Expo Contest Rules

1.1 Entry is open to all. Proxy entries will only be extended to out of town entries. Only out of town modellers may send their work with another person to enter, all in town modellers have to enter in person. ALL ENTRIES MUST BE THE SOLE WORK OF THE INDIVIDUAL WHOSE NAME APPEARS ON THE ENTRY FORM (Exception: Section 3.3). Entry fees are: Juniors (13 and under), one dollar each. Adult entries, five dollars for up to 3 entries, with each additional entry over three being one dollar per entry. (Note: if you are entering only one kit, the fee remains same as for two or three entries except for Juniors).

1.2 PREVIOUS EXPO WINNING ENTRIES ARE INELIGIBLE (Category 1^st place, Gold or Trophy winning entries) unless the EXPO committee, prior to the contest, announces a special exception. Previous non-winning entries may be re-entered. Exception: A kit that has won an individual award from a previous Expo may be entered as part of a diorama, collection, etc. and vice versa.

1.3 The Contest Chair or Head Judge may exclude from public display any entries he/she considers offensive to generally acknowledged standards of taste and acceptability.

1.4 The basis of the model must be a plastic derivative, including, but not limited to styrene, resin, fibreglass, vinyl, PET, polypropylene, ABS and other plastics. No Radio Controlled (R/C), metal, wood or Die-Cast entries allowed (exception Rule 2.6).

2.1 Entries must be in one of two Tiers: Junior - intended for the younger modeller up to and including the age of 14 and Adult - for modellers of any age with greater ability and skills who may have won awards at similar competitions in the past.

2.2 Entry into a Tier is up to the contestant, but all of a contestant’s entries must compete within same Tier. Contestants do not necessarily have to enter in the same Tier as they have done in previous Expos. Piecemealing parts of an entry, for example entering pieces from a diorama or collection, into other categories or Tiers is not permitted.

2.3 All entries will be grouped by Category strictly for the purpose of oragnizing the display, not for judging. All Junior entries will be placed together in the same area. Contest registrars will help determine proper entry categories for models during registration, but final category placement is at the discretion of the contest judges. Judges may also combine or split categories during the final judging.

2.4 SCRATCHBUILT models may incorporate parts from other kits, but those should generally be unrelated to their original identity, except for minor parts such as wheels, guns, etc. CONVERSION models must contain significant structural changes to the basic kit involving extensive changes in contour and configuration. As a rule of thumb, use of commercially available conversion parts; (for example, aircraft noses, resin cast turrets, or resin cast car bodies) does not call for the level of effort needed to qualify for the conversion award.

2.5 COLLECTIONS: A collection is any group of 5 or more closely related items. For example; 5 WWII fighters would not be a collection, but 5 WWII Messerschmitt fighters would. As well 5 WWII German tanks would not form a collection, but 5 WWII Panzer IV's would. The entire collection must be the work of one person. The closeness of the relationship within the collection is a significant factor in judging. For example, a collection based on variants of a single airframe is a tighter relationship than one of different aircraft operated by the same unit.

2.6 FIGURES Entries may be made of metal or plastic. The inclusion of accessories supplied in the figure kit will not cause the figure to be classified as a diorama/vignette.

2.7 BASES/DIORAMAS. Bases will be allowed and will not be considered in the judging except in the Diorama category. A base may simulate the natural surface on which the subject would be found, however nothing other than that surface may be used. Aircraft may rest on simulated ground, paving, or water (float and seaplanes). Aircraft requiring beaching gear or dollies may be so equipped. Vehicles may rest on simulated ground or paving. Ships may be displayed in water, dry-docks or in any other appropriate setting. Bases must not be the predominant feature of the entry and must be of a size proportionate to the model. The Contest Chair and Judges reserve the right to exclude over size bases. The model may include primary crew figures. The addition of any other figures or equipment outside, or not attached to the model (e.g. support equipment, foliage, shell splashes, or buildings) will make it a diorama.

DIORAMAS are judged not only on the technical merit of their construction but also on the strength of the theme or story they present, so that if two dioramas were technically equal, the one felt to have the stronger theme or story would win.

