Hello, everyone.

A President's Comments
Hey everybody!

We had a great meeting this February. Certainly, we saw one of the biggest turnouts I can remember, despite our earlier start time. Perhaps this was due to Larry Johnson's demonstration on the salt weathering technique. This is a technique much in the media now, and Larry's demonstration showed the potential of this technique. I've asked Larry to write a quick set of instructions and tips on this method.

Meeting Attendance

We attracted a new guy, who quickly found the Gundam Special Interest Group. Unfortunately, I didn't write down his name! Hopefully we'll see him again.

We had more people show up, too. Bob Ford was there, as was Neil Butler, Alex, George's friend John, Jon aka "Vir," Chad, Tony, and who else am I missing? After the meeting some of us went to Dengeos for dinner and I had a big mess'o'gyros.

We also had the "salt-weathering" method for chipped paint, demo as preformed by Larry Johnson.

Modeling News

There's not much news to report, I'll refer you to the IPMS site for a listing of upcoming shows.

Now, on to the show-and-tell, the real star of the show:

George made a meeting, usually his work schedule doesn't allow him to attend. George builds studio scale models, replicas of the studio props. This is a true niche in our hobby and often it means building BIG models. This time along he brought his Space 1999 Laser Tank. This is built on a British 1/16 Centurian tank kit, which provides the chassis and some of the bits. This kit alone is rare. Add to that numerous detail bits which are apparently sold through a shadowy network of underground garage kitters, and you get the picture. . .A very rare model indeed.

Joe "Sparky" has been playing with photoetching. This is in pursuit of making circuits small enough to fit within various models. This will also be of use to various club members for detail parts and specialty components. Joe hasn't finished a model I can remember, but he has made some great toys!

Joyce brought along a model dinosaur - one of the Tamiya kits, or was it Lindberg? Either way, she's been watching too much home fix-up television and used a sponge technique to paint the beastie. It looks great, like a mottled skin. We've all seen pictures on TV of elephants with mud and dust on their skins, and the speckled skin of animals like hippopotami. When she shades the skin a little- darkening the folds and undersides a bit, I think it will look very good.
Joyce also brought along a very ambitious project. She has tackled the Airfix Gromit kit- of Wallace and Gromit fame. These are notoriously bad kits, with huge gaping trenches between the parts. Joyce has completely resculpted the kits using copious amounts of epoxy putty. All painted, the model looks great. Now she can start on the airplane.

Art brought a finished project (add that to the count). He showed the tri-pack of droid fighters from Star Wars Episode One. These are cute little fighters and can be posed open or closed. Art also displayed his ongoing Cassini satellite, featuring a beautiful high-gain parabolic antenna. This is all scratchbuilt, folks.
As a true show-and-tell, he brought XAAM models Star Trek:Enterprise shuttlepod kit. This is available from Starship Modeler. This was the first time I've had a good look at the model, and it's quite nice. There's plenty of kitbash or adaptation potential here.

John McDannell has been backdating a Chance-Vaught Corsair to the prototype. This involves some significant surgery to the kit, including moving the cockpit forward, and the wings forward as well. It's a shorter aircraft than the production version turned out to be, and the fuselage looks more like a Grumman fighter than the long-nosed Corsair we're used to seeing. John has a fair amount of work to do, but it's great progress. He also showed off the new Tamiya 1/48 Sherman tank kit. This is a pantographed-down version of their 1/35 kit, and is everything you'd expect of a Tamiya armor kit.

John Lester showed of a completed model! (another for the count). His navalized Republic Thunderbolt sports "Pappy" Boyington's markings. This is part of a little project a few of us are taking part in, switching USAAF and USN figters. I've done a USAAF Corsair, and Larry J. is also working on one or more. John tried his hand at the salt weathering technique, but didn't do quite as well as he'd hoped. I think he picked up a couple of technique tips from Larry's demo.

The "other" Larry, aka Mr. Shickland, brought a bag full of stuff. He showed us some tree roots, cleaned and dried, which look like trees in wintertime. This is for dioramas, and should give a few people some ideas. He also showed us some fine sifted rock dust, for use in dioramas. Sand is often used, but it's not right for the scale and the shale pounded and sifted through nylon (we'll presume Bernie's) looks pretty good. Larry also brought the big 1/35 scale Daishi he hopes to build for the big Wonderfest project. It will take work, and Joe Suttie also has a big mech, so maybe they can support one another through the arduous task ahead.

