Scale ModelWorld 2022

[spitfire]

Had a great day no kits for me to buy (yet), just some "essential" supplies, still sorting out my photos but will post some when I can, here are a couple of my favourites, the Lancaster was most impressive.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[John Tapsell]

6 hours ago, spruecutter96 said:

Surely, not having traders paying to be in Hall 3 would have effectively created a loss of revenue, not a gain? I guess that one aspect could well balance the other out, though. 

 

As I understand it, hiring the Centre costs the IPMS somewhere in the region of £60,000 a year. 

 

Cheers. 

 

Chris. 

On the contrary, the hire rate for Hall 3 was significantly less because we agreed not to use it for commercial activities. If we'd had to pay the 'commercial' rate for the hall, we'd have been having a two-hall show this year. Doing it the way we did allowed us to have extra space and still remain within a realistic budget.

 

We also have fewer traders and that means lower income from trader bookings. Ultimately We are working on some possible options to encourage some of those traders to return and/or find new ones, but we don't know how successful that will be. Some of the overseas traders were unable to come because of ongoing Covid issues in their own countries (so travelling was out of the question, no matter how keen they were to come.

 

 

 

[StrangelyBrown]

Went on Sunday again this year (£1 to park all day in the Southwater car park!).

 

Must be the 5th or 6th show I've been too and now always make it a Sunday- just feels more comfortable to walk around on a Sunday.  3 hour drive and arrived at 10.

 

I agree with others than the competition display area was a little bit tight but understand the rationale (and if it was tight on Sunday, it was probably much tighter on Saturday) but with a little patience and shuffling around, I got to see most of what I wanted to see,

 

Didn't look like as many stall holders but I spent more this year than I've ever spent before- some shopping around as well paid dividends on the ICM 1/48 Bristol Beaufort which most seemed to be selling for around £47-£48 and I got (not in a sale) for £40.

 

Good load of books and accessories as well were found.

 

As always the club displays were sensational and it would feel wrong to pick a single one out.   Surprised a couple of traders still were "cash only" so unfortunately they missed out on my money but most have moved down the route of contactless/chip n pin.

 

Enjoyable day with like minded people and some bargains into the mix.  Can't speak for the food as I always take some snap with me.   Looking forward to next year.

[Vingtor]

I am afraid that the main obstacle for overseas traders to come to Telford is due to Brexit. Having to declare customs for importing all the stuff is a lot of work, and also increases travelling time by hours. The same repeats on the way back to the mainland. I have talked to many European traders who say they rather will concentrate on model shows on the Continent.

[Ratch]

I have just returned from a most pleasurable weekend at Telford, catching up with old modelling friends and making new ones. I was mainly showing on the tables of the Ageless & Nostalgic Vintage Modellers SIG with chrism and EJSnotgrass (Iain).
Here is Iain with Tony Little (TeeELL)



Along our row were CBK - Matt & James Perrin

David, Matt & Iain



The Cold War SIG with Daz, Gordon and Tom


and the Revell SIG with Beany (Al)
Here's a few others that caught my eye 👁

[Whofan]

@Ratch ,

 

I thought that Mulberry display was one of the best single themed displays on a club table, which is why I also took some photos of it.

 

Did you see the War horse model that won last year;s show on the Milton Keynes club table? I had a chat with the builder, and fascinating it was to hear about the work he put into it.

 

I rather liked this little vignette in the competatition, if you spotted it you'll probably know what it was called, but of not, have a guess;

 

 

[Gordon J]

No idea Whofan - what was it called?

[treker_ed]

@WhofanYou survived taking to Mr Scott......

 

(Apologies, I'm a member of the MK club, and he has been known to talk the hind legs off a donkey at times - especially about War Horse!)

[Ngantek]

My first visit to SMW, and had a lovely time, spent too much money, saw so many incredible models, and met lots of friendly people. Just wanted to say a big thank you to the organisers; everything seemed to run pretty flawlessly; the vendors for whom I suspect coming to such events is becoming increasingly marginal; and also to the various IPMS chapters and SIGs who had to spend a lot of time behind the tables, having idiots like me gawping and coming perilously close to knocking over their stuff.

 

 

[Ptmvarsityfan]

Another fabulous weekend, my 20th year at Telford. Feet throbbing and bank balance complaining. Thanks to all at IPMS, superb!

Cheers, Paul

 

[Ngantek]

10 hours ago, Whofan said:

@Ratch ,

 

 

I rather liked this little vignette in the competatition, if you spotted it you'll probably know what it was called, but of not, have a guess;

 

 

 

I felt they missed a trick by it not being a Deutschland Class!

 

 

 

21 hours ago, spruecutter96 said:

I was there yesterday and was really struck by how few folks were wearing face-masks. I would estimate it was around 1 or 2% of attendees. As someone who caught Covid about two months ago, I am pretty sensitive to this subject.  

 

There were several areas in Hall 1 which were teaming with people (mainly the corners of the hall). I really hope that that no-one will have left the show with an unwanted, new acquisition. 

 

Some of the traders seemed very busy - others, a lot less so. 

 

Cheers. 

 

Chris. 

