Paper Models at the 2007 IPMS/USA Nationals! (Part 1)

[Jim Nunn]

This has been posted on some of the other Forums and it deserves a re-post here.

I would like to add a forward to this post most of the Paper Modelers who have been around for a while will know David from his excellent posts and his enthusiasm for the hobby not to mention his incredible miniature builds. Bob is a very active paper modeler and has been very active in promoting the hobby. Both of these gentlemen (sorry, Bob you do qualify) are leading members of the IPMS OC and the driving force behind getting the IPMS National committee to allow Paper Models in to the National Contest.


I think both of them deserve our thanks.

Jim Nunn

----- Original Message -----
From: "David T. Okamura"
Subject: [Cardmodelers] Paper Models at the 2007 IPMS/USA Nationals! (Part 1)

As Jason Sutton observed upon meeting me at the convention, "reports of my death have been exaggerated"... though not by much. I'm very sorry for "dropping the ball" on publicizing this event, but for nearly a year I've been struggling with family and work issues. I haven't finished any major paper model for months, and as you know my postings have virtually vanished. I must thank Bob Penikas and Jim Nunn for reminding paper modelers in these forums about the Nationals.

Despite my ongoing problems, I managed to attend all four days of the 2007 IPMS/USA Nationals -- it helped that the Anaheim Marriott was close by so I could still assist my aging parents each morning. But I'm feeling my years, too -- I've spent most of today in a half-conscious stupor from the lingering exhaustion and mental burnout, and both Bob Penikas and Jason Sutton took a day or two off during the convention while recovering.

But I'm happy to say that the grand debut of paper models as official contest categories at the International PLASTIC Model Society/USA Nationals was an overwhelming success! Officially, there were 713 registered attendees (not counting one-day visitors) and 2,179 models -- the third largest model count ever in IPMS/USA Nationals history, and the largest show in the Western Region. And considering that group projects and collections are counted as single entries, the actual number of models was far higher --
one awardee displayed EVERY significant variant of the Sherman tank over the course of 60 years active service -- some were still in front-line duty as late as 2002!

We had about 37 paper entries, and Jim Nunn arrived on Saturday with 5 more for display. (Sadly, Jim was unable to enter his armor models prior to judging, but he did have the satisfaction of absolutely wowing everyone when his Panther, Puma, Kettengrad, 37 mm flak and machine guns finally made their appearance. The response from the plastic modelers and IPMS/USA officials was a mixture of disbelief and enthusiastic approval. "That's a PAPER model?" was repeated ad infinitum every day. Admittedly, I half-expected at least one snide remark from a plastic fanatic, but I never
heard anyone disparage our hobby. In fact, the most common response to paper's inclusion as an official IPMS/USA category was, "Well, it's about time!"

Folks, times have changed indeed.

And while many attendees expressed astonishment concerning the very existence of realistic paper models, about the same number were quite familiar with the hobby. A number of older gentlemen recalled building Wilhelmshaven kits when stationed in Germany, and others had downloaded at least one paper model. So there's already a fair amount of awareness within the IPMS/USA membership, but this show definitely opened many eyes to paper's true potential.

I had hoped to make a good "first impression" for paper models at this Nationals, and I think we succeeded beyond expectations. The paper model section was very popular, and many photographs were taken by attendees and guests. Some are already online -- see photos #213-225 at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/scalewarbirdsstudios/IPMSUSANationalConvention2007

(Part 2 to follow...)

[Jim Nunn]

(Continued...)

I admit to being apprehensive about how many paper modelers would participate. Certainly the price factor was a significant barrier to entry for those who simply wished to enter the contest and not attend the excellent seminars or dealers room. Registration for the entire 4-day convention was $40, which wasn't bad -- but you also had to be a member of IPMS/USA to enter a Nationals competition. Fair enough, and the quarterly
IPMS Journal is a great publication, but adding the annual $25 membership fee definitely begins to pinch the wallet. And then there's the exorbitant $20/day parking fee charged by the Anaheim Marriott! Ouch!
Not knowing how many paper modelers would attend, and without Bob Penikas' models in competition (he was judging), I tried to cover several categories. Naturally I concentrated in Ship Models, but I also had some in Aircraft, Space and Science Fiction, Miscellaneous, plus one in Automobiles. When I arrived late Wednesday, Jason Sutton already had his Science Fiction spacecraft and life-like bird models on the table. Much to my relief, more paper models appeared over the following days -- unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity to talk with many of the builders. I'd swear that was Tom Steichen's P-38 Lightning from PMI, but I never saw Tom at the convention.

