Merci, Model Rail!
I’m 18 years old, live in France and I have loved trains since I was very small. I used to shout as soon as I saw one, and it became an obsession. I’m not as crazy these days, but I still adore trains.
My grandfather used to have a train set in a special room and I used to sneak in and play with it when I was about ten years old. But he never really finished what he wanted to achieve, and wasn’t into making realistic train scenery.
I always wanted a train set like his, but convincing my parents to give me the space for this was very difficult. Finally, on my 13th birthday, My parents and grandparents gave me a baseboard. I was so happy. With a bit of help laying the track, I was able to design and build on my own model railway! I was 13, and in paradise.
I’ve been buying Model Rail for years, and I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from it and all the different ideas from the Model Rail team. I’d like to thank you for your excellent work, providing professional and comprehensive magazines for children as young as me.
I really enjoy reading the different articles.
In these images, you’ll see my layout, which is based around an oval track, but the scenic modelling is concentrated on a straight section. Inspired by Paul A. Lunn in MR250’S ‘A Break from the Norm’, I made a special exit for the trains to pass through, with scenery continuing in the start of the non-scenic section. I built a tunnel made of foam. At first I wanted to install a Metcalfe tunnel, but I didn’t find it very realistic and as the track started to turn, it didn’t give enough space for trains.
As it was my first train set, it was difficult to know how to get started, but having all your magazines helped, especially Chris Nevard’s Workbench project in MR260 and George Dent’s work in MR213/214. Having an airbrush also helped me to weather the train set and George Dent’s advice was very useful.
I could make an endless list of all the individual tasks I undertook, based on inspiration from your magazine, like the road surface, the platform, the ballast, the coal stockpile, the puddles, and much more…
As you can see, your practical articles enabled me to build my train set as I wanted. If I had to do it again, there are some things I would have done differently, but I’m still proud of it.
Quentin Harvey, France