Yes this is certainly true, although I would say (without wanting to invite political discussion) it's pretty much representative of UK wide behaviour.

 

  

On 13/11/2022 at 06:35, T-21 said:

What was Best in Show please ?

 

On 12/11/2022 at 17:42, Shalako said:

Any photos for us who don't have the opportunity to visit the exhibition for various reasons? I would really appreciate it lads.

 

Cheers,

 

Bill

Yeah having my dodgy shakey phone camera pictures with randomly selected settings does service to no one, but in lieu of many responses to these, best in show was this astonishing scratchbuild monstrosity:

 

BIS aircraft looked suspiciously familiar, and frankly looks even more incredible in person when your brain realises that those life-like rivets and overlapping panels are actually tiny.

 

and BIS sci fi was this mammoth:

 

Sadly armour, ship and diorama photos did not survive my shaky hands.

 

 

Again not much in the way of camerawork, but for anyone wanting to get an idea of scale and general atmosphere, here are the two larger halls about lunchtime on Sunday (rather less crazy than early Saturday for sure!)

 

 

[Whofan]

49 minutes ago, Gordon J said:

No idea Whofan - what was it called?

It’s a pocket battleship!

[Whofan]

52 minutes ago, treker_ed said:

@WhofanYou survived taking to Mr Scott......

 

(Apologies, I'm a member of the MK club, and he has been known to talk the hind legs off a donkey at times - especially about War Horse!)

With jolly good reason, I feel; it’s an astonishing model and I’m pretty sure I’d talk all the legs off a donkey if I’d built it!

Edited November 13, 2022 by Whofan

[spruecutter96]

From the Sunday video, it looks like there were (maybe) a third of the numbers we had on Saturday morning. Obviously, these things are easily misinterpreted, though.  

 

Thanks for posting. 

 

Chris. 

[Ngantek]

40 minutes ago, spruecutter96 said:

From the Sunday video, it looks like there were (maybe) a third of the numbers we had on Saturday morning. Obviously, these things are easily misinterpreted, though.  

 

Thanks for posting. 

 

Chris. 

Yes just to clairfy, Saturday morning, particularly around the kit traders, was really tight. This was the (already less busy) Sunday and I think a fair few people (myself included!) were having lunch when I took this video. One should also consider that these spaces always look less crowded when you're looking from above, compared to how it feels in the middle of the crowd. People were uniformly courteous in letting people through and waiting their turn though. As I say I'm aware that it's an emotive and politically charged subject, but I agree that I saw perhaps 4 or 5 other masks all weekend. It's just that it didn't strike me as different from going into any public area in the UK right now, such is the current uptake on mask wearing.

[binbrook87]

I decided to go on Saturday as a last minute decision and glad I did as I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Yes it was different to what we've probably come to expect, but nothing seems to be the same in these post Covid Brexit times! UK traders were definitely fewer and I noted at least 3 or 4 that were notable by their absence. The choice and numbers of kits on offer was also less than previous years with prices very much on the increase. Bargains were very hard to come by in my opinion. I did pick up 3 decently priced kits though after what seemed like hard work going round and round the stands indefinitely. A Meng F/A-18F being the best of the bunch at £15 less than market value, plus a Revell 1/48 Jaguar and Kinetic A-6. But compared to past years my spending was very tame.

Did anybody notice the problem trying to view the Hannants stand through a line of queuing people waiting to pick up pre orders?! Slightly irritating. Several times I tried during the day but each time the front display tables were completely blocked. Could Hannants ask for the queue to stretch the other way perhaps?

For the first time I actually managed some time to look around the competition tables. This was perhaps due to fewer traders and the fact it was located in Hall 3. I actually liked it being there as it felt less of an effort to see than if it was in the upstairs area.

The club display models I thought were excellent with some real gems and very innovative displays. Well done to all those involved.

So all in all a great day out, perhaps not quite the 'wow' factor that we've been accustomed to, but we're living in very different times now, and to have the show back in any capacity is something to be grateful for. Hats off to the organisers, clubs and traders and roll on next year!

Edited November 14, 2022 by binbrook87

[Tim R-T-C]

6 hours ago, binbrook87 said:

I decided to go on Satur.

Did anybody notice the problem trying to view the Hannants stand through a line of queuing people waiting to pick up pre orders?! Slightly irritating. Several times I tried during the day but each time the front display tables were completely blocked. Could Hannants ask for the queue to stretch the other way perhaps?

 

 

Unfortunately the Hannants issue was due to their card machines failing so all payments had to go through a long winded process (given the nearly 4 figure value of many collections, cash only definitely wasn't viable!

 

I guess any other direction of queue would have blocked aisles or other stands so they at least kept the disruption to their own tables.

 

11 hours ago, John Tapsell said:

On the contrary, the hire rate for Hall 3 was significantly less because we agreed not to use it for commercial activities. If we'd had to pay the 'commercial' rate for the hall, we'd have been having a two-hall show this year. Doing it the way we did allowed us to have extra space and still remain within a realistic budget.

 

I'm sure most options have been discussed, but would having a dedicated vendor hall in, say, Hall 1 then having 2 and 3 as display only be an option to reduce costs further in the future?

