Local Car show

Well i went to a local car show today, out of maybe 300 cars entered, only one might even be able to be called an import won any thing

1st thru 3rd place awards for 16 diff categorys, plus another 6 awards or so for best of stuff

Kinda pisses me off to be perfect honest, one category was1 old piece of shit truck and 3 police cars "modern" cars, well guess who got first place? that ugly piece of shit, ill honestly say that %50 of the stuff that won in my opinion was ugly. the only thing that wasnt a hot rod or muscle car was a slammed blazer

there was a category that included my R34 GTR and had maybe 7 other imports, and 3 or 4 muscle cars, plus that blazer, well blazer got 3rd, muscle cars took top honor, in my opinion it was rigged, oh well

heres a picture of my Eclipse GSX and TWIN TURBO CIVIC
http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/503/47082HPIM1830.JPG
THe competion for my R34
http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/503/47082HPIM1832.JPG


well i got two door prizes at least...

That is competitions for you. Were the judging criteria clearly stated up front? If so then you should be able to see why the winners won. If not then it probably was shonky, because even the judges wouldn't have known what they were doing.

I fall victim to similar circumstances, as most contests try to judge on "accuracy" and some local shows don't know what to look for in different types of cars. But, do you build for contests or for yourself?

If you'd given us some pictures of other cars at the show, we'd be more able to tell you if you actually had a shot at winning.

And model car contests in America are PREDOMINANTLY muscle car, classics, and replicas. Have you ever picked up a Scale Auto Enthusiast Contest Annual? Most of the contest winners are radically detailed replica stock cars (like Bill Geary's 1958 Impala convertible with its working air suspension or Juha Airo's 1972 Road Runner with its working sunroof and tons of 100% accurate to that specific car options) or are masterfully done customs and hot rods (like Augie Hiscano's mostly brass 1933 Ford Roadster or Doug Whyte's 1953 Studebaker) or completely insane race cars (like Mark Guerrero's front-engine dragster powered by two Model A four-bangers each with a giant turbo or Don Molitor's replica of Richard Petty's 1967 Plymouth Belvedere stock car)

It's not impossible for an import to win a contest, but it has to be a phenomeonally well-built import just the same as any other contest winner has to be phenomeonal. Don't go shouting "bias" everytime you lose. Just build a better model.

those cars i showed were teh competiton for my R34 GTR, as you maybe remember, it was shinny piece, as shinny as those cars were.

I had a whole different competiton for my civic and Eclipse, and that is a bad picture of those two, but looking at the cars that were agaisnt my eclipse, i think my car was good for at least 3rd place, no joke.

there was no criteria posted, and as i took a look at all the judges only one seemed to take interest into imports at all.


and for willimo, i build for myself, but it did piss me off about that show, i mean, there was a really clean supra there, it shoulda won some thing before any of mine did, but it didnt win any thing either.

i was a judge at our state show and we had all types of cars. But as judges we need to look at all aspects of the entery as in stance/finish etc not that its a tuner or muscle car. And trust me its sometimes a bloody hard job. But i have seen cars win without even being looked over which is not fair

yeah they pretty much looked over stuff at this one

Light weight commercial
Crown Victoria Police car
Chevy ZO6 police car
Mustang SUper Stallion Police car
old Chevy pickup truck from around 1950

that pick up truck won, the mustang and ZO6 both looked 1000 times better then that, besides that the paint on teh truck was horrible.

now you tell me if that isnt biased or not.

Yeh it can be wrong and should be done properly
a mates car was one i had to judge and it killed everything in its class. but he forgot to put on thr side inicators which stood out like anything which then dropped him to 3rd which was a bugger as it was fantastic it should be on thr forums soon (hurry up rob and post it with indictors)

Without seeing the competition, I really can't comment, though I have seen bias and bad judging at contests. It doesn't happen when I judge, that's for sure.

One reason why people tend to prefer an NNL style show, where it's about the models and the builders, not simply a trophy-fest. NNL's give out fewer trophies, they're voted on by the public...and it makes for a more casual atmosphere w/o the BS that judged contests usually have at some level. The classic original NNL every year in Toledo Ohio has only three trophies, best of show-best theme-and best junior. It's nice to go to a show where the trophies and awards aren't the holy grail, it's the models on the tables and the friendships you make. It took years for someone to organize a model show that wasn't merely a competition event. You don't have to have a judged show to have the best models and modelers show up and show off.

ZoomZoom is right.

I go to contests with the mindset of meeting people, talking about models, and sharing tips and tricks. Sure, if I won, that'd be a bonus. I plan to attend this years NNL to me a lot of people from AF, chat with them, and share tips and tricks. I doubt I'll win (even if the hot rod was finished in time), but its a cool place to just chill and look at models.

Think of contests as a building aid. Those cars usually win for a reason, look at that reason and make your car become that reason.

Whether your comp was biased are not, nobody can tell whether or not it was without looking at the rest of the compitition. You are generally biased to yourself, and thats human nature.

