Parabellum Christmas Opening Hours

Our local model shop, Parabellum,  who are normally open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays only have advised that they have extended opening hours over the Christmas period as follows:

 

To download this notice a PDF please click here.

November Meeting and Club AGM.

IPMS Birmingham's November meeting includes the club's Annual General Meeting at which committee members are either elected  or re-elected (When same person is going to continue in the role) and any changes to the way the club is run are agreed upon.

Two changes were proposed and accepted: First that henceforth the changeover date for newly elected committee members should be the 1st of January following their election (Proposed by Roland Turner outgoing Branch Secretary). And second that a new system of judging proposed by George Green, Competition Secretary be adopted - details see the Monthly Competition Page.

Rob Barwick, Branch Secretary Elect.

All the existing committee were re-elected apart from Roland Turner who is standing down, with Rob Barwick being elected as the new Branch Secretary and will take over the position on 1st January 2014. Rob is already the Exhibitor Booking Secretary on the Midland Expo Management Committee and will no doubt bring his enthusiasm and dedication to this role.





Of course it wasn't all serious business and a few die-hards actually got some modelling done in one corner while the meeting progressed.

Live action model building at the meeting!

Isaac's Gold Medal and diorama.

Isaac Peat also brought along his Gold Medal wining diorama from Scale ModelWorld 2013 for us to have a closer look at. A well deserved win for a young and talented modeller.

Looking back on Scale ModelWorld 2013

Well, Scale ModelWorld 2013 is over and we can look back on a show that lived up to its billing as "The best model show in the World".

First of all,  thanks go to our club Chairman Pete Betteridge , Treasurer Matt Nicholls and Dave McQueen who went up to Telford to set up our stand on the Friday afternoon so everything was ready for members to put their models on the table when they arrived on Saturday morning.

In the competition the  club had three winners, Bill Mohan got a Bronze award for his 1/72 scale Short Sherpa and David Allison also received a Bronze for his 1/43 Lola Judd T88 Indy car but pride of place goes to our only junior member Isaac Peat who gained a Gold Medal for his Jeep and Sherman diorama, congratulations Isaac.

John King meeting IPMS (UK) President Paul Regan

We had our friends from IPMS Syracuse, USA, John Kesler, Jim Marconi and John King visiting for the show. This was John King's first time at SMW and his his first trip to Great Britain. "The Boys from Syracuse" had arrived at Heathrow on Wednesday morning and been met by Michael Gossage, Gareth Thomas and Roland Turner and taken to the RAF Museum at Hendon. After an overnight stay at Eastleigh they went on to the Tank Museum at Bovington and the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton before travelling up to Birmingham. Friday was taken up with a visit to Warwick Castle.

Gary Wenko, Overseas Liaison Officer

The show was a celebration of the Society's 50th Anniversary and was bigger than ever, at the Branch Secretaries and SIG Leaders meeting on the Sunday morning it was announced that the visitor numbers were up by 6% on the Saturday compared to 2012 and competition entries had increased from 900 plus to over 1300.

There were many foreign visitors with people who had travelled from as far afield as South Korea, Argentina, Canada, USA and most European countries to menion but a few, either to display at the show or just as members of the general public, keeping Gary Wenko the society's Overseas Liaison  Officer busy, a task on which he appeared to thrive.

The AMV 83 team from the south of France

 
As always the overseas visitors brought a selection of local delicacies and liquid refreshments with them to share with visitors to their stands adding to the convivial atmosphere.



A number of awards were given for the best displays with the Aerobatic Display Teams Special Interest Group winning Gold for the best SIG display.

As already mentioned the competition had a huge number of entries this year and all to a very high standard with the best in show going to Stefano Marchetti (for the second year running) for his remarkable fantasy piece "Bugatti/Tesla Type 159sc - magnetic levitation race car".

Inevitably with anything of the magnitude and complexity of Scale ModelWorld something is almost certainly going to go wrong at some stage and this year was no exception with a problem on the Saturday morning at the members' entrance. This appears to have been due to conflicting information which the show organisers attempted to resolve quickly but were frustrated by the centre management. While it was annoying for the people involved, it should not be allowed to detract from an otherwise superb event and the IPMS (UK) Executive Committee, all of them unpaid volunteers, are to be congratulated on its success.