 

 

Regarding traders in general, while the loss of some big sellers and corporate stands is bad for the show bottom line, I do think it is the smaller traders who make for a much more interesting browsing experience and should be the focus of efforts to expand the trader base.

 

I can pick up the latest Tamiya kit at any online retailers, but instead I managed to get a resin cast F6 Lightning engine in 1/144; a 1/24 3d printed tv, stand and VHS player; some eerie resin masked child figures from Alternity Minatures and eyeballed a stunning 1/100 kit of the Serenity - all from traders who only sell direct and who most of the visiting public would never have come across.

[Mr T]

Some of the traders that traditionally were a fair size presence at SMW have now if course gone, and I think that in part has impacted on the overall picture. If you think Comet Minatures used to have a big stand and S&M and Whirlybirds were fixtures and all sadly missed. I can fully see why overseas traders don't bother. The non EU traders would have found little difference, but some were from the Ukraine. Before 2020, the EU and EEA traders would have just been able to get on a ferry or come through the Channel tunnel with few customs problems. 

[SafetyDad]

My heartfelt thanks to all who have posted pictures and reports here.

 

I had intended to visit on Saturday, but a last minute domestic timetable clash put paid to that. I was last there in 2019, so was keen, but I'd wondered what the trader turnout in these post-Covid and post B times would be like. It's a fair old drive from my neck of the woods, so it's very helpful to have the feedback you've all offered. I've never been on a Sunday, but that now looks like a very attractive option.

 

SD

[Noel Smith]

Really good show.  Fantastic models all around the show halls to admire and caught up with many old friends not seen since before covid as I missed last year's show.

 

Entry to the competition area seemed to be restricted for general viewing well before the judging took place unlike previous years before covid. After the judging was finished the area was heaving, so I did not bother to look. As a Saturday only visitor I would have liked to have looked at the competition models before the judging took place in a more leisurely manner.

[Paul Thompson]

13 hour round trip to Telford these days (which is a vast improvement from when I lived in Arnhem), but despite the post Covid and post Brexit effects on the show it was more than worth the effort. I have to say I enjoyed the free entertainment while queuing for a set-up wrisband (sounded at times as if more than half the blokes there were effing and blinding, moaning about the queue as if it was totally unneccessary and cataclysmically mis-handled, which IMHO is a load of tosh - I certainly don't envy the organisers and am grateful for their efforts). For me the show is primarily a social event where you also get to see some really nice work, with the optional bonus of stocking up on stuff.  Really enjoyed both days.

 

Paul.

 

[Tbolt]

19 hours ago, Shalako said:

Cheers mate. As I am unable to move due to a recent surgery a photo album would be great to see with photos from the exhibition.

 

Cheers,

 

Bill

 

I'll have some photos up either tomorrow or the next day, I took quite a lot so it's taking a while to edit them all.

[patjb]

Great show as usual, meeting up with friends that you only see at SMW and other model shows around the country.  Some bargains with the traders, some not but I think that's just the way pries are going with everything. I didn't buy as much as usual but that's probably just the realisation I have to much and need to sell some things I have changed direction away from now. 

My only minor gripe was that you couldn't get to view the completion entry's in the morning you had to wait until after judging.  I may be wrong but I 'm sure you used to be able to view them for a few hours in the morning in previous years.  They were still judging at about 15:30 and unfortunately I had to leave then. 

Despite that credit to the IPMS organisers and staff, job well done, some people appear to forget that they are volunteers, if you think you could do better................ !

Looking forward to next year and the smaller shows before then.

[KITCAT]

Well I was dog tired on Saturday night having run around all day. Spent loads. I  was really upset to learn that all remaining stock of WnW;S kit's have been sold to Sprue Bros in the US. Big thing was to meet some old friends who I hadn't seen for some years. The standard of work in the competition  was wonderful.

It appears the big trading problem from our oversea,s friends is due to the loony VAT rules which is a world wide thing to curtail money laundering- YOU CANNOT MAKE IT UP!

Roll on next year.

[Tbolt]

11 hours ago, Ngantek said:

I felt they missed a trick by it not being a Deutschland Class!

 

 

 

Yes this is certainly true, although I would say (without wanting to invite political discussion) it's pretty much representative of UK wide behaviour.

 

  

 

Yeah having my dodgy shakey phone camera pictures with randomly selected settings does service to no one, but in lieu of many responses to these, best in show was this astonishing scratchbuild monstrosity:

 

BIS aircraft looked suspiciously familiar, and frankly looks even more incredible in person when your brain realises that those life-like rivets and overlapping panels are actually tiny.

 

and BIS sci fi was this mammoth:

 

Sadly armour, ship and diorama photos did not survive my shaky hands.

 

 

Again not much in the way of camerawork, but for anyone wanting to get an idea of scale and general atmosphere, here are the two larger halls about lunchtime on Sunday (rather less crazy than early Saturday for sure!)

 

 

 

Nothing wrong with the quality of those photos. Annoyingly I didn't go back and get a picture of the best in show as due to it being very busy I couldn't get to it at first and I'm sure there other great models I didn't manage to get back to as you forget what you missed the first time around.