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HOW TO BALLAST YOUR TRACK

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Modelling Against the Clock

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South Coast spectacular

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Ahead of the curve

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HOW TO PLAN & SET UP A MODEL SCENE

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Muck and Brass

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HOW TO GET THE BEST FROM CHEAP TREES

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HOW TO: USE GRASS MATS AS A BASE FOR REALISTIC SCENERY

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A layout with hex appeal

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Choosing the right location for your train set

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How to choose which model train set to build

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How to build model railway scenery

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The essentials you need for building a model rail layout

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Building a baseboard

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A beginners’ guide to laying track

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#### One of our most frequently asked questions from aspiring model railway builders is how best to ballast the track. **George Dent** describes a tried-and-tested approach. {#block-21f9aa00-1fc6-4ad7-98c3-b351cfcae21a}

The ‘N’ gauge ballast pack provides a finer blend of stone chippings, which would also be ideal for ‘TT:120’ layouts.

Ballasting – it’s definitely a ‘Marmite’ kind of endeavour. Some modellers have told me that they find it extremely therapeutic, whereas I used to despise it, treating it as a necessary evil. But then, after trialling a few different methods to those I’d grown up with, I soon found it much less onerous. {#block-cf19aea5-ea1d-43f5-9b32-884c9b0645fd}

Like many practical tasks, it helps to use good quality products, in terms of the ballast itself and the adhesive employed to bond it together. Happily, compared to when I started out in the hobby, there’s now plenty of choice among modeller-friendly scenic materials and glues. Furthermore, once I’d learned to employ Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) as a wetting agent before applying the glue, ballasting became far less of a chore. {#block-fd03e1db-33c1-486d-84e9-dbc6ceb253f5}

Practice also makes perfect, and ballasting is a task that gets easier with repetition, so {#block-c116ba86-37a9-471d-893c-a3d980b4205d}

I heartily recommend trialling techniques on small dioramas or test pieces before tackling your layout. Glueing offcuts of track onto a scrap of plywood or sheet of foamboard creates a cheap and simple workpiece. {#block-bb02b82d-6f50-4414-81f1-3d5e3debe353}

For this demonstration, I treated a pair of dioramas, in ‘OO’ and ‘N’ gauge, both about a metre long. The application of the ballast took less than an hour on each diorama, and that includes stopping to take the step-bystep images. That said, I was only treating single lines of plain track, and working around points and crossings requires more care to ensure the moving point blades are not hindered. {#block-525225b3-03b3-4fc4-973d-411c6a6d1270}

We’ll look at ballasting in more detail in a future issue, but the basic principles are laid out here. I’ve trialled some new packs of blended stone ballast from Geoscenics, featuring a slightly aged appearance that’s suitable for steam and modern ‐era layouts. It has been graded into packs branded for ‘N’ and ‘OO’ gauges, with the former naturally featuring a finer grade of chippings. {#block-1022e315-3cab-435e-8b93-93b1ee13f034}

I’m really pleased with the finished results, with the ballast presenting a slightly lived-in appearance, but still presenting well maintained permanent way. I’d suggest that the ‘N’ gauge pack would also be perfect for ‘TT:120’ layouts, as well as for ‘OO’ scenes depicting quieter branch lines or within sidings or stations. {#block-cd5464a0-397e-450a-bdda-19b05176950e}

#### What you will need {#block-726ec9d9-9fe1-449d-a3df-2c9818767bc3}

**SHOPPING LIST** {#block-94bda2d8-ec5f-49e8-83c6-64afbcab967a}

◆ Deluxe Materials Pinpoint Applicator Tips {#block-0b107051-1ff7-4b71-bfc7-31f4b52e41ce}

◆ Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol), 1 litre {#block-ac7d9923-6158-4ab7-833a-612c30daa8a7}

**TOOLS** {#block-acd8e999-0426-4040-b5a7-4f108c5c05fc}

◆ Teaspoon  
◆ Flat paintbrushes  
◆ Pipettes  
◆ Track rubber {#block-79ff41f1-a173-477f-b27a-8e6514423838}

#### **STEP BY STEP** {#block-a19e5ad0-471d-4e2c-97dd-981cd6fef8fa}

**1** Having fixed the track in position, use an old teaspoon to gently sprinkle the ballast into place, working it between the rails and along the outer sides. Apply it sparingly to begin with, rather than creating a deep layer.

**2** The most time-consuming stage is tidying loose ballast, although a soft-bristled flat brush makes the job easier. Work the ballast into gaps between sleepers and under rails, then tidy the edges too. Sweep up the excess for later re-use.

**3** To bond the ballast in place, we need a thin PVA-type glue that can penetrate between the individual chippings. Geoscenics’s Ballast & Scenery Glue is effective and can be used neat or thinned with water and a syringe is supplied in the special ballast packs to make application easier. Extra pinpoint applicator tips, a pipette and a bottle of Isopropyl Alcohol are also extremely helpful.

**4** Working on about 20cm of track at a time, gently wet the ballast with Isopropyl Alcohol, applied with a pipette. Only a small amount is needed – just enough to turn the ballast a uniformly darker shade of grey, revealing that the fluid has spread evenly.

