Having a relatively large area to work in means that when it comes to scenery a fairly industrial approach may be needed. This week I have been working on the backscene, which in MM comprises 3 sides of individually fabricated boards 60cm wide with cut-outs to accommodate the trusses. There are 23 along the sides - the long chimney wall element was saved from the previous layout although once I had removed it I could no longer get it back into position with the baseboards in place. For the original backscene I had selected the Guagemaster landscapes as an economical way of covering the distance involved, and along the sides I decided to use the same product as that kept the same height all the way.

What I had forgotten was how difficult I found it the first time, to glue the backscenes to the backing boards. To be kind, the paper isnt really adequate and I'm sure many people have panicked when the print starts to bubble and blister. Fortunately in my case, the backscene really is back, behind and beyond everything and not exposed to close up view. But I did also learn something. Having painted on a thin layer of slightly diluted PVA (OK quality from Wilko said to be suitable for woodworking) and laid the cut section of backscene print onto the baseboard, I found that by continually 'polishing' the bubbled-up sheet, while the blisters would keep coming, after about 10 minutes hard work the blisters would start to disappear. There might even be a few creases at this point. I then laid the boards face up covered with kitchen towel weighted down - I have slate placemats but books would do, and left them overnight. By the morning most of the blisters had gone, and the effect from a distance was perfectly acceptable. I could do 2-3 boards a day like this, so about another week should see that job finished. Photos below show the progress from board to finished article.