I love taking photos at model railway exhibitions to share with you on this blog, so it was a bit of a shock when I got to the doors at Wycrail and remembered that I'd left my camera at home. This means all the pics are courtesy of my mobile phone which provides slightly soft results. Sorry about that.
This wasn't the first disappointment either. Arriving just as the show opened, I noticed that there were signs out for VIP parking and yet uncountably, they had forgotten to allocate a space for me! Anyway, once inside the light and airy venue, we headed around the ground floor hall. If I'm honest, most of the time was spent chatting to traders - Wycrail boasts possibly the best selection of any one day show in the country - and boring them with details of my Oz trip.
After this, a stop at the refreshments for some excellent cakes. I know I bang on about the food a bit but it sets the tone for many smaller shows and in this case, the tone was very good indeed. It's interesting people who need gluten or sugar free cakes were catered for as well as those of us who will eat anything. A little detail but one that would make a huge difference to many people. Upstairs, I resisted the boat kits on the second hand stall and concentrated on layout watching. Fourgig East was especially entertaining as Ian Mellers was running,or at least trying to teach Chirs Nevard to use evil DCC to run, an Ivor the Engine. Complete with the correct pishticof pishticof sound effects, it's make me want to pull the kit out of my "to do" pile and get a move on...
I could ramble on about the layouts - the selection was top notch with no duffers - but many have appeared before on here so I'll skip straight to the "Layout Phil would like to build" which in this case is an On30 model called "Stout Oak".
Regular readers will know I've dabbled in the scale but this looks like the sort of thing I could produce as a nice little test track. Nothing more than a run-round loop with a couple of kickback sidings, the scenery was a mass of detail. Buildings were nicely weathered with peeling paint on the woodwork. All in all, very me. And of course the lack of camera means very few pics. Sorry about that.
Slightly fuzzy photos on Flickr.
5 comments:
Hoho! That On30 layout looks top class. What a beautifully understated lot of tiny details. The old caravan is perfect. Grass overgrown track is the very best reason for Radio Control, never mind the faff of DCC. Thanks for the report.
I wish I could have bagged a better photo - it really is a gem and just the sort of thing to inspire me to take another look at On30.
Thank you for the kind words about my layout! The show was good fun all around.
The grass doesn't bother the locos too much now days.... early on i was probably the only layout in the uk with a battery shaver trimming intrusive grass... much to the enjoyment of the punters
As attractive as the On30 layout is, it's Ivor the Engine I'm interested in. You mention that you have a kit Phil, can you remember who makes it as I fancy one for myself.
Nick - No problem, just folloow this link: http://www.phd-design-etchings.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&path=25_35_67&product_id=172
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