BPMS Zoom Mini Meeting Report- Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Twelve people attended. Talk about wide-ranging interests! We started the meeting with a technical discussion of the S-67 helicopter and the AGM-62 Walleye missile and ended the meeting talking about Zaku mobile suits, the story behind them and the many kits available. And every topic was illustrated by photos pulled up and shared by the quick fingered guys who know how to do such things. Very impressive and much appreciated.

We saw Vaughn's F-107 (good Trumpeter kit but poor decals), Simon's Fw-200 (his first foray into acrylic paints), Kevin's Barnabas Collins bust (the silver cane handle is rattle can Rust-Oleium Bright Coat) and Frank C's Blackhawk (using the build first, paint later method).
Acquisitions included: A-10 C, AH 1-W Super Cobra, Eddie the Head (an Iron Maiden thing), F-35 A Lightning II, M1-A1 and YF-23.

A jewelry picker from Hobby Lobby was the featured tool. The silicone tips (big at one end, small at the other) can pick up/place small parts without leaving any residue. The HL jewelry section has many tools with modeling potential.

There was a good discussion about the collections we've built or plan to build. Vaughn has groups of 1/72 Mig fighters, WW2 night fighters and Sikorsky aircraft, among others. Kevin has experimental aircraft, real spacecraft, Werewolves and Medusas. Back in the day, Chuck thought about building F-4Us in different scales so he could create a forced perspective display in the hallway of his railroad flat apartment. Frank C thinks building Revell 's F-14 A, B and D with wings in different positions would make an interesting display. Many people's collections are more like accumulations of their favorites, like Tiger 1s, Shermans, Churchills, Gundams, Volkswagens, F-4 Phantoms, etc. If you get bored by building the same kit multiple times, try building different manufacturer's kits of the same prototype.

The next meeting is Tuesday, 9/2/25 at 7:30 pm. Invites to follow. Enjoy the Labor Day long weekend.

~Russ

BPMS Zoom Mini Meeting Report: 08/19/25

Thirteen people attended. Andrew was back, after a long absence. Those of us who went to the IPMS Nationals in Hampton, VA gave their opinions of the event and the experience in general. Several are considering attending the 2026 Nationals in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Now that would be an interesting road trip. 

 

Lou reports the Atlantis 1/48 Fokker DR 1 and 1/108 C 141 A Starlifter, Miniart's 1/35 1.5-ton 4x4 and Pegasus' 1/144 NATO infantry are available.

 

We saw Vaughn's F-104 and F-107 (and a photo of an F-107 in a scrapyard), Kevin's Nosferatu and Barnabas Collins busts, Gordon's Gundam Stormbringer, and Frank C's F-104. 

 

Items acquired at the Nationals were too numerous to list here but one, Tamiya's new Pak 38 anti-tank gun, wound up as a prize in the raffle at our 8/15/25 meeting, courtesy of Jimmy.  

 

This week's tool was a Beeswax holder from Hobby Lobby. Use the wax to prevent fraying and improve the appearance of thread used for rigging, car battery cables, etc. Or put a bit of wax on a toothpick and use it to pick up small items. Thanks again, Gil. Speaking of tools, a new Harbor Freight is coming to Brooklyn, at the intersection of Nostrand Ave and Ave U. No dates yet. 

 

The topic was vintage kits. More than one person said Monogram's old 1/48 planes may have been simple, but shapes were correct, and they built up into nice models. Likewise, for Revell's 1/48 F-105, F-102 and Canberra kits. Talk about staying power, the originals are still in demand. Gil's idea of vintage is Monogram's  Futurista, a 3 wheeled bubbletop on a VW chassis. Gordon's is the Destroid Defender he got, courtesy of Joe H, at the same 8/15 /25 raffle. By coincidence, Revell's 1/32 Bell Huey Cobra was the vintage kit Frank C and Russ both plan to build (Frank's will be better). Mark feels vintage kits aren't worth the effort. Still, if he found a Monogram Kingfisher, it would end up on his workbench. And vintage isn't limited to plastic. Ask Lou or Gil about their Strombecker wood models. 

 

If we missed your favorite vintage kit, tell us about it at the next meeting, Tuesday, 8/26/25 at 7:30 pm. Invites to follow. Hope to see you there.

 

~Russ 

BPMS Member awarded 1st Place!

 There were plenty of outstanding models at the 2025 IPMS/USA Nationals held this year in Hampton Roads, Va. The results have been PUBLISHED and for those that haven't seen Nestor's   1st Place Stratocruiser, you can find it on page 139.

 

BPMS in Virginia

 BPMS is being well represented at the Nats in Va. A handful of members went down to represent the group, and to enter models into their favorite categories. More news when they get back!  :)

 

We also sponsored two categories - 

 

BPMS Meeting: Friday, August 15, 2025

ACTIVITIES DIRECTING

By Bobby Pokorny

  

Welcome to AUGUST! We have some fun things coming up this month. 

Hello everyone! August is upon us again. The year sure has been moving along way too quickly! This month’s activities are:

 Pizza Night: Possibly the biggest member favorite activity. Just be sure that your dues are paid up. Bring your appetite, but not your friends.

 Contest Night 3Q: This is the third installment of the annual contest. That means you can bring in any work that hasn’t already appeared in a quarterly contest. You can, however, bring in anything you built for the LONG LIVE THE KING theme contest since it is new work. 

I am sure we will also discuss the IPMS Nationals as we have several members attending. 

Meeting Date: 

AUGUST 15, 2025

Members start showing up by 5PM to set up.

