What a bunch of ass-hats! Total morons.
I hope that their future competitions only got attendance from their own members.
Did your mother consider the day to have been a win? Now that you were “cured” of that
“modeling nonsense”?
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Absolutely.
She was very happy I was cured of the model hobby. The junk and clutter other than Scharnhorst was out of the house. And I was CURED. I walked around the models going to the wargames when visiting hobby shops.
She was absolutely livid on how the cure happened. Five years later she still spoke ill of the host chapter and that model show.
I honestly don’t think the host club had ever considered how their version of Animal House would appear to outsiders who had no clue about what was going on. That or they just didn’t care.
I hope someone wrote about those clowns in some modeling magazine
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I left with my friend but didn’t buy the Heller Tirpitz kit. After finals on the way home I looped back to Modelers Hobby Shop.
I walked over to the Heller kit and just stared at it. Last time I’d touched a model was in 1979 now it was 1986. Did I really even want to entertain the thought of it? I put the kit back down walked away. Came back around picked it up. Stared at the Heller kit some more and started to put it back down.
A man behind the counter who’d been in a deep conversation said, “Would you like to take a look inside?”
I went to the counter and we started talking. He opened the box and allowed me to check out the Tirpitz kit.
I bought the kit.
I wavered the whole hour and half trip home if buying the Heller kit was a mistake.
My mom wasn’t happy to see a twenty something year old son walk in the door for Christmas break with a model kit in hand but she was fairly subdued in truth.
I only worked on the model over Christmas break in 1986, then again at Christmas in 1987.
I graduated at the end of 87 and slow started to work on the Tirpitz more frequently. Before the end of 1988 the model was completed and I had cautiously returned to the model hobby.
Toward the end of 1988 that IPMS host club was having a one day contest in Salisbury N.C at a hotel. One of my friends went with me. I had a little extra cash this time around.
So about them raffle tickets…it was a fantastic raffle with tons of great items like a new VL airbrush etc. My friend had 5 out of 6 raffle tickets hit. I went 0 put of 6. 
There were several excellent vendors and I picked up a few items.
The awards ceremony was more the normal practice this time. A rubber chicken appeared with the MC but it was totally different than the fiasco of 1979.
None of my models placed again. There was a lot less sting this time as it was clear the majority of the judges were from a menagerie of other clubs.
Later I would make friends with an excellent armor modeler. He was a kind person and the first person to ever provide constructive criticism about modeling. My contest results instantly improved in a most dramatic fashion…soon I had people wanting to throw forks and hard rolls at me…especially after winning 26 trophies at one contest 
So that wraps that part of the dig 
Back with the dusty models!
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That Heller Tirpitz looks like a really nice kit for the age.
Are those injection molded railings? If so thats actually pretty cool.
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Ezra indeed for like mid 1970’s stuff those kits were nice in my opinion for back then.
I was delighted with both of the Heller kits after building the typically horrible Revell, Monogram, Aurora & Lindberg ship kits of the era. The Heller kits were pretty difficult to get. I always wanted build Prinz Eugen and HMS King George V back then but they very hard to find.
Those are indeed injection molded railings! They are about 2 mm thick and molded with taper to look thin on the outside edge. They are of course massively over scale 
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Lo Models came out with an inexpensive conversation set in the early 90’s for the old Tamiya M48A3 & M60A1.
I’d just picked a trio of dirt cheap Tamiya M48A3 kits for like $25 from a model train hobby shop that just wanted them off the shelf:)
Here’s the M48A5 conversation. It was very simple with a new cupola and a few other parts but it sure was fun! I got bold enough to load the bustle rack with junk out of the spares box. Of course this is all wrong but who needs references if your having FUN!
As much of a blast as the above build was the one below is still one of the most fun builds I’ve ever done!
It’s a LoModels conversation West German M48A2GA2 also done I the early 1990’s.
Fortunately I didn’t find out the suspension sat way too high on the Tamiya M48A3 until after two were built. I sold the other M48A3 for like $15 so I was pretty please with the trio of M48A3 I’d bought.
Which of course set in motion a flurry of BD-BS-FB’s (Badly Done But Super Fun Build)
Like this ancient Tamiya West German Leo I (uh Leo prototype?)
Why just build one POS when you can build two in twice the time?
I was on a roll until I kit this terrible ESCI kit…ESCI Leo2A4. It had a lot of fit issues or my skills weren’t up to the kit.it was a horrible grind. Then I discovered the model didn’t have a lip or ridge on the road wheels 
!!!
I lacked the skill to paint the rubber tire and keep it round without molded detail to follow. In desperately I tried a circle template. The results are sort of crude but better than me doing it by hand.
I learned so much from this terrible ESCI kit - how to use a circle template to mask a road wheel. I’ve been using the same template ever since
My attempt at a M60A3
Another BD-BS-FBs (Badly Done But Super Fun Build). IIRC correctly this buffalo chip sized pile of glue stains nd punch marks used a fire sale Tamiya M60A1 kit plus LoModels conversation kit and LoModels indy link tracks.