Here's a list of the paper models that I can presently recall – my apologies if I forget any:

CATEGORY 199: PAPER AIRCRAFT

F9F8 Cougar (Wilhelmshaven 1:250 scale) by Bill Devine of Lancaster, PA
PSA Boeing 727-200 (3-D Paper, Inc.) by Bruce Jamieson of Bonita, CA
P-38L Lightning (PMI) by Tom Steichen of Santa Monica, CA?
R-100 (Currell Graphics)
R-101 (Currell Graphics)
Whitehead Flying Machine #21 (Fiddlers Green)
The Phoenix (Ed Bertschy)
Halberstadt CL. II (Wayne McCullough)

CATEGORY 299: PAPER MILITARY VEHICLES

No entries by judging time. Jim Nunn did exhibit the following on Sunday:

Panther tank (Halinsky)
Puma armored car (Modelik?)
Kettengrad with trailer (Halinsky?)
37mm flak gun (Halinsky)
German machine guns (Jim Nunn's own creations)

CATEGORY 399: PAPER FIGURES

No entries.

CATEGORY 499: PAPER SHIPS

SMS Rhein (Paper Shipwright) by Nicholas Filippone of Fort Johnson, NY
HMVS Cerberus (Paper Shipwright)
Smerch (Paper Shipwright)
HM Monitor M33 (Paper Shipwright)
ORP Burza (JSC)
U-606 (JSC)
Ochakov (Digital Navy)
HMS Dreadnought (Digital Navy)
WWII Japanese Midget Submarine (U-Don's Factory)
Jesus Boat (J. F. Schreiber, reduced to 1:100 scale)

CATEGORY 599: PAPER AUTOMOBILES

Jaguar R1 (Yasu Tanaka)

CATEGORY 699: PAPER SPACE AND SCIENCE FICTION

Friendship 7 Mercury Capsule (Delta 7 Studios) by Sven Knudsen of Austin, TX
Satellite (need more information on identity and builder's name)
Tintin Rocket, designed and built by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Cosmostrator, designed and built by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Buck Rogers Space Cruiser, designed and built by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Wally Wood rocket, designed and built by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Aliens Dropship (Jan Ruhr)
SpaceShip One (Currell Graphics, enlarged to 1:32 scale)
Delta II booster and Mars Exploration Rover (Erik te Groen)

CATEGORY 899: PAPER MISCELLANEOUS

Merlin hawk (Birdmodel?) by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Kingfisher (Birdmodel?) by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
Illinois Tower (Currell Graphics) by Jason Sutton of Cypress, CA
USS Forrestal CAG 1959 (Wilhelmshaven 1:250 scale) by Bill Devine of
Lancaster, PA
Trojan Rabbit (Mike Hungerford) by Greg Reynolds
Stalag Luft III diorama (Ebob Miniatures) -- need builder's name
Rainbow Trout (Yoshikazu Fujioka)
Jade Dragon (Steve Marshall)

In addition, there was a Fiddlers Green Brewster Buffalo pinned like a bug (with the scientific name "Bison brewsteri -- Extinct") in the "Humor in Modeling" section. All of the downloaded models had their website pages noted either on the entry forms or separate signage.

(Part 3 to follow...)

[Jim Nunn]

RATS! I just KNEW I forgot someone important! Doug Dropesky of the Santa Rosa IPMS/USA chapter awed fellow modelers with four impressive paper model aircraft. So add to Category 199:

Ju-87 Stuka (GPM, winter camouflage), by Doug Dropesky of IPMS/USA Santa Rosa
F-4 Phantom (GPM), by Doug Dropesky of IPMS/USA Santa Rosa
Apache helicopter (Maly Modelartz), by Doug Dropesky of IPMS/USA Santa Rosa
Fw-190 (Halinsky), by Doug Dropesky of IPMS/USA Santa Rosa

I'll have MUCH more to say concerning Doug's remarkable aircraft in a later post. Many apologies, Doug -- I had your models on a side note for special mention but failed to include them in the general list. I hope you're not offended by this memory lapse, since I'm still slightly sleep-deprived right now.


David T. Okamura

[milenio3]

These are GREAT news. I was hoping to make it to this, at least to go and check it. No luck.

But this is a big step for paper modeling.

Yes, I think... no... I KNOW there are many paper modelers that can go to these events, and grab a bunch of 1st places.


Note to the link of the photos... "07" is missing from the link, so it should be:

http://picasaweb.google.com/scalewar...Convention2007

[whulsey]

Wasn't able to make it over for the show like I had hoped. Need to give my IPMS buddy in Anaheim a call. I make a IPMS OC meeting (former member) about 6 or 7 months ago and they had somebody there doing ships in paper. Don't remember the name. Starting to get to the age where CRS is sitting in, especially for names. Glad to see that a good impression was made.