The Armor Modeling and Preservation Society (AMPS) is a

social club A social club may be a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation, or activity. Examples include: book discussion clubs, chess clubs, anime clubs, country clubs, charity work, criminal ...

with the common interest of

modeling A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

miniature

armored fighting vehicles An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by vehicle armour, armour, generally combining operational mobility with Offensive (military), offensive and defense (military), defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheele ...

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

model figure A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

ordnance Ordnance may refer to: Military and defense *Materiel in military logistics, including weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and maintenance tools and equipment. **The military branch responsible for supplying and developing these items, e.g., the Unit ...

dioramas A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...

, and related equipment and promotion of historic military vehicle restoration. AMPS is an international club headquartered in the United States

History and purpose

Clubs centered around the hobby of modeling have existed since the 1950s. The Armor Modeling and Preservation Society, Inc. was founded in 1993 by armor modelers as a means of promoting the hobby using the 'open system' of contest judging. AMPS was formed as a membership club to promote the hobby of armor modeling, with bylaws that prevented any officer from deriving their income from the hobby of military vehicle modeling. The club operated without incorporation until early 2007, when it was incorporated as a

not-for-profit corporation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

in the state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. In 2011 AMPS gained recognition from the US federal government as a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization. AMPS has several purposes: *The first is a social function, providing a means for those interested in the hobby of

model military vehicle Model military vehicles range in size and complexity; from simplified small-scale models for wargaming, to large, super-detailed renditions of specific real-life vehicles. Scales The 'scale' is the proportion of actual size the replica or model ...

building (including

building as well as

diorama A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...

building) and restoration to associate with other hobbyists. *A second is educational; AMPS events and publications provide detailed historical information on actual

, ordnance, and the history of their usage, as well as providing techniques for improving scale models, figures and dioramas. *Finally, AMPS provides some funding for restoration of actual military vehicles and makes charitable contributions to morale-building efforts for service members serving in combat areas (see below).

Structure and membership

The AMPS bylaws and constitution provide for an Executive Board consisting of a President, First Vice-President, eight regional Second Vice Presidents, and a Secretary. Additional non-elected officers include Treasurer, Publications Editor, and Marketing Director/Public Information Officer, Web Master and Chief Judge. The founder and first President of AMPS was Steven "Cookie" Sewell. The current president is John Charvat. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in the hobby. Annual membership fees are $30 for members in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, $35 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and $40 in other countries. Almost all members are located in the USA, Canada, the UK and Mexico. Currently, AMPS has just over 700 members.

Local chapters

AMPS members often form local 'chapters' of the society. These local clubs operate as part of AMPS but their local base allow their members to meet (usually monthly) and share hobby skills, materials and references. Current active AMPS chapters and affiliate chapters include: *KCAMPS:

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

*AMPS Centex,

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

(Austin Armor Builders Society) *Patton's Best/AMPS Louisville,

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

*AMPS Albany, Albany,

*AMPS-Chicagoland,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

area *AMPS Indy,

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

*CVAMPS, Central Virginia AMPS (

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

area) *AMPS Mexico (

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

area) *AMPS

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

, Texas *AMPS Eastern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

*AMPS

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

*AMPS Frontiersman, Buffalo, New York *Central

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

AMPS *Washington Armor Club (

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

area) *AMPS SoCal

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

area *Western Front AMPS San Jose, California *AMPS Ottawa:

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

*AMPS Southwestern Ontario,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

*AMPS

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

*AMPS

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, France *AMPS Northwest,

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...

*BRAG (Blue Ridge Armor Geeks):

Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. First settled in 1757 by ferry owner John Lynch (1740–1820), John Lynch, the city's populati ...

*AMPS Israel *AMPS

Tijuana Tijuana ( ,"Tijuana"
(US) and < ...

, Mexico *Lone Star Armor Brigade (AMPS San Antonio),

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

Benefits of membership

Membership in AMPS gives the modelers several benefits: :a) Voting rights in the society. AMPS members vote on officers and thus the direction of the society. :b) Discounted admission to all AMPS shows. :c) Discounted pricing from numerous armor-modeling-related firms who have partnered with AMPS. :d) Six issues per year of the society journal, Boresight.

