TheGlenhillsRailway
Registered
This event was on last sunday
G Rail Nottingham show 2018
- Thread starter TheGlenhillsRailway
- Start date
This event was on last sunday
Looks like it was quite early-on.. More there later, but never really busy.
idlemarvel
Neither idle nor a marvel
I can't think what you are referring to. 
Sadly it does nothing to dispel the myth that this is a hobby for slightly strange looking old men (I include myself in that category).
Sadly it does nothing to dispel the myth that this is a hobby for slightly strange looking old men (I include myself in that category).
Ooh, we're not all old!I can't think what you are referring to.
Sadly it does nothing to dispel the myth that this is a hobby for slightly strange looking old men (I include myself in that category).
This is in no way intended as a crticism of the organisers, I know what a difficult and thankless task it is.
I think the lack of numbers at G Rail is more a reflection of G scale modelling in general rather than the exhibition. I believe there is a complete dearth of good quality exhibition layouts in this scale, particularly UK outline
The vast majority use overscale unballasted brass track, unpainted rails and with very small radius curves. This placed on a plain black board is not my idea of an exhibition layout. Most of the stock I saw was straight out of the box, no weathering, no added details, often not even a driver, fake plastic grass or just green paint, no backscenes, no realistic scenery, almost no kits or scratchbuilt models or buildings, no realistic track plan. At best there was a scattering of a few random off the shelf accessories.
So, why I ask, are there no serious modellers in this scale? Where are they? Pehaps it is just too big for an individual to make and transport. Just compare the quality of G layouts on offer with those in 0 gauge, they are worlds apart.
I like to go to exhibitions :
As a source of inspiration and ideas that I can adapt or use myself
To be entertained by realistic operation, not just the same train endlessly going round and round
To view and buy models, materials, tools, kits etc from a wide variety of specialist traders.
G-Rail did not provide any of these for me.
I think the lack of numbers at G Rail is more a reflection of G scale modelling in general rather than the exhibition. I believe there is a complete dearth of good quality exhibition layouts in this scale, particularly UK outline
The vast majority use overscale unballasted brass track, unpainted rails and with very small radius curves. This placed on a plain black board is not my idea of an exhibition layout. Most of the stock I saw was straight out of the box, no weathering, no added details, often not even a driver, fake plastic grass or just green paint, no backscenes, no realistic scenery, almost no kits or scratchbuilt models or buildings, no realistic track plan. At best there was a scattering of a few random off the shelf accessories.
So, why I ask, are there no serious modellers in this scale? Where are they? Pehaps it is just too big for an individual to make and transport. Just compare the quality of G layouts on offer with those in 0 gauge, they are worlds apart.
I like to go to exhibitions :
As a source of inspiration and ideas that I can adapt or use myself
To be entertained by realistic operation, not just the same train endlessly going round and round
To view and buy models, materials, tools, kits etc from a wide variety of specialist traders.
G-Rail did not provide any of these for me.
So in what scale, and what country do you place your railway?
British outline, on 45mm track is 'gauge 1'.. 'G scale' is notionally metre gauge European (predominantly).
JimmyB
Now retired - trains and fishing
Being a G Scale modeller, and also a member of Gauge 0 Guild, I find the "relaxed" approach of some G Sale modellers more calming, and I feel an appreciation for it.
maxi-model
UK/US/ROW steam narrow gauge railways 1:1
I think at the heart of your issue is the origins of the part of the hobby with that misnomer "G Scale". Really you need to blame it on LGB and their ubiquitous 45 mm/code 332 rail track system that seems to have been adopted, for good commercial reasons, by every Tom Dick & Harry who have developed product to run on it. That and that this part of the hobby has grown from the plentiful supply of, usually, well detailed, RTR product that runs principally, though not exclusively in DC & DCC environments. It's not really a modelers hobby but a glorious sweet shop full of variously scaled goodies that a lot of people find irresistible.
Oh, and due to the size and space requirements of this stuff most of it gets run on permanent layouts, carefully cultivated and developed over years, in gardens and not sports halls or exhibition centres. The ludicrously tight curves are there so that as much as possible can be fitted into the small gardens and spaces it's intended buyers will find themselves restricted to a lot of the time.