**5** I thinned the Geoscenics glue slightly with water and, using the supplied syringe and a pinpoint tip (from Deluxe Materials), the adhesive was applied. Wetting the stone with the alcohol allows the thin glue to be drawn among the chippings by capillary action.

**6** You’ll be able to see the white glue penetrating through the stone. Slowly move the syringe tip along the length of the track, applying the glue sparingly. Working between the rails, the glue will spread outwards, but if the outer edges remain ‘dry’, add a little more glue.

**7** Repeat the process of wetting the ballast with alcohol and applying glue, moving steadily along the track. After 6 hours the glue had turned tacky, so I refined the ballast in a few areas, working it away from the rails and keeping the tops of the sleepers clear.

**8** In a warm room, the glue dries relatively quickly. Allow a minimum of 24 hours (I waited 48 hours to be sure) for the glue to harden completely before cleaning the rails with a track rubber. Vacuum away the debris and any loose ballast chippings.

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###### ‘OO’ GAUGE LAYOUT **‘NORTH TYNESIDE’** {#block-b3d0303c-8889-4708-9128-e89ead586286}

#### Surely building a layout should be relaxing and fun? Not for **Kyle Humphries,** who enjoys the challenge of working to a deadline. {#block-0f60b873-dbad-43dd-a996-f752d2e82351}

Words: **Chris Gadsby** Photography: **Chris Nevard** Artwork: **Andrew Mackintosh** {#block-bff58d77-ed6e-4c26-877c-d25ddfb93d3e}

#### **What makes this layout great?** {#block-b60abcc8-594a-4535-9505-9ddb6068c119}

**This layout gives you a tangible sense of scale. The people look tiny compared to the locomotives, and here the locomotives look tiny compared to the shed. You really feel as though you are looking at the site from a hot air balloon.** {#block-793f52f2-b0b5-4364-a946-9466e057f579}

Modelling to a deadline adds a whole new dimension. Every time something doesn’t quite go according to plan, you glance up at the calendar – two months to go. On the opposite wall, the clock, normally an innocuous device, glares down at you menacingly as you refill your static grass machine for the seventh time. Tick, tock, tick, tock. ‘Why won’t this post stay upright?’ you think to yourself as beads of sweat drip off your forehead, the heating on full blast as you try desperately to cure the resin water for the canal scene at the other end. It sounds more akin to something out of a horror movie than building a model railway. Wasn’t this meant to be a relaxing hobby?! Fortunately, for a seasoned modeller like Kyle Humphries, who has a wealth of experience, the heat of building to a tight deadline is quite natural and this is his eighth commissioned piece. We have featured several of Kyle’s layouts in _Model Rail_ before, and his latest one is now available for all to see in a north-east museum. {#block-aeab9691-ab62-420e-9e42-0e097c1ad3dc}

“I was invited to take my previous layout ‘Margam Moor’ (GBMR2023) to an open day at the North Tyneside preserved railway, as one of the railway’s locomotives, No. 401, was originally built for Port Talbot, where ‘Margam Moor’ is set. There was a reunion gala with 401 and 403 which are both ex-Port Talbot locomotives, so it was felt that having the layout at the gala would be fitting. Conversations were had, and a model of North Tyneside was agreed upon. The plan was that it would be in the museum for the gala the following year.” {#block-63f9a801-cbea-4969-a740-adb77db9f379}

#### **3 things we like** {#block-7291e14c-602d-420f-97b7-b9dc64babd93}

**1** These trainspotters having their photograph taken.

**2** Can you tell which lamppost is a different height?

The build was completed ahead of schedule and appeared at the 2023 Warley exhibition, attended by Kyle and members of the North Tyneside railway. {#block-994d5503-0175-471d-8f72-73a2c6426f2c}

“It was an ideal situation. I had been on the Warley shortlist for a couple of years with ‘Margam Moor’ but I’d sold it before I got the invitation. Given that ‘North Tyneside’ is of a similar spec (16ft by 2ft 6in) they were happy for me to exhibit this instead. It was perfect. I could spend a couple of days showing it and teaching its new owners how to operate it but not have to take it home. They bought a van with them so I wouldn’t have to drive it to Newcastle.” {#block-315bf02f-de79-4851-a602-3fdb01b7e2aa}

#### REAL ‐LIFE CHALLENGES {#block-df21bfd5-c0db-4e8f-8058-6cf23f3eeffa}

Modelling a real location is a unique challenge that requires a different set of skills. It’s not about coming up with fresh ideas, but about capturing the essence of a place, making it true to life. For Kyle, this was a journey filled with intriguing non-negotiables that he had to include in his layout. {#block-983beb14-702e-4cd3-8a1c-bef42881a791}

“There are so many quirks. The headshunt has a kink, which was a vital feature to include as everyone involved on the railway knows it is one of the defining features that sets it apart from the rest. This took a lot of pinning and trial and error to get right. There’s also the platform. Somebody messed up during the build with the lampposts, and now one is a couple of feet taller than the rest. It’s not noticeable until you see it, at which point you cannot ‘un-see’ it. Also, on the platform, the benches are different, with one GWR and one NER. It was both strange and fun to model!” {#block-195c3701-c85a-4251-b2d8-8cf156cf4913}

