12-31-2015, 06:58 AM
So, the rapidly approaching New Year has been making me reflect on how I have got to where I am in this hobby. It has also been focussing my mind as to what I want to get done in 2016.
How did I get to where I am now>
I first came into possession of a train set as a one year old - as my dad decided I would really enjoy a Hornby HST train set for my birthday (I think this was more for his enjoyment really!) Later on, I joined a primary school that had a model railway room where I spent many hours. When I was 7 y.o. I got a 0-6-0 Dean Goods in GWR livery (pictured) which I still have. This was my first proper locomotive. Until I was 11 y.o. though I was still definitely "playing trains". Nothing wrong with that, but I was not engaged in a hobby as such.
When I was 11 y.o. however I got a copy of British Railway Modelling (December 2011), and I read an article about a layout called "Falcon Works". This immediately inspired me to build my own layout, as opposed to a round-and-round trainset on the kitchen table. For the next few years I made many failed attempts at building my own layout. A recurring theme of these however was that they were always inspired by a recent model railway I had seen in the latest modelling magazine. Many didn't even make it past the track laying stage. I did get good at re-using track however (as I was only a kid using his pocket money for my hobby)
The model railway club I belonged to at the time had many members who modelled in a similar manner.
When I was about 17 I joined a different model railway club after my parents moved house to a different part of the country. I was looking for a new project, and one of the members very kindly said I could have his old collection of Life Like N gauge USA models, including a Great Northern GP18 loco. I then built a small 2'x4' n gauge layout. This was the first layout I ever actually completed. Sadly, I have no photos of it. It was a freelance layout, not based on a prototype in any real respect, but I enjoyed building it and it made me realise I could actually do it. It also made me realise that I really enjoyed the American scene, and much of my British outline stock got sold.
After I went to university at the age of 19, I stopped model railroading for 6 years. Over these years I sold most of my remaining rolling stock and equipment. However, when I got my own flat and space for a layout I decided to re-join the hobby. Over a period of a year or so I read around the subject and did some research to decide how I wanted to get back to modelling. Most importantly, I read Lance Mindheim's and Mike Cougill's work. I cannot remember how I first came across these two people, but I owe them a lot. In particular, how I perceive this hobby was completely changed by their way of thinking. After reading their work I realised that before that time I had always been building a model of a model railroad, whereas I what I wanted to do was to build a model of a railroad. It might sound obvious, but I found this realisation profound as it helped to explain why I had previously found it hard to complete a project - I was never really fully invested as I was always trying to recreate another person's model and so never achieved personal satisfaction. Moreover, the way I saw my place in the hobby changed. I realised that I could learn new skills, and that the learning of these new skills could be an end in itself, providing much enjoyment and personal satisfaction (rather than my lack of knowledge being a constant source of irritation with myself).
I am now in the process, as you can see, of building a new layout. This is freelance, designed to incorporate lots of different scenery techniques so I can improve a variety of skills, learning some new ones on the way. Right now, this learning curve is really enjoyable. By no means will this layout be permanent, but nonetheless, it has an important role to play in the long-term development of my model railroading skills (my craft as Mike Cougill would put it).
For 2016 I want to learn more about the following in particular:
1. How to build trees.
2. Better, more realistic ground cover.
3. Scratchbuilding structures.
4. Weathering and adding graffiti to rolling stock.
I have already started this process by amassing a mass of prototype photos to draw on. If I can improve in all these areas in the next year then I will be very happy.
And on that note, I hope you all have a very Happy New Year! More updates on my layout soon...
How did I get to where I am now>
I first came into possession of a train set as a one year old - as my dad decided I would really enjoy a Hornby HST train set for my birthday (I think this was more for his enjoyment really!) Later on, I joined a primary school that had a model railway room where I spent many hours. When I was 7 y.o. I got a 0-6-0 Dean Goods in GWR livery (pictured) which I still have. This was my first proper locomotive. Until I was 11 y.o. though I was still definitely "playing trains". Nothing wrong with that, but I was not engaged in a hobby as such.
When I was 11 y.o. however I got a copy of British Railway Modelling (December 2011), and I read an article about a layout called "Falcon Works". This immediately inspired me to build my own layout, as opposed to a round-and-round trainset on the kitchen table. For the next few years I made many failed attempts at building my own layout. A recurring theme of these however was that they were always inspired by a recent model railway I had seen in the latest modelling magazine. Many didn't even make it past the track laying stage. I did get good at re-using track however (as I was only a kid using his pocket money for my hobby)
The model railway club I belonged to at the time had many members who modelled in a similar manner. When I was about 17 I joined a different model railway club after my parents moved house to a different part of the country. I was looking for a new project, and one of the members very kindly said I could have his old collection of Life Like N gauge USA models, including a Great Northern GP18 loco. I then built a small 2'x4' n gauge layout. This was the first layout I ever actually completed. Sadly, I have no photos of it. It was a freelance layout, not based on a prototype in any real respect, but I enjoyed building it and it made me realise I could actually do it. It also made me realise that I really enjoyed the American scene, and much of my British outline stock got sold.
After I went to university at the age of 19, I stopped model railroading for 6 years. Over these years I sold most of my remaining rolling stock and equipment. However, when I got my own flat and space for a layout I decided to re-join the hobby. Over a period of a year or so I read around the subject and did some research to decide how I wanted to get back to modelling. Most importantly, I read Lance Mindheim's and Mike Cougill's work. I cannot remember how I first came across these two people, but I owe them a lot. In particular, how I perceive this hobby was completely changed by their way of thinking. After reading their work I realised that before that time I had always been building a model of a model railroad, whereas I what I wanted to do was to build a model of a railroad. It might sound obvious, but I found this realisation profound as it helped to explain why I had previously found it hard to complete a project - I was never really fully invested as I was always trying to recreate another person's model and so never achieved personal satisfaction. Moreover, the way I saw my place in the hobby changed. I realised that I could learn new skills, and that the learning of these new skills could be an end in itself, providing much enjoyment and personal satisfaction (rather than my lack of knowledge being a constant source of irritation with myself).
I am now in the process, as you can see, of building a new layout. This is freelance, designed to incorporate lots of different scenery techniques so I can improve a variety of skills, learning some new ones on the way. Right now, this learning curve is really enjoyable. By no means will this layout be permanent, but nonetheless, it has an important role to play in the long-term development of my model railroading skills (my craft as Mike Cougill would put it).
For 2016 I want to learn more about the following in particular:
1. How to build trees.
2. Better, more realistic ground cover.
3. Scratchbuilding structures.
4. Weathering and adding graffiti to rolling stock.
I have already started this process by amassing a mass of prototype photos to draw on. If I can improve in all these areas in the next year then I will be very happy.
And on that note, I hope you all have a very Happy New Year! More updates on my layout soon...