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What a wonderful day! Strolled in the sunshine to get the free minibus to the show, enjoyed fab refreshments, fantastic and diverse layouts and chats with so many friendly folk, and then grabbed a couple of bargains from the bookshop on the way home. Well done and thank you, Simon, Jerry and the wider team! Already looking forward to next year's show. A few snaps below. Alas, my cheese salad sandwich and fruit cake were devoured too quickly for me to get a photo.

Very much looking forward to the show. Will cards be accepted on the door and for refreshments, or is it cash only?

Just to close off this topic in case it's helpful for others, CPL do indeed still have a stock of their etches and I received mine yesterday. I haven't put it together yet, but it looks excellent. https://www.cplproducts.net/lineside.html

Thanks, Hal. I'll see if I can get hold of one of those - it looks perfect :)

Thanks, brossard. I agree the Peco one looks fragile, and it's also quite basic looking.

Hello, Can anyone recommend a kit for a (or indeed a ready-to-"run") model of a typical GWR loading gauge? They appear to have had raisable ends on the loading gauge bar, but I'm struggling to find a model of one with such raised ends. Many thanks, Rick

Thanks PMP, and that 's a great effect you have achieved. But therein lies my problem - identifying a specific material that I can ask a supplier to supply :) I don't know what to ask for, as one man's "smooth and matt" is another man's "fine texture and slight sheen", and they don't seem to be able to comment on resistance to creasing.

Hi Giles, Thanks very much for your detailed comments! I am indeed looking to have the backscene cover the two ends of the layout as well, in a sort of wrap-around arrangement. That would then avoid any right-angled corners, which aren't very prototypical in our sky! I think I would need mine to be rolled lengthways (i.e., about a vertical axis, when it is oriented on the layout), else it will be too long to store and transport, but I like your point about having a pocket at the base to accept a long weighty pole to hold the whole thing taut. Looking through some photographs I have taken of various people's setups at exhibitions suggests that the materials and mechanisms used on Gordon Gravett's "Arun Quay" and on Mike Baker and Martin Finney's "Newton Heath Works" (both wonderful layouts!) should suit my needs. Please see the attached photos of these. If anyone happens to know these modellers and could put me in touch with them to quiz them, or less likely knows the materials used, it would be much appreciated! :) Rick

Hi Ian. That's good thinking. I'll take a look. I hope it'll resist crinkling. Thanks for the suggestion! Rick

Good afternoon, I am looking for a suitable material on which to paint a simple backscene (mainly, or all, sky). It would need to be white or light grey, matt with no discernible texture, sized around 10' x 2', and rollable for transport/storage without creasing. Can anyone suggest a specific material? The backscene is for use on a small portable 0 gauge layout. I'd like a single backscene that runs the length (and widths) of the boards without needing more than one piece, which would otherwise necessitate a visible join. It needs to be rollable without crinkling. I bought a plain white vinyl banner with glued seams at the edges, but it's not perfectly smooth (particularly near the sides) and buckles easily, which then leaves creases. I think I need to use something a bit thicker or more resilient. Searching online isn't easy, as you can't really tell what materials are like without seeing them, and people tend not to be willing to provide a small sample. If anyone can suggest a specific product they have used and where they got it, that would be of great help. Thanks, Rick