Staying with small details, many of us know the frustrations with threading wire through fence posts. Now just imagine having to do it not once but twice. {#block-a111e79e-e364-4f0c-b502-c1fbf8694842}

“Every post is laser ‐cut and the holes are incredibly fine to thread the wires through five times per post. There are over 80 posts. It was a right pain and then, just as I had finished, my son kicked a football that landed on the layout and I had to do the fencing all over again. Lucky me. The fence was one of the areas where I did compromise though, as I pulled it off-scene a little early compared to the prototype, but there was no way I was going to have it cross a baseboard join.” {#block-07aba9f7-09f7-4a9c-8720-07694a4e04a8}

Of course, we can’t discuss ‘North Tyneside’ without highlighting the large and impressive shed to the right-hand side. This was Kyle’s most significant undertaking by far, and he spent almost 50% of the entire build time on this one structure. {#block-58dbeb54-c58e-41ec-964a-f7209e59aba5}

Present at ‘North Tyneside’ is a heavily modified Bachmann Class 37, depicting a prototype undergoing restoration. Kyle’s friends thought he was mad to tear apart a new locomotive, but adding a smoke unit and a West Hill Wagon Works engine has created an eye-catching feature.

“The shed has a foamboard core with plasterboard attached on either side of it and plastic card on the top of that – a five-layer structure, so to speak. With part of the roof open to allow viewers to see inside, I had to make the interior look as good as the exterior. Luckily, I have my own 3D printer. All of the small details have been printed at home, and I’ve only had one bad print in the 18 months since I started using the printer. Some worry about the cost of resin, but a single £30 bottle can go a long way when printing things so small. I use it for everything from small details to wagons. It is possible to make a rake of 30 wagons from a single bottle of resin which costs around £30. This is a lot cheaper than buying them!” {#block-2f9d7137-e7c0-47b6-aad2-2235beb52aa6}

Some modellers find building to a deadline is the best way to make a layout, particularly if they have lots of ideas. Kyle is one such modeller. He wants to model a lot, but he doesn’t have the space to store everything, so it suits him that the layouts can move on. The only question now is, what will he do next? {#block-0246309a-93b3-4ae8-bc03-60ae6b9b9bb4}

#### **FACTFILE: ‘NORTH TYNESIDE’** {#block-e7627932-6310-4b69-9ce0-e2c84bd9a449}

#### **MODELLER CV: KYLE HUMPHRIES** {#block-40ffb55b-17c3-473e-a131-7857547b9af4}

“I average a new layout about every year, or every other year at least. My interest lies more in trying to do something that nobody else has done before and pushing the boundaries, doing something that’s a bit different. My full-time job is within modelling, so I have lots of time to think up new ideas.” {#block-8a55d626-565e-4731-a89d-5340772ac93f}

#### **SEE MORE** {#block-6687af30-b4e2-478f-aaff-3994bcfe0346}

The North Tyneside Steam Railway museum is free to enter with free parking next to the museum entrance. Heritage train rides also operate on Sundays and Bank Holidays during the running season and on Thursdays during North Tyneside school holidays. {#block-7d573a1f-4a3e-42d6-a177-d5cd4e56b932}

###### ‘OO’ GAUGE LAYOUT **MARAZION AND MOUNTS BAY** {#block-a4ddeace-7cc2-4386-940d-7c0674997c67}

#### Having worked on the real railway, **Paul Taylor** was determined to make his fantasy ‘forever layout’ as authentic as possible. {#block-22c7fee9-b912-4c2a-8081-f2c9bb3390ab}

Words: **Chris Gadsby** Photography: **Chris Nevard** Artwork: **Andrew Mackintosh** {#block-f1fd7a71-3893-4d70-b72a-070190b32efd}

#### **What makes this layout great?** {#block-8582ecb2-ce6b-4e60-8459-fc28c0efe8be}

**‘Forever’ layouts tend to receive plenty of care and attention, and this is no exception. Paul has spent 13 years carefully crafting each aspect of this build and you can see the results. Nothing looks out of place and everything has apurpose.** {#block-71c637df-94d5-44b4-8066-a96548ab4f0f}

Building a model railway is a labour of love. Each part has been carefully planned, carefully designed and carefully placed over a period of many years. Paul Taylor started building the baseboards in 2010 for what was intended to be his ‘forever’ layout, but a house move means ‘Marazion and Mounts Bay’ is now awaiting reassembly. {#block-e3d5f60c-bb92-4ce6-8e81-a65663558ad3}

“When I started to build the layout I didn’t think we would ever be moving house, so I gave the baseboards the real belt and braces treatment of glueing and screwing them all together, meaning it was a right pain in the posterior to take apart and get down through the loft hatch for storage. Hopefully, I can get it put back together before too long.” {#block-57243165-dbed-402d-914f-1780474340d2}

Let’s not dwell on a layout that’s currently in pieces though, and rewind the clock to 2023. Paul’s layout fits snugly into the loft, measuring 12ft 9in by 10ft 6in at its widest point, and consists of a main line, small through station, two branch lines, a viaduct, gradients all over the place and a fiddleyard. Quite the spectacle. Set in the mid-1970s to early 1980s, ‘Marazion and Mounts Bay’ is Paul’s ‘what if’ scenario of Cornwall. {#block-5b0a02e7-0374-4af1-978f-27444b34c7a8}

The locomotives and rolling stock are a mixture of second-hand and new, but only when the layout was finished did Paul set about standardising couplings, improving the wheels, replacing missing parts, renumbering and weathering.

