Wine Country Model Club - winecountrymodelclub.com

𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 – 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟭, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗽

We had another terrific meeting Monday night at Round Table Pizza in Rohnert Park, with 18 enthusiastic members in attendance and plenty of great conversation, laughter, and outstanding modeling throughout the evening.

Members were reminded of our upcoming club build day this Sunday, June 7, beginning at 11:00 a.m. at Ray Kummer’s house. These in-person build days are always a fun opportunity to spend time together, share techniques, and get some work done at the bench.

We also heard several reports from recent events around the modeling community. Dev Sodagar shared highlights from the recent KublaCon Gaming Conference, including the many outstanding seminars focused on figure painting and related topics. Dean Wallace reported on the SilverCon show in Sacramento, which was attended by a number of club members and where Randy Baumgardner earned a First Place award for his Gundam model. A report was also given on the Rocky Mountain Hobby Expo held in Utah over Memorial Day weekend, which once again featured incredible models presented in an exhibition format, seminars, connecting and camaraderie among modelers from across the western United States.

Club members were also pleased to receive a variety of hobby supplies and materials recently donated by former member Chris Salick. The donated items quickly found appreciative new homes among members.

𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄 & 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴, with members bringing a wide variety of impressive projects to share.

This month’s discussion topic — “What modeling mistake or setback taught you the most?” — generated some of the most entertaining stories we’ve heard in quite a while. Members shared tales of painting disasters, construction mishaps, incorrect assumptions, and other hard-earned lessons from the workbench. The stories produced plenty of laughs while also reminding us that mistakes are often some of our best teachers.

The evening concluded with the culmination of our “Shelf of Opportunity / Shelf of Doom” Group Build. After People’s Choice voting by the membership, the results were:

🥇 First Place: Paul Sousa – Thunderbird
🥈 Second Place: Ted Riehl – Harley-Davidson Motorcycle
🥉 Third Place: Dean Wallace – 1/48 Tamiya Corsair

Congratulations to all of the participants who successfully brought long-delayed projects back to life and completed them for the group build.

📅 Next meeting: Monday, July 6, 2026

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐀𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 — 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 (𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐞 𝐏𝐨𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭)

What brings a figure—or a scene—to life?

At the 2026 Wine Country Model Expo, Grant Mayberry delivered an engaging, wide-ranging presentation on figure modeling and storytelling, sharing both practical insights and the mindset behind his approach.

If you’ve listened to Grant on the Plastic Posse Podcast, you’ll recognize the same energy here—thoughtful, enthusiastic, and focused on helping modelers think differently about what they’re trying to achieve.

This is one of those sessions that’s as much about how you see your work as it is about technique.

If you weren’t able to attend—or want to revisit it—the full presentation is now available on our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7kCtT8GaI8

Note: Due to a brief recording issue, this video begins a few minutes into the session, just after the introductory portion.