There have been some interesting debates going on in the railway modelling blogsphere, or at least that part of it which I frequent, It is clear that many of us worry about the standard of modelling that gets promoted in the mainstream magazines, but also that we have different perspectives on what we should be trying to achieve. The one common factor, perhaps surprisingly, seems to be that many of us see the railway as ancillary to the big picture.
What seems to be underlying the debate is a desire to aim for the best possible visual outcome, and that to achieve that outcome we need to challenge a lot of conventions, up to and including the premise that Pendon can do no wrong.
Which is great, and I 100% agree with it , except for the small but significant point that I'm dyspraxic.
What does that mean in practical terms? Well basically that I'm not practical. Simple things like cutting a straight line between two clearly marked points are incredibly difficult for me.
Building a point? You have no idea how many times I have to read the instructions, and how I struggle to combine different sets of guidance to achieve the same end.
Typing this blog? You might have noticed the number of typos, because quite literally my right hand doesn't know what my left hand is doing.
So is this an excuse for mediocre modelling?
No.
Absolutely not.
Almost the opposite.
If you knew how much I struggled to carry out the most basic modelling activity you would understand how I feel about people who are lazy modellers.
I feel guilty that I've skirted around this issue until now so I'm going to be explicit about it going forward.
I feel a very serious and real point is being made here, James. And I feel for you. None of us is free of all these sorts of inabilities. I can't get my head round CAD and I cannot play the bloomin' saxophone, dammit. Or any other instrument, because my odd memory stops me recalling where to put my fingers. I also can't remember what I wrote on RMWeb only a few days ago, which has got me thrown off (like I give a damn!) for the second time.
ReplyDeleteI can't remember where I put model parts or small tools. This is NOT an age thing. I have always been like it. Obviously as one who ekes a living from this lark, I am not afflicted with dyspraxia, but I know one or two people who are and my heart goes out to you, honestly. But far more than that, my respect for choosing a hobby that daily reminds you of a disability which must be so frustrating. If I can help with any dodges and tips to make life easier, please ask.
it is interesting that a few of your own posts & comments about innate modelling ability have been a catalyst for me facing up to this, because in my professional world I'm aware that my own innate ability (ahem) is less common than I realise. And of course, without being overly politically correct, there are "different" skills that I both consciously and unconsciously use to compensate. So I'm lousy at cutting a line between two points, but I was writing software to manipulate multiple dimensions when I was in my teens. So CAD is almost second nature to me considering that in th early 80's I was trying to model engine noise in an anechoic chamber . Music is a big issue for me because I love it but lacking a basic internal sense of rhythm I have to learn it in a different way. And the same applies to modelling. I suspect that often what I'm trying to achieve is different from the "average" modeller because I see things differently to start with, and what makes a scene work for me relies on different connections between elements of the scene. The challenge is reproducing those connections in model form.
ReplyDeleteBut I do need different coping strategies, for instance relying more on jigs and breaking tasks down differently. I also have to unlearn the pain of trying to do practical tasks, and failing, when I was a teen.
Needless to say the worst pain is I still forget where I put down the soldering iron until I reach out to pick it up again....
And my favourite quote on the subject " People think that those with dyspraxia are good at thinking outside the box. The truth is they have no idea where the box is."
ReplyDeleteThey can think outside the box, they just can't make one.
ReplyDeleteVery funny Rob! Sadly true, as the saga of the baseboard legs has confirmed.
DeleteA very honest admission, James. I am not troubled by anything that makes an aspect of my life a challenge, yet even though I adore my work and couldn't imagine doing anything else, I find it increasingly difficult. Why? well, apart from the fact that it has never been like falling off a log, (and the tools and materials are always ganging up on me) it's mainly because I am trying to raise the bar all the time...in response, I think, to people like you who encourage me and gee me on to do better. Your careful, thoughtful progress is inspiring and knowing that it is such a steep climb makes me the more humbled.