The "Boys from Syracuse" are here

Our good friends John Kesler, Jim Marconi and John King from IPMS Syracuse arrived at Heathrow Airport on Wednesday morning at 08.30 and were met by Michael Gossage, Gareth Thomas and Roland Turner from IPMS Birmingham.

Once through baggage reclaim, customs and suitably refreshed at one of the airport's coffee shops the first port of call was the RAF Museum Hendon.

 After several hours exploring the museum's treasures and a brief visit th the local Hannants outlet the party headed southwest to Eastleigh, Hampshire for an overnight stay at a Travelodge hotel.

A convivial evening meal at the adjoining Harvester restaurant followed by a good night's sleep set everyone up for Thursday's itinerary taking in the Tank Museum at Bovington and the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton before traveling to Birmingham in the evening.

Friday's plans include a trip to the Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon in Warwickshire and possibly a visit to Kenilworth Castle.

Saturday and Sunday will of course be taken up with attending Scale ModelWorld 2013.

Scale ModelWorld 2013

There can be few in the modelling fraternity who aren't aware of the fast approaching Scale ModelWorld 2013, now only two weeks away. Often still referred to as "The Nationals" or even just "Telford" it is undoubtedly the Mecca for scale modellers worldwide and this year promises to be better than ever, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the founding of IPMS (UK) in 1963.

A timely reminder for those of you who are IPMS members (UK or overseas) to check that your membership is up-to-date and you have a current membership card with you when you visit the show in order to gain free admission. IPMS UK members can renew on-line here.

At IPMS Birmingham we have three guests from our twin chapter in the USA, IPMS Syracuse, New York State, - John Kesler, Jim Marconi and (Making his first visit to SMW and the UK) John King, attending.

For those travelling from farther afield there is a useful page on the show website giving directions to the Telford International Centre by road and public transport.

Our own stand will be in Hall 1, block 1E. (Grid ref; G4) and we will happy to greet old and new friends, so please drop by and say "Hello". 

HMS Victory Modelling Project

Not strictly plastic modelling, but this 10 month project using the Artesania Latina kit may be an inspiration for someone to build either the Airfix or Heller kit of HMS Victory.

Preparations for Scale ModelWorld 2013

SMW 2013 is fast approaching and the details of club, SIG and trader locations are now on the show website; http://smwshow.com/showguide.php.

The IPMS Birmingham display will be in Hall 1, block 1E. (Grid ref; G4), at this stage we do not know which side of the block we are located (see below).

We have three visitors from our twin chapter in the USA, IPMS Syracuse, attending the show, John Kesler, Jim Marconi and John King. This will be John King's first trip to the show (and the UK) so we want to give him a hearty welcome, John Kesler has become a 'regular' and Jim came over in 2011.

 We are currently making plans for museum visits for the "Boys from Syracuse" in the days before SMW and it is hoped that a meal can be arranged for as many club members as possible to meet them.

Congratulations

Our congratulations to club member and former Branch Secretary, Gareth Thomas and his wife Sue on their 25th Wedding Anniversary.

Bruce Heideman

We have received the distressing news that one of our club members, Bruce Heideman, proprietor of Pinnacle Modeling Supplies has been admitted to hospital and undergone emergency surgery. The good news is that he is now out of intensive care and is recovering. We would like to wish him a full and speedy recovery.

Midland Expo 2013

Our own show, Midland Expo, is tomorrow and we look forward to seeing many friends old and new.

There have been a few last minute changes to the clubs attending, a full list is available on the Exhibitors page of the Midland Expo website. All the traders' spaces have long since been booked and again a complete list is available on the Traders page of the website.


It is worth mentioning for those people coming from outside Birmingham, although it has been widely reported in the media, please be aware that the Queensway tunnels, St Chad's and Paradise Circus are both closed for renovation and upgrading. This is causing considerable congestion in Birmingham city centre as people seek alternative routes, even on Sundays. So if your satnav wants to take you via the A38(M) Aston Expressway from J. 6 (Spaghetti Junction) in towards the centre of Brum, best to ignore it and carry on down the M6 to J.4 and take the M42 south to J.3 and  follow the instructions on the Venue/Directions page.