Publications

AMPS publishes a semi-monthly journal, ''Boresight''. Articles in ''Boresight'' are written by the members, and the publication itself is edited by volunteers. The journal typically provides several articles on real armored vehicles for reference purposes, along with modeling articles and how-to guides. AMPS accepts advertising in ''Boresight'' as a means of providing discounted hobby products to its members. Initially the publication was produced in a black and white format, the magazine is now a professionally produced publication an all color format. AMPS also has an official society Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/AMPSArmor/

Events

Armor Modeling and Preservation Society table (IPMS-USA National Convention, Anaheim 2007)

The major event hosted by AMPS is the annual International Convention, held each April. This three-day show brings together hundreds of members and non-members to view models, participate in a model contest, buy hobby products, view actual military vehicles, and attend seminars. Recent international conventions have included over 500 scale models on display. The most recent international show was held April 7–9, 2016 in Sumter, South Carolina. Seminar speakers usually include tank crew veterans, well-known modelers and researchers, and industry representatives from firms such as Tamiya and AFV Club. The 2010 show was the most successful AMPS show ever with 634 models entered as well as club display tables. Smaller regional and local contests are also held from time to time, typically attracting 100+ scale models for single-day events. *AMPS East is an East Coast USA show, held annually since 1999, normally in the western Connecticut (in recent years) or northern New Jersey (formerly) area. *AMPS Centex is a midwest show held in Austin, Texas every other year. *Kansas City AMPS holds a show every October in Kansas City, Missouri. *AMPS Atlanta holds a show each February since 2009. *Central Virginia AMPS has held three regionals in the Richmond, Virginia area The scale models entered in the contest are judged according to the AMPS Contest Rules, and may be awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze medals. Scale models are judged for accuracy, level of detail, skill in construction, and paint/markings finish. Some of these models take hundreds of hours to complete. Each modeler is provided with a feedback form showing the points given in each area and what areas need to improve. An 'open' system of judging is used in which each model competes against a standard, not against other entries. Thus, instead of 1st, 2nd and 3rd-place medals, awards are given to all models that reach specified cutoff scores. Since participants are not competing against one another, there is no disincentive to the sharing of techniques and ideas. The feedback provided in these events is a key factor in helping modelers improve. The AMPS system provides formal feedback, giving specific information about what to improve in the model.

AMPS Masters

An 'AMPS Master' is a modeler who has either won "Best of Show" at the AMPS convention or who is recognized by AMPS as a Master-level modeler due to other accomplishments.Boresight, May/June 2016, p. 9 The current AMPS Masters (recognized as masters although never 'Best of Show' winners) are: Tony Englehart Mark Ford Paul Gaertner Dave Kahn Dave Lockhart Mike McFadden Mark Muller Mike Roof Stephen 'Cookie' Sewell Dan Tisoncik Steve Zaloga Masters awarded at conventions are: 1995: Ken Davis 1996: Bob Collignon 1997: Dave Dean 1998: Bob Clifton 1999: Mike Siggins and Chris Mrosko 2000: Roger Lang 2001: Lynn Kessler 2002: Charlie Prichett 2003: Jason Jennings 2004: Douglas Lee 2005: Alexander DeLeon 2006: Don Barclay 2007: Mark Hazzard 2008: Steve Milstone-Turner 2009: Tom Jett 2010: Mark Corbett 2011: Cesar (Manny) Rodriguez 2012: Jim Weschler 2013: John Kesner 2014: Chris Durden 2015: Dave Vickers 2016: Tony Zadro

Charitable activities

AMPS recently launched a clearinghouse project to gather donations of plastic model kits and supplies for shipment to United States military personnel deployed to combat areas. Nearly 2000 kits and hundreds of supply items and books have been sent overseas to help morale and alleviate stress and boredom; additional shipments will follow.

References

External links

AMPS Official siteAMPS-Chicagoland WebsiteAMPS CentexAMPS Tijuana
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armor Modeling And Preservation Society Clubs and societies in the United States Organizations established in 1993

History and purpose

Structure and membership

Local chapters

Benefits of membership

Publications

Events

AMPS Masters

Charitable activities

See also

References

External links