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Roktman

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Posts posted by Roktman

  1. Not to make excuses, but I have a friend who's a caster and he is having fits trying to get his orders out in this humid weather (he's in NJ). Says the trick is to make small batches. It takes longer but the bubbling is minimized - he also roto-casts.

     

    But anyway, you are certainly making a silk purse out of that sow's ear!

  2. I appreciate your point, John, but I don't feel the IPMS will ever become the International Plastic Gundam Society. There will always be an overwhelmingly number people that will continue to build Aircraft, Armor etc... My son and his friend for example are each 14 and "if it ain't WW2 , they're not building it." I on the other hand (at 55) am the one building sci-fi, Ma.K, Left '46 and figures.

     

    What I think the point is to let it evolve if it's going to. if a "kid" comes in with a Ma.K, then treat it like a Judge. You don't have to like the subject to appreciate the build. But let him enjoy the experience of a few guys admiring the model on the display table (or wherever it is)

    As an example I really don't care for the Car models, would never build one, but I could appreciate the build that there's no glue marks, the 4 wheels are all touching the ground the paint finish is even and/or whatever else that car judges look at. Just my 2¢.

  3. Despite my saying it's time to move away (temporarily) from the horror kits, Eddie has been sitting on my night stand with no nose etc... Ok, I thought let me, at least, put his together. Sculpted my Mark Van Tine and casted by Gillman Productions, Eddie comes in about 8 pieces of gray and cream resin. There are no bubbles or flash to be seen.
    The parts were key and went together easily. IIRC there was only one join that needed more than a tiny bit of putty to close off. Here's where I am so far - -

     

    003.JPG

     

    004.JPG

     

    005.JPG

    Every once in a while the sculptor will doodle on the bottom of the base. :D

     

    007.JPG

     

    009.JPG

     

    Thanks for looking!

  4. None of the models in any of the categories are mine, but I'm trying to get things straight.

    Observation.

    Figures- #305B- Pre 1900 - 71mm or larger - - Page 17 in Vlads presentation shows The Viking (or whoever he is) winning 2nd place. IIIRC the order goes 3rd, 2nd, 1st... OK?

     

    So if the figure won 2nd how did it win Best of Class - Best Figure (Vlad's page 30). I thought the Best model in whatever category was decided from all the 1sts in the category.

     

    As I mentioned I didn't enter any figures, so no sour grapes here, but just wondering if there was an oops.

  5. I'm glad you posted Tim and David validating my observations.

    For another way to look at it do a search on You Tube for guys building the miniatures (Games Workshop and others) compared to "regular" model building. There are gazillions of people showing how to paint these minis.

    What the Admins need to realized that to "young" people (except my son) WW2 subjects are comparable to the Civil and Revolutionary Wars. It's something that happened a long time ago. While I'm not say to get rid of these subjects, I am saying to look at these other subjects as being just as valid.

    Maybe, with the help of the local clubs to help welcome these new people, the IPMS should advertise in these mini and other magazines of the type like they do in the other modeling magazines.

    • Like 1
  6. I was sitting in on of the seminars in Columbia, and a qestion was asked that no one in the audience really had an answer for.

    Q: If you use a screw up thru the bottom of a base and into a tank securing it firmly to the base, and the judges look underneath and see the screw, is that strike one?

     

    TIA

  7.  

    Dick,
    Here is a link to some of my 10 yr. old daughters work she has done in the last year. Once she showed interest I begin to show her
    different techniques and away she went. We have been to 8 contests and 2 Nationals in the last year and she has won in everyone of them
    including best Junior in 5 of them. I love to see her interest and it's also been a bonus for the both of us, kit collection and tool collection has
    grown substantially. :smiley14::smiley14::smiley2:
    Couldn't get the photos to upload to the thread been trying all day.

    http://s377.photobucket.com/user/tgidcumb1/slideshow/

     

    Those are some really nice models!

    I started by son off with some Snap-Tites when he was 7, and 7 years and a bunch of models later (Including a few wins at local shows) I just showed him the basics of an airbrush last night.

    • Like 1
  8. In my first Seminar on Thursday, I mentioned juniors in a scenario I used to illustrate someone getting back into the hobby and introducing their kid to it as well. A few things I mentioned:

     

    1. The kid was probably not interested in old, propeller driven airplanes from a long-ago conflict

    2. The kid was probably looking at fast cars, fast jets, or Sci-Fi and Gundam. Backing that up, I work at a HobbyTown. For every "traditional" (i.e., military or car model) we sell, we sell at least a half dozen Gundam kits.

    3. I left the identity of "The Kid" gender-neutral. Young ladies are joining the hobby in larger numbers than ever before. We need to accept that and stop treating them as oddities, stop patronizing them ("Gee, honey, did your boyfriend teach you how to build models?"), and accept them as what they are--model builders.