This model is proof of the old saying Ignorance is Bliss not just because I didn’t know the basic construction was terrible but because copied the Tamiya M60A3 box art. M60A3’s didn’t actually use that color scheme 
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That was one gloomy day. Those self-indulgent butt wipes were rather shameless if you ask me. I bet the trip home must have been in a rather foul mood…
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@golikell Erwin, yes indeed that was one miserable long ride. My dad’s gave me an earful of how he would blister my @$$ if I ever acted like that after winning anything. That was a perfect example of bad sportsmanship. My mother had a field day of “I told this was a waste of time.” She was win or lose don’t you ever act like that. The awards ceremony proved in her eye any adult building models was basically a deviant.
The car ride home summarized briefly: If your chapter hosts, runs, judges, competes in and wins the lion’s share of awards in its own show - then gloats over it in front of the loser’s after manipulating those clueless sheep you’re lower than whale 
$h** at the bottom of the ocean.
Fifteen years later by 1995-1996, I’d gotten to know most of that host club on a first name basis. I gained perspective and finally wasn’t an outsider. What’s ironic is out of the ~15 club members 7 or 8 were outstanding model builders who could reasonably expect to win 1st or 2nd place at any IPMS Nationals:) Several of these modelers could and did scratch build aircraft models and scratch build tanks models from sheet styrene.
They fondly recalled their 1979 show as one of the best ever! A total Animal House event of fun, humor, rubber chickens, gladiator movies and fantastic competition where the winners won and the no talent loser whined. A real If you can’t take the heat get out of the kitchen - it’s called competition!!!
If you knew how to do IPMS style Basic Construction correctly there was a lot of truth in much of that.
If you you were ignorant of IPMS Basic Construction (like I was at age 15, like most of the contestants, like my parents) the event was recalled very differently. Very differently.
Anyway…the IPMS/Charlotte Scale Modelers often hosted a show and judged their show but NONE of the CSM club members entered the show. That was strictly to avoid any sort of impression of impropriety.
I feel confident in saying my perception as a 15 year wasn’t too far off base even if it was slightly biased.
Remember Always Funnel Your Juniors Modelers at registration directly into Competition with the guys that can win at the IPMS Nationals and scratch build models from sheet styrene. The look on the that brats face when he gets absolutely annilated in competition will be funny! It will teach him a lesson or two.
Joking of course but that did happen to me back in 1979 at an IPMS show
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They might have been better, but behaving like an @ss, is utterly unnecessary, specially if you misinformed youngsters like yourself into a totally impossible position. They should have encouraged you to improve by giving clues about what could be improved instead of taking the joy out of you… Luckily for yourself and for us, you return to the dark side… 
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By the early 90’'s Verlinden was one of my favorite celebrity modelers right there with Shep Paine. After seeing V’s published work I decided to try my hand at DAK Tunisian Tiger 142.
I didn’t like the old original Tamiya 1/35 Tiger kit. The newer 1988 released Tamiya Late Tiger was a much better kit. I had one of each so I did my first real kit bash. Key details like cupola, sprocket, smoke grenades, air cleaners & wheels etc came from the old Tamiya kit the rest was from the late model.
Friends told me this was a really stupid idea as it would probably look like @$$ if the mess could be fitted together.
The project basically developed my tiny bit of scratch building skill. I made front fenders headlight mounts, exhaust covers. I did my first casting for the 2nd pistol port. It’s mostly covered by stowage as it was poorly done. Used left over PE from an On The Mark Tiger PE set. The engine deck screens were a collection of OTM and junk from the spares box.
Of course I completely forgot about the late model ice cleats on the tracks:)
The paint was whatever was on hand.
I think it looks like…a
pear…
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In 1994 the new Italeri Panther A was one of the most eagerly awaited kits in a long time. After it was released it was one of the most derided kits in a long time for failing to meet expectations.
It was better than the original 1960’s Tamiya Panther A but more was expected in the 1990’s. I have a soft spot for the kit despite its well know inadequacy.
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Sometimes a modeler just has to do something outside the main area of interest just for fun.
Smaug The Dragon - from the 1990’s
Too bad he lost the top of his head over the years…lol
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May 1979
In the middle of that inferno had been the local hobby shop. A local business man that owned a failing clothing store, decided to commit arson for insurance money. The resulting fire caused an explosion that nearly destroyed a city block. The explosion killed four fire fighters and a utility worker who was attempting to turn the natural gas off to the burning buildings. A city fire truck was destroyed and over thirty people injured.
Sadly the business man only served 10 years of his 90 year prison sentence. A true miscarriage of justice.
The Fire & Explosion That Rocked Shelby, North Carolina
My dad & I were in Shelby when the above happened about a mile away on highway 74 bypass. There was noise, a massive plum of smoke rising. He guessed it was in the direction of where we were headed - down town.
