But seriously folks, I had the pleasure of attending Maraudercon, north of Baltimore, this past weekend, and it was arguably the best of the three contests I attended in 2018. The contest had more than 500 entries, and the vendors were a mix of professional dealers and private sellers, all of them offering a variety of paints, supplies, books, aftermarket, and kits. And oh were there bargains!
Maraudercon is a bit unusual in two respects — it’s held every two years, and two chapters join forces host it (IPMS Baltimore and IPMS/Washington DC). I can only guess why they choose not to make it an annual event, but after having attended in 2016, the show will definitely be on my must-attend list in the years to come. The only thing that might keep me away is an early snowstorm, like the one we saw here in the Northeast just two days earlier.
In the contest room, the tables were full and the quality high. Here are a few of my favorite entries, with others posted on my Facebook page.
My two favorite models on the table came from the same modeler, Nelson Key. This guy is expert at two of the more complex aircraft finishes that all of us have discussed on the discussion boards, the metallic-like paint of the F-22A Raptor and the tedious masking of the F-35A Lightning. The paint on his Hasegawa F-22 was absolutely perfect, and the masking on the Meng F-35A as tight and precise as anyone could ask. It was a pleasure to see both in the flesh.
My long-time readers may remember my struggles with rigging several years ago, but the modeler of this 1/72 Voisin 3 (a combination of Eduard and Flashback kits) seems to have no problems with it whatsoever. I don’t know the modeler, but his models always impress.
This was the first time I’ve seen the newish Kitty Hawk 1/32 OS2U-2 Kingfisher in person, and it’s an impressive model on its own, but with the Eduard Big Ed set and skills to impress, the modeler of this example set a high bar to inspire others.
If I were to award just one model for degree of effort and overall success it would be this Testors 1/48 SR-71. I’ve never built one, but everyone of us has heard stories about how difficult the kit is to build. That this modeler was able to create such in impressive model speaks highly of his skills and dedication.
This Kitty Hawk 1/35 T-28B stood out in the large scale category and its entry form was accompanied by a long list of enhancements that took it to another level. The finish was well done, too, the modeler telling me that all of the weathering was done with traditional pastels and washes. No trendy products used here!
I really liked this simple BTR-40. It was expertly constructed and painted and shows that you needn’t apply heavy weathering techniques to create a remarkable example of an armored vehicle.
Speaking of newfangled products and such, it’s nice to see a modeler go “old school” and convert a model as we used to 20 years ago. This 1/35 T-54 is not a Miniart or Takom kit. It’s a kitbash of Tamiya, ESCI, Tank Workshop, and Chesapeake Model Designs kits and aftermarket.
I don't know much about automotive subjects, but this Etzell's Speed Classics 1/25 Miller was an eye-catcher. Those spoked wheels!
Mark your calendars for Maraudercon in two years, Saturday, October 17, 2020.
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