“I was brought up in Plymouth and when I began to work for British Railways I was based out of Laira, so the Western Region has always been my favourite and the one I go to for inspiration. My take on reality is that the line did not pass through Redruth and Camborne; instead, it went much closer to Falmouth as the principal town in the area, heading west along the coast and going to Penzance that way. Since the line approaches Penzance from a more southerly location, the branch to St Ives comes off from Mounts Bay. {#block-68009f1f-cdf8-42a6-925a-2e466ec223e6}

I didn’t quite have the space to model it all, as Penzance should be where my fiddleyard is! The Devon main line was perhaps characterised by long expresses, but the Cornish main line was quieter and had a better mix, including more local freight, albeit principally clay trips” {#block-182361ea-1900-4c56-b902-4ce858b136f1}

#### **3 things we like** {#block-3a36e389-1bde-4c79-a249-8e35497d749a}

**1** The interior of Marazion signal box.

**2** Paul’s attention to detail extends to the road signs.

Paul thought he would enjoy making trees and initially aimed at making particular types. However, his first attempts, with spray glue and cheap hairspray, just ended up in a smelly mess. His third attempt, using watered‐down Mod Podge as an adhesive, proved the most satisfactory.

With his plan in place, Paul began to create the baseboards, taking it right up to the eaves of the house. This has meant a sloping backscene in places, but more scenery. With the height dictated by roof joists at 4ft, Paul wanted to use the space as much as possible. Then it was time for track. Having worked for BR for so long, Paul wanted everything to look perfect, and was a stickler for detail. {#block-9fede6a7-2d04-4bf5-a5b8-4eb3e3d799cd}

“The track is a mixture of Peco streamlined wooden and concrete sleepers where appropriate. For both, I altered the sleeper spacing to make it more suitable for ‘OO’ gauge. This meant cutting each piece of track at a scale 60ft length (240mm). On the wooden sections, the sleepers are slightly more spaced out than they are on the concrete sleeper sections, again accurate to real life, and every turn over 5mph is canted. Doing the track was my favourite part of the build because that is the most railway type of thing. Getting the layout planned correctly, ensuring there is enough space for DMUs, for example, and getting the smoothest transitions you can get from straights to curves was very enjoyable. The points on the main line and those feeding into it are operated via a small feeder panel, but those in the fiddleyard are controlled via the ‘hand of God’. I couldn’t face wiring those up. The electrics were the most difficult part of the build and I found doing it in the winter when the solder didn’t take as well made it extra difficult.” {#block-d5303936-c01d-426e-95c1-250c4ffb0dbe}

With a significant part of his working life spent in the Safety and Standards departments, and later in re-signalling projects on the railways, Paul enjoyed designing signalling for the likely traffic pattern across the layout and adapting Ratio signals for particular circumstances, though they were extremely fiddly and delicate.

#### LAY OF THE LAND {#block-4c4d6fbf-13c7-4c91-8f91-370e68441036}

Our world isn’t just railway lines. Once the track had been done and ballasted, he began work on the surrounding areas. {#block-12b5572b-7fd8-4260-9c40-a2548eeef1cf}

“Although a certain amount of inside information from working for the railways was useful, much reference was made to the railways and surrounding scenery illustrated in the photographic albums of John Vaughan, Roger Siviter and Brian Morrison. To get various elements as close to reality as I could, almost everything required selective compression. The scenery is very basic, made from chicken wire, papier ‐mâché and some extruded foam. I also used hanging basket liner. Like others, I decided to put myself through the torture of doing lineside posts and wire fencing. I made the concrete posts out of old bits of plastic card and for the wire I used Lycra thread that I sourced from a firm in London. I got 3km on a small spool and it was easy to apply, even if it was mindnumbingly tedious. The buildings are mostly kit-bashed. Marazion’s signal box was a particularly fun one to create because the interior of the box overhangs the layout. There is a row of terraced houses and a pub that is scratchbuilt from wood, the stonework scribed into a filler coating. I’ve tried to replicate the typical houses you get in that area and the pub is inspired by two in Plymouth.” {#block-12350eb3-70d0-44ca-b900-5533545c1737}

The most striking feature of ‘Marazion and Mounts Bay’ is Paul’s viaduct, which spans a large section of the front of the layout. It is not only a significant feature but a stunning piece of design. {#block-fe36de93-d417-40c3-b692-2011699f1990}

