Today was a great day as I was able to attend the Tabletop Cruisers Model Nationals this weekend, at Pines Ford Mercury Lincoln.
This was their 3rd event at this car dealership. You might think it is a bit unusual, having an event in such a place, but it does work. There is great lighting to view the models, including natural sunlight
from large windows. The area is very clean and spacious, better than many luxury hotels. All the staff at this family oriented dealership are very pleasant people and work together with the Club and guests.
(they also had some Mustang Cobras / Shelbys and a Ford Raptor handy, perfect for reference photographs!).
Another thing you would see at this event is a car club, the Tabletop Cruisers, working close with another local model club, Flight 19, an IPMS group, one of the oldest in south Florida. These two clubs have done several
joint ventures at shows, and it seems to be working. In these times when model shows are a large undertaking in money, time and resources, these two groups work together to make their individual events even better for modelers.
I won't say it's perfect, there will always be different philosophies towards building models, but model builders, guests, and the clubs all benefit from the collaboration. Both clubs should be commended.
If you do shows in your area on your own,
reach out to other clubs nearby. You might find common ground to make your model future shows even better.
There were some great models at the show, many with some stunning paint jobs. There were several rat rod type cars that just grab me. They are so creative. Overall there were many models I had never seen before (and I have been attending shows in south Florida
since around the mid 1980s). It was also great to hook up with some model friends, some I have not seen in years. We all know that is one of the best things about these shows, sharing news and talking models.
I want to mention that there were many supporters of the show: Such as Revell, with raffle models and tools, and who helped with the Make-N-Take. To see 25 excited kids all building models, and having fun doing it,
it was a great time for all. Moebius Models jumped in with some great kits for raffle and prizes. Round 2 donated several items for raffle, and provided the club with a John Force slot car set. I want to tell you the kids used that slot car race track ALL DAY LONG. It was such a hit, and it kept them busy away
from the show models. Round 2 must make some tough toys, because the slot car track worked flawlessly all day long, with no issues. These kids put that set to the test ! I think some adults will geting some of those for their own kids. What
a great toy! RCHobbies, one of our biggest hobby shops locally, and a great supporter of modelers over the many years, also donated many models for the raffle and prizes.
Modelcar Garage was vending and they had several tables full of all the great photoetch parts and more that their company produces.
Of course, there were also some local vendors selling models, and there were quite a few deals to be made. I scooped up a Mat & Debbie Hayes TBird, a model I have wanted for a while. Through the raffles tickets, I won a Round 2 / AMT
1968 Shelby Mustang and a Revell hobby knife. All in all, a great day !
Click here to see some pictures from the show.
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Tabletop Cruisers Nationals South Florida | Scale Model Events and Shows
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