Happy February!

Model Table Round-up from the January meeting

Members were requested to bring in their favorite models this month; this applies to some of the models on the tables.

Mark Gadek starts us off with his Trumpeter 1/32 ME 262, finished with Tamiya and Model Master acrylics and metallizer. Mark added Eduard photo etch, and detailed the radio compartment, gun bay and wheel wells. He used acrylic washes, and the mottling was sprayed through cut-outs in card stock. Mark says the kit had pretty good fit, and he considers this model his best and favorite build.

Jacob Gadek showed us his Polar Lights 1/9 Superman figure. It was painted with Tamiya and Valejo paints, and markers, pencils and crayons were used to weather and simulate shadows. Jacob said that he kept on making mistakes on the shadows, and must have repainted portions at least five or six times. He mentioned that he enjoys figure models, especially if they are classic comics or TV shows, and that this is the best model he's made so far. He believes he captured the look of a comic book character.

Mike Hall brought in his Pirate Pistols Flintlock Pistol. He's using acrylics to finish the model.

Clint Keidel had his Monogram 1/48 P-39 Airacobra on display. Tamiya and Model Master paints were used, and it's being built mostly out-of-box with some scratch-building. Clint mentioned that this was another "Buffalo build", and he's building this because he already finished his first Buffalo build.

Clint also brought in a CD and poster for the band "Pete Warden & The Hard Timers", and a CD cover for "The Blue Ribbon Bastards". Clint said that he has friends in both bands, and was asked to do the CD artwork. The cover for "Catch Me If You Can" was done with pencil and charcoal, and the artwork for "Fire It Up" was done with acrylics. Clint mentioned that he brought these items in because he was proud of his artwork and honored that his friends asked him to do them.

Cindy Klukowski showed us her 1964 Galaxy race car. She said she used Tamiya paint, and that this was the completed model she was most proud of. Cindy likes this car because it's "old school auto racing".

Cindy also brought in a kit of the famous "Comet" rollercoaster from the old Crystal Beach amusement park. The kit was a Christmas gift, and she plans on researching old photos online to replicate the Comet as accurately as possible.

Dan Marafino impressed with his 1/32 F-104 Starfighter by Italeri in Hellenic Air Force of Greece colors. He used Tamiya paints with his airbrush, and mentioned that the decal sheets (2) were huge with 8-10 different countries represented. Dan said that the kit was "not really a hard build", with quite a few options and many extra parts that will never be used, although as with any older kit, "putty is always your friend". The model will wind up hanging in Section 8 Hobbies.

Dan also displayed a 1/48 Hobby Boss F-23 Black Widow II. The model is a simple kit that "went together great but needed some filler", and was finished with Model Master acrylic paints and built out-of-box with no aftermarket stuff. Dan mentioned that the actual plane was the only one built, to compete with the F-22 Raptor (the F-22 won the competition).

Jason Ignatjew showed us his 1971 Pro-Mod Camaro, which is his favorite model.

Jason also brought in a 1965 Plymouth Satellite finished in Tamiya Gold with Testors One Coat Clear.

Larry Osolkowski had another new kit to show us, the Aoshima 1/24 McLaren F1 GTR 1997 Le Mans Race Car, along with the Aoshima Detail Up parts set. Larry said that the kit looks really nice in the box, and will probably get a carbon fiber decal set as well. He mentioned that this car has been one of his favorites for a long time, and he's looking forward to building this one.

Larry also brought in an usual model, a Metal Earth Drum Set made from sheets of laser-cut metal. The sheets look like photo-etch, but the kit is assembled by inserting small tabs into tiny slots and bending the tabs over. Larry didn't like the cymbals that came with the kit, which were too flat, so he scratch-built his own from 0.005" brass sheet using a mold he made from lathe-turned aluminum rod with a mating part from casting resin. He also added drum sticks made from toothpicks. The model was a Christmas present from Larry's wife (he's also a drummer).

One more model from Larry was his favorite finished kit: a Tameo 1/43 Benetton B194 F1 race car. It was built out-of-box, and was finished with MCW and Model Master paints, using bare metal foil for masking, and a lot of decals. Larry said that the kit was well-engineered and went together well, although it had lots of tiny parts and photo-etch. It was his first 1/43 kit.

Once again, Frank Blonski showed us the further progress he's making on his conversion project, the 1941 Plymouth ProMod based on the AMT Plymouth Coupe. He plans on eventually offering the body as a resin kit.

Alan Gryfe had a collection of estate sale finds on display, all in 1/25 scale: a 1966 AMT Lincoln, a 1966 MPC Plymouth "pick-up", a 1967 AMT Pontiac GTO annual, a 1967 AMT Chevy Fleetside pickup, and a 1968 AMT Chevy Impala annual. Alan said he got the whole set for $8!

Matt Klukowski displayed his favorite model, a 1/87 (HO) scale building representing the "Ariana Nights" night club. Matt used Citadel and Valejo paints applied by hand, including grafitti on the side of the building. The bar and stage on the first floor were scratch-built, along with a lounge on the second floor. Matt said he's trying to build his own train layout, and plans on having a variety of different store fronts.

Paul Hines had some more artwork for us to enjoy this month: a 1931 Bugatti Type 51 and an early Duesenberg (I believe - didn't get the info sheet).

Tom Faith presented his favorite model; unfortunately, the info sheet was not available.

There were a few unidentified late entries on the tables.

And, a few around-the-room shots of the meeting.

Thanks to Larry Osolkowski for the photography.

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