Do like the simplicity of ‘Ewe’, the scenery looks great too.
Inspired by ‘Crichel Down’, I once started building a light railway layout in O gauge with that track plan only for my poor track laying and carpentry skills preventing it from running very well. Replaced it with something else that stalled because I’d over complicated matters. With the onset of laser cut baseboard kits and RTP track, those issues could be overcome and I’m wondering whether a return to a ‘less is more’ approach is the way to go.
Andrew
Agree absolutely, Rob, G&H baseboards are the way to go imho (usual caveat) - easy to assemble, light strong and rigid. Plus they'll happily do bespoke sizes if you ask. I should be getting a commission!The availability of laser cut boards helps get things going and will provide the base for Flaxfield. Grainge and Hodder offer a 120x40cm board for under £50. There's your base sorted.
Agree completely. I used to think I wanted a bigger layout, but have definitely changed my view and my approach. Mainly helped by actually building (and finishing) a layout that was small and compact. ‘Wheal Ponder’ uses a pair of G&H laser cut boards and Peco O-16.5 track which got me the base quickly. Wiring is simple, with just two isolating sections to allow a second loco in restrictive circumstances and manual point operation using Blue Point Operators.Morning Andrew,
Thanks.
Ewe is extremely simple but surprisingly, it does occupy the operator. I'm a firm advocate of less is more but it's not for everyone. That said, as long as you can accept the limitations such an approach brings, it can be very rewarding and allows you to complete a project fairly quickly. It also enables you to concentrate on applying the details, such as scenery in the case of Ewe.
The availability of laser cut boards helps get things going and will provide the base for Flaxfield. Grainge and Hodder offer a 120x40cm board for under £50. There's your base sorted. A few points and lengths of plain track and literally, you are up and running. On the subject of points, you don't need to motorise them, again speeding up getting things running.
I built the board for Blackwater Pier which is an interim build to try out different things, including building the board. Three points and three lengths of plain track deals with all the trackwork requirements. This grew from a desire to build a test track which initially was going to feature one point to produce a working diorama.
As you say, less is more and to reiterate, if you can be satisfied with the confines it creates, it allows you to complete a small layout and play trains, which is why we do this after all.
Rob.
It does take a bit of a 'leap of faith' to believe that a plan that looks too simple a.k.a. "boring" on paper can be operationally satisfying in practice.I’m wondering whether a return to a ‘less is more’ approach is the way to go.