Patrick Wilkins
Minooka, Illinois
Patrick built this Bandai 1/100 scale Spirits MG Gundam Shin Musha straight from the box.
Dan Brennan
Alsip, Illinois
To model a U.S. Army OH-13 Sioux at the end of the day, Dan built Italeri’s 1/72 scale Bell 47 straight from the box except for photo-etched metal seat belts. The camouflage was done in Model Master colors and the early helicopter sits on Woodlands Scenics groundwork.
Mike Knowski
Joliet, Illinois
“This is the SMS Emden on China Station before World War I,” Mike says. He fitted the Revell 1/350 scale light cruiser with photo-etched metal railings and accessories before finishing it with Mr. Color lacquers.
Ihor Hlohowskyj
Downers Grove, Illinois
Ihor describes the Airfix 1/72 scale Blohm & Voss Bv 141B as an old kit of a very unusual subject, but that didn’t stop him from making it look sharp under a camouflage of Tamiya acrylics. “Canopy masking took forever using Tamiya tape,” he says. We believe it!
Bill Vinikour
Woodridge, Illinois
Sitting among the remains of some of his victims is a Blightfang Dragon from Reaper Miniatures. Bill hand-painted the beast with Citadel acrylics before placing it on a base embellished with rocks, dirt, plastic and paper plants, mini skulls and skeletons, and resin water.
Toni Levine
Wayne, Illinois
In 1/48 scale, the HMS Atalanta is more than 2 feet long. Tony scratchbuilt the 18th-century Royal Navy sloop using plans from the Royal Museum Greenwich.
Mario “Shadow” Mendoza
Chicago, Illinois
“I love airbrushing model cars and kustom painting,” Shadow says. It shows the intricate finish on his AMT 1/25 scale ’70 Chevy Impala. He painted the body Pagan Gold and Tangerine Orange through patterns over Silver Flake and Kandy Root Beer.
Gus Augustin
Arlington Heights, Illinois
Wanting a first-rate ship for his collection, Gus scratchbuilt HMS Prince William circa 1719 with boxwood planking over cherry frames. He spent 1,500 hours on the 1/192 scale model that includes more than 2,500 treenails and a figurehead he carved from boxwood.
Dana Griffith
Morgantown, Indiana
Dana finished a Reaper 28mm Frost Giant Princess with acrylics, then placed it with cork and scenic snow groundwork atop a ceramic cupcake holder. His vision is the boss’ daughter with a penchant for collecting skulls.
Ron Carlson
Montgomery, Illinois
This sharp French navy Super Etendard is Kinetic’s 1/48 scale kit with an Aires resin cockpit, which was a bear to fit, Ron says. He masked the camouflage with poster putty to get a slightly soft edge and armed the strike fighter with an Eduard Brassin GBU-49 Paveway II.
Keith Benes
Orland Park, Illinois
Making MPC’s 1/25 scale Mack heavy-duty DM800 rig even more heavy duty, Keith cut vents in the hood, fitted resin offroad tires, extended the front bumper, and installed a heavy winch and cage. Tamiya and Krylon spray can colors finished the hauler.
John Fluck
Wheatfield, Indiana
Other than Scale Colors spare track links and Value Gear stowage, John built Tamiya’s 1/35 scale KV-1 out of the box. He painted the Soviet heavy tank with AK Real Color lacquers and weathered it with oil washes.
Scott Bischoff
Wheaton, Illinois
At the heart of Scott’s hot rod is a Revell 1/25 scale Ford Model A pickup. He chopped the top, added suicide doors, fitted a chopped grille shell from a 1932 Ford up front, and scratchbuilt the frame, suspension, seats, door panels, wheels, steering column, pedals, shifter knob, and even the suitcase. The striking finish is Mission Models Pearl Kiwi Lime Green topped with clear.
Rick Hambel
Winfield, Illinois
The Nieuport IV.M was derived from a prewar design and served in the French air force in early World War I as an observation and reconnaissance plane. Rick modified a Planet Models 1/48 scale resin kit of the aircraft by scratchbuilding the cockpit coaming and adding UMM-USA spoked wheels. He painted the doped linen airframe with Tamiya and Vallejo acrylics.
Kevin Stover
Evanston, Illinois
Other than replacing the kit ejection seat with a resin part, Kevin built Tamiya’s 1/32 scale F-16CJ out of the box. He airbrushed the camouflage with Tamiya acrylics and weathered it with pigments, artist oils, and pastels to model a fighter from Shaw Air Force Base.
Jeff Marker
Montgomery, Illinois
One of the more unusual models on the tables was Jeff’s 1/150 scale Gigantic Praying Mantis diorama. He built the terrifying AMT kit out of the box and airbrushed the big bug and its victims with water-based acrylics.
Manny Ang
Bartlett, Illinois
After repositioning the flaps on a Hasegawa 1/48 scale F-15C, Manny painted it with Mr. Hobby acrylics. A precisely applied wash popped the panel lines to produce a striking Eagle.
Melissa Kappes
Batavia, Illinois
The Batmobile is most at home on the gritty streets of Gotham at night, so junior modeler Melissa built such a base for an AMT 1/25 scale kit of the Caped Crusader’s ride from the 1989 Batman movie. She used foam board for the street and building, applied washes and graffiti to the walls, and even lit the streetlamps.
