Sorry it has taken so long, but here are the rest of the pics I took at the Westcoaster. I couldn't photograph everything so apologies to the following: Craig and Woody from The Old Toy Soldier Home (thank you for another wonderful show!!!), Nick and Deanna from TSSD, Mark & Sandy from Build-a-rama, Bill and Irene from Toy Troops, and the list goes on and on....there are always so many great folks at the show and tons of stuff to see. So while I was running around having fun and trying to find ice to cool off my credit card, I managed to snap images of the following:
-Rick Dobbins diorama bases: Rick has produced some beautifully sculpted and durable round diorama bases for lazy susan turntables, whether they be battery or manually operated. I took pics of a few of the different designs he had at the show. I really like the one with outcropping. The multiple levels create a lot of opportunities for arranging different scenes. He also has a flat surface version that would make for a nice desert airfield. I was very impressed with the sculpting of the groundwork and how realistic it looked. Rick also sculpted in some shallow depressions in the ground work that add to the realism. The neat think about these variations in the ground surface is that they can be used to place figures in this spots, and this makes the bases less noticeable, blending the figures into the groundwork and scene more effectively. These sculpted base camouflaging features work universally with various manufacturer's figures; I found this to be quite innovative! Also, the bases are painted wonderfully with a variety of shades and tones. Rick had various displays set up w/ First Legion, K & C, and Figarti figures, AFV's and planes and all work very well with his basing. My favorite was the FL DAK base. Great to see you!
-Gene & Teri Abravaya from Paragon Scenics and Miniatures were there with all of their magnificent foam structures, scenic elements an plastic figures. They had a lot of new items I had never seen before. While I was enjoying looking at them all I realized their structures and scenics can be used for a wide variety of ranges, much like K & C's desert villages buildings can be used for Crusades, Alamo, French Foreign Legion, DAK, etc...
- Joe Neumeyer of Dynamic Dioramas always brings a stunning diorama or two to the show. His work is absolutely incredible. I got some pics of his fantastic Roman frontier fort based on the structure in the movie "The Eagle".
- It was great as always seeing Mike Tarantino at the show. He had some wonderful Hiriart sets among other things. His room is always busy, as Mike is such a great guy and there is so very much to see!
- Dean Dizikes was there with some very nice buildings, facades, backgrounds, and figures.
- Joseph Saine was back at the show w/ some fantastic and extremely rare toy soldiers.
- Thomas Vida from Tiny Troopers was there with his his vast selection of plastics.
I hope you enjoy the pics!
Joe
