user63: There have been various anime and manga on Gundam models and model building. Model building is also a big part of otaku culture.
Is the discussion of Gundam models or model/figures or the activity of building them (as long as they are based on anime or manga series, like Patlabor, Full Metal Panic, or Evangelion) considered on topic on this site?

user93: As long as it sticks to anime and doesn't stray too much into purely otaku culture or ends up with too many questions about non-anime figures, it doesn't seem like it should be too much of a problem. That being said, it should probably be done only on a trial run and we should see if there are good questions being asked. 

user24: This is a pretty big area, and I think it should be allowed in our scope. We aren't at any risk of getting overrun by these sorts of questions, and it is something  that many Otaku are interested in.
However, I think we should draw the line somewhere. If the question is about figures/models in general, and not anime figures specifically, it should not be on this site. We should only be entertaining questions which are anime-specific in some sense. Furthermore, the questions we allow should be about the models themselves, not the process of building them, because this rarely has much to do with anime (in the rare cases that the question is anime-specific and about building, it can be allowed). I think this is roughly analagous to our policy on questions about anime-style and anime-inspired games, where gameplay questions aren't allowed but questions about the plot are. I'd also invite model-builders to start their own SE site dedicated to the topic which can handle the more technical questions of the field. 
Update: see this Area51 proposal, which would cover aspects of model-building in depth.
I'd like to also suggest that not only Gunpla and figures, but all anime merchandise be allowed under the same rules. This is not inviting questions like "Where can I buy figures cheaply?" or "What online stores will ship anime merchandise to Azerbaijan?". Those sorts of questions are not constructive on any SE site. However, if someone wants to ask "What flavors are the Evangelion cakes?" then I think that's a valid question (though a bit silly).

63: <p>There have been various <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTQYAsUMGFg" rel="nofollow">anime</a> and manga on Gundam models and model building. Model building is also a big part of otaku culture.</p>

<p>Is the discussion of Gundam models or model/figures or the activity of building them (as long as they are based on anime or manga series, like Patlabor, Full Metal Panic, or Evangelion) considered on topic on this site?</p>
 93: <p>As long as it sticks to anime and doesn't stray too much into purely otaku culture or ends up with too many questions about non-anime figures, it doesn't seem like it should be too much of a problem. That being said, it should probably be done only on a trial run and we should see if there are good questions being asked. </p>
 24: <p>This is a pretty big area, and I think it should be allowed in our scope. We aren't at any risk of getting overrun by these sorts of questions, and it is something  that many Otaku are interested in.</p>

<p>However, I think we should draw the line somewhere. If the question is about figures/models in general, and not anime figures specifically, it should not be on this site. We should only be entertaining questions which are anime-specific in some sense. Furthermore, the questions we allow should be about the models themselves, not the process of building them, because this rarely has much to do with anime (in the rare cases that the question is anime-specific and about building, it can be allowed). I think this is roughly analagous to our <a href="https://anime.meta.stackexchange.com/q/415/24">policy on questions about anime-style and anime-inspired games</a>, where gameplay questions aren't allowed but questions about the plot are. I'd also invite model-builders to start their own SE site dedicated to the topic which can handle the more technical questions of the field. </p>

<p><strong>Update: see <a href="http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/53561/scale-models?referrer=8bWeKh32B7u-FbGCwdfNRw2">this Area51 proposal</a>, which would cover aspects of model-building in depth.</strong></p>

<p>I'd like to also suggest that not only Gunpla and figures, but all anime merchandise be allowed under the same rules. This is <strong>not</strong> inviting questions like "Where can I buy figures cheaply?" or "What online stores will ship anime merchandise to Azerbaijan?". Those sorts of questions are not constructive on any SE site. However, if someone wants to ask "What flavors are the <a href="http://zotaku.com/2012/07/17/these-evangelion-cakes-pretty-interesting-and-expensive/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Evangelion cakes</a>?" then I think that's a valid question (though a bit silly).</p>