There will be a charity tombola at the show run by the local Red Cross shop staff with all proceeds going towards the financing of an accommodation unit for the families of service personnel being treated at Military Wing of The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Selly Oak in Birmingham. A truly worthwhile cause we think everyone will agree, and urge you to part with some cash and perhaps win something for yourself as well.

For more details please go to the Midland Expo website.

Model Shows

We are now well into the model show season and over the coming months IPMS Birmingham will be attending the following shows.

Sunday 23rd June, Coventry and Warwickshire Model Show and Open Cockpit Day, Midland Air Museum, Coventry Airport, Baginton, Warwickshire, CV3 4FR. http://www.midlandairmuseum.co.uk

Sunday 7th July, Staffordshire Moorlands Show, TA Centre, Martin Leake House, Stonor Street, off Waterloo Road, Cobridge, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. ST6 3HJ.

website; http://smmc.moonfruit.com/#














Sunday 11th August, Avon Model and Wargaming Show, Thornbury Leisure Centre, Alveston Hill, Thornbury, South Gloucestershire, BS35 3JB.

website; http://www.ipmsavon.org.uk/shows.php







Sunday 1st September, Wombourne Scale Model Show, The Community Centre,, Church Road, Wombourne, South Staffordshire, WV5 9EZ

Website; http://www.asvc.org.uk/wombournes-scale-model-show-2013.html

Sunday 8th September, Sutton Coldfield Model Makers Society Model Spectacular 2013, Sutton Coldfield Town Hall, Sutton Coldfield, B73 6AB













Although we are not attending as a club, at least a couple of our members will be at Maquettexpo 2013 in Hyeres, France12th & 13th October.



We will, of course, be attending Scale ModelWorld 2013, Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th November, Telford International Centre, Telford, Shropshire, TF3 4JH.

And not forgetting our own show Midland Expo 2013, 28th July 2013, Cocks Moors Woods Leisure Centre and Golf Course, Alcester Road South, Kings Heath, Birmingham B14 6ER.

Lynne Gossage

It is with great sadness that we have learned of the death of  Lynne Gossage, wife of long standing club member Michael Gossage.

Lynne was always a great supporter of the branch's activities and a good friend to its members with a delightful sense of humour and fun she indulged us in our chosen pastime. Often she would accompany Michael when he visited model shops in the Birmingham area and was well known to their customers. She also acted as hostess to John Kesler (and Jim Marconi in 2011) of our twin chapter, IPMS Syracuse, New York, on his bi-annual visit to Scale ModelWorld.

Lynne was a keen runner and had taken part in a number of marathons and half-marathons over the past decade.

Sadly, she was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer just before last year's Scale ModelWorld and passed away at 06.41 on Monday 27th May. Our condolences go to Michael, their children Elizabeth, Michael and Matthew and grandchildren.

Her Funeral will take place at 12 noon, Friday 14th June,  Lodge Hill Crematorium, Weoley Castle, Birmingham. Michael and the family have asked that donations be made to either MacMillan Nurses or St Mary's Hospice in lieu of flowers.

Gloucester Model Show.

Next Sunday 12th May 2013 IPMS Birmingham will be displaying at IPMS Gloucester's show.

 

The venue for the show is Churchdown Community Centre, Parton Road, Churchdown, Gloucestershire. GL3 2JH from 10.am to 4.30pm. Admission: Adults £2.50, Children (15 and under) & Senior citizens £1.00, Family ticket £5.00.

World War II Day, Forge Mill Needle Museum, Redditch

The IPMS Birmingham display

Saturday 20th April, IPMS Birmingham were guests of the Forever Forties Group at Redditch's Forge Mill Needle Museum and Brodesley Abbey Visitor Centre for their World War II Day. The club was represented by David Child, Harry and Steve Newton, Rob Barwick and Roland Turner.



There was a fine display of 1940s vehicles, military and civilian, plus re-enactors in a number of Second World War guises including a 'Spiv' (Black market salesman) who found himself repeatedly coming to the attention of both the civil and military police forces during the day.

Police question the 'Spiv'.