Feel free to come early and hang-out!

 

 

August Bulletin by Kevin K in PDF Format

 

  

BPMS Zoom Mini Meeting: Tuesday 08/05/2025

Nine people joined the August 5 on-line meeting, most with memories of unwise modeling purchases and industry decisions.

Lou confirmed arrival of Tamiya’s 1/72 scale F-35C carrier fighter and 1/35 scale M36 Jackson tank destroyer.  He noted that Roden has released a 1/144 scale XC-99 – a one-off prototype cargo plane on no-one’s most-wanted list.

Vaughan continued his ‘frigging nightmare’ pursuit of a 1/72 scale A-5A with the revelation that his ancient, nicely-molded, and recently-purchased Revell Vigilante kit is 1/82 scale.  Research continues on how to turn Trumpeter’s hump-backed RA-5C into a bomb-carrying A-5A.  In contrast, Vaughan work on the Trumpeter 1/72 scale F-107 Ultra Sabre revealed, “a nice model. Fits are gorgeous.”

Vaughan has always wanted to build a B-26 in flight pose and had high hopes for the 1/48 scale ICM kit. He concluded, “Now I’m dreading it.” The state-of-the-art Marauder has too many parts, and thick fuselage walls leave insufficient room for a bombardier in the nose.

Chuck suspended his usual airplane modeling last week to clean up windstorm damage but noted, “I found myself this year making far more tanks than I ever thought I would.” A BPMS raffle saddled him with a 1/35 German monstrosity with over 900 parts, and he asked, “What am I going to do with this?”

Kevin rediscovered the Dark Shadows vampire soap opera and  bought a figure of Barnabas Collins. He reflected on his attic stash of crude short-run garage kits, bought when he thought,  ‘If I don’t get it, I’m gonna lose out forever!”

Gil remembers buying an old Lindberg dune buggy that required the modeler to wind his own electric motor armature. “What a piece of crap it was.” His latest 3D-printed project is a practice block to paint the eyes for 1/6 or ¼ scale figures. Gil’s Tool Tip of the Week was a sticky bead mat made of washable silicone. The double-sided mat keeps small parts from rolling away on the workbench.

Simon continues to restore an old Monogram HU-16 Albatross with fragile Print Scale decals.  He noted that even in comfortable retirement and this time of new-kit plenty, “I still can’t go out and spend $180 on a model.”

Frank G. has begun building an old B-29 kit to commemorate the atomic bomb mission on Japan 80 years ago. An internet search revealed, “Hiroshima doesn’t seem to be trending right now.”

Never a trend follower, Frank C continues work on the old Revell F-104 in 1/32 scale. He confessed his purchase of the huge Monogram B-36 and his rapid regret and resale of the 1/72 scale monster. Likewise less-than-exciting kits of British Seahawk and Attacker jets in 1/48 scale were bought and purged from his stash. 

Russell Zoomed-in enroute to the IPMS National Convention in Hampton, Virginia. He observed, “I don’t really regret them, but I do have several kits I knew when I bought them would be difficult to build and display – the Dragon railroad gun, Dragon M48 with bridge.  I don’t regret any of them, but I know they’re impractical.”

There will be no Zoom meeting next week. The next In-Person BPMS meeting comes on Friday, August 15 and marks this year’s gluttonous Pizza Night!

~Frank C 

 

BPMS Zoom Mini Meeting Report - 07/29/2025

Topic: Favorite Tamiya Kits  

 

Eleven people attended.  We remembered our friend and skilled modeler, Don Illjes, who passed away on July 19, 2025. A colorful and generous guy, he'll be missed. RIP, Don.

 

Several club members will be at the IPMS Nationals in Hampton VA next week. Have a safe trip, guys. 

 

Lou reports Trumpeter's 1/48 Fairey Barracuda and Roden's 1/144 XC-99 are available.

 

There were technical discussions on the F-107, the history and use of the A5 Vigilante and the different approaches different nations took to add radar to their aircraft during WW 2.

 

We saw Vaughn's Ju-88 C GB and his other night fighters (P-61, Me Bf 110 G4, He-219 A-7,  NF Mosquito and Bristol Beaufighter), Erasmo's Spirit of Saint Louis, Kevin's 'It's a Wonderful Life' diorama and scratch-built tree for his evil Cheshire Cat, Gil's 3D printed female motorcyclist (we'll see his 3D printed Dodge Tomahawk motorcycle later), Frank's Mig 15, RF 5A and F 104 and Russ' M-109 and Kettenkraftrad.  

 

Acquisitions included Trumpeter's F-107 and Pegasus' Mothman. 

 

Gil found another useful dollar store item, a silicone finger protector (aka thimble). If your knife slips a lot, you need this.

 

The featured topic was your favorite Tamiya model. Like parents being asked, "who's your favorite child",  several people said, "all of them" and went on to name specific kits. The 1/100 F 105D, 1/48 He-219 A7,  1/48 Royal Navy Sea Harrier FRS 1, 1/35 Ford GPA amphibian, 1/35 M-113 variants, 1/35 Tiger 1 variants, 1/35 Panzer 3 and1/35 Char B bis all got shout outs. Lou recalled meeting Mr. Tamiya at an industry show (he also met Mr.  Hasegawa and Fujimi's founders during his career). Two guys admitted to never buying a Tamiya kit and one guy just realized he had more Tamiya aircraft than he remembered in his stash.

 

The next meeting is Tuesday, 8/5/25 at 7:30 pm. Frank C will send the invites. Hope to see you there.

 

~Russ