My dad was doing his typical ministry rounds. I had tagged along to go by Bob Pope’s Hobby Shop to pick up my motorized 1/25 Panther that was on display.
(You know for that contest I described a few posts above)
The Panther had been on display for over a year. Mr Pope had special ordered it for me. He had said when it’s built bring the Panther back and I’ll put it on display in the main display case. Mr Pope was one of those saints that nutured hobbies and customers. By profession he was a successful local realtor. His passion was R/C planes, model rockets, model railroading & model kits. The passion had evolved into a beloved little mom & pops hobby shop.
This was the 1/25 Tamiya Panther kit. State of the art in 1977 
Today you might find one on Ebay for $500+
As we drove toward downtown, I realized my dad was right. He also said it was close to the hobbyshop when we saw the smoke plum. I always admired his sense of direction and ability to judge relative locations.
Actually the fire and explosion were in the same strip as the hobby shop. We saw the block engulfed in flames and the fire truck buried under brick from the buildings.
I tried to find another 1/25 Tamiya Panther kit for over a decade to replace the one lost to the fire. Several other hobby shops attempted to order one but always failed to delivery.
Finally, John’s Toy & Hobby in Gastonia, N.C. said the kit was out of production and impossible to locate. Later John’s discovered Academy/MiniCraft had released a rip off copy of the old Tamiya kit. Did I want it?
Academy/MiniCraft
Yes, of course I wanted it despite the taint of it being a rip off copy by A/M.
I was pleasantly surprised it was a pretty good copy and kit. I was happy to get a replacement over a decade later.
At the time of building my skills were marginal. Added Zimmerit and engine deck screens and a few other minor details.
It was a fun build - both 1/25 Panthers
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Early 90’s -
Heard this happened to a friend…
Airbrushing when you’re half asleep has its risks…
…that bottle you thought was US Desert Sand could actually be WW2 RAF Middle Stone…
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A very interesting timeline. Thanks for sharing.
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Remember that first diorama, the one that was so awful it should have been slam dunked into the bin?
This is one of them. I thought the ridicule would never end.
1988 - Stormtroopers
Alternative names friends and club members dubbed on this dio:
- The Krauts Kissing in Klap-Wagen
- Franz Kissing Hans
- Wehrmacht - Love Story
- Jerry Likes Sausage
- The Real Reason They Lost
- The Bugger Wagen
- I Know Why They Are Running Away
Those are the ones clean enough to repeat. Note the two poorly positioned soldiers in the Hanomag.
Anyway
Rumor had it the guy at back of the Hanomag could hurling his breakfast.
…and no the girl in the picture on the MG shield does NOT have a mullet.
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Petro, happy to share these dust bunnies Hopefully with a little humor that occurred along the way.
1990 - 1995 Late Tiger 1 w/scratch built interior.
The Tamiya Late Tiger kit. I worked on the Tiger when I felt motivated. 120+ hours. The interior is hard to see. It’s also crude. The exterior I was happy with more or less at the time. Armor Research engine deck screens cut to fit. On The Mark PE set, Verlinden engine, California Scale Brass MG34’s. Milliput Zimmerit.
Couple of hundred exposed punch marks in the inner track faces.
My references were weak when the model was built. My guess at the interior color for Panzer Buff was way off base. Much too dark.
In the mid 90’s when fresh and clean the Late Tiger did OK on the local contest circuit. Even placed 2nd in the IPMS Regional that year
In hindsight should have skipped the interior and buttoned up the model. It’s pretty beat up, broken and missing parts at this point but will keeps its spot on the storage shelf.
Note in the last picture the poppet valve cover is up so the engines running
Note years later when I had better references, I discovered 312 was actually a mid-model with rubber rimmed road wheels.
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1994 - Tamiya Early Panther G
Fond memories of a nice smooth Tamiya build. Tamiya PE grills & my first attempt with Milliput Zimmerit. The poor Panther ended up being a test bed for doing the above Tiger’s Zimmerit.
I had developed an issue with flat coating of several prior models. Testor’s Dulcoat regardless of what I tried would leave a slight sheen. The Dulcoat sheen was consistent and other models in the club had noticed the issue on their own models… An expert airplane modeler suggested trying Pactra Acrylic Flat Coat
Armed with Pactra Acrylic Flat Coat the Panther G went from glossy item of hopeless ridicule to mildly respectable contest model with two coats.
While far from perfect one of the harsher contest judges didn’t rip this Panther apart as a total POS like he did the DML Panther II that will follow. He did gig the model for overstated Zimmerit, seam inside the muzzle brake and few other things when we discussed the model after a competition.
Summary its got issues but it was better than rest of the junk in its category today so it placed.
The Panther G received a Bronze at an AMPS show in 1996. I was delighted it received anything from AMPS 
The old G has survived more or less intact including a bad encounter with an angry x-wife.
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