BPMS ZOOM Meeting Report 9/20/22

Eleven people attended the Tuesday, Sept. 20 BPMS Zoom meeting. The 50th Anniversary Luncheon is on for October 16, 1 PM at Buckley’s in Brooklyn.

Word came from Lu that no new kits of significance have arrived.

The Facebook live-stream experiment at last Friday’s Brooklyn meeting was apparently a partial success. Webmaster Gordon said more work is needed.

The discussion topic for the night was tricks modelers can use to build faster. BPMS vice president Tom G. finds his best move is, “going over the instructions first, before I touch anything.”

To finish aircraft faster and sustain interest in his latest project, Frank C. builds as much of the model as possible without painting tedious sub-assemblies. Once the largely-complete model is primed and airbrushed, details can be hand-painted with Vallejo colors free of brush marks.

Vaughan showed off his completed Fw190 built from the ProModeler kit and gave some insights into German fighter engineering. On the real aircraft, the radio antenna wire aft of the cockpit traveled through multiple pulleys to stay taut when the canopy opened. On his model, Vaughan just closed the canopy. Vaughan’s next project is the big F7U Cutlass from Hobbycraft, a naval jet fighter with great looks and unimpressive performance. Vaughan plans to ‘bang it together’ for the joy of building. He typically finishes 3-4 kits a year.
Kevin showed of his beautifully painted Jabba the Hutt bust and two works in progress – a Western Sherriff and fighter jock Wild Bill Kelso from the movie 1941. He also showed off his amazing sculpted clay Large Marge from a PeeWee Herman movie. Kevin’s only tip for speed building is to super-glue lots of small, photoetched parts in succession to “get a rhythm going.”

Chuck said he favors a slow, methodical approach to building and observed, “Going faster, saving time never works for me.”

Mark showed off some interesting historical photos – including a P-47 stained black with oil streaming from battle damage. His tip for faster building is to start with research on other people’s troubles building the same model. “It reduces the chance you’ll just put it down because you can’t achieve your objective.” Mark recommended a fiberglass eraser pen from AK Interactive to remove minor mold marks fast. Square sanding blocks help repetitive tasks like removing mold marks from road wheels. Mark’s next project is a Tamiya Su-76M tank. The Hudson Valley Historical Miniatures Guild will host its annual show October 22, and Mark reminded BPMS of his group’s Turkey Challenge – finish any kit you want over the four-day Thanksgiving Weekend.

Bob K. finished his 1/400 scale HMS Undine submarine and showed a 1/144 C-130 Hercules in progress. He currently has eight models in work at a time.

Mike has undertaken an F4F Wildcat comparison build with the 1994 Tamiya, 2007 HobbyBoss, and 2022 Eduard kits going simultaneously. He shies away from photoetch accessories and noted, “The more you buy, the less chance you’ll finish the model. Mike’s tips for speedier building included sanding sponges for cleaning up tank wheels and a Lazy Susan work base for airbrushing.

To answer the speed building question, Gordon reviewed several sets of plastic sprue nippers. The best and most expensive of them trims parts so close little sanding is required.

Gil showed off a resin Shogun Babe in progress with magnet hands to hold her sword. His tool tip of the week was Harbor Freight center drills made for power tools also make good hand drills to center holes in round stock. 

Zoom Master Bob P. also advised builders to study instructions first and build several similar small figures at once. He painted 15 Cthulhu goods at the same time and recently discovered Speed Paint from Army Paints. The pigment-rich paints enable the modeler to color and shade “with one stroke of the brush.”

Next Zoom Meeting is Tuesday, September 27. Invitation to follow.

~Frank C.