ReplyDeleteI think this is the time to turn away from blandness and lack of vision - good for you for saying what you think. In some model railway circles it seems like heresy to express an opinion "out of the box". A good friend of mine recently took me to task for producing "caricatures" (no, not Martin, for once!) with my models. The same person explained why my use of the apostrophe for "its" in my writing is wrong. I was angry, then realised he'd done me a bloody good turn.
I can manage to avoid the soldering iron, but you should see me with super glue :-)
Iain. Exactly! Although I'm heavily into self criticism I know the WPB is my best friend and a few things end up there without me mentioning them, but I wouldn't have it any other way, because I don't expect recreating a realistic scene to be easy. And I don't expect to be judged on making a good effort but only on whether I achieve a realistic outcome. No pressure there then.
DeleteAnd often I know that if I just ploughed on and did something I would have the satisfaction of finishing a project, but not of achieving what I set out to do.For better or worse I have a vision of a station in mid wales or the borders on a rather dull Monday morning in the early sixties and that is what I want to model. If I don't achieve it I know I will be my own worst critic.
What I love is I have Geoff encouraging me that tasks like building EM gauge points are achievable balanced against Martin who I know takes no prisoners. And bless him, I can always laugh at his more outlandish comments .
James,
DeleteDon't be so hard on yourself, its meant to be a hobby for both relaxation and enjoyment and from what I've seen of your work you are doing fine. I'm forever finding fault with what I do but so what ? I simply do it again until I am happy and this is where a simple project scores because it's achievable within a realistic time scale. Once you've got a firm foundation on which to build you can experiment with building track, honing your skills as you go along, it might take several attempts but you will get there. The rest is the easy part because its much easier to cut and carve scenery as you try new ideas and each time you do it the better it becomes. The same can be said for buildings and all the other things you want to model, as you develop new skills tear the old stuff up and build something better raising the bar as you go along. Don't expect perfection from the word go.
And I think of it as a form of occupational therapy as well. The great thing about building things from scratch is I feel much less worried about throwing things away if they haven't worked. On the other hand I worry about ruining something I've invested money in, like loco kits.
DeleteI think getting a firm foundation is literally the key. I'm finding struggling with the baseboard legs a real pain, but I need the baseboards to be in place so I can organize myself and find a home for things, especially rolling stock which is currently scattered around my office..
The biggest practical problem I have is detail painting. It is difficult when you have to guess which of the three different positions your mind is telling you the brush is in is the one closest to reality. Helping hands, magnifying glasses, using masks for even simple aint jobs, and firm supports all help.
DeleteOh, and I agree with Martin that the tiles on that latest Pendon scene aren't up to scratch, and though I'm not sure what his specific issue is with the shop sign it does look rather computer generated rather than looking like a sign painted sign.
ReplyDeleteSignwriting and typography is something of a passion with me, so perhaps I can explain Martin's annoyance with the Pendon shop sign. In the period modelled, all signeage would be done by hand by a jobbing signwriter who took his or her faces from a pattern book. My Mum was a signwriter and I still have one of her pattern books. They are full of basically Victorian alphabets, some serif, some not, but they all have a very recognisable hand made feel to them. Later on in the fifties, some wonderful Americanised faces came into play and I remember her lettering a touring coach with one particularly "racy" face. These were not type faces or fonts with any affinity to Letraset and had little to do with hot metal type such as Baskerville or Garamond. The fonts available on a typical computer just shout out "late C20" and I'm afraid that's what those fonts are on the shop. I was a little disappointed when I saw that, but perhaps only sad type obsessives like me would notice :-)
DeleteThank you Iain for that explanation, I also agreed with Martin on that topic, to me it looked wrong but I could not have said why.
DeleteIn my childhood I once watched a signwriter letter and line a Volvo F88 (big old lorry), fascinating to a small boy. I still like to see a properly lined out HGV.
It raise a point Martin made originally, have they moved away from modelling real buildings as a historical record?
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