty, and without any instructions. They didn’t put themselves together as they fell out of the box of course. But it didn’t take much effort for me to put them together. I built a lot of models as a kid so I had a bit of skill. Or at least I’d like to think I did. But didn’t need it.
I’ve frequently heard this phrase used to describe Plasticville. But any number of plastic model kits, especially kits aimed at beginning modelers that just snap together, get derided sometimes as shake-the-box kits.
The purpose of them was never to be museum quality pieces or when any awards, but they are easy to assemble and relatively inexpensive, allowing a hobbyist of any skill level to build a model to use as is or provide a basis for customization.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.