“The viaduct is of plywood construction with hardboard infilling the arches and covered in lightweight filler, again scribed. Another long-winded task. The inside of the arches are brick and the viaduct is based on a number in Cornwall, all of them slightly different. The river is varnish, made up of lots of layers, and has an abandoned waterside warehouse with a couple of boats I made from balsawood. Getting the colour right was challenging because it seemed to depend on the angle from which I looked at the river! On each side of the river, I have a myriad of trees and bushes made from wire and a lot of scattered material that brings that unkempt section to life. At the rear, a hand-painted backscene shows the water a slightly different colour to the scenic section, as on the backscene you are looking along the water rather than down through it.” {#block-487bc2e2-0cef-48e5-ae5c-c9397047a5cd}

#### FUNNY FEATURES {#block-21fa37fd-2bdb-4c07-90ea-b7ba4008670c}

Not one to take things too seriously, Paul has added some amusing features to the layout. {#block-f2d84dfb-76ec-4800-9264-c40455f62d1b}

“I had an old Hornby HST power car lying around that I decided to use. Anyone who travelled on the network in this period will know how often the HSTs broke down owing to overheating, and then had to be rescued; you would often see them being hauled by something else! I cut open the front to make a panel and fixed the drawbar in place, so it could be hauled by a diesel locomotive. I also thought I needed some passengers flailing out of a coach, so I took an old model, cut out the windows and glued some figures leaning out of them. They are all structure ‐gauged to ensure they don’t hit anything.” {#block-4f090249-8435-4936-821d-6777e37ca83b}

We hope that Paul can get ‘Marazion and Mounts Bay’ back up and running in his new home quickly as it really does need trains crossing that viaduct and pulling into the curved platform. With so much to enjoy, you could easily lose many hours mesmerised by what he has created. {#block-baaa3232-6d2e-4c7f-9196-d77276980bb4}

It’s making us a little jealous! {#block-cae11565-55b1-46bb-89fa-b632eba4df66}

#### **FACTFILE: ‘MARAZION AND MOUNTS BAY’** {#block-fdfbc0b5-f2ea-4991-b123-4aeddeb07ae8}

**MODELLER CV: PAUL TAYLOR** {#block-88bd8c7e-23a0-42da-951f-2a2656807e14}

“I used to work for British Railways and Network Rail, but now I spend my time gardening and sailing. The little blue yacht in the pictures is a balsa model of the Jaguar 22, a boat I used to own a few years ago that had space to sleep aboard.” {#block-94a2064f-2ac6-486a-a862-a44e8b0dd2fb}

###### ‘N’ GAUGE LAYOUT **BRINKLOW** {#block-dd19c3ba-fbcc-4c3c-8545-7dc88fc0f437}

#### ‘Brinklow’ brings together the formidable talents of Milton Keynes MRS, and it’s already scooped several awards that recognise the sheer quality of the modelling. {#block-41797428-6907-4824-81fc-fb5f6fc33c3d}

Words: **Chris Gadsby** Photography: **Chris Nevard Artwork: Andrew Mackintosh** {#block-4e79ccbd-19b5-4cf3-b6c2-01ec9ec7982a}

#### **What makes this layout great?** {#block-bb748e5b-116f-4dba-be27-632b10905050}

**“The track at ‘Brinklow’ is one long, sweeping curve so your eye can never settle on a set distance and block other aspects of the layout from view. It forces you to spend a few moments taking everything in and appreciating every aspect of it.”** {#block-ebd7f509-35e6-44ca-8e3f-dc7484afa380}

We love club layouts at _Model Rail._ At their best, they showcase the power of teamwork. A club layout can play to everybody’s strengths. It will have more complex wiring, superb buildings and realistic scenery. With the extra space afforded by a clubroom, layouts tend to be larger too, allowing miniature trains to snake their way through the landscape. {#block-c7ebcfa3-13a3-4842-85aa-adb86cf465af}

In 2015, the Milton Keynes Model Railway Society moved to new premises and decided the time was right to build a new ‘N’ gauge layout. Led by Wayne Webb and Mike Biss, a plan was agreed among the ‘N’ gauge cohort of the club and construction began. {#block-1c59aa1a-b5c7-4280-9dd1-9508f1f4fc0b}

“Moving premises was an enforced decision,” explains Wayne, “as the rent had doubled at our previous location. It seemed like the ideal opportunity to start something new, and with a list of requirements it didn’t take long to agree on a setting.” {#block-aa1074fb-d342-46ca-8f0a-394aaf34d1ed}

Those requirements included the layout consisting of three tracks, being suitable for either DC or DCC operation, and being an exhibition layout. {#block-cb694cd3-635a-49ea-8c05-d1d68f7ea587}