     

    Jodie has pretty much nailed the other aspects of this particular subject--if you want to attract Juniors, first take a look in the mirror. Do your meetings resemble a smoke-filled poker hall, with a bunch of middle aged men leering at a nekkid lady on an airplane or, as I once saw it put, a "painted, dainty metal maiden in her birthday suit"? Sure, a 14-year old boy will eat this stuff up. But the person who brings said 14-year old boy to the meeting (Mom and Dad) will recoil in horror, and the future of modeling will be headed out the door, never to be seen again. And, in keeping with #3, a 14-year old young lady will have a look around and see that the only thing that's happening is that she's being objectified, and she, too, will head for the exits.

     

    There are many great suggestions in this thread. Perhaps, if all the Chapters out there acted on them, this will help the situation. So, what are you going to have your Chapter try in order to get new members?

     

    Here's an idea, one that came up yesterday at the shop. If you have an adult member interested in Gundams, maybe you can start a Gundam club within your Chapter. Take some time to understand Gundams yourself, and then advertise. Put up flyers in the local shop--"Hey, Gundam fans! We're starting a Gundam Club!" you never know where it could lead...

     

    Other ideas, such as the JROTC Detachments, Air Shows, Car Shows, and the like are excellent suggestions. So, take these ideas to your Chapter. Be the POC for these efforts. And see what comes of it...

     

    Ralph

     

     

    Ralph, I think you hit the nail right on the head. And that's where the problem lies. Most "kids" don't want to build WW2 armor, etc... (except for my 14 yo who is a big WW2 buff), :unsure:

    Lurking on forums like Starship Modeler and the like when the IPMS is mentioned you'll read all the time how these young guys would take a Gundam, Ma.K or some sci-fi subject to a local meeting and the oldsters gathered around the 10th Bf-109 on the table would look over and sneer. Offering advice of "how about building something real." It's to the point where mentioning IPMS on these forums is like screaming profanity in church.

     

    The solution is to get these oldsters to either welcome the new blood and their models, even if they have no interest in a subject, or sit in the corner of the meeting room and keep their cranky ways to themselves..

     

    Local clubs should also have a "greeter" to welcome these new people and sorta stick with them until they are made a part of the group. Years ago I left my local club, as after a year+ it was still too hard to break into the clique.

  9. Thanks for the kind words.

    I saw a rare film clip in color of Karloff with his face done up and it was *very* green. I didn't want to have it look "that much" so I muted my green with some cream color. For the highlights I just reversed the base coat giving it more cream than green. Lastly I gave it a mist coat with Buff to bring it all together.

  10. Wow, last time it was anywhere close to the NE was 1981(New York)

     

    Sad, Really.

    FWIW, I think any convention along the I-95 corridor (I'm in NYC) would cause sticker shock with many members across the country. Forget about $100 room rates- $200 room rates went bye bye a long time ago. Add to that up to $40 a day parking and a $15 hamburger... It would have to be in a more rural area to get decent room rates, then who would want to drive hours to side attractions? And is there club(s) that would want to tackle this? I'm afraid prices here are just out of the range of a IPMS Con. Just my 2¢

  11.  

    As I mentioned, probably the best location for San Francisco, LA San Diego is Las Vegas. Between 4 and 8 hours drive from any place and certainly an easy draw for those Metro location. ... All the hotels and resorts really are very experience in handling conventions.

     

    I've been to Las Vegas a couple times (once with my family on the way to seeing relatives in AZ, and once when work was paying for it) and I'm sure it will work. I'm not much of a gambler, so the casinos didn't really excite me (and the shows and restaurants outside of the casinos were not all that cheap). As you said, one of the great things about places like Vegas and Orlando is that there are lots of venues that can hold a convention, and lots of restaurants and attractions, and that competition keeps the prices down. I'm not sure that truly makes for a good convention as the theme-parks and casinos distract people from the show. I've taken my family to Orlando for a Nats twice, and I spent less time at the show or talking models at the hotel bar just because I was spending time with my wife and kids. I get it that combining a Nats with a family vacation is the only way a lot of people can make it, but I have to say I really liked the Loveland show where the hotel (and a small shopping plaza) was all you could see in all directions.

     

    Don

     

    While I have a old friend in Mission Viejo, CA and relatives in Gilbert AZ., I'm actually hoping that it's in Vegas myself. I was going to take my wife to Vegas for her 40th birthday - Sept. 23, 2001. But unfortunately 9/11 happened and as a surviving firefighter, I wasn't going anywhere but Ground Zero. We cancelled our Bellagio suite (yep I was doing it up) as well as all the shows (we're not gamblers either), and with a son born 1.5 years later, we never made it there.

    Bit as you said Loveland was nice too. we found the outrageously detailed model train museum a town or two to the east, and even thought we were incredibly lost traveling dirt roads to see the Twin Buttes! we got there and saw them. :smiley2:

    So I guess I' rooting for any city, town village outside of the NY/NJ metro area where I grew up and live. I'm sure I can find attractions to keep the family happy, besides the Con, anywhere! :smiley14:

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