2.8 Judges scores will be primarily based on the fundamentals of basic construction (such as removal of flash , seams and sink marks, no glue marks or finger prints, parts alignment), detail (such as scale appearance of parts, drilled out openings, rigging), paint and finishing (such as no decal silvering, paint flaws, dust) and overall presentation. The judges will adjust their scoring for an entry relative to the Tier it is competing in. Junior entries will have a lower build standard in comparison to the adult Tiers, while the General Tier will have a lower standard than the Advanced Tier.

2.9 Each entry will be scored by 5 different judges. Each judge will grade the entry from 0 through 5. If the judge feels the entry is worthy of a Gold medallion he/she will award a score of 5, for a Silver the score will be 4, and for Bronze the score will be 3. A score of 0 through 2 represents No Award.

2.10 Each entry will have their score from the 5 judges tabulated and the highest and lowest scores will be discarded, leaving 3 scores to be summed together. Medallions will be awarded to entries based on their summed score: Gold (score of 13 or greater), Silver (score of 10 – 12) or Bronze (score of 7 – 9).

2.11 Each Tier will have one Reserved Award to be awarded specifically within that Tier: Junior - Best in Show Junior, General - Best in Show General, Advanced - Best in Show Advanced.

2.12 All Tiers are eligible for the People’s Choice, and Modellers’ Choice Awards. Votes will be accepted from the general public for People’s Choice and from registered contestants for Modellers’ Choice, where the winners will be determined based on the entry receiving the most votes.

2.13 Builder’s awards are for the Advanced Tier only. Awards will be determined through another round of judging by consensus, whereby three judges will review the potential winners and decide on one winner by coming to a mutual agreement amongst themselves.

2.15 JUDGES. A Head Judge must be chosen and he/she must brief all judges before the contest judging. Judges will be chosen by the Head Judge for their skill and experience. Judges may not score their own entry or vote on any awards in which they are entered and must declare a conflict. In such cases an appointed alternate will judge the category. Strict impartiality will be observed.

2.16 ALL JUDGES' DECISIONS ARE FINAL.

3.1 HUMOUR. Models with a humour theme will be judged on both their humour and the degree of modelling skill which they present. Entries must not only be funny, but also well done.

3.2 SOB (Straight Out of the Box) entries will only be considered at the General or Advanced Tiers and will be governed by the following rules:

   3.2.1 KITS. Any commercially available kit may be used (subject to Rules 1.4 and 2.4). The number of Out-of-the-Box awards will be determined by the Contest Chair or Head Judge.

   3.2.2 CONTRUCTION.

      3.2.2.1. The modeller may fill seams and gaps; sand off rivets; drill out gun ports; thin to scale such parts as trailing edges, flaps and doors; add rigging and antennas if they appear on the instruction sheet or box art; and add simple tape or decal seat belts in the cockpit of an aircraft or the interior of the vehicle; re-scribe panel lines to repair damage only. NO manufactured hardware, e.g. photo-etched buckles, unless they come with the original kit.

      3.2.2.2. IT IS NOT PERMITTED TO: vacuform, manufacture, or replace any part, or substitute parts from another kit; cut or separate canopies, surfaces, hatches, doors, etc. (no major surgery); combine a standard kit with a conversion kit; add anything other than specified in the instruction sheet except as noted in section 3.2.2.1 above.

   3.2.3 FINISH. The natural plastic finish may be retained, or it may be foil covered or painted with brush, spray can, or airbrush. Alternative camouflage/markings and decals other than those included with the kit may be used. Insignia, markings, and instrument panels may be hand painted instead of decaled. Weathering is permitted.

   3.2.4 DOCUMENTATION. ENTRANTS MUST HAVE THEIR MODEL INSTRUCTION SHEET AVAILABLE BEFORE THE COMMENCEMENT OF JUDGING. That documentation must then be placed on the table BESIDE their model. BOX ART must be supplied if adding rigging that is not shown in kit instructions (aerials, lines, etc.).

4.1 No liability for loss or damage to contest entries is assumed by IPMS Canada, the host chapter (Regina Scale Modellers), the hosting venue, or contest judges.