Neptune48

First thing, we need to shrink the lower 48 significantly so we can apply the UK model.

Mike, No, there is no requirement in the C&BLs for a banquet, but there is a requirement for an awards ceremony. At almost every venue, if you have a banquet, you get the room for free. The venue makes their money on the food and beverages. If you don't have a banquet, you have to hire a room for $12,000 to $15,000 if memory serves. That would add around $15 to every registration, assuming 1,000 registrants. West coast conventions are usually a little smaller, so the price per person could go up more. It doesn't appear the folks who are willing to pay for the banquet mind that they are subsidizing the awards ceremony. When my job permitted me to go to the Nats, I always attended the banquet and considered it money well spent for an enjoyable evening. I would suspect that moving the awards to a different room from the banquet negates the advantage of having a banquet, as the awards ceremony room would be an additional charge. Regards, Bruce

I'd call them "retired." Bruce

Excellent! I hope Pat doesn't mind me contacting him a second time.

Might I suggest, the more often someone posts on these Forums, the less time they spend building models. I'd personally make the level titles unrelated to actual model building. Perhaps some reference to verbosity...

Tom, I cannot disclose information about IPMS members without their permission, but I have forwarded your email address (as you gave your permission above), and a link to this thread, to the email address I have for Mr. Donohue. I only check the Forums on an irregular basis. In future, I recommend you contact either me or MJ Kinney using the email links in the Officer Directory. She and I both respond to emails as quickly as we can. Regards, Bruce Briggs Membership Secretary IPMS 42672

Ron, 47528 is your correct number. Regards, Bruce Briggs Membership Secretary

Dick, These all worked well. I think the top coat is Alclad Polished Aluminum. Note the Mr. Surfacer base does not yield a high shine. Not shown, but one I discovered after making this test shot, is Model Master Automotive Black Gloss Lacquer. It works very well. Some people have had issues with the Alclad 2 Gloss Black Base not drying. The only time I had a problem was when it thinned it with lacquer thinner. Thinned with MEK, it went on well and dried quickly. You're not supposed to thin it in the first place, but I did and the results were good. The "High Shine" colors that require a gloss black base are to get the maximum reflection are: Chrome Polished Aluminum Aircraft Aluminum Stainless Steel Titanium Gold Polished Brass Chrome for Lexan Mirrored Gold for Lexan The latter two are for lexan RC car bodies. All the other Alclad colors need a good primer. Mr. Surfacer 1200 has always worked well for me. The F-104G below from 2007 is mostly Polished Aluminum over Alclad Gloss Black Base. Regards, Bruce

Welcome aboard, Gary! Glad to have you among the fold. Regards, Bruce Briggs IPMS 42672 Membership Secretary

Mark, I was there from April 1969 to December 1970, so our tours overlapped. Talk to you via e-mail. We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread... Regards, Bruce

That's pretty amazing. When I enlisted in the Navy (December 1967) both the Air Force and the Coast Guard were full up. Of course, the Army, and even the Marines (or so I have heard), were drafting. The USAF was considered white glove duty, even compared to life aboard floating gray steel coffins, and it surprises me that they would have openings while the Navy didn't. I used to see those black-bellied B-52s fly past NAVCOMSTA Guam on final. Occasionally, when the weather changed, they would fly past on departure instead, usually preceded by a screaming KC-135 or two. Pretty exciting stuff for us rear-echelon types. Later I served briefly in a DE (later called a frigate), but that was much closer to submarine duty than air ops. Regards, Bruce

From what I've read from the experts, everyone here has given you good advice, but may I suggest the more relevant term is cured rather than dry. There's a difference between dry to the touch and chemically cured, and what everyone here is driving at is the latter. A good rule of thumb is if the paint on the model is still giving off an odor, it's not cured yet. Regards, Bruce

Okay, thanks. Bruce

Thanks. Do you use CA or epoxy to attach styrene parts to it?