Pylon King

Kernow Models (Guildford) window layout .

Possibly this line.

1:76 scale ‘Rutter’ 33kV/11kV utility poles , the prototype design can be found in Hampshire, Surrey and Sussex.

Via Google Satellite.

National Grid at work.

1:76scale PL1 132kV pylon , first appeared on the British landscape back in 1928.

1:76 scale BICC L6 400kV pylon , design from the mid 1960’s. the mid 1960’s.

Living room photo , updated.

Thank you for the additional information and photo . Judging by the results and in the right hands the results are exceptional .The Rovex studio archive does contains various transparency sizes , with larger ones extensively used for layouts and diorama settings.

Another studio photo , this one from autumn 1967 for the following year’s catalogue.

Frank Grant and his team were responsible for those wonderful catalogue/ demonstration layouts . They continued to feature Model-Land, Minix and Minic Motorway products as their factory store rooms still contained significant stock . I remember mid to late seventies shop layouts including those glass encased “5p to run “ dual circuit versions , in the event of a derailment probably caused no end of problems for shop staff. Photos - Triang/Hornby Margate factory circa 1968 . Frank Grant and team at work constructing the Hamley’s layout .

1972 Triang/Hornby catalogue cover - British Pathe footage show Cuneo at work.

Another view from plan 12 showing the rearranged track/buildings sitting on the former R408U turntable site.

In regard to catalogues, 1966-74 was a golden age for Rovex as those amazing layout/diorama scenes certainly lit our imaginations. My curiosity always wanted to find as much about how much more lay beyond those cropped photos . Frank Grant and his team at the factory were responsible for all catalogue and demonstration layouts , probably their most ambitious project was for Hamley’s in London circa 1968 , an incredible circular setting . For plan 12 (attached photos) in the ‘74 catalogue both track and buildings were rearranged for several different settings . In one or two , the rearranged track geometry would have been difficult to replicate within that space for operational purposes. It’s good to know that others out there are equally fascinated by those images as much as myself . During the eighties Hornby were disposing much of their original studio archive but thankfully through the diligence of Richard Lines quite a few were saved . The commercial film format was both extremely high quality but very expensive to produce as plate cameras were using up to 10” x 8” size colour transparencies.

Four different studio photos were taken featuring this particular layout (track plan 9) .Hornby publications - 1974 catalogue, 3rd & 4th edition Track Plans books while the other remains unpublished .

Featured photo - Page 2 , 1974 catalogue layout from the Track Plans book (plan 9) appears to be fully operational . However when the studio photo was taken (autumn ‘73) no preproduction curved point samples were yet available , therefore leaving the underlay exposed . The original studio photo featured this error which is why all published catalogue/track plans edition photos had to be cropped.

Here is one example - photo taken in the autumn of 1970 for various catalogues , track plans books , box tops etc.

This Rovex archival file contains the studio colour masters featuring those layouts in all their glory as well as the photographic studios . Here is one of many examples illustrating how effective picture cropping can be. This particular layout photo was taken in autumn 1970 for the Track Plans publication and ‘71 British, Canadian , Australian catalogues as well as various box tops .

Those layout/diorama scenes certainly captured our imaginations. Many of them were photographed using very large commercial 8”x 10” colour transparency film which produced incredible quality and definition. Equally fascinating was they revealed not only the full scenes but also the studio as well . The Rovex archival file shown below contains those studio master colour transparencies featuring all the various large layout/diorama scenes from 1967-1974 , including several which have remained unpublished .

Pop Art Pylon.