One of the benefits of this type of event to our club is the opportunity to meet members of the general public and promote our hobby but there is also chance for us to meet other interesting people, one such being Arthur Jones from Wolverhampton who had a a display  near to ours. His is a fascinating story, in 1944 he was a young Sherman tank driver in Normandy and when his tank broke down and the recovery vehicle failed to turn up he was 'adoped' by a local family. To see more of Arthur's experiences go to the BBC's People's War Website. 

Arthur Jones

As is often the case, the Forever Forties Group had a singer, on this occasion Ruby Lamont, entertaining the public with songs of the period and David Bowlas the Forever Forties organiser accompanied her in a rendition of 'Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag'.

Ruby Lamont and David Bowlas

All in all a good day out with pleasant spring weather and plenty of visitors enjoying the atmosphere.

To view a full set of photographs of the day's activities please click on this link:
Forge Mill Needle Museum World War II Day 2013 on Flickr.

Bob Deeley

We have received the very sad news that Bob Deeley, one of our long standing members passed away on Friday 18th January following a long period ill health.

Bob was a respected and greatly liked club member noted for his mischievous and wicked sense of humour. Over the years he served the branch well, at various times fulfilling the roles of Chairman and Competition Secretary.

Bob's funeral will be on Monday 4th February at 11.30 a.m. at Lodge Hill Cemetary, Selly Oak/Weoley Castle.



Meanwhile our condolences go to to his wife Sandra, family and friends.

January Meeting Cancelled

Owing to the current weather conditions and a forecast of further snowfall it has been decided to cancel tomorrow's meeting (Sunday 20th January).

Consideration was given to rescheduling the meeing but as the outlook for the coming week is for more snow we felt that the best option was to re-convene at the February meeting.

Happy New Year

Website Update

For the new year the website has been undergoing a tidy up, with the contents of several pages being consolidated into one: -
 "About IPMS Birmingham" page bringing together information about our meetings, the club committee and contacts, venue, annual subscriptions etc. all into one place for for potential new members. There are also two new pages - "2013 Diary" with dates for club meetings, model shows and any other events likely to be of interest to members. And  "Monthly Competition" with information about the monthly branch competitions.

December Meeting/Christmas Party and Branch Championship.

Steve Newton receives his award from Pete Betteridge

Congratulations to Steve Newton whose model was voted the winner of the senior Branch Championship for 2012 at the December meeting.

For the first time in some years we also had a Junior Branch Champion, congratulations to Izaac Peat.

Steve Adams accepting his father's award.

The annual Clubman of the Year trophy was awarded posthumously to Ron Adams  who passed away in August 2012, in recognition of his many years of service and contributions to the club. Ron's wife Doreen and sons were at the meeting and the certificate was accepted by Steve Adams on behalf of his late father.







The Christmas Party would not be complete without the time honoured Hospice Trophy draw and members formed an orderly (almost) queue to pay for their "Lucky" dip in the sack of gift wrapped kits scrutinised by the Chairman and Treasurer.

Some people even had more than one go!
Mike Gossage examines his winnings from the bag, both French subjects, an Airfix 1/72 scale Fouger Magister and a Testors 1/48 scale Nieuport 17.










Of course it's all in aid of a good cause, Acorns Children's Hospice and the sum of £162  was  raised at the meeting which will be supplemented in February when the fines for uncompleted kits are due.

January Meeting

The first meeting of the new year will be on Sunday 20th January when the competition theme will be USA.. Members are reminded that annual subscriptions are due for seniors (Junior membership is FREE).

Subscriptions are £20.00 yearly payable at the January meeting (or earliest thereafter for those unable to attend in January). They cover hire of the room from Birmingham City Council (Currently £350 per annum) plus you get free tea/coffee at the meetings. This makes it £2.00 per meeting if you attend ten during the year (less than a Starbucks coffee even without the overpriced bun or muffin they will try to sell you). For new members and potential new members, we don't feel that it would be fair to ask you to ask you to pay up on your first visit and we allow people a chance to get to know us before they decide if they want to commit themselves to joining, but once you have been to a couple of meetings we do ask you to contribute to the finances - those joining half way through the year usually pay £10.00.