Thousands of hours of painstaking miniature model-building by enthusiasts will culminate in a display of civil and military aircraft, vehicles and ships this weekend.

Organised by the Society for Scale Modellers, the 32nd exhibition will include small but intricate models of Spitfires, modern aircraft, motorbikes and armoured vehicles.

There will also be a section dedicated to figurines, including detailed miniature statuettes of all of Malta’s prime ministers, from Dom Mintoff to Joseph Muscat.

Models that won awards and placed well in international events will also be on show.

Beyond the ‘static’ part of the exhibition, visitors will be able to watch enthusiasts working on models.

Opening today at the Malta Maritime Museum, Vittoriosa, the exhibition will remain open until Sunday from 9am to 5pm. Entrance is free.

The Malta branch of the International Plastic Modellers Society was set up in 1981 and forms part of the world fraternity of modellers, which this year has already added IPMS China and IPMS South Korea to its long list of member states.

The society strives to introduce young people to the hobby through exhibitions, workshops and courses in scale modelling.

For more information visit www.ipmsmalta.com.