Plastic Model Mojo
Plastic Model Mojo, a podcast dedicated to scale modeling, as well as the news and events around the hobby
Star Trek Builds And Ice Cream: August Model Show Spotlight
Vendors sold out months early, a Star Trek 60th anniversary category on the awards table, and a full day of plastic modeling in one of the most visitor-friendly spots in north Alabama. We sit down with Tom Clark from the Huntsville Plastic Modelers Society to get the real details on their 49th annual show at the Huntsville JC’s building on Airport Road, including what to expect if you’re traveling in right after the IPMS Nationals.
We walk through the schedule step by step: when vendor setup starts, the registration window, how long judging runs, and when awards are handed out. Tom also explains how their electronic forms work, why the club prefers online paperwork, and how they keep things simple with classic IPMS 1-2-3 judging. If you’re searching for an IPMS USA model contest, a scale model show in Huntsville, or a plastic model event in Alabama with strong vendor support, this is the planning guide you want before you pack the car.
Then we get into the fun stuff: category options across aircraft, armor, automotive, dioramas, real space, sci-fi, ships, and a dedicated Gundam and giant robot section, plus a juniors category that makes it easy for younger builders to jump in. We also talk about the on-site food trucks, nearby restaurants, and why the venue is comfortable for a full-day hang. You’ll even hear what the club is previewing as they recruit volunteers for next year’s big Nationals workload.
Subscribe for more show spotlights, share this with a friend who builds, and leave a review with your best contest tip so more modelers can find the community.
Huntsville Plastic Modelers Society Facebook
Show Info and Entre Forms
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Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
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KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler.
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Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
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Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
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Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
Superabundance In Plastic Modeling: Episode 166
The hobby is drowning in great choices right now, and that’s both a gift and a trap. We talk through what “superabundance” really looks like in modern scale modeling: a flood of high-quality plastic model kits, aftermarket decals, 3D printed parts, and specialized paint and weathering products that would’ve felt impossible a couple decades ago. Using examples like the suddenly crowded field of 1/72 P-40B kits, we dig into why the golden age of modeling is real, and how it can still leave you stuck staring at options instead of making progress.
We also share listener-driven updates and community news as the IPMS Nationals get closer, including travel plans, meetups, and the behind-the-scenes effort it takes to host fellow modelers while your house and hobby room are mid-remodel. On the community side, we’re pushing toward a better home for long-term reference content, so great builds and tips don’t disappear into the Facebook timeline. If you’ve been following the Dojo build content, we also talk about improving visibility and inviting more Q and A with builders.
Then we go hands-on with one of the most common problem areas in aircraft modeling: clear parts and canopies. We cover practical techniques like using a micro razor saw to avoid cracking brittle clear plastic, choosing the right adhesive (and why some “clear” glues can still be tricky), and how careful sanding and test fitting before you glue can prevent gaps you’ll hate later. We also debate the big workflow question: when to attach the canopy, and how the answer changes depending on the kit and whether it’s posed open or closed.
If you enjoy these kinds of deep-dive shop talks, subscribe, share the show with a modeling friend, and leave a quick rating or review. What’s your best tip for avoiding choice paralysis and keeping your mojo on the bench?
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
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Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
Mighty Eighth Book Giveaway!
A Mighty Eighth Air Force book is on the table, but we’re not doing a “click and win” giveaway. We want something that makes the show better for everyone: your best Shop Talk topic ideas and your sharpest questions for the Wheel of Accidental Wisdom.
Mike and Kentucky Dave start with a laid back Fourth of July catch up, from road weariness to the kind of heat that makes even a pool feel too warm. Then we get to the main point: a listener powered giveaway featuring The Mighty Eighth: A Glimpse Of The Men, Mission, And Machines Of The U.S. Eighth Air Force 1942 To 1945, a commemorative coffee table book filled with art, maps, and historical detail. It’s signed and tied to Mark Copeland from the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, which makes it a special piece for anyone into WWII aviation, military history, or building Eighth Air Force aircraft models.