I go to contests with the mindset of meeting people, talking about models, and sharing tips and tricks. Sure, if I won, that'd be a bonus. I plan to attend this years NNL to me a lot of people from AF, chat with them, and share tips and tricks.

That's why I'm drivin' 8hrs up the road. It sure as hell isn't on account of trophies. I have to admit, though, I've seen similar things at local shows. They tend to judge models like we skim chapters in out textbook - just looking over them without paying them close attention.

i went to that show. Walked into the door...looked at the cars...and walked out. My first show and it was a total dissapointment. It was a terrible show. In a dingy brick building with no AC and a few tables full of cars. There where a few that stood out but other than that there wasnt much to see. Like Supra said...it was dominated by muscle cars followed in a close second by hotrods. Im very glad i didnt enter anything...none of my entries would have been muscle cars...plus i would have had to stay there for at least 3 hours (belive me it was terrible...i couldnt have done it) I guess it has alot to do with how big the show is. Imports cater to the younger generation and the only kids old enough to build something to enter the contest there where me and Supratuner the rest where older guys (by older i mean 40's to 50's).

supratuner and Macdaddy4738 you should try to organize and judge a contest yourself before you knock someone elses! Its not as easy as you think especially when one has to deal with sore losers and whiners.
Supratuner how many imports were there , a handful? Were the classes pre-determined so you knew what to expect?

I quit going to that peticular show just because of the reasons that Supratuner mentions. Unfortunately, there are shows inwhich the judging criteria is not based on the appearance of the models on the table. I have judged many contests before, so I can speak with experience on this point.

the first thing that a judge will look at is paint finish and for glue marks
or what a judge should look at

the first thing that a judge will look at is paint finish and for glue marks
or what a judge should look at
Not really IMHO
Cleanliness of build is number 1
Removal of part or mold lines and company logos like Revell or Tamiya
Then it should be paint and so on

well, here's how most of judges judge contests.

1. basic items, romoval of mold lines and flash, accuracy of build (if its a stock competition), if items like Bare Metal Foil was used instead of silver paint.
2. quality of build, and that includes paint, finish, assembly,
3. aftermarket or scratchbuild items added, (if applicable, if its a Box Stock competition, this does'nt come into play), this would be like custom scratchbuilt body kits, use of PE, if engine is in kit is it wired, stuff like that
4. subject, usually judges judge cars they are intested in, yo not gonna have someone who's into classic cars like Duesenburgs and Lasalles judge the Tuner competition, and visa versa,
5. how much money you've given the judge under the table before the judging begins :iceslolan

I've been burned on both ways, sometimes in an NNL style judging you get a bunch of people vote for a car that may be famous (like in magazines like Scale Auto or Model Cars, or of someone you know personally, or met online, lik builds seen here on Automotive forums or at the Hobby Heaven Message board

There were classes for certain years of cars, such as pre 1949, and post 1949, in those classes were modified, and stock/boxstock.

There was no real category for imports, though there was one that was mostly imports, maybe 9, and 4 additional American made cars. In that category not a single import won.

Though i love the idea of having a contest, i dont think me nor Macdaddy have the energy required to hold one, i did when i used to have a model car website, and it was one that you voted for, not me be the judge.

Though i love the idea of having a contest, i dont think me nor Macdaddy have the energy required to hold one, i did when i used to have a model car website, and it was one that you voted for, not me be the judge.

It does take alot of work and effort. So instead of coming on here and bashing the contest its organizers and promoters. You could talk with them and see what it would take to revamp the categories so that imports/tuners are represented.
Were there enough imports present to have their own category?

There was enough to make a category for Import.
Id honestly say enough for a Stock import category, and one for modified. I might email the guy that headed the show and suggest that to him. I never thought about that.

I think supratuner is probably right on this one. I've seen this sort of thing enough to be able to accept his take on the unfairness of his contest as truth. He should, perhaps, suggest new categories, but in situations like this it will be difficult to get the show promoters to warm up to a "tuner" class. In a perfect world, there would be tons of classes of all sorts full of great competition, but it's not a perfect world. Them's the berries.

I quit going to that peticular show just because of the reasons that Supratuner mentions. Unfortunately, there are shows inwhich the judging criteria is not based on the appearance of the models on the table. I have judged many contests before, so I can speak with experience on this point.

I have helped judge and attended a few shows w/some "old school" North Carolinians, and I must agree that there was definitely some bias and "home cooking" to reward their friends vs. having a fairly-judged contest. Our local IPMS contest has strict judging rules, and a few of us from ACME were appointed to help judge the car categories because a faction from the Carolinas was notorious for unfair judging...this is not to say they are all like that, it only takes one case of questionable judging to ruin it for everyone. We overheard/witnessed some of their antics, and reported them to the head judge. So hopefully we did some good at one show.

