black and decker boy

On Kirkmellington, our EM gauge Sentinel regularly shunts 15 to 18 of Bachmanns finest 16T mineral wagons with ease.

A few more recent photos of Kirkmellington.

The photos i take of layouts at shows or of our own groups layouts and used on places such as RMWeb are generally cleaned up but not manipulated, one main reason is I don't have photoshop. In cleaning up (in Windows live photo gallery and assciated Windows software), I may remove a backscene joint but I cannot add backscene. I cannot crop trees or add buildings. I cannot add smoke. I can convert to black and white and I can crop to make the subject more prominent. I can straighten the photo but not individual items within it. The rest is purely down to selecting the right shot in the first place, getting the angle right and then taking several shots on different settings. I am no Tony Wright or Chris Nevard but I am happy with my photos and because they are undoctored, anyone can replicate them if they want. Having had a few layouts in magazines down the years (and Mssrs Wright, Bayer & Nevard doing the honours), I have seen very little if any manipulation of those photoshoots. Maybe a little smoke effect now and then but generally the art of these PROs is scene selection, camera angles and lighting. I for one would not want to move into some kind of Model CGI where the image bears little relation to the layout in the flesh. EDIT a few pics

From an exert of a NR plan, the track can still take more trains per hour than the stations and no-one is ever going to add another 2 tracks through some ofthhighest landvalues in the UK. ERTMS and the OHLE will themselves add capacity as will longer trains. Not sure that Crossrail is taking away any fastline capacity, just lots on the relief but not fully up to speed on that.

This one looks to be on B4 bogies as well so at least postman pat will have a smooth ride :-)

Could so easily be one of my childhood photos from TI or TO. Had to look very hard to decide it was a model. Simply awesome squire.

A couple of pics of Kirkmellington, a colliery set inAyrshire, east of Dalmellington and Patna. Still a work in progress but coming together now.

All manufacturers set an RRP (ie list price) but it is up to the retailer to set the actual sale price on the shelf based on their wholesale purchase price.

I was lucky to get a trial set of these in EM and am very impressed. My Sentinel was running on my EM layout at Risex and performed very well. I have now bought another EM set (and a P4 set based on your video).

I love the grass and vegetation in these. Truly superb modelling and photography to boot.

We have two of the LMS home signals on Kirkmellington and very nice they look too. Sadly at our first show, RISEX, one of the signals gave up during final set up having been used less than 5 times. It is now on its way back to the retailer for exchange. The other signal worked perfectly throughout the show and gave us an added dimension to the operation of the layout.

My final set of pictures of our new layout, Kirkmellington.

Sutterton by Market Deeping MRC as seen at Doncaster. The modelling hides the age of the layout and creates some lovely shots:

A few of my photos of Black Country Blues taken at Doncaster a few weeks back Simple to say but this layout oozes atmosphere and is very photogenic.

A few photos of Kirkmellington taken at RISEX 2014: A few more to following due course.

Hornby now appear to prefer supporting their concessions or their own web shop first. Some models are available this route earlier or in more quantity than through the Small Independents. No doubt Amazon are treated as a concession as they are not discounting and can shift decent volumes. Even Hattons and the other bulk but model shops do not seem to get preferential treatment any more.

Depends on who you can enlist to assist with suitable stock or what may be lurking in cupboards. Maybe thats phase 3 then in a 3 to 5 year plan or just a pipe dream.

Dewsbury Midland by MMRS alternates between blue diesels and steam but is consistent for all of a show. They usually pre-advertise which version they are doing as well. I think a transition era setting would be a good idea, some knackered steam alongside bright and shiny but still unreliable diesels. Maybe even throw in the odd local passenger working for variety. A move to larger or better still round & round fiddle yard set up would enhance things in my view. Operation at Doncaster was a bit haphazard at times as one operator fell asleep and the other just queued his trains up on scene. It then took quite a while to get the roads cleared and things settled down again. Continuous run would also allow a few longer trains to run - the Gulf oil tanks is crying out for 3 or 4 more in the rake. I don't feel there is a need to lengthen too many rakes, the ones I saw felt totally in keeping with the period and location but a selection of longer trains, if such ran on the intended lines, would certainly give the younger generation help with their numeracy skills as they count each one out loud (usually as I film...) Presumably a small shift forward in time to say late 80s, very early 90s would be feasible without changing the layout. 37 & 47s on short air braked steel workings (eg the Bilston, Round Oak and similar), engineers workings behind dilapidated 20s & 31s, household coal HEAs & FPAs, scrap metal in 16Ts, MDVs or SSAs and then maybe some through traffic - MOD, speedlink, cartics (for repair perhaps), 31s on parcels, cement, electrification trains to/from the cross city line and then if roundy-roundy then 58s on MGRs, 47s on Freightliners.

My video of BCB taken at Doncaster

That will be on the L&NWR depot (formerly Waterman, now Arriva = DB Regio) which is the old carriage shed. The old Diesel depot is still DB Shencker but used ad hoc by Riviera Trains. The Electric Depot is still firmly DB Shencker. Then there is Gresty Bridge which is DRS. Frieghtliner have a servicing point (incl pit) in Basford Hall yard. Still quite busy but the heady days of the 1980s & 90s which I can remember are sadly long gone. As of last week, so is alot of the station roof!

Now available for Special order in a very limited batch in EM and P4

I haver also been lucky to trial an Ultrascale conversion on the new Sentinel. After a false start due to my cackhandedness, the result it an impressive running loco which will make the debut of Kirkmellington at Risex in 2 weeks time even sweeter. A short video of the EM gauge Sentinel shuttling up and down the layout Thanks to Ultrascale for the wheelsets.

The quality of the backscene, not just in having a continuous image but also of the perspective, size and height ADD to the layout. They do not detract from the modelling in anyway, if anything, they enhance and really allow the modelling to shine. If you put that backscene in front of average or ropey scenery, it would look rubbish and would highlight the poor modelling. On BCB, everything seems to have meshed together to create something special so there should be a collective pride in that. Each can work on and hold its own but it is the whole that makes the layout so good. I watched a type 2 plod across the layout from a reasonable distance a couple of times and I was taken back to memories of the real thing, snatched glimpses of a distant train rumbling through an industrial area. Not many layouts can provide that realism.

Caught up with BCB at Doncaster and must say I was very impressed. The scenic modelling is excellent and the back scene blends perfectly, possibly the best added depth I have seen. I just hope the trains find some more volts as they only ever seemed to do a scale 10mph!!!! Overall rating 9.8/10

I have their tamper and inspection saloon and can say they are well built and finished models and worth the money.