I attended my first AMPS show in Atlanta with Eric this past Saturday. First and foremost, the amount of talent and dedication into the builds, whether it was figures or armor, was phenomenal. Everyone did an amazing job.
Really didn't know what to expect to be honest. I just know that it's different points and judging set up from the Chattanooga model show. But heard that the amount and kind of feedback was some of the best. As I found out, it was.
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| Panzer IV Ausf. J Late, Silver Chatt & Bronze AMPS 2026 award |
I took two of my three tanks. Both listed under the Axis armor. Rules state that if multiple awards are to be won per category, the model with the highest points will take the award. When the awards were announced, I had two Bronze. However, due to the rules, there was only one medal. Both kits received 22.5 points. Oddly, there is an option for 1/2 a point for research. Though it was explained in the description box on the Panther, that point was never received. Maybe I needed to included a print out of the work I had?
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| Late,Panther G Late, AMPS 2026 Bronze winner |
So let's break down the feedback:
Panzer IV.
Judge 1:
- Front seam open, missing item (open mounting holds)
- Top seam of driver armor not consistent
- Seam on turret, tracks no quite square
- Decals need to be cut at armor joints
- Good camo paint job
Judge 2:
- Missing part hull front, visible seams, glue spots
- Slight canting to left side track at rear
- Sprue nibs visible on some tools
- Silvering on decals, not cut over opening on turret hatches
Judge 3:
- Open holes on front of tank (next to brackets), several seams, good job on mufflers
- Left track wheels not aligned, left rack canted in front, good job painting tools
- Decal silvering on a few places, 223 on right side overlaps door
Judge 4:
- Seam on right side of front top hull
- Visible seams on turret top
- Cool camouflage pattern
Panther G
Judge 1:
- Driver hatch inside out!
- Floating front wheels, right front, left rear
- Fire extinguisher not red!
- No weathering on tracks
Judge 2:
- Steel road wheel need clean up
- Fire extinguisher shouldn't be red
- Nice paint work
Judge 3:
- Tracks floating on both sides. Two floating road wheels
- Check sprue attachment points on turret, lifting rings
- Like the paint job. Tools are nicely finished
- You started to weather the road wheels but didn't do the tracks or carry up the hull.
Judge 4:
- Nice model, Great paint job
- Drivers hatch upside down
- Floating wheels above tracks
- Steel wheels have parting lines showing
- Tracks not weathered
- Nice figure
So it seems I do really nice paint jobs! I need to check the drivers hatch where the figure is on the Panther. If it is actually upside down, I will need to fix it before it goes onto the diorama.
Overall, I need to find away to check for seam lines I can't see and to make sure the tracks and wheels are set correctly. I will say, I didn't do a lot of things I should have done with the Panther, since it never considered it "done" without the dio. Especially weathering the track as it will need to match the dio. I did use the AK Interactive track wash on it though.
Regardless, this is great feedback for me to take into my other builds. I will have to double check everything on the Panzer I'm currently building for all this before paint and during.
It was a fun day, despite my back giving me issues all day. Below is a link to all the photo's I took. I look forward to next years show.