Ellie Linich
Shorewood, Illinois
Tanjiro Kamado, a character from the anime Demon Slayer, strikes a fighting pose. Ellie, a young modeler, built the Bandai 1/12 scale kit from the box and displayed the figure in a Bandai base. Very cool!
Omer Houston
Brookfield, Illinois
Omer altered the suspension on a Revell 1/24 scale Ferrari California to give it a lower ride height and a sportier stance. After priming the body parts, he airbrushed the car with Scale Finishes colors.
Kurt Van Dahm
Westmont, Illinois
As a research project, Kurt scratchbuilt this cross-section of the City of Pekin, a boat that once plied the Illinois and Michigan Canal. A 1937 survey produced plans with a curved hull side seen on the left in this photo. The ship burned to the waterline in 1941, but in 1996 the remains were revealed by low water levels and showed the hull was actually squared off, as Kurt shows on the right in this photo.
Dave Wolinski
Algonquin, Illinois
The weathered finish on Dave’s 1/48 scale PV-1 Ventura replicates the wear and tear experienced by these U.S. Navy patrol aircraft in the Pacific during World War II. He painted the 1/48 scale Revell model with Tamiya acrylics and applied an enamel wash.
Steve Wheeler
Racine, Wisconsin
Steve passed away in December 2019, so a fellow Nautical Research Guild member brought this 1/12 scale Hunter, a gentleman’s sport boat, scratchbuilt by Steve.
George Lococo
Algonquin, Illinois
Modeling a German tank in Normandy in 1944, George applied Zimmerit antimagnetic coating to a Tamiya 1/35 scale Panther using wall filler paste. Other additions include a scratchbuilt crew and stowage. He used Vallejo acrylics for the camouflage and weathered the model with artist-oil dot filters, pre- and post-shading, pinwashes, and powdered pastel dust.
Mike Oberholtzer
River Forest, Illinois
“It’s a model of my daughter’s boyfriend’s Bronco!” Mike says. He replicated the vehicle by adding a ton of detail including resin and photo-etched metal from Parts by Parks, Fireball, Detail Master, and Go-Fer Racing, before topping it with Gravity lacquers.
Jerry Linich
Shorewood, Illinois
Jerry modified the pilot of Bandai’s 1/72 scale A-wing to resemble Hera Syndulla, the Twi’lek revolutionary seen in Star Wars Rebels. He painted the starfighter with Tamiya colors and used aftermarket decals to mark it for Phoenix Squadron.
Karl Williams Jr.
Carol Stream, Illinois
The mech being repaired in Karl’s diorama comes from Soda Pop Miniatures. He painted it, the robot helper, Tamiya tools, and a scratchbuilt oscilloscope with P3 acrylics using a pink base coat topped with transparent yellow to produce the orange armor. The base was cast from plaster.
Geoff Docherty
Morton Grove, Illinois
For a big model with wings, here’s Geoff’s 1/12 scale Lotus Type 49B. He added brass screens to the Formula 1 race car’s engine velocity stacks and painted the Lotus colors with Tamiya spray cans.
Austin Paxton
East Moline, Illinois
To show the Galactic Empire projecting force somewhere in the galaxy, Austin built a Bandai 1/48 scale AT-ST out of the box but added Woodland Scenics groundcover and plants to the kit base. He painted the Imperial walker with Vallejo acrylics.
John Novak
Western Springs, Illinois
After building Revell’s 1/72 scale Boxer armored vehicle as a Dutch Command Post, John painted the NATO camouflage with Tamiya acrylics and poster putty masking.
Brant Fuller
Ottawa, Illinois
Brant, 7, built this Monogram 1/32 scale Screaming Mimi, a Sherman with a multiple rocket launcher on the turret, with his dad. The model was hand-painted with Tamiya acrylics.
Mike Fuller
Ottawa, Illinois
Mike mated a 1/25 scale Model King body on a modified AMT chassis to build the Chevelle Laguna driven by NASCAR legend Benny Parsons. He carved out the molded plastic engine grille with a metal screen and painted it with Tamiya spray cans.
Richard Romaniak
Des Plaines, Illinois
The hull of Richard’s 1/96 scale USS Constitution comes from the venerable Revell kit, but he replaced or modified just about everything else, including using wood for the decks, deck furniture, gratings, railings, fife rails, knightheads, masts, yards, blocks, and deadeyes. The kit figures were repositioned to show more action.
Steve Butt
Midlothian, Illinois
Designed as a fighter and ground-attack aircraft, 50 IMAM Ro.57 were produced and served the Italian air force late in World War II. Steve built Special Hobby’s 1/48 scale kit of the unusual plane and painted it with Model Master enamels; pre-shading and artist-oil washes help break up the monochromatic finish.
Randal Dieck
West Bend, Wisconsin
Randal painted the stunning natural-metal finish on this Revell 1/48 scale F-101B Voodoo with a custom silver mix and plenty of masking to differentiate panels. Model Master enamels colored details and a sludge wash popped surface details.
Don Cosentine
Port Washington, Wisconsin
Other than installing stretched sprue antennas, Don built AFV Club’s 1/35 scale AAVP7A1 straight from the box. He painted the amphibious vehicle with Tamiya acrylics.