I have to agree that the larger scales do not lend themselves to the need for portability and high levels of detail one is used to with those all absorbing self contained worlds exhibited in the smaller scales - 009 County Gate/Bratton Flemming/Clifhanger anyone ? There are pockets of "modeling" within "G Scale", they tend to be in the specific established scales within the hobby - 16 mm, Fn3, 1:22.5, 1:29. Then again there is some great and very resourceful modeling to be found in the "freelance" arena. Keep your eyes peeled on this site and you'll see it. But as said above you really are just going to have to get out to the garden layouts they are living in to see them and get your inspiration. Max
David1226
Registered
Over the years on this Forum and its predecessor G Scale Mad I have had to point out that not every G Scale modeller has a railway in the garden., many of us model indoors. I have also been critical of the trend, with a few notable exceptions, of running everything straight out of the box with a dogs dinner approach to mixing scales, periods, countries of origins. I know this will make me unpopular with some members but this is not railway modelling, this is playing trains. Connecting a few lengths of track together and opening a box is not modelling. You can use the excuse that it is a preservation or museum line just so far but this is no excuse for poor detailing or modelling. There are some layouts, such as Hortus Halt, that do not pretend to be anything other than a demonstration of what could be achieved in the garden and are designed to stimulate people's interest. It is a sad reflection that in G Scale, the majority of so called 'exhibition' layouts are anything but. As I've also said before, my heart sinks every time I see another Thomas the Tank Engine appear ton a layout on the pretext of encouraging youngsters into the hobby. get real, the prices of G Scale is way beyond the pocket money of children. We need to see more properly modelled, co-ordinated and detailed exhibition layouts in order to move the hobby forward.
David
David
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It is very difficult to do more than 'just another shunting layout' in 'G'..
I suppose the Shades of the Harz layout was an exception? Unfortunately, we just could not keep it as a mobile layout.
It required dedicated storage. A 7.5 tonne truck with tail-lift, and a team of 12 just to get it anywhere and put together in a timely manner. That, and the 55 x 38 feet of space it took up.
G scale in the garden, is much more about 'playing trains' than modelling. But having said that, how many gauge 1 operations are there that are a model railway in a garden?
I suppose the Shades of the Harz layout was an exception? Unfortunately, we just could not keep it as a mobile layout.
It required dedicated storage. A 7.5 tonne truck with tail-lift, and a team of 12 just to get it anywhere and put together in a timely manner. That, and the 55 x 38 feet of space it took up.
G scale in the garden, is much more about 'playing trains' than modelling. But having said that, how many gauge 1 operations are there that are a model railway in a garden?
Gavin Sowry
Garden Railroader and Raconteur
Liked the opening sequence, not so much for the Coca Cola train, but for the neat and simple use of black sheets for base cover and side curtains.
One of my pet dislikes, is the use of drawing pins, and the like, as well as shoddy titles/nameboards stuck on to them.
One of my pet dislikes, is the use of drawing pins, and the like, as well as shoddy titles/nameboards stuck on to them.
Thank you Gavin, I will pass it on to SW..
From 'doing' Lace Guild stands with Jane, it is better to leave her to it, to get it right!
then we put the track out.. Carefully! 
For her last Christmas Lace Fair.. I even managed to get a train running on the stand!
A pelmet-type box, with an end to end shuttle.. Unfortunately, I do not think I have any photo's due to a hard-drive failure.
- Though I think I posted a picture in the Coffee Lounge at the time??
KentKeith
Registered
With regard to G-scale layouts attending exhibitions I think that PhilP above has clearly shown why it would be very difficult for layouts such as suggested by My45G to appear at G-scale shows in the UK.
How many people have the money, the time and the storage space to build such layouts? Add on to that the cost of moving the layout to the show and we are talking big time money. Who has that money?..... and think what the show entry fee would have to be to cover such expenses.
I was lucky to be able to attend the LGB 125th Birthday Celebrations in Nuremberg a few years ago and there were some fantastic large G-scale layouts there - but they were all owned and built by local LGB clubs in Germany.
To expect such layouts to appear at such exhibitions in the UK is just thinking cloud cuckoo land.
How many people have the money, the time and the storage space to build such layouts? Add on to that the cost of moving the layout to the show and we are talking big time money. Who has that money?..... and think what the show entry fee would have to be to cover such expenses.
I was lucky to be able to attend the LGB 125th Birthday Celebrations in Nuremberg a few years ago and there were some fantastic large G-scale layouts there - but they were all owned and built by local LGB clubs in Germany.
To expect such layouts to appear at such exhibitions in the UK is just thinking cloud cuckoo land.
Gavin Sowry
Garden Railroader and Raconteur
Thank you Gavin, I will pass it on to SW..
From 'doing' Lace Guild stands with Jane, it is better to leave her to it, to get it right!
For her last Christmas Lace Fair.. I even managed to get a train running on the stand!
A pelmet-type box, with an end to end shuttle.. Unfortunately, I do not think I have any photo's due to a hard-drive failure.
Been doing the black sheet trick for years now at exhibitions. My take on G scale layout baseboards, none. Took less than 10 minutes to set this up.
Ralphmp
Registered
David
As someone who's modelling skills are limited I guess I fall into the "Fido's 3-course meal" and RTR camp. However, I've never considered I "play" trains - that was something we did as kids at infant school in the playground - rather I "run" trains, and I and my family and friends get a lot of pleasure out of simply sitting and watching a variety of different locomotives hauling a mixture of freight and passenger cars on my hotch potch of a layout.