Anyone in the SE who likes imports/tuners/exotics, or simply a well-balanced show will love the ACME NNL in November. Our club is the oddball in the SE, we have quite a strong contingent of import builders, we're not typical...though we do have many members who are into the traditional areas like hot rods, stock cars, drag racing etc. A well-balanced club with many areas of interest. Many of us are already well-known on A/F. We're going to have quite a fun reunion at the show in November. Hope y'all can make it! :cool:

Youre around ATL arent you? where is this show at? I dont think I would be able to go to a show that far, but maybe if it was within reasonable driving distance in SC i could go.

Let me know.

Also, some good news. My Girlfriend, which we celebrated our one year anniversary on Saturday and she was dragged to the car show with me. Told me she would like to build some model cars, so now its time for me to have an excuse to buy those cheap AMT kits for $6 each :evillol:

Shes more into muscle cars though, but hey, any car is better than no car.

Both the Mid Atlantic NNL and NNL East are both great shows, and the best models always win, like Jim Drews awsome Corvette Grand Sport at NNL East 2004. I usually don't go to shows expecting to win, I go to meet new people, and to get great deals on new kits, I can usually come home with boxfulls of MIB Out of prodution kits, Shows are also great to see other people techniques, I usually learn something going to a show.

I've won awards twice at shows, one was a judged contest, and the other was an NNL contest. both surprised me. even though It does'nt matter to me if I win or loose, it always feels great to go up to the announcer to recieve that trophy

Youre around ATL arent you? where is this show at? I dont think I would be able to go to a show that far, but maybe if it was within reasonable driving distance in SC i could go.

Let me know.

The show is in Atlanta, about 2.5 hours from Greenville SC; or about 3.5 to 4 hours from Asheville NC. It's worth the ride, we get people from a lot further away than NC. :smile:

That does sound like fun, the drive from my house would probably be 4-5 hours then. What is the exact date? I got a feeling that this is some thing that i wont have the time, or the money to attend. :crying:

Our club is the oddball in the SE, we have quite a strong contingent of import builders, we're not typical...

True enough, you, Brian (Veyron), Matt (CADguy; well he builds everything), I could keep going on and on.

though we do have many members who are into the traditional areas like hot rods

Like Dennis (ol' dude), and myself.

That does sound like fun, the drive from my house would probably be 4-5 hours then. What is the exact date? I got a feeling that this is some thing that i wont have the time, or the money to attend. :crying:

November 13.

Count me out, i got plans for that day :frown: .

I went to many shows this past year, and some are unfair, and some are extremly fair.

Although I've not seen "crappy" cars awarded trophys over musuem quality builds. But I've witnessed "homecooking" where the only award winners were wearing the red "host club" t-shirts.

I was of the competitive mindset for the first couple of shows I attended, and quickly learned I was not in the same leauge as the guys that were winning trophys.

When you enter a contest that Veyron, Zoom-Zoom, p9o1r1sche, ol'dude and so many others of the same caliber participate in, you have to bring your 'A' game, if leaving with a trophy is your goal.

Instead of griping about not going home with a best of show award, I learned from the guys who were winning, and raised my level of quality.

Now, if I walk away with an award fine, if not that's ok too. My trophys are my cars. I'd rather leave with a camera full of great ideas, and the memory of a day well spent with friends, than a piece of acrylic or a plaque anyday..

Not really IMHO
Cleanliness of build is number 1
Removal of part or mold lines and company logos like Revell or Tamiya
Then it should be paint and so on
every contest i have been to always have a lot of cars and most of the time judges look at the finish which is seem lines orange peel and etc they also look for glue marks and this way they cut down the total cars so it is easyer to judge the rest.And trust me i know what its like when your car is a top contender and missout because a cut line on my bare metal foil.No matter how much work goes into a kit if the paint blemish or a glue mark stands out for get it

Well if what you guy asy is true. And I with so many of you confirming this, that just plain sucks.
Takes some of the fun out of the contest, although like some others have said I do go to mingle and swap ideas mostly.
I have been asked to help judge a few contests around here, including one of the Good Guys contests. Whenever I felt I knew the modeller in a category too well I bowed out of judging that category.

Now, if I walk away with an award fine, if not that's ok too. My trophys are my cars. I'd rather leave with a camera full of great ideas, and the memory of a day well spent with friends, than a piece of acrylic or a plaque anyday..
That has to be the quote of the week! I feel the same way. I build my cars for me, and I like to share tips along the way with ppl who might not have thought of a certain idea.
If you are not satisfied with the judges decision, try a little harder. Pay attention to the little details judges look for. I don't think they (judges) are favorable toward classics, hotrods, etc., that's just what the majority of entrants are building. I mainly bring import cars to the shows I attend and place very well by the end of the day. I think you (supratuner) do a very good job with your cars, and I agree you should've won something for your R34, but that would make me work much harder the next time.

Whew! I think that's the most I've typed in one thread since joining AF.

The simple fact is that all these shows will have soon have a class for tuners and thats it