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DavidBridges

IPMS/USA Member
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Everything posted by DavidBridges

  1. Will there be a display only category or area for the 2023 Nats? Didn’t see one listed for the 2023 categories. If there will be, will registration be any different from the usual categories (entry fee, registration process, etc.)?
  2. How was the build on this kit? I'm thinking of doing it next, out-of-box, as the prototype.
  3. Tim, I used to use Future mixed with Tamiya Flat, but now I use Vallejo Flat mixed about 50/50 with Tamiya X20A thinner. It dries very flat without any spots or specks.
  4. I'm 37 years old now, and I worked at a hobby shop in college in the late-90's early-00's. I can say for sure that we had lots of people my age and younger coming in to buy models. Most did not buy tanks,ships or figures, but airplanes, cars, and sci-fi (Gundams, Warhammer 40K, etc.) were all very popular. There was an especially large group of young people who came in to buy cars and some were really good modellers, too, even getting into scratchbuilding. But what they wanted was different than what I see at IPMS shows even now. The cars weren't muscle cars and NASCAR, but Honda Civics and Nissan Skylines. They would spend a lot of money, too, on upgrades like Dayton-style wheels, "hydraulic" kits, photo-etch, etc. Having grown up with video games and being part of the "younger" generation, I can say for sure the interest is out there. What they did not have was an interest in being part of IPMS. I was always the youngest modeller at the local IPMS club back then. Occasionally, someone would show up at a meeting, but I think the focus of IPMS was not to their liking. Some might call it critical, but I think most IPMS members enjoy research and history as much as model building. From my experiences in my teens and twenties, the interest was in building "cool" subjects along with your friends. The younger folks probably don't care about being super accurate or detailed, they just want to build models with their friends and socialize. Sitting around and talking about history and molding quality with people 20 or 30 years older than you just wasn't appealing to most teens and twenty-somethings. Just look at the Games Workshop/Warhammer scene to know what I mean. There's plenty of modelling going on there from all ages, and good stuff too, but it's very social. I was just an oddball who happened to love both history and the competitive aspect of model competitions. More than likely, IPMS will die a slow death, but modelling will stick around in one form or another. If the IPMS wants to survive, it will need to change - a lot. From what I have seen as a "background member" since around '97/'98, IPMS/USA seems very change adverse. Small changes, sure, but culture shift and change seem anathema. If IPMS wants to grow, it's culture must change. It's got to get more social. It's got to be more fun. Contests are great, and improving modelling skills is awesome, but not much about an IPMS contest, local or national, really helps develop skills or create fun if you're not already stuck in. Make it fun. Make it social. Create real ways to help people get more out of scale modelling without seeming overcritical. Do that, and IPMS/USA will grow regardless of what age group you focus on. Otherwise, I don't see much value in IPMS for the under 40 set unless you're an oddball like me. David
  5. Glad you asked this question, Tim. I've been wondering about parking as well.
  6. Chattanooga would be nice. Went to their local show a couple of years back and it was nice - a very well executed show. Very good venue, as well. The Tennessee aquarium is also a really great attraction to visit.
  7. Is there a special award connected to the 2016 Convention tagline, "Every model tells a story"? I didn't see anything on the Convention webpage, but it seems odd that the Convention would have a theme without a theme award.
  8. All kits are 1/48 and complete, unless otherwise noted. Asking price - $150 (includes shipping) Dragon 5501 Ta 152H-1 Dragon 5519 Me 262B-1a/U1 Dragon 5545 Fw 190A-7 w/ slipper tanks Dragon 5548 Ta 152C-0 Dragon 5509 Ju 88G-6 Nachtjäger Tamiya 61018 Mitsubishi J2M3 Raiden Tamiya 61070 Vought F4U-1A Corsair Tamiya 61089 North American P-51D “8th AF Aces” Tamiya 61064 Bristol Beaufighter Mk. VI night fighter Revell 855857 Sukhoi Su-25 “Frogfoot” Hasegawa 09946 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18D Hornet, VMFA-224(AW) CAG markings HobbyBoss 81705 Antonov AN-2 “Colt” Accurate Miniatures 0402 Fw 190A-8 (missing decals and 1 page from the instructions) E-mail me at rf.dbridges (AT) gmail.com if you're interested. I accept payment via PayPal only. David
  9. I'll be going. Will be my fourth National, but the first one where I'll be there all four days. Only bringing two models, though; hasn't been a good or productive year for me modelling-wise.
