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Ring Road - WCML in N (Blog replacement thread)


bmthtrains - David

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I'm hoping to get to Trainwest myself - a daytrip from London via my old haunt of Chippenham - and this is one of the layouts I'm excited about seeing. I've been following developments for some time and it will be great to see it in the flesh. With all the detail you've included I am certain that the public won't get bored. I went to Warley last year and one of my favourite layouts had the same trains running round and round in a sequence - it didn't bother me at all, because I was fascinated by the whole thing.

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Hi David,

 

I wouldn't worry about only having 8 trains.

 

If you run them in sequence, and allow the freight trains to crawl fairly slowly; perhaps even stopping one or two as if at a red signal, you can easily provide 5-10 minutes of entertainment which will be more than enough for most visitors to a show.

 

When exhibiting I have watched people and the majority (certainly of the general "punters") will watch no more than 2-3 trains go by before they potter off to the next layout.

 

Good luck with the show - sadly I can't come due to other family committments!

 

cheers

 

Ben A.

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I've been giving the layout a pretty intensive run today, mainly to see how I cope - I think I did okay, but operating for 2 whole days at a time is going to be exhausting I realise now.

 

That's why you've got me giving you a hand at Wimborne!

 

As has been mentioned before, setting different trains running at different speeds creates a different combination in the scenic area every time they circle, so that will keep things interesting. Also, as I said when we met up, i'm more than happy to bring along some different stuff (Dapol Britannia for example) to add some extra interest.

 

Honestly David, I wouldn't worry about a small number of trains running, they layout is more than good enough to keep people watching it!

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Thanks Ben, hopefully the Pendolino and 350 will generate some excitement, so people won't mind if they keep going round <_<

 

David

 

Hi David

 

I wouldn't worry at all about limited numbers of trains - we do the same thing on Stoney Lane Depot. There are 8 main storage lines, though we split some of them in half for shorter trains 2-4 car units or shorter freights eg nuclear flask trains.

 

I am sure it will be a great success - it is certainly one of the layouts I would like to see in the flesh.

 

Good luck

 

Mike

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All stock has been been run and tested - sadly my Farish 90 has stopped dead, I doubt I can get this repaired in time for the shows, so the Pendolino relief set will have to run with a Virgin 57 instead of the EWS 90.

 

Not too worry, bring it along as I have a 91 and we should be able to swap the body, as I think the chassis is the same.

 

I've been giving the layout a pretty intensive run today, mainly to see how I cope - I think I did okay, but operating for 2 whole days at a time is going to be exhausting I realise now. On the positive side, I've got into a rhythm of how to get variety out of the 8 storage roads, and worked out a system for swapping in DMUs in front of the stored freights, so I can get about 12 different trains running without having to swap anything out.

 

Wish me luck!

 

David

 

Don't worry, they'll be enough BMRG members too help you out. I'm a definite helper + Stuart Conlon. As too stock, Mr Conlon is a modern modeller i.e. Post Privatisation and therefore he can supply some stuff as well, including TGV's, Eurostars etc if you want. Or I could bring mine and have some retro Banger Blue running on it, now wouldn't that be good :P :P

 

Looking forward to seeing you next week.

 

Many Regards

 

Neal.

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David,

Wow, I don't know how I missed this thread!! Your layout is great. The videos of the trains passing through the scenic area really looks like something a rail fan would be taking while over looking a mainline.

How much does it weigh? How do you plan to transport it?

You guys in the UK build often for shows which is something we here in the states do with modular layouts rather than one off layouts like this one. It never ceases to amaze me how much you guys tastefully put into a small layout area.

 

Good luck with displaying this layout.

Dave

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And Ross the Britannia would look good with my Pullmans and a Dummy 67 at the rear! :)

 

That's what I thought too! I have one of the modern Mk1s which we can use as a support coach, so I reckon it'll look quite neat.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well the first show is over, and with Wimborne now only 5 days away, by next week I will feel like an experienced pro at this exhibiting game.

