Dick Montgomery

ModelFiesta is scheduled for Feb 16th in San Antonio. It will be the 38th year for this annual event. Some 55,000 sq.ft of floor space is divided between the contest area (817 entries last year!) and the vendor area.... the table count for vendors fluctuates so I'm not sure of the count, somewhere between 125 and 140 tables. Go to the Alamo Squadron website at "www.alamosquadron.com" for particulars. Tony, you can find "local" chapters in South Texas by going to the IPMS website, select "ABOUT", and then select either "Region Map" or "Chapter Map". There are clubs in Houston, Galveston, El Paso, San Antonio, and Austin. Other clubs are a bit farther north. As for the 2020 Nats....San Marcos is 20 miles south of Austin and 40 miles north of San Antonio. As you probably know from your trips up and down I-35, its hard to figure out just where the boundaries are for Austin, San Marcos, and San Antonio. But that's in 2020, in the meantime focus on the Big Show in Chattanooga in August! Should be a killer show! By the way, Lake Charles, La has a contest this Sunday! Again, go to the IPMS website and look for the Event Calendar. The Lake Charles show is always a blast!

The "moving venue" is, in my view, an excellent approach. As Kevin mentioned, attendance at the convention can be built in to the "family summer vacation". Wife and I have visited all fifty states/state capitols/multiple National Parks and Monuments, State Parks, beaches, mountains, prairie land, and historic sites of all kinds as we travel to and from a Nats. This is a definite advantage that the current system has over a permanent and fixed location, or even two or three fixed locations. I would suggest that having a fixed location would result in the need for the hiring of a professional staff to plan and execute many of the administrative functions at a convention. Some immediate effects would be 1. conventions become more expensive with higher costs being placed on the attendees, and 2. a huge burden being placed on the nearby IPMS Chapters who would, year after year, be called upon to provide staff to run the convention activities. 3. Fewer participants would attend from those areas farther away from the convention, an issue that we currently experience, but that would be multiplied year after year as those out-of-towners loose interest in returning to the same city, or 2 or 3 cities, year after year. 4. I don't believe any research has been done in this area, but a sedentary venue would most probably result in a concentration of attendees within a single day's driving distance from the event, and an unintended concentration of winning entries from that same radius of attendance. Over a number of years such an issue could have a very negative impact on IPMS. The current system allows for any chapter, in any part of the country to offer a bid for one of two convention dates, either two years out or three years out. In many cases, bid preparation results in a number of chapters working together, leading to cooperation in other areas among those chapters in issues not related to a bid. The current system creates opportunities for attendees in the nearby area to volunteer their time during the convention, serving in staff positions. The fact that the convention will rotate to another part of the country means that these volunteers will not be expected to serve every year in these roles, and that others who cannot travel long distances to conventions will have the opportunity to serve on staff. The current system does not favor those living in an area that is close to the convention site year after year, benefiting from lower transportation costs. That particular happenstance rotates through the IPMS population due, in fact, to not having a permanent location. Clearly, my personal preference is to continue the current system which allows for bids from any chapter, located anywhere, relying on the Host chapter(s) to plan and execute a successful and enjoyable convention. And, at the same time, providing attendees the opportunity to visit a part of the country they've not visited before, or visit that part again due to the variety of sites and activities which call for a 2nd visit. I'm very much looking forward to going to the Chattanooga Convention in July/August of 2019. Wife and I have not visited Nooga and we've already got a list of places to eat and things to do on our way there, while on site, and on the way home.

Gracias.

I've built only a couple of WNW kits but they are excellent kits. The Pfalz kit is no exception. The decals are very easy to work with, the "fit" of the parts is exceptional, and the molding leaves no flash. WNW molded in the connection points for the turnbuckles. I purchased some Gas Patch turnbuckles (again, I've used them on other projects) and they are remarkable. I'll take a little break from models that require rigging, or at least as much rigging as the Pfalz, but my next WNW project will be a Sopwith Pup.

Yep. I was, indeed joking, but I believe your reply is correct.

For you airbrush experts.....what do you use to thin water?

Muy Bueno! There is an annual show in San Antonio, Tx in February. A number of modelers from the Monterrey area are annual participants. Perhaps you can join them and enter this excellent model in the contest?

That looks great! Looks like a fun project!