“Since the layout would ultimately spend a lot of the time in the club room we had to make it appeal to as many people as possible. Some of our members use DCC, some use DC. Some run British steam, some run American diesel. Making it available to everybody was important. It took a fair amount of research to find an area where only three tracks had been laid but I eventually came across a section of line between Rugby and Stafford on the Trent Valley line. The width of the trackbed was limited owing to the close proximity of the Oxford Canal. Here, there was a Fast and Slow Up line with a shared Fast and Slow Down line. It was only when doing the research that the existence of the station came to light. Originally, it was known as Stretton, but was changed to Brinklow in 1870 before closing in 1957. The goods yard followed four years later, and today nothing remains of the site.” {#block-97f21116-b6ef-4be9-ac3e-a394fe3f2eb1}

#### **3 things we like** {#block-b8961c06-2948-448f-a5cd-07b93140f264}

**1** The path trodden by tractor wheels.

**2** This derelict building is a stark contrast to the surrounding area.

**3** Do you think he’s caught anything yet?

Measuring 19ft by 2ft 9in, ‘Brinklow’ splits into five boards for transportation and is fitted with adjustable feet to cope with the uneven surface of an exhibition hall floor. {#block-32a7a4ab-68ba-41dc-9785-140cc10dbe32}

The track is Peco Code 80 and although the group have tried to keep everything as accurate as possible, they decided earlier this year to improve the layout by making a fourth line operational. The idea for the change occurred shortly after Mike Biss joined the layout exhibition team, and here he explains how he made those alterations. {#block-2b0a97d8-a9c9-4121-8b29-bc556394ab66}

All of the buildings are either scratchbuilt or modified Kestrel kits, the majority being the former. The canal boats and the vehicles are a mix of scratchbuilt, kitbuilt and Oxford Diecast models. The canal reflects the transition from a working waterway to a leisure facility.

#### TRACKS AND TRICKS {#block-52502bf4-e9e0-4451-b435-e1d0ce07f5b2}

“Previously, the fourth line just ended in the sand drag, but it was decided that with a slight extension on the end board of about 2in, this would allow a new curved bit of track which was then to be connected up from the fiddleyard and to the current northbound line via a new pair of crossover points. We fitted a new point in the fiddleyard to access the new line, but quickly realised this one road wouldn’t be able to supply enough trains, so an additional pair of points were also fitted to allow trains in the second storage road to access the new Down Slow line. {#block-ad3abd91-c647-4bf0-89cb-75a6bd594939}

“This gives the operators access to a wider selection of trains. The removal of the old track was fairly straightforward and the current dead end was then extended to run behind the signal box, to finish in line with the platform ends. This makes it more prototypical in appearance, although of an earlier period. Despite the crossover being a bit closer than in real life, it does allow for trains to come out from the fiddleyard on the Down Slow line and wait at the signal (all of which are operational), allowing an express through from the Down Fast line, and then proceed via the crossover.” {#block-332f0065-40ab-4b55-9ad0-ae42e6b9b32d}

The club, like any other railway builder, had the challenge of making the railway look as though it had been built into the landscape, not the landscape being built around the railway. It’s a challenging element of building to get right for a modeller when the track is always the first thing to go down. Wayne details how the club achieved this realistic appearance while also keeping the weight as low as possible. {#block-498a9ccf-f6e2-4bb1-ad92-f1350d45e600}

“We opted to make a lattice out of cardboard strips that we could form to give us the desired result. The scale width of ‘Brinklow’ is not much longer than a football pitch so we didn’t need to create mountains. A gentle slope sufficed. Paper was then glued on the top in several layers to create the final embankments before being painted green and covered in various scatters. This was then all finished off with some bush edging and trees made by the late Bob Taylor, who also photographed the backscene that got stitched together and printed for us in Telford. There was one problem though. Doing the new scenery around that fourth line highlighted just how tired and dirty the existing grass had become and it meant I had to go along and give the rest of the layout a refresh, bringing it back to the vibrancy it once had.” {#block-3949b1b0-2f88-4d08-8433-502d3155209a}

Wayne’s scratchbuilt structures begin with a card base to create the shape and proportions, before it is covered with textured plastic card. The station was the most timeconsuming build, adapting parts from a Ratio plastic kit to fit within the available space.

#### SWITCHING IT UP {#block-47f65292-38c4-4a5b-aa74-26087aff87d6}

With a layout so long and with nine roads on the fiddleyard, the club needed a way of keeping track of what was where. Seventy-two switches proved to be the answer. {#block-20ec8858-bcba-4ead-a538-eb5db5b402dd}

“As the layout can also be operated on DC we needed a way of isolating sections so all the trains didn’t move at once. We can hold roughly four trains per road, depending on length, so to be able to cut the power to some was vital. LEDs light the route that’s selected on the control panel, and on the whole everything is a lot more fun to operate and, hopefully, more enjoyable for the viewers as well.” {#block-7d9dd07a-3c68-4f70-96d2-91b5621b5298}

At shows, the club like to operate a wide range of locomotives dating from 1948 to around 1963, with a mixture of passenger and freight formations.