 

I've posted a couple of photos from the show below. It was a lot of hard work, but actually much more enjoyable than I was expecting, really down to the people - so many thanks to Geoff for the invite and the superb organisation of the event, and for support and advice on the day to Neal and Stuart, as well as Jo and Adam (who was appropriately on the next door stand). The layout stood up to being shown pretty well I thought, despite it in no way being designed with that in mind. I have learned new soldering skills (and much else) from Neal, and what I thought of as a lack of storage space (8 lines) was actually all I really needed.

 

I think it is easy to forget that what other people see in your own layout isn't what you see yourself. To me I am used to the plentiful fine detail, its the limitations in storage that I see. Of course, to the visiting public, as the layout is new to them, 8 trains is more than enough for the few minutes they are there, as half the time they are looking at the buildings and cars and so on, so actually it all worked out pretty well - I didn't hear a single negative comment, and had some really nice ones, particularly from other exhibitors.

 

A deluge of interest to take it to other shows caught me by surprise, and later this month I will have to properly sit down and decide what I want to do in this respect - socially it was a really good experience, meeting some great people who made the weekend good fun. Logistically, the layout would need a case for proper exhibition duty, and the lack of storage at home, plus the added weight meaning it becomes harder for me to use at home, does create a few issues, and I think it is unlikely I will want to take Ring Road to that many more shows. In the end though, I'd quite like the layout to find a home with a club who would be happy to upgrade it and continue to show it where they wanted to.

 

I've been starting to get the itch to build another N gauge layout for a while now, something smaller that I can plonk on the dining room table whenever I like and actually get to run some trains. I'd also like to do something grander to take to shows, but I can't fit anything larger than Ring Road at home, and in that space I don't think I'd ever be able to top what I have achieved already as for me it is the ideal design.

 

So, my plan is as follows:

 

1. Build a smaller, probably 1 board N gauge layout for use at home, BUT also constructed with exhibiting in mind right from day 1 (so designing in a pelmet, lighting, carry handles and a travel cover, etc.) so I don't repeat the situation with Ring Road where it gets so much interest to be shown, but isn't designed to...

 

2. Find a club that feels right, and join, with the aim of taking part in building a more ambitious layout. This is tricky, as if I lived in Wiltshire, I'd have already joined the Bentley group, as it felt right up my street. Down here on the coast, there are a fair few clubs, but without meaning to be rude to any in particular, the quality of modelling is pretty varied, so I need to find a club with a 'serious' N gauge contingent.

 

And finally,

 

3. Start to dream! I have no plans to move from my flat (3 minute walk from the beach, hard to turn your back on!), but of course I won't be living here forever, and I do have about another 40 years of active modelling ahead of me, so I shall have to start to think what would I model if I had a little bit more space (maybe just an extra board length compared to Ring Road even), and a spare room to run the whole layout in.

 

So, one more show to go next weekend, a lot to think about having been very inspired in many different ways at Trainwest, and time to start properly planning my next moves. How lovely to have the modelling spark fully re-ignited.

 

Hold on to your hats everyone, there's likely to be quite a few updates to this tread from now on!

 

David

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Looking forward to seeing it this weekend too David.

One thing to consider for the future layout is some sort of barrier for the smaller shows where they don't have nice crowd barriers like in your pictures. We have a set of posts we bought and another set we made from mdf and plastic pipe to protect the front of our layouts.

I agree with the comments about modelling standards which is why I tend to work with a small group of friends for layouts rather than the club we all belong to. I found that you need someone with the right modelling and people skills leading a club project so it doen't get dumbed down in standards just to keep everyone happy. I firmly believe the club layout should push people to improve their skills rather than just accomodating existing ones. I ceased to be involved in a club layout after being asked what needed doing after it's first under construction showing, I said I need to strip off the wiring and start again properly with colour coding and cable tidies. This was after spending virtually the whole day underneath sorting out the birds nest wiring to get it working, my offer was refused as it might upset those who did it in the first place. Exhibiting a layout with lots of random wiring faults due to regular damage isn't what exhibiting is about for me and I think it looks bad in public.

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As a little update, first day of the Wimborne show was a big success in my opinion.

 

Layout worked pretty much perfectly (much to David's amazement!), and recieved a hell of a lot of well deserved compliments.

 

I will be taking some photos tomorrow, and will hopefully get them uploaded on here shortly after.

