IPMS/USA National Convention
Every year, the International Plastic Modelers’ Society/USA hosts an event featuring over 2,000 competition entries along with seminars, tours, and banquets, which provides the opportunity for modelers to share their skills, and make or reestablish friendships. This annual National Convention is held in a rotating location, this year the Nationals took place in Hampton, Virginia.
We drove from Raleigh, NC up to Hampton, VA – a straight road for about 3 hours, lined with pine plantations, species of oak, and, as we approached Virgina, fields of sweet corn and peanuts. Turkey vultures and red-tailed hawks circled the skies.
This was our first visit to the Nationals. The event is organised and hosted by the IPMS/USA with each annual event taking place and co-managed by one of the local Chapters. This year, the team in Virgina, IPMS-Tidewater were hosting.
We had five members of the Agora team on our stand, plus a special guest – Ian from Pitstain Hobbies. Ian had volunteered to bring his Apache AH-64D that he had finished in the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force livery. Rotors spinning and engines accelerating, the Apache drew much attention, particularly from the many U.S. Army veterans who dropped by.
Alongside the Apache, we had eleven other models on display, including all-American favorites, the Shelby Cobra 427 and ’63 split-window Corvette; Porsche 917 and Ferrari 250 GTO racing cars; the Lotus Esprit sub and Aston Martin DB5 from the James Bond Collection; and last but not least, Optimus Prime, standing tall and representing one of our finest examples of cutting-edge scale model engineering and technology. Due to its size and weight Optimus Prime has been created using materials and techniques that makes construction precision-perfect and a joy to build.
The People
The stars of the entire show however were not the models, but the IPMS/USA team and the visitors to our stand, as well as others we met milling around the convention and in the hotel lift!
Conversations throughout the four-day event were fascinating and often surprising. After discussing the model structure and performance of the real-life Porsche 917, one visitor, Joe, revealed that he was a racing historian specializing in creating scaled slot car racetracks. The club, Barn Burners Slot Car Club, is sponsored by two organizations – History in Motorsports and History in Miniature – who ‘thrive to provide a sense of realism and movement through the use of photos, videos and historical records to make dioramas, figures, banners, flags, metal stands and vehicles come to life’. Joe had spent his younger days in the company of racing legends such as Dan Gurney. He now enjoys racing smaller 1/32 scale models that are custom built, and he makes scale figurines to bring his racetracks to life. The club currently houses two scaled slot car tracks: Spa Francorchamps in Belgium and Silverstone in England.
We spoke to many veterans from the United States Air Force, in particular, one IPMS volunteer, Scott, recounted his missions on reconnaissance aircraft (RC-135) used to gather intelligence in the Middle East. He spoke with great pride and knowledge and explained how immersing himself in scale model aircraft enabled him to maintain his connection to the aircraft and community that remain such an important part of his life. Apparently, cups of tea featured onboard prominently in reconnaissance life – who’d of thought…!
The stories we were treated to were numerous and varied but always very personal.
Competition Entries
The convention took place in two halls: one enormous hall housed vendors who took the opportunity to offer special kits such as rare finds and new releases, allowing the second hall to dedicate space to the competition entrants. The level of skill and artistry in many of the competition models was mind blowing. By far the largest exhibit was a 1:96 scale model of the SS United States. The scale ocean liner had apparently taken ten years to complete and the level of detail was extraordinary. Hundreds of deck loungers featured on the sun deck with scenes of families and groups of passengers engaged in activities typically enjoyed onboard.
The Black Pearl
A meticulously crafted model of the The Black Pearl from Pirates of the Carribean also caught our eye.
Steve’s model started as a kit he obtained from Russia which he then modified to make more accurate to the movie. The sails are made from tissue paper which his son helped to make holes in using his airsoft gun. The ship is completely hand rigged which Steve says was the most time consuming part. The detail was incredible which we felt well deserved the 2nd place award in the competition.
The IPMS/USA and IPMS-Tidewater demonstrated the most fine and efficient organization throughout the event, and the hospitality and warm welcome we received, and was shown throughout, resulted in four days of roaring modeling indulgence. You don’t need to be a member to visit, but you need to sign up to take part in the competition. Next year’s event will be held August 5–8 at Grand Wayne Convention Center, Fort Wayne, IN. But, if you can’t wait come and see us November 8–9 at Scale Model World, 2025, Telford, UK hosted by the IPMS/UK.
There were many more standout competition entrants, here are just a few of our favorites...
Tiger Meet
As Platinum Sponsors of the event we were delighted to facilitate this year's Tiger Meet, a display zone showcasing fantastic models which for one reason or another were unable to enter the main competition. Tiger Meet provides a great display space for anyone who perhaps hasn't quite built up the confidence to be competition-ready. These are just the kind of modelers we love to champion, and here are some our favorites. We're sure you'll agree they are all pretty awesome...