Neil P. brought his finished XF-108 Rapier, a very large 1/72 scale plane. Hey, that's a finished model! This was supposed to be the mach 3 companion for the Valkyrie bomber. Neil also showed us the hovertank he's rebuilding, and how he's tricking out some of the detail bits. He's also built a simple shuttlepod for the TOS era. This is envisioned as a 2-man transport akin to the Next Gen mini shuttle pods. I see plenty of kitbashing possibilities for this little beauty.

Bob L. brought his first attempts at mold making and resin casting. He's a 1/2500 scale Trek fan (that makes how many of us in this group?). The Hallmark Voyager ornament is 1/2500 and with a little re-working will make a nice little model. I've foolishly offered to help, including making the landing gear so you can have your Voyager at the bottom of the sea in an octopus' garden if you want.

I brought along some current projects. My fool's errand, building two Battleaxe Beech-18 kits simultaneously, is coming along well. I showed how I made clear windows from EnviroTex Lite resin, and have tricked out replacement resin engines with some fine solder for pushrods.
I also brought the 1/1000 shuttlebay conversion for the TOS Enterprise. That will go to the caster and be available through Starshipmodeler before long.

So, come to the next meeting in March. I won't be there, I'll be at my Father-in-Laws, celebrating his 82nd birthday. I'll bring a project along, though, modeling waits for no one! I'd like to remind everyone that Saturday March 5th Leo Limuaco, one of the Starshipmodeler guys will be in town for a conference and will make the Hajj to Venture. Some of us will meet him for breakfast at one of the nearby pancake houses. I'll send a reminder that week. Leo's a lot of fun.

If you have an idea you'd like to see as a meeting demonstration, please suggest it to Joe or me. We've got a lot of talented club members.

Ter

Late Homework:

O.K. gang. Consider this my addition to the Feb meeting.

It's my Klingon Bug of Prey - or the chopped and channeled KBOP. This answers the question "What happens to a commander who runs his BOP into too many asteroids?" Or at least what happens to his Bird? It's resurrected as an in system fighter. This model is definitely 'under way' and you can see the additions in non-grey plastic. Lights?

Probably.

Miss the Gang.

Satellite Member/Exiled Founder, en'til Zog

Image: The model was prepared with flat aluminium on the inner wing, and metalizer on the outer wing section

Image, Clip: Larry J's Salt-weathering Demo Introduction, reviewing tools & supplies

Image, Clip: Larry Talks about the sample's preping

Image, Clip: Now He shows us 2 application techniques

Image, Clip: He explains, 'the art is in shaping it'

Image, Clip: Now he's got the other half of the sample plane post painting

Image: The Saltwater example

Image: A sample Wing after painting the model before clear coats

Image: Close-up of the ModelMaster's acrylic aluminum side

Image: Close-up of the Testor's metalizer

Image: The example wing

Image: On the glass display base

Image: Belly shot, Pastel weathering with saltwater paint chippin'

Image: Overhead view

Image: Tail hook & rear landing gear

Image: Brake lines!

Image: Head-on Engine and Prop

Image: Shuttle Pod Top

Image: Shuttle Pod's Port Side

Image: Droid Fighter in Travel mode

Image: Droid Fighter in Attack Mode

Image: Another view of the Attack Mode

Image: Another view of the Travel Mode

Image:Cassini's High-Gain Antenna's Feed-horn

Image: A Close-up of the Feed-horn

Image: Love that feed-horn

Image: A look at the dish's structure

Image: Larry's Building a Dashi for the Mech project

Image: Larry's Building a mech cockpit

Image: Larry's Building a mech cockpit

Image: Top/Aft view

Image: Bottom/keel View

Image: Side Vents

Image: Main cannon

Image: The Tank's Dish

Image: Tanks starboard side

Image: The noise details

Image: Forward Over head shot

Image: Oh Landing Gear and Intakes

Image: Reworked hover-tank

Image: New turret

Image: New Hatch

Image: An engine insert fits into a machined slot

Image: Windows made with Envirotex Lite

Image: The inside will be polished and appear completely clear

Image: An after market engine with solder wire for the piston shafts

Image: The roof & retracted clam shell bay door pieces

Image: The back wall & shuttle bay deck piece

Image: New Dino Painting

Image: The kit has now skin detail so washes don't add

Image: Bird's Eye view

Image: Gromit Rides Again

Image: She explains he's mostly avis epoxy putty

Image: She has another unbuilt

Image: Converting to prototype cockpit requires a repositioning

Image: Detailed seat

Image: Yes the prototype's had red clown nose cones

Image: The cost is reasonable

Image: Bottom

Image: Top