Experimentation and the Sunk Cost fallacy.

I've been making slower progress than I wanted on the N gauge projects. I'm learning a lot along the way, so I'm not too bothered. The first of the Kato modules is nearly done, I just need to add a windswept tree, which is currently awaiting a drastic pruning with nail scissors.

The second one is  a bit of an Old-Skool experiment. I'm using lichen for the first time in 40 years. There is, I hope, method in my madness. Once again, the nail scissors are going to be busy. Both modules have benefited massively from the use of static grass, but even that is a major experiment for me in N. I'm having to balance what my mind tells me is the right length to use with what my eyes tell me looks right.

The first tranche of buildings are nearing completion,. It is time to add things like gutters and bargeboards. Digital photography is proving very useful in highlighting my myriad mistakes, but also limits with commercial products, which makes me feel a bit better.

The P&D Marsh pagoda kit has reminded how glad I am we have moved on from whitemetal. I'm also struggling to find a prototype that actually matches the kit.

Then there is the quarry building...

I really wish I'd built this from scratch. 

Ignore, for now, my wonky replacement legs - They aren't yet finished and will get more bracing to keep them square. They are also a massive improvement on the flimsy originals.

The real issue is the 3d printing.

Not only is there no detail in terms of panel lines, a distinctive feature of CI, but the surface in the dips in the corrugations has a dreadful raised chequerboard pattern that is impossible to sand down. Since the photo was taken I've applied copious layers of Hycote filler primer, but \i still think it is headed for the bin.

The positives are that the overall design works really well, so if I do scratch build a replacement, it will follow the same basic dimensions but be designed to be more robust. The positive to take away is that the underpainting idea that I've borrowed from military modellers seems to work as a way of representing panels of CI.

Finally, the photos show two recent dirt-cheap purchases: the Toad and the Pannier. Both will require a lot of work to look right, but they fill the penultimate gap in my roster. The final gap to be filled is a railcar for Dark Hall.

And next week, my focus is on  Dark Hall. I have a bit of a mental block about the road bridge. I guess it is balancing the idea of it being a quick and dirty diorama with not being happy when I know something doesn't match the real thing*.  I think I can build the scenery around the basic footprint of the bridge and at least get away from staring at lots of blue foam.

* I suppose that also applies to the station shelter as I notice more detail in photos and more faults in my handiwork

And a couple more.

  

Macclesfield Show

When I was very young, Macclesfield Model Railway Club seemed synonymous with a certain kind of modelling that appealed to me. I couldn't define it to this day, but if you saw a photo you could tell it was their handiwork.

Now we live down the road from Macclesfield,I've no excuse not to go their exhibition - except that for some reason I didn't go last year and regretted it.

This year I decided to make a real effort and turn it into a day trip.

It is always a good start when there is a free vintage bus service from the station to the venue.

I think every young child who saw it waved at it.

I'm not always impressed by exhibitions held in schools, but the one used works really well. It is spacious, doesn't involve negotiating a maze of corridors and missing a key room, and, although I had other plans, the catering looked very good indeed.

The key attraction for me this year was the 3mm Ballyconnell Rd.. It always looks superb and I I still harbour occasional thoughts about an Irish layout. What it isn't, is easy to take photos of, at least not photos that do it justice, or look different from views you've seen before. 

It is, though, a lovely layout to just watch trains run past.

Manygates, the London-based layout, didn't need any trains to be running, it could work as well as a static diorama, full of atmosphere.. if I ever get around to building my Minories based layout, this will be a major inspiration.

I didn't manage to get any photos of Culthwaite, there were just too many people in the area. In fact it took me several attempts to reach Charles Insley and the SW Lancs Railway.


This little continuous-run OO9 micro is one of those layouts that always attracts a very interested audience that is keen to talk, helped by an operator who is both front of house and willing to engage with them.. The small NG loco appeals to children, and the whole concept seems within reach of the space-challenged modeller.

    
                                        

Hall 4 was next. A space dominated by the 7mm Allerby.

It was just after this point that I made a stupid mistake with my camera settings. Fortuantly I also saved the RAW files, but it does mean I don't have a record here of some layouts because the JPEGs arent acceptable to me.

The one layout that is underrepresented was the big N gauge mainline one. 

It was really nicely done, and maintained an interesting and frequent operating pattern and I'm sure came closest to how many of us remember railways before locos became unusual. My apologies to the builders.

Attercliffe Works was another layout that gave me ideas for my own project. It was also another that I couldn't get a decent photo of because of the interested and engaged viewers, which suits me, because they are more important. Incidentally it is another layout continuing the trend towards N gauge layouts  where people have to ask "Is it N gauge?" which I think is really positive.

Memories of my time in Lincolnshire were brought back by Horncastle

As usual, there are a few photos that I can't work out relate to which layout. I think this is Cherry Willingham

.

I've no clue about these N gauge ones, though.

Just to finish off N gauge, Ishinka, the Japanese layout using many commercial models, was very popular. It was not just different but also had some nice cameo scenes and again showcased the art of the possible for many people.

Moving on to 7mm, as well as Allerby, it was well-represented elsewhere. Vale View probably won the award for the best tree on a layout.

I think this is Jennings Sidings. It seems that the show guide map was subject to last minute changes, which will teach me to forget to use the phone to take overview photos of each layout for reference. In any case it had a really nice atmosphere  with a distinct look and feel.

Newfield was another layout where the operator was interacting with the audience, as well as featuring some very nice rolling stock and the odd suspicious character.

Finally, in 7mm, though NG7, was Caroline Concrete, which again had an interestingly different concept, being based around a modern industrial scene

Finally one of the most impressive layouts was the OO9 Blackmoor, which really showed that prototypical OO9 can take up an awful lot of space.

Overall impressions? An excellent show that enabled great interaction between operators and visitors. It was nice that the focus was very much on layouts, not trade stands, which also prevented the worst of the crushes.

I'm glad to see more 7mm and 2mm layouts on the exhibition circuit, especially the number of industrial layouts.

Next time, I'll remember to use my phone, not just the Fuji, though mostly it did a good job except when I inadvertently changed settings. It struggled with the white balance ona couple of layouts, not unusual when the layout lighting and the ambient lighting don't match, and it does have a tendency to set a slow shutter speed if left on aperture priority mode.

I spent just over an hour and a half at the show and felt I got more than my money's worth.  Bear in mind I don't spend much time on randomly browsing trade stands and I'm not one for hogging the barrier watching trains go by for ages. A question I'm beginning to ask myself these days is how long would I be happy to spend travelling to a show. I guess time at the show x 1.75 is a reasonable benchmark. There is a caveat though. As it happens the show coincided with several other events in the area. Rudyard Lake had their diesel gala, and Foxfield a vintage car rally. So if you had to trval you could have made weekend of it. That is not to forget the attractions of Macclesfield itself, which took up the rest of my day....