12-13-2015, 05:17 AM
What I have learned so far: Big Things & Small Things
I've written a list of some of the things that I have learnt while building the layout. Some things are fairly minor, other things are much more significant. So, in no particular order:
1. Ballasting is a pain. I should have used real crushed stone, rather than fake ballast. It is taking me ages to clean up the track.
2. I need to be more patient. I am much better than I used to be in this regard, but it is hard to restrain oneself! I now force myself to take a step back periodically to look at my work and see if it is progressing how I envisaged.
3. Even code 100 track can be made to look ok with some weathering and painting. I will try code 75 next time I build a layout however.
4. I really enjoy composing a scene in my head and then trying to make it reality, and I think I enjoy this aspect of the hobby as much as operating. Maybe more so.
5. I really enjoy trying to make my photos look as realistic as possible. I am nowhere near achieving this goal yet, but I enjoy the process of improvement.
6. I think I would be more satisfied with a layout based to some extent on a prototype scene. To this end I have been doing some research to establish the locale for my next layout...
7. I am happy I can weather buildings to a reasonable quality, but I need to work on weathering rolling stock. I am finding it difficult to work up the courage however (importing rolling stock to the UK, or finding it within the UK for that matter, is not cheap!) I have been reading some articles & blogs about this however, and hopefully in the new year I will make a start on this. I’d also like to include plenty of graffiti too.
8. Making trees look realistic is hard. I am still very unhappy with my efforts. I have realised that it is worth investing in the right materials to make this element work.
9. I should have worked harder on the carpentry element of the layout – especially the backscene. The flaws in backscene, such as the slight gaps at the corners, are now frustrating me. Better planning at this stage would have really paid dividends. In my defence however, the main baseboard which everything else was built around (fascia & backboard) was recycled from a layout I built as a kid over 15 years ago).
10. Scratchbuilding is something I would like to do more of. I have made a mock-up of a warehouse to practice some techniques on (photos to follow when I get home tonight). It is a steep learning curve, but a satisfying one. I found that while I enjoyed building the Walther's warehouse that is currently installed on the layout and modifying it a little, that it lacked realism as I had not based it on a particular prototype.
11. Finally, and most importantly, I have really begun to think about why I enjoy model railroading. I still haven’t quite put my finger on it. But I think there are two main reasons.
A) Since I was a kid, I have enjoyed the size and raw power of railways. I really enjoy the satisfaction I get from trying to create a scene that looks and feels “real”, from the scenery to the loco and its cars (including operating it in as close to prototypical fashion as I can).
B)Furthermore, the sense of personal improvement I get, especially when I make mistakes, motivates me and inspires me to do better. Every time I sit down to do some modelling I try and learn something new, however small this lesson may be. In my everyday job I work in the financial sector, so it is very refreshing to do something creative. For the same reason I enjoy writing articles about the First World War (I studied history at university).
I've written a list of some of the things that I have learnt while building the layout. Some things are fairly minor, other things are much more significant. So, in no particular order:
1. Ballasting is a pain. I should have used real crushed stone, rather than fake ballast. It is taking me ages to clean up the track.
2. I need to be more patient. I am much better than I used to be in this regard, but it is hard to restrain oneself! I now force myself to take a step back periodically to look at my work and see if it is progressing how I envisaged.
3. Even code 100 track can be made to look ok with some weathering and painting. I will try code 75 next time I build a layout however.
4. I really enjoy composing a scene in my head and then trying to make it reality, and I think I enjoy this aspect of the hobby as much as operating. Maybe more so.
5. I really enjoy trying to make my photos look as realistic as possible. I am nowhere near achieving this goal yet, but I enjoy the process of improvement.
6. I think I would be more satisfied with a layout based to some extent on a prototype scene. To this end I have been doing some research to establish the locale for my next layout...
7. I am happy I can weather buildings to a reasonable quality, but I need to work on weathering rolling stock. I am finding it difficult to work up the courage however (importing rolling stock to the UK, or finding it within the UK for that matter, is not cheap!) I have been reading some articles & blogs about this however, and hopefully in the new year I will make a start on this. I’d also like to include plenty of graffiti too.
8. Making trees look realistic is hard. I am still very unhappy with my efforts. I have realised that it is worth investing in the right materials to make this element work.
9. I should have worked harder on the carpentry element of the layout – especially the backscene. The flaws in backscene, such as the slight gaps at the corners, are now frustrating me. Better planning at this stage would have really paid dividends. In my defence however, the main baseboard which everything else was built around (fascia & backboard) was recycled from a layout I built as a kid over 15 years ago).
10. Scratchbuilding is something I would like to do more of. I have made a mock-up of a warehouse to practice some techniques on (photos to follow when I get home tonight). It is a steep learning curve, but a satisfying one. I found that while I enjoyed building the Walther's warehouse that is currently installed on the layout and modifying it a little, that it lacked realism as I had not based it on a particular prototype.
11. Finally, and most importantly, I have really begun to think about why I enjoy model railroading. I still haven’t quite put my finger on it. But I think there are two main reasons.
A) Since I was a kid, I have enjoyed the size and raw power of railways. I really enjoy the satisfaction I get from trying to create a scene that looks and feels “real”, from the scenery to the loco and its cars (including operating it in as close to prototypical fashion as I can).
B)Furthermore, the sense of personal improvement I get, especially when I make mistakes, motivates me and inspires me to do better. Every time I sit down to do some modelling I try and learn something new, however small this lesson may be. In my everyday job I work in the financial sector, so it is very refreshing to do something creative. For the same reason I enjoy writing articles about the First World War (I studied history at university).