‘Brinklow’ will be one of many great layouts on display at this year’s International N Gauge Show, held at the Warwickshire Event Centre on September 14-15. You can read our full preview of the show on page 6, but be sure to go and say hello to the Milton Keynes Model Railway Society and admire ‘Brinklow’. You’ll see just how much work goes in to getting trains traversing the layout and you’ll see the result of a group of modellers coming together to create a superb ‘N’ gauge layout. {#block-8d17d803-064a-492d-b8a7-1ae07c79ba91}

#### **STATISTICS: ‘BRINKLOW’** {#block-b246a696-30a0-4694-bd0a-d47f133285a7}

#### **ABOUT THE MODELLERS: MILTON KEYNES MRS** {#block-6a8389f2-1898-4391-a097-9547bb9c2fe8}

Founded in 1969 the Milton Keynes Model Railway Society now has approximately 65 members, with its ‘N’ gauge cohort being the largest, and it meets twice a week. It also hosts an exhibition each year that usually features over 20 layouts and traders. {#block-80e20537-e314-480b-80a3-49c1b8508132}

An effective backdrop can make or break a layout. As **Paul Bambrick** explains, it’s often best to plan this element at an early stage, as it may need to tally with scenic contours and may even dictate the size and shape of your baseboards.

These are a few of the basic steps that I take when starting out with a scenic layout or diorama. It’s just a sequence of safeguards that might help to keep a project out of trouble at a later stage, so if you are planning a scenic layout, I hope they come in handy.

To get the best from your scenic work, it’s going to help if we have a quick look at a few aspects of human perception, so we can understand best how it may benefit your project.

When it comes to the surroundings of a railway model, we’re really after a convincing illusion of the locality. Sometimes it will need to be an accurate and prototypical ‘window into the past’, (like this example), but it might also be a more generic depiction to suit an imaginary railway. In either case, there are number of methods that we can employ to persuade the viewer into perceiving a modelled landscape as a real place.

The ideal configuration for any diorama backscene is a semicircular arrangement, replicating our natural survey of the surroundings, but with the typical linear nature of railway models, it’s often the case that there’s insufficient room for this, and a linear panel is required instead, running parallel to the railway itself. This can lead to one of the first problems when doing a backscene, which is a vertical foreshortening of the image. The effect can be seen in the sketch, where the semi-circular diorama (upper) produces correct right angles, but the linear arrangement (lower) produces more acute viewing angles.

When we survey a real landscape, we see an entire panorama as we rotate through 360 degrees of vision. We can look up at the sky far above us, or down to the surface close by. With a linear subject such as a railway line, it’s normal to observe it from quite nearby because it’s the main focus of our interest. Only a directional left to right survey of the scene is required to see the trains in their habitat, so we can obscure anything we don’t need to see as unnecessary areas of the overall ‘picture’.

It’s the same process as composing a drawing, or cropping a photograph, but we are working in three dimensions, and so presentations like this are usually referred to as dioramas.

A layout or diorama is a partially contained panorama, therefore, and we’ll need to depict a false landscape within the available space for the railway to traverse, hopefully with a representation of distance included for realism.

In terms of human depth detection, our inability to triangulate at far distance means that we can only see a flattened image at the furthest reach, so a similar two-dimensional backscene is quite familiar.

A rough card mock-up like this can be arranged behind your baseboard, with a rear panel resting on card brackets, or horizontal wooden battens clamped in place. The rear panel can just be mounting card to start with, which is easy to fit in gentle curves. It can be joined up to make a full length panel by overlapping card joiners stuck on with Mitre Bond adhesive from the rear.

Before committing to anything, I find it’s best to create a mock-up, which can be made of foamboard or mounting board, curved to follow behind your model. Access points for scenic breaks can just be crudely cut out for the time being, and if necessary, it can simply be tack glued into place using extensions from the base boards.

The first practical step is to draw a pathway behind and around your layout, using the largest radii possible to try to get that ideal semi-circular rear panel shape. Use any means necessary to get the rear panel itself as far away from the rails as possible, by extending it well beyond any baseboard edges. Of course, there’s always a limit to the available depth that a backscene can occupy, but whether it’s a metre or a millimetre, that’s what you have to work with.

Obviously, the more allowance, the more realistic the end result can be, and I find the best method is to occupy the first half of the space with the first visual layer, then the next layer can occupy half of the remaining space, and so on, until you practically run out, by which time you have reached the rear panel. This effort will pay us back later by allowing the maximum amount of available depth.

The height of the rear panel can be decided by a number of factors, the first usually being a requirement to reach over to manage hand coupling for instance. If this turns out not to be the case, so much the better, as the higher you can get the sky panel to extend, the more it looks like the real thing. Sometimes you might just need to be able to see over the top of a panel, so this will dictate the ruling height, and in other cases, a physical limit may appear, such as a ceiling or possibly the roof beams of a loft area.

Backscenes often turn out to be long thin strips, due to the linear nature of railway models. This configuration can sometimes lead to problems with foreshortened images appearing in photographs or views of the railway from any angle not square to the layout itself.

Particularly with photographic or flat painted panels, this leaves the backscene exposed as a fraud, with an unrealistic foreshortening effect having to be dealt with as best as possible. The more 2D the backscene is, the more the problem is exaggerated.

So, what can be done to alleviate it? One answer is to include the use of view interrupting devices which are placed deliberately to obscure foreshortened areas of a backscene that are becoming unrealistic. These can really help with the land surface and sometimes even the lower sky.