As for lack of skills....I have enough skill with the smart phone camera to hide the major flaws on the Pancake. As for the props..... They are not the "typical" laminated blades, at least the pics on the Interwebs does not show them with that stereotypical appearance. I studied the interweb pics, selected the Vallejo colors that I keep on hand for such work, and matched the pic colors to the Vallejo paint colors...……..more or less. I don't worry about exact match-ups. The blades were shot with a Tamiya yellow due to the fact that there are two yellow bands on the prop tips, and a large yellow "plate" at the base of each blade. The blades had the color bands on the tips applied in the usual fashion, with masking tape and airbrush. I masked over the white band on the prop tip in preparation for hand painting the wood effect. (I have a new appreciation of Tamiya tape!) I started "wooding" the blades with a thin coat of the lightest color, followed by applications of 3 different darker colors, all applied fairly thinned out. All the time I kept checking the interwebs pics (which, by this time I had downloaded to my laptop) to use as a reference, paying attention to the length, width, and intensity of the different colors in the pics, and trying to mimic those same lines on the blades. Once all the paint was dry I dipped each blade in Future and then set it aside to dry out. I avoided dipping the blade deep enough to get that metal plate at the bottom of each blade covered....wanted it to be fairly matt in appearance with some "chipping" of the yellow revealing a "metal" finish" to the plate, itself. Applied the "logo" decal, and gave each blade another Finish bath, and the result was...…...well, you see the result. I've done other Special Hobby kits and I find them to be well detailed, with a "fit" that is quite good. I've also found that if one doesn't study the instructions (not in English, but the universal language of drawings and illustrations) thoroughly, one will have trouble sooner or later. Decals were quite good. Not for the beginner, and it certainly challenged my skill level. Be careful with the canopy parts and don't stress them when removing them from the parts tree, or when masking them. They are a bit thin. Test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit, test fit. Did I mention its wise to test fit? Great Fun!...……..and quite tasty with Maple Syrup!

Just finished the Special Hobby V-173 Flying Pancake. It's a 48th scale kit and its a beauty. One needs to know that there are no locating pins/holes for the gear struts but there is engraved detail that clearly shows where the gear struts fit to the underside of the Pancake. Lots of excellent detail and a clean, tight fit. My building skills were not up to the task but the project was very enjoyable.

Don't forget Kent Black's BBQ right there in San Marcos. And also Hays County BBQ along the southbound lanes of I-35.

80% Tamiya Clear Flat + 20% Future.

Bookmarked and Thanks.

I use Tamiya Clear Flat with decent results.

Sorry for the delay in responding.... The insulators are cut from tubing (.005 diameter I think). This tubing is actually found in fishing gear departments of your local outdoor store. Lots of hobby stores carry it also. One just needs to "thread" the EZ line or antenna material thru the tubing.

Welcome from a retired teacher who now enjoys a 12 month "summer' vacation.

That's a great job on the rigging and turnbuckles.

Wow! Excellent workmanship and fantastic idea!

Thanks. It'll be in some of the local contests in our area over the next year so you'll get to see it in person. I'll be happy to explain how its easy to hide the flaws in the pics.

Thanks Bill. I really like these Accu Mini kits.

Thanks Doug. Issues- There are errors in part # identifications but they easy to work around. Cowl can be a problem as the fit to the fuselage is iffy, as is the fit of the engine into the cowl. Watch the installation of machine guns in the wings.....most likely the version you'll build will have only one wing mounted gun and that will be in the left wing. Be cautions when attaching the landing gear. The locating pins are small and easy to snap off, and the braces for the gear are difficult to place properly. Cockpit can be very difficult to assemble properly. "Fit" and placement of parts is difficult and instructions are of little help. "Fit" of the fuselage and wings is quite good with very little work on most of the seams. Pay attention to the back edge of the wing assembly where it fits on the fuselage. You're going to see a great deal of the interior after the project is finished so spend some extra time there. Placement of the instrument panel can be quite difficult. Kit masks and decals are excellent....at least in the kit I bought and built. Detail is excellent with lots of texture that is rather pleasing to the eye. Even with all the issues I thoroughly enjoyed the project. I have a couple of other Accu Mini kits that I'll put on the "To Do" list for later this year.

Wing walks are painted as is the single white fuselage stripe.

Just completed the SB2U-3 by Accurate Miniatures. Great detail, with a few "issues", but the end result is worth the small amount of trouble.

Mark said, "I will still build models to the best of my ability." Words to model by.