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Yes it was working beautifully and plenty to look at as the never ending procession of trains ran past. Certainly is intensive for the operators but well worth the effort. The seat just by the front allowed an eye level view and it really looks the business from low down too.

David I was impressed with the pics but it's even better when you can mooch around all the angles yourself. I like the subtle things like the industrial units at the right hand end with the embankment between them, one of those things most of us see but don't really notice but looks so typical.

The glass towers are cracking and make me reach for the card and Kato catalogue as I'm just too lazy to do that but want the finished article.

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Certainly is intensive for the operators but well worth the effort.

 

With both me and David operating (controlling two tracks each), it's actually not as intensive as I expected. When it was just one of us operating, that's when things got interesting!

 

The seat just by the front allowed an eye level view and it really looks the business from low down too.

 

That seat just appeared from somewhere at some point during the day, it ended up being perfect for the kids as well, as it got them high enough up to see the layout (and the occasional visits from a certain small blue 0-6-0...)

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  • 2 months later...

As construction begins on my new layout Cross Street, my thoughts are reluctantly turning to the future of Ring Road.

 

I am very proud of the layout, and in the 2 years since it was completed, it has been in Model Rail, and on DVD, and now been to 2 shows, where it has had very positive feedback. The downside to this, and to a certain extent the volume of interest here on RMWeb during the construction of the layout, is that in some ways, I feel like the custodian of some sort of important artifact, rather than a model I built.

 

This makes it difficult to consider the layout's future. On the one hand, to me it is a work of art - the best piece of modelling I have ever done, but then this is only the second proper layout I've ever built. I also feel the design of the layout is, for me, perfect - the simple 4 track embankment going through the urban scene ticks all the boxes so to speak, so any future large layout would actually be pretty much based on the same plan.

 

There is also the strange emotional attachment - I don't know if anyone else experiences this, but there comes a ridiculous feeling of hurting its feelings if you start to think about 'moving on'. Daft I realise, but I suppose it is a response to all the effort you've put into the creation.

 

On the other hand, I am more able to take a critical eye over the modelling on Ring Road, and as already demonstrated on the buildings for Cross Street, my skills have developed, and the new layout will most definitely be to a much higher standard, although not as 'impressive' due to the smaller size.

 

I also need to consider how often Ring Road will get run once Cross Steet is built - designed specifically to get round the problem that Ring Road just doesn't get run enough due to the complexities of setting it up. The 'play' factor is pretty important here - I want to be able to play trains more often than I do at present, and Cross Street solves that.

 

So, I guess my options for the future are as follows:

1. Keep Ring Road for occasional use (I am unlikely to take it to more exhibitions, despite having enjoyed the 2 this year)

2. Recycle the layout, saving me about £250 in re-usable materials - points, vehicles, fences, foliage, etc, and keeping the buildings for display

3. Sell the layout, though it would never cover the estimated £800 building costs, but would probably sell for the same amount I'd save from the recycling option.

 

I'm not rushing into any decisions, but I think in the next few months, as Cross Street progresses, I will feel more confident that it is time to move on (when I see my new modelling efforts putting Ring Road to shame!). With that in mind, I am keen for people's thoughts and opinions - what do you do with your previous layouts when a new one takes over?

 

David

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Hi David,

 

I sold a previous layout (12x3) for around £300 IIRC. I have no idea if that was a "good" price, but it suited both the buyer and me at the time.

 

Although I very much enjoyed building the layout (though it wasn't quite finished when I sold it) I did not mind seeing it go as the space it took up was at a

premium.

 

It was also the case that the buyer intended, one day, to exhibit it, which was important to me.

 

If you do sell it to someone who wants to exhibit then it may be that Ring Road can continue giving pleasure in a way that it may not in your continued ownership. Just a thought!

 

Ring road is a lovely layout, so whatever you do good luck with it.

 

cheers

 

Ben A.

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David,

 

Because your layout is of such high quality and well known I would imagine that if you put it on ebay then it would be purchased for a hefty sum (it might be even more than the £800 figure you stated). Layouts on ebay are either super high quality getting a premium price or not as sought after, therefore obtaining a lower price. I think yours would be the former of these!

I know ebay is not the best way to dispose of this layout but if you wanted a good price it might be worth considering.

 

Stephen

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