  10. Actually, I think I'm OK with my models having a 10 year or so life span. I like to think that each model I do is a little better than the last, so as time goes by, I tend to throw out the older ones. That being said, I keep my in a decent display case where sunlight rarely hits the models, at that seems to keep them fairly well preserved. I have two aircraft and at least one tank that are all over 10 years old, and they don't look like they've changed at all. David
  11. My order from Robot4Less got to me within 2 days! Didn't even ask for it that quick, but I'll take it! Oddly, HLJ doesn't have it in stock, either, so I'm not sure what the supply issue is. Either, it's out there, you just have to hunt for it. David
  12. Did some searching around and I found an online retailer called Robot4Less (caters to the Gundam crowd, mostly), and they had Mr. Surfacer 500 in stock. So if anyone is looking for it, it's out there, but you have to hunt. Would still like to know why it's so scarce anymore. David
  13. Does anyone know if the Gunze Sangyo Mr. Surfacer products are out of production? I'm trying to find some of the bottled product in the 500, 1000, and 1200 grades but having no luck. If anyone knows for sure where I can get some, it would be appreciated. David
  14. Simply put: 1. T-28 Superheavy Tank (aka T-95 Gun Motor Carriage); 2. a good FT-17; 3. A good Mk I or IV or V British tank (you know, the rhomboid WWI types); 4. St. Chammond WWI tank; 5. a new kit of the Soviet T-35 heavy tank. David
  15. Yeah, I plan on being there. I'm going to the Nats, too. You? David
  16. Hi all, I finally finished my 1/35th scale Revell Germany Kanonenjagdpanzer 4-5 after 3 years of intermittent work. The Revell kit isn't all bad, but it needs lots of love to do it right. The tracks and mantlet, in particular, are garbage right out of the kit. I replaced the tracks as well as lots of other stuff with resin updates from Perfect Scale Modellbau. The mantlet and various other bits are scratchbuilt. The barrel is from RB Model. The model is painted with ModelMaster enamels and is finished as a vehicle of Panzerjager Kompanie 160, intended to look like it's on exercise during some Bundeswehr/NATO wargame. I plan to submit an article to the Journal detailing everything I did to get where I got. This vehicle has always been one of my favorites, so warts and all, I'm really glad Revell came out with this kit. Like I said earlier, it's not all bad. If you like the subject, it's worth a go. David
  17. Hi all, I'm looking for 1/35th (or something suitably close) pine branches. Ready-made aftermarket would be nice, but if someone knows a way to do them convincingly from scratch, I'm all ears. Need them for on vehicle camo purposes. Thanks! David
  18. Thanks for the replies everyone! I'll have to search around my area and see what kind of lacquer thinners are available, and then do some testing. Thanks again for the help guys! David
  19. After doing some web searching research, I should more apporpriately ask if anyone has used lacquer thinner (specifically the Tamiya brand lacquer thinner) for thinning Tamiya paints. Apparently, some folks (Mig Jimenez, Adam Wilder, etc.) have gotten very good results by using them. David
  20. Hello all, I've always used ModelMaster enamels for airbrushing, and I'm thinking of trying to cross over to using Tamiya acrylics. I've heard that some people use regular ole' paint thinner (or something similar) for thinning Tamiya acrylics with very good results. Anyone here have any experience with this? If there's a thinner I could use for both ModelMaster and Tamiya stuff, that'd be great - commonality would save me some money. Thanks and Happy Modelling! David
  21. Thanks for the help, guys! I guess you could say I'm looking to do the "day" scheme, so I'll go with the 70/71/76 scheme, I think. Now I'll have to hunt down some decals... David
  22. Anybody? Help an armor modeling brother out?
  23. Hello everyone! Working on my first aircraft in probably eight years, and I need a little help picking colors. I'm somewhat familiar with Luftwaffe paint schemes, but it's been a while and I don't have much in the way of reference materials. I've got a DML 1/48th Ju-188A-3 that I'm going to finish as a torpedo bomber. Going to try for the typical bomber camo that had the squiggly lines painted over it (Wellenmuster?) What sort of RLM colors do I need to make this happen, both for the interior and exterior colors. Also, can anyone recommend any good decal sets in 1/48th that would give me balkankreuz, swastikas, and letters/numbers that would be suitable for a Ju-188? Thanks! David
  24. This tank is a PzKpfw III ausf. J, and this same picture can be seen in the Squadron Signal "In Action" book on the Panzer III, page 30, top left picture. I guess what you're refering to is the beveled edge on the front of a Panzer III turret, on the lower right and lower left front edge of every turret. And as far as I had ever noticed before (and indeed upon looking at my references) all of the Panzer III turrets have said bevels. However, from looking at a better quality image of this tank, it genuinely looks like this turret doesn't have the bevels. It doesn't appear to be a trick of lighting or anything that I can tell. However, I can only determine two possible options: a ). It really doesn't have the beveled edges, and is a fluke one-off for some unknown reason, or; b ). It is a very imperceptable trick of lighting. My $0.02, David
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