We also explain exactly how to enter and why we’re asking. Shop Talk is most fun when it goes beyond our own bench habits and gets into what you’re working through right now: the techniques you’re curious about, the frustrations you want solved, and the hobby debates you want aired out. Send your suggestions by email to plasticmodelmojo@gmail.com or via Facebook DM. We’re running entries through July, shutting it down just before midnight on August 1, and drawing a winner in early August, possibly around the National Convention.
If you want more modeling community conversations like this, subscribe, share the show with a friend at the bench, and leave a quick review. Then send us one topic or one question to enter, what do you want us to tackle next?
Military Gallery's "The Mighty Eighth: A Glimpse of the Men, Missions & Machines of the U.S. Eighth Air Force 1942-1945"
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
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Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
Trying to Beat the Heat: July Twelve Minute Modelsphere
We settle into a laid-back holiday catch-up, swap a few vacation highlights, and revisit that specific kind of nostalgia that comes from remembering long-gone hobby shops and the stuff we bought there. Then we look ahead to July with two feature episodes on the calendar, including a shop talk segment, plus a Nationals run-up as IPMS Nationals gets closer. If you like plastic model building podcasts that stay practical and builder-focused, this one sets the tone for what’s coming next.
We also spend time on the heart of the hobby: community. The Dojo keeps growing because modelers show up with questions, techniques, material tips, and works in progress, and the replies actually help people build better. A perfect example is the 3M tape conversation that started as a listener tip and turned into a thread with real momentum and even some unexpected crossover into Mike’s day job. If you’ve got a topic you want us to tackle, or you’re planning to come to the national convention, we want to hear from you. Subscribe, share the show with a modeling friend, and leave a quick review so more builders can find us.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
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Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
What If Your Next Build Started At The Museum, Or On A Tour: Episode 165
A tiny paint question can turn into a big lesson about how the hobby actually works. We start with the everyday reality of scale modeling: reorganizing the model room, fighting distractions, and trying to protect bench time while life keeps piling on. Then we jump into listener mail that gets surprisingly deep, including how to choose an olive drab or Marine green for a Pacific Theater Sherman in 1/144 without getting trapped chasing a single “correct” shade.
From there, the conversation widens into what makes a model show truly successful. We argue that the best shows are not defined by trophy counts or vendor tables, but by the interactions they create between builders: the conversations, the techniques shared, the new friendships, and the seminars where you can ask questions in real time. Along the way we swap practical technique talk, from using small test plaques to develop skills, to mixing a workable Tamiya 4BO green, to why a gloss base coat can make or break a natural metal finish with paints like Alclad.
Our main guest is Mark Copeland, Director of Educational Travel for the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force. Mark updates us on major museum expansion news, rare artifacts, and the excitement of preserving historic aircraft, then walks us through upcoming WWII history tours across the UK and Europe. If you’ve ever built a B-17, B-24, or Battle of Britain subject, you’ll understand why standing on the ground where history happened can change the way you build and the meaning your finished model carries.
If you enjoy thoughtful modeling talk with real takeaways, subscribe, share the show with a modeling friend, and leave us a five-star rating and review so more builders can find us.
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
Paypal
Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
New Tech And Better Shows For Modelers: Episode 164
A hobby can feel timeless right up until the moment it changes under your hands. We start with the real-world catch up: Wonderfest, the sprint toward the IPMS Nationals in Fort Wayne, and the listener mail that reminds us why this community is so strong. Along the way we share show intel, a clever “Squadron Catalog Challenge” idea, and what one contest recap teaches about entry growth, online registration, and the tricky problem of judging without shutting viewers out of the model room.
Then the conversation turns into something bigger: the technology shift hitting scale modeling right now. AI and 3D printing are colliding in ways that were barely on the radar a year ago, and we wrestle with the messy middle ground of AI-generated images in hobby spaces, credit, and why clear labeling protects trust. From there we jump to the most jaw-dropping bench-adjacent find: a prototype Optivisor-style headset that snaps into focus wherever your fingertips are, instantly, at multiple working distances. If you build small, scribe fine lines, or just want your eyes to stop fighting you, this is the kind of tool that can change everything.