Such devices are sometimes known as view blockers and they can be arranged to partition an awkward, linear backscene into several visually separated dioramas. These work surprisingly well, as the eye is persuaded into restricting its own view, largely remaining between a carefully arranged pair that have been cleverly placed to distract the eye away from a continuous flat strip.

Try any lighting out at the mock-up stage, as it might warn you of potential problems. A rear panel is a false distance and throwing unwanted shadows against the vertical surface is quite a common problem. Trees, spires, chimneys and other features standing above the skyline will do their best to throw directional shadows, so try a diffused light source and experiment to minimise problems.

This is a pretty typical viewing height for a scenic model, and it’s much higher than the scale figures. The people on the platform wouldn’t be able to see any distance at all with the train in the way, whereas we can see right over it. This makes all the difference when you are trying to come up with the best compromise for the horizon datum.

Now we have the best possible rear panel position, it’s time to deal with one of the most critical aspects of the landscape, the all-important ‘horizon line’. It’s where the land meets the sky at the furthest distance away from us, and so for now, it’s easiest to imagine your layout is situated on a flat plane, as far as the eye can see.

Now this datum is vital, but it’s still an artificial one in every case, as it’s unable to adjust itself up and down automatically to eye level like a real outdoor view. This is because it’s shown on a panel that’s too close by, and because of this limitation, we are forced to choose a compromise height for it. Our modelled horizon can be rightly criticised as being unrealistic, and it’s one of the most common problems with backscenes, but the negative effect of a horizon line that’s been set too low can be greatly reduced if the line is positioned at eye level to the average viewer.

This is also where the line, or rail height, comes into play. In practical terms, it’s the relationship of the trains, compared to your own viewing position. Most scenic models have a much higher viewpoint than a scale figure, and it’s why most reference photos can’t be used directly. It’s a personal choice of course, because the added elevation allows a good overview of the railway, but it’s also true that the further up you are, the further away you can see!

A 1.3m line height is quite a good starting point for a standing observer, so to get your flat horizon pencilled on, let’s see if your own typical viewing height is likely to be from a standing or sitting position? For instance, if you’re doing an exhibition layout, most of your visitors will be viewing the scene from a standing position, and that’s going to affect your choice of height compared to a sitting operator, who would typically be a foot and a half lower, relative to the railway.

It does make a huge difference; just measure a foot and a half in terms of your railway’s scale! It’s not a decision to be taken lightly, so take your time and maybe try a few printed out reference photographs of your intended backscene on the rear panel and judge for yourself what the optimum position would be.

Now we also need to remember that the skyline is different to the horizon line, and to explain this, just imagine for a moment that your scenic model is located in the middle of a completely flat plain without a single change of contour. That would give us a single horizon line and skyline combined, like being out at sea. If you are modelling an area of flat land, that’s absolutely fine, but most locations have land masses rising between the viewpoint and the far distance, and these naturally obscure any view beyond them.

The two lines now separate, with the skyline rising above the flat horizon datum. For now, just pencil in the flat horizon, and we’ll worry about the skyline later on. As long as we grasp the principle of an invisible horizon datum concealed behind obscuring land masses, we can continue on a safe foundation.

This backscene, featuring Kingswear and the River Dart, shows us that the skyline is different to the horizon line in nearly every case, unless you happen to be out at sea or in the middle of a vast desert plane (neither of which is a likely environment for a railway!). Land masses in between the viewpoint and the far distance can be superimposed onto your rear panel like these headlands, which rise up either side, to obscure the far distant sea level datum, which remains visible at centre.

With the best horizon datum established, pencil the line level all the way around the backscene mock-up, as this will help you to apply the **H** skyline. The example here corresponds to the 3D backscene of Kingswear and Dartmouth (below), with the above graphic obtained via free online ‘Generate a Panorama’ software (:a[https://www.udeuschle.de/panoramas/]{href='https://www.udeuschle.de/panoramas/' }_makepanoramas\_en.htm)._

It provides minimal information on local landmarks, but it’s just the thing for helping you to judge the lie of the land and for plotting the skyline. Combine the outlines of the land masses with maps and prototype references in order to get the basic contours.

Lineside contouring from map reference can be combined to discern the lie of the land relative to the railway. You can see the line height above nominal sea level crossing at 185ft in this sketch, for instance, and of course, part of a mock-up job will have to include lineside contouring as well as distance.

Scenic breaks allow trains to enter and depart the scene through a convincing, disguised aperture. It does have to be created in a consistent scale in relation to the trains, due to the aperture’s proximity to the rails, but the scale reductions that are apparent at near and far distances can be included gradually as you progress away from the scenic break itself.

Any contouring of the surroundings needs to correspond to the scenic break, so there’s a believable reason for an engineered bridge or tunnel. This example shows the railway in a deep cutting, eventually requiring a tunnelled trackbed beneath higher ground. Natural tree growth is a very forgiving element for producing scenic blinds and view blockers, particularly when modelling imaginary locations.

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