WHAT MAKES IT INNOVATIVE?

You need a lot of space for ‘O’, right? Steve Fay, however, has proven time and time again that you can create a realistic impression of main line trains at work in ‘O’ in an 8ft long space. This image of his diorama based on the Dawlish sea wall (see below and in MR261) shows just what some lateral thinking can produce. One of his favourite dioramas among the MR team was his take on Cardiff Canton shed, which featured items that you don’t always see on shed layouts.

To form that typical compacted ash ballast seen in locomotive sheds, he spread kiln-dried sand over the base, soaked it in the usual diluted PVA solution and then added talcum powder, packing it down with the back of a spoon. When dry, he sprayed it matt black and then weathered it with black smoke weathering powders.