Summer module - scenic decompression
Entry posted by Barry Ten
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Back in January I mentioned some of the changes I'd made to the right side of the summer module after visiting Railwells and deciding that I didn't like some of the earlier aspects of the layout. These changes included realigning the backscene to create more space, new, more realistically sized level crossing gates, and a slight realignment of the road leading away from the level crossing up the hill. I also replaced the pair of shops with the new pub, which in my view tended to fit in better with the rural atmosphere at this end of the layout.
Here's where things stood in January:
Try as I might, though, I couldn't feel satisfied with this new scene. I felt it was better than the old, but still unconvincing, and my hunch
was that it wasn't going to look any better once the scenic treatment was completed and the buildings fully integrated. It still looked
a little cramped and contrived, I felt, and something about the alignment of the road didn't ring true; I think it was that, having gone
over the crossing and made a sharp bend to the left, the road was then constrained to be straight by the need to fit along one
edge of the backscene, whereas real country lanes tend to be sinuous. Whatever it was, it wasn't hitting the right notes for me
and so I decided to have a radical re-think of this whole area. Another prompt was rediscovering one of my earlier sketches for the
layout, which reinforced the idea that my original intentions had been much more rural and minimalist.
So, out with the heavy duty modelling tools, and this whole area was subjected to some major reworking. The road up the hill
was removed, as well as the church and most of the buildings adjoining it. The road was realigned to form a t-junction leading
off-scene, where previously there had been a cottage, and the hill to one side of the church was extended to form a much larger
feature dominating the whole corner area of the layout:
One of the original cottages turned out to look reasonably at home on the bend just after the level crossing, so a new foundation was
made for it. The cottage will need extra detailing and interior lighting now that it sits closer to the pub, as previously it was at the top
of the hill and difficult to see at close quarters.
Another view of the overall scene, from the end of the goods yard at the left. There will be a lot more trees needed in the background,
but there's no rush to get it all finished at once.
Overall I'm pleased with this more toned-down, spacious area of the layout as I feel it gets back to my original intentions and creates
a more restful backdrop for the trains. Chocolate box? Maybe, but then again, I'm partial to the odd box of chocolates so that's no
bad thing in my book!
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