I have a huge amount of respect for the modelling skills of some of the people involved in our hobby - this forum has many examples of their work - but knowing I am unable to achieve similar results I content myself by buying things that I can install and get running quickly, so I can enjoy the effects.
So, when I go to shows/exhibitions, my interest is not primarily in how realistic a layout looks but more how the exhibitors have managed to create something that is interesting to operate and watch within the constraints of the show/exhibition arena. If the layout also has a large degree of "realism" - like the Cuban layout in the video or the 2-level tram railway layout at the recent Peterborough show - that for me is a bonus.
One way in which large scale shows/exhibitions could share the achievements of the dedicated railway modellers would be to film their layouts and show these on a reasonably large screen in a separate "auditorium" type area with maybe 20 or so seats. This would allow visitors to the show/exhibition to appreciate the modelling skills and the modellers' achievements, and by having the film running every 15 minutes or so there would be ample opportunity for all to see it. (Filming would need to be of a good standard, not just something shot from someone's phone when they had a few spare moments!) I know it's not to everyone's taste but I like to see well-shot videos giving a driver's eye view of a model railway. The video of the railway at Bekonscot Model Village is a good example.
This kind of technique works well at shows/exhibitions/conventions for a wide variety of non-railway modelling subjects - hopefully we're not such a dour lot that we would dismiss this type of facility at a model railway event.
I agree with you about poor old Thomas the Tank Engine - I actually bought a Thomas and coaches a few years ago as I thought it would be a way of generating interest in the hobby for my grandkids, the neighbours' kids, etc. Silly me - the few times I brought it out it's either been ignored in favour of the mix of German and Swiss locomotives and stock that I typically run or sneered at - "Thomas is just for kids" was one of the more scornful remarks I received and this from a 6 year old!
Like you, I suspect this post will also make me unpopular with some members, but I've always been a big fan of Rule 8 and if I want to mix German and Swiss freight wagons in the same train because they're the nearest to hand and I want to have an hour of sitting and watching trains running, then that's what I'm going to do.
Cheers
Phil
Gavin Sowry
Garden Railroader and Raconteur
David raises some very valid points, most of which I agree with.
My experiences from within the club scene, is that quite often (unless the club is a 'proprietory' brand one) you have to deal with varied tastes of the
membership... which ultimate leads to generic style layouts, on which anything and everything goes, so as not to upset the membership. I can understand why
some (many?) are not taken by this approach. I see nothing wrong with showing 'elitist' style layouts (Bigglesworth 1963 as modelled by the St Trinians MRC),
as they show to the public the top range of the hobby. But there is room for the more mediocre layouts, but they should at least be credable. Like David says,
a GWR slow freight being chased around an oval layout by a Japanese Shinkensein (running on DCC, too, by the way) don't realy cut the ice.
If you must mix and match, then at least 'take turns' with the prototypes.
My experiences from within the club scene, is that quite often (unless the club is a 'proprietory' brand one) you have to deal with varied tastes of the
membership... which ultimate leads to generic style layouts, on which anything and everything goes, so as not to upset the membership. I can understand why
some (many?) are not taken by this approach. I see nothing wrong with showing 'elitist' style layouts (Bigglesworth 1963 as modelled by the St Trinians MRC),
as they show to the public the top range of the hobby. But there is room for the more mediocre layouts, but they should at least be credable. Like David says,
a GWR slow freight being chased around an oval layout by a Japanese Shinkensein (running on DCC, too, by the way) don't realy cut the ice.
If you must mix and match, then at least 'take turns' with the prototypes.
chris m01
Registered
Refer back to a couple of comments. At least we painted the rails and ballasted the track on Hortus Halt even though we don’t take ourselves too seriously. I think this does make a big difference to the look of the layout. Hortus Halt wasn’t at G Rail but we have been flying the G scale flag at other exhibitions and will be in the future.Although there have been a small number of very good proper model railways in G it has to be said that it isn’t an ideal scale for that sort of thing. My view is that G scale had a golden era and is now suffering from not so many new entrants which in turn leads to fewer people attending G Rail. I didn’t go because I know the layouts won’t be that great and I have bought all I need (and all I can store) for my garden railway so have no interest in the trade stands.
The point about Hortus Halt is that we try to go to general model railway exhibitions to show what fun we have in the garden. The G scale society also do great work attending lots of general exhibitions. I think to increase attendance there needs to be more people entering the garden railway hobby. Maybe there should be a garden railway convention in the UK like they have in the States. Maybe a number of garden railways open to the public over say the August bank holiday weekend in a region of the UK with publicity in the modelling magazines?