Well, Gentlemen - as usual, I'm right up against the wire for submitting the PrezSez. So close that Larry O was going to ask me to leave the club; just dodged that bullet on that one! :):):) Thanks for the reprieve Mr. Lar'!

On to the February "biz" at hand... Our next meeting is on February 22, 7 PM in the basement classroom of the Harlem Rd. Community Center/Lincoln School (our usual spot). I have an idea: bring a friend, maybe two; three would be WAYYYYYYYYY cool too!

Matt Keysa did the honors at this month's model table. Matt is off on a trip to Italy until June, where he will no doubt burn through his Euros at Italian hobby shops. Bon voyage, Matt!

Dave Armitage brought his nicely displayed Mobius Frankenstein Monster, which he obtained from Squadron. The bottom of the box which the model was packaged in had a nice stone wall image printed on it which Dave thought was too big, so he reduced it with a photocopier and used it for the wall. He also wired two light bulbs to add a spooky atmosphere to the shadow box case, which he made from wood scraps.

Dave also had a model of a custom-built train shelter which, in real life, had been situated at the end of a pier in Hammondsport, New York in the early part of the 20th century. The customer supplied all the miniature lumber supplies, and Dave used blueprints from Harold Russel, who used to make plans for Railroad Model Craftsman.

Dave had photographic references on hand as well. He used Paper Creek shingles for the roof.

In addition, Dave showed two 1/72 scale resin rowboats which he says will work in HO scale as well.

As if all this wasn't enough, Dave presented a diorama of Spiderman and the Green Goblin in a rooftop setting. Both figures are Mobius kits which Dave got from Squadron. Dave wishes that the Green Goblin's flame had been made from clear plastic so he could put a light in it. (Dave seems to put lights in pretty much everything.) It was suggested that vacu-forming a transparent replacement could do the trick.

Joe Szczygiel shared his "in progress" 1/35 scale AFE Stryker M1133 Medical Evacuation Vehicle along with his reference material. Joe has extensively modified the kit to have a detailed interior and engine compartment. He also scratch built extra compartments for medical supplies and jerry cans from Evergreen plastic.

Bob Collignon's Adler Armored Car in 1/35 scale from Bronco was purchased at Hornet Hobbies in Toronto. The model was well cast and came with etched brass. It is a rare, early war vehicle. Bob plans to detail the underside of the model.

Bob also brought his Laffley French Armored car, an ongoing project, which was the subject of his weathering demo a few months back. Bob showed the detailed underside and many scratch built details he added. He used the model to test some new weathering techniques he'd discovered. He plans to modify the display base and add figures for scale reference. Bob's been working on it on and off for a year and a half.

Frank Blonski brought his Chevy truck body, which he has been making and casting parts for, mostly to show to the new guys, who will be introduced at the end of this article.

Matt Keysa's self described "Mass of resin junk" is a 1/35 scale Azimut PAK-43 artillery piece. The multi-media kit is made from resin, vacu-form, styrene, and white metal. It is an older kit, which Matt says lacks some of the finer details found on modern kits. Also, there were problems with parts fitting and parts breaking. This, combined with poor instructions, make this a very challenging project. However, it looks like it's coming along quite nicely!

Larry Osolkowski brought in a few items, starting with the rear suspension assembly from his Formula One 1/20 kit which he presented at the December meeting. He also had some sheets of carbon fiber decals made by Studio 27 which look just like woven cloth, but which don't conform to curves very well and didn't respond to setting solution at all. He resorted to an application of thinned white glue to get the decals to adhere. He would recommend it for flat surfaces. Larry reports that Hasegawa in Japan are producing a carbon fiber effect on bare metal foil. He has some on order.
Tamiya makes a selection of polishing compounds which Larry had on hand that he hopes will work wonderfully when he tries it out.
From Harbor Freight Tools, Larry got a small plastic clamp for $.99, and a pair of levels, which when combined on one ruler, create a nice clamping or jig system.

And lastly, Larry brought an un-built new Formula One kit from Tamiya, a Ferrari F60. And absolutely lastly, he also brought a 1/43 scale Ferrari F60 from Tameo which includes computer generated instructions and two sets of decals. The kit set Larry back $95.00!

Frank Del Russo had two magazines on hand-one featuring the Hawker Hurricane and the other featuring the Mosquito from Fly Past magazine. He subscribed to the magazine and was able to order these special editions from the publisher.
Frank also brought a set of cards documenting the Ryan STA aircraft from Bob's Aircraft Documentation. Bob will put together a set of these cards for any aircraft, price determined by which aircraft you are looking for. Phil states that Bob is extremely knowledgeable about the subject.

Dan Marafino displayed three submarine models, all in 1/700. They are Hobby Boss kits, purchased for $6.00 each and are extremely simple to build. They include a Type 7 U-Boat, a Russian Typhoon, and a Gato. Dan has a few more sub kits at home that he is working on and enjoying.

Alan Gryfe brought in plans he produced with a CAD program of a Trade Tower, which he has a kit of, but wishes to re-scale for his model railroad. So before he started to hack into an $80.00 kit, he decided to see what he'd be getting into.

Alan also brought photo reference of the Tremont Ave. Station in Brooklyn which he plans to build in HO scale.

Frank Blonski gave a fascinating demo on producing cast resin parts from two-part molds.

We welcomed this month's "New Guys" Bud Rindfleisch and Joe Mussari. Both are railroad modelers. Welcome, gentlemen!

Upcoming demonstrations include Joe Szczygiel's demo on designing with a computer and Stan Keysa'a demo on making tree stumps and trunks.

YOUR 2010 DUES WERE DUE IN JANUARY

For most of you, your club dues for the 2010 calendar year were due by the January 2010 meeting.

If you receive a mailed Dizpatch, your renewal date is listed next to your name on the address label.

If you get Dizpatch by e-mail, your dues are probably due. Either check with Dave Schwab at the meeting, or e-mail him at davidsp51stang@aol.com if you're not sure.

Everyone is now on the January to January schedule. Regular memberships are still $10.00 per year and Juniors (under 18) are still $5.00.

You can pay the Treasurer Dave Schwab at the meetings or by mailing a check to Dave at 28 Wanda Ave., Cheektowaga, NY 14211. Please make checks (or money orders) out to Niagara Frontier Chapter IPMS.

Make sure that you share any updated information like addresses and e-mail addresses with Dave as things change.

Reminder - Special Offer for All IPMS Niagara Frontier Members

We will rebate ½ of the cost for a one-year membership to IPMS USA, our national "umbrella" organization for new national memberships and renewals occurring from June 2009 through June 2010. The tangible benefit to this membership is 6 bimonthly copies of the excellent modeling publication IPMS Journal.

Adult memberships are $25.00 per year and Juniors (17 years old and under) are $12.00, so your rebates are $12.50 and $6.00 respectively.

You will be responsible to complete and submit the application along with payment to IPMS USA. Dave Schwab has application forms. You can also do this on-line at the National website. You will receive a membership card in the mail a few weeks later.

To get your rebate, you just have to show your current IPMS USA member card to Dave Schwab and he will give you money. How simple is that?

The E-Board encourages everyone to take advantage of this offer. It's a good way to get your feet wet and see what IPMS USA is all about.