We also get practical with paint prep and process: mixing, note taking, storing formulas, and whether you should batch-mix custom colors or mix fresh for each session. Finally, we talk model show features we want to see more of, including keeping tables accessible during judging, bringing seminars back, and the promise of exhibition-style formats that make it easier to meet the builder and learn face to face. If you care about the future of plastic model kits, scale modeling tools, and better model shows, hit play, then subscribe, share the show with a modeling friend, and leave a review.
The self-focus eyewear mentioned by Kentucky Dave in this Episode...
Vivifocal
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
Paypal
Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
Inside The 2026 IPMS USA National Convention Plan: Model Show Spotlight
You can feel when a Nationals is being built with real intention and Fort Wayne is making that case early. We sit down with John Figueroa, chair of the 2026 IPMS USA National Convention, and treasurer Dave Mason to get the behind-the-scenes look at what’s coming to the Grand Wayne Convention Center in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana, August 5 through 8. The big headline: they’re not doing this with one club grinding for four days. They’ve assembled 11 clubs across Region 4 to share the workload, share the payoff, and still have time to enjoy the convention like everyone else.
We dig into the attendee essentials: a vendor room on the scale you expect from IPMS Nationals (about 426 vendor tables with only a few left), plus a seminar schedule that runs from beginner to advanced. Expect practical topics like scale model photography and lighting, CAD, Silhouette and Cricut paint masks, and weathering for dioramas, along with subject-focused sessions and special interest group guidance. If you come to Nationals to learn new techniques, this lineup is designed to keep you moving from room to room.
Then we get into the “why” behind their choices. John explains a deliberate push to welcome more genres, so automotive, ships, sci-fi, and Gundam builders feel just as at home as aircraft and armor modelers. That shows up in theme awards, custom decal sheets, and a raffle they treat as one of the three core pillars of the show, with plans that even let you check results online. We also talk logistics that matter: online pre-registration is open, it’s $55, pre-registration closes June 30, and on-site registration jumps to $65. Finally, Fort Wayne adds a unique capstone: an awards ceremony in the restored Embassy Theatre connected by skywalk.
Subscribe, share this with a modeling buddy, and leave a review so more builders can find the road to Fort Wayne.
2026 IPMS National Convention - Fort Wayne, IN
2026 IPMS National Convention Facebook Page
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
Paypal
Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.
Wonderfest Afterglow: June Twelve Minute Modelsphere
We get real about the behind-the-scenes side of running a scale modeling podcast. May hit us with health issues, a car that refused to make the trip, and the kind of production chaos that throws schedules off. We lay out what June should look like, what we’ve already recorded, and how we’re planning to get feature episodes and shorts back on track as we head toward bigger events like the IPMS Nationals.
The heart of the conversation is Wonderfest. Even if sci-fi isn’t your main lane, Wonderfest delivers world-class builds, a vendor room you won’t see at a typical IPMS-style show, and an atmosphere that feels like a model show blended with a convention. We share what stood out, the people we ran into, and how a single weekend can push you to try something totally new at the bench. We also talk about the dojo community momentum, from daily posts to smart technique questions about pigments and weathering powders, and why seeing others build outside their genre makes all of us braver.
Subscribe, share this with a modeling friend, and leave a review if the show helps you get back to the bench. What’s the one task or tool that most improved your builds?
Your source for Harder & Steenbeck Airbrushes, Mixing supplies, and great advice!
SQUADRON
Adding to the stash since 1968
Model Podcasts
Please check out the other pods in the modelsphere!
KitMasx
Custom Canopy Masks for the Scale Modeler
Bases By Bill
Your source for custom display bases, laser engraved airfield and carrier decks.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Give us your Feedback!
Rate the Show!
Support the Show!
Patreon
Buy Me a Beer
Paypal
Bump Riffs Graciously Provided by Ed Baroth
Ad Reads Generously Provided by Bob "The Voice of Bob" Bair
Mike and Kentucky Dave thank each and everyone of you for participating on this journey with us.