Thought I would spice up a wet Sunday afternoon with a heated debate about layout presentation. Based on my POV as an attendee of shows, and also as an exhibitor with "Lofthole" and a helper with "Horseblock Lane"
Here goes:
1) Good lighting
2) A backscene (it ruins the effect for me when you can look through the layout and see "giant" middle aged men, coffee cups and soldering irons in-between the buildings)
3) A proscenium arch to frame the view
4) Fiddle yard not visible in the same view as the layout (you should have to step to/go round the side to see it, if at all so it doesn't detract from the effect portrayed)
5) Layout height - high enough so you're not looking down from a helicopter! A tricky one this as some people are in wheelchairs, and need to be accommodated - I have a big periscope. Children can stand on chairs!
6) Something moving at (nearly) all times
7) No "do not touch" signs! A negative note, even if politely expressed
8 ) Operator round the front for easy communication with the audience
9) No hands (or elbows) in the view. Sometimes operators dangle their hands over the backscene, ruining the effect, or in explaining something point excessively to the thing in question
10) Check the switching before you give it a shove! Often a "stalled" loco is stationary because the points are set wrong or isolating switches thrown, but a finger appears and gives it a premature push.
11) A "story" - so people can get some sense of what they are looking at. A visible timetable can help with this, or at least an explanation of where the trains are coming from and going to.
12) Some form of audience involvement/participation
13) No "wobbling". Level the layout, brace the legs as appropriate, don't lean on it so as to make it shake.
The last one is an aspiration: 14) No derailments or stalled locos! This is never 100% achievable, but at least keep the rails and wheels clean, quarantine poorly running stock.
If you have seen Lofhole feel free to pick me up on any of these points. :worried: In particular we had a 'mare with derailments at Romford (but on a positive point only one "stall" of the shunting loco.
Comments.........!?
Jon :)
Funnily enough there was a fella writing about layout presentation in RM this month and he mentioned layout height and framing as a means to control viewing angle to avoid the 'helicopter' view. I suppose some of it comes down to the show and the size of the layout as well, if you're at a big national level show you would expect a higher level of presentation than at a 'local' show.
Sounds like a wise fella! :D
Many of my suggestions are just a matter of deciding to do it rather than costing very much, so might be just as applicable at a local show too..........maybe!
Cheers Jon :)
These are good points, interestingly whe. I lived in Canada I belonged to a bend-track group, the whole point of this was that the operators were always on the outside so that we could talk to the public, there were curtains around every module and the layout was 50+ inches high. We had a great time at exhibitions and always had trains running (bendtrack is a continuous run standard), we also recruited people to the group.
A couple of points that are important, we had no clubhouse, we only got together for shows, we all built to a strict standard, so anyone could join in.
I was trainmaster at one show in Truro NS and did a few calculations, the track was over 5 scale km long and we had 2 -3 trains running on each line, some with over 40 grain cars (DCC thankfully)! The public loved seeing these huge trains run with 2 or 3 locos up front although when I calculated the cost of the trains it was enough to make you sweat bullets
Graham
Hi Jon,
Some good points there and I agree with most of them. I'm not too bothered about layout height, as I think it's easier for a taller person to bend forward than for someone small to be raised up if they don't have a stool!
I tend to view exhibiting a layout as akin to a theatrical presentation - the audience deserve to be entertained and so keeping things moving is essential.
The counterpoint to that is that sometimes showgoers might be a little more patient - operating our club layout Horseley. Fields there have been occasions when people wander off without actually giving a train enough time to get back into the fiddle yard and for another to be sent out!!
Cheers
Ben A.
I didn't used to have "Do not touch" signs but found people prodded bits of the layout. Once someone even picked up a loco!
Upon asking them not to touch a received the reply "There's no signs so how am I expected to know?" or something less polite without exception.
Hence the signs.
Crikey Graham that sounds rough!
I haven't had any incidents of touching myself - one there was a grandma and grandson (about 6). Grandma reached out a hand as if to touch something and the little boy said "Don't touch grandma!" That was the closest approach I have had. In fact, it seems to work the other way - I continually try to encourage people to work the control panel which is prominent at the front of the layout, and it is surprising how reluctant people can be!
I have a floppy barrier to get people to stand about 18" away, and as a precaution there is nothing right at the front that is fragile, so even if I do get the occasional prod I will resist putting the sign up, for the benefit of the majority of people who wouldn't dream of touching. I don't have a Perspex screen up for the same reason - it would reduce the quality of experience for the well-behaved majority.
Cheers
Jon :)
Jon
If everyone took your approach I would go to more exhibitions, especially your points about height and having someone at the front. Ben, why is it easier for someone tall to bend (especially when there are barriers in front of a model) than it is for someone short to stand on a step or use a periscope? Bending gets harder as you get older, not sure using a periscope does!
David
Quote from: Sea Mills on November 17, 2013, 09:36:42 PM
Ben, why is it easier for someone tall to bend (especially when there are barriers in front of a model) than it is for someone short to stand on a step or use a periscope? Bending gets harder as you get older, not sure using a periscope does!
David
Very true, David.
I was at a show yesterday and one of the best layouts IMHO was actually at chest height (I'm 5'10") so all I had to do was lower my head to watch at eye level.
Any kids were offered steps to be able to see too.
Quote from: PostModN66 on November 17, 2013, 09:24:19 PM
Crikey Graham that sounds rough!
I haven't had any incidents of touching myself - one there was a grandma and grandson (about 6). Grandma reached out a hand as if to touch something and the little boy said "Don't touch grandma!" That was the closest approach I have had. In fact, it seems to work the other way - I continually try to encourage people to work the control panel which is prominent at the front of the layout, and it is surprising how reluctant people can be!
I have a floppy barrier to get people to stand about 18" away, and as a precaution there is nothing right at the front that is fragile, so even if I do get the occasional prod I will resist putting the sign up, for the benefit of the majority of people who wouldn't dream of touching. I don't have a Perspex screen up for the same reason - it would reduce the quality of experience for the well-behaved majority.
Cheers
Jon :)
The kids are generally fine. Like your experience it's the adults that are the problem.
Does your "floppy barrier" use those springy door stops? I had those until someone remarked that the horizontal mounts were round about child eye height. Much as I hate people touching the layout it's not worth risking a child's eye.
My barrier is a length of light plastic pipe from B&Q resting on two light plywood brackets that are Velcroed to the layout. It is designed so that if anyone pushes against it, it gets knocked off and falls to the floor. Net result - everyone politely stands behind it. It probably gets knocked off by accident (sometimes my clumsiness!) about three or four times a day. People are always very apologetic, and of course I tell them it doesn't matter at all and it is designed that way, which is generally a good introduction for a conversation.
I have painted the pipe with black and yellow stripes to fit with the industrial theme of my layout.
Cheers Jon :)
Quote from: Sea Mills on November 17, 2013, 09:36:42 PM
Jon
If everyone took your approach I would go to more exhibitions, especially your points about height and having someone at the front. Ben, why is it easier for someone tall to bend (especially when there are barriers in front of a model) than it is for someone short to stand on a step or use a periscope? Bending gets harder as you get older, not sure using a periscope does!
David
Hi David
If steps aren't available (as I said in my post) then a shorter viewer requires layouts to be set at a lower level to be able to see anything at all.
Whereas even if they are unwilling or unable to bend for that "trackside" view, a taller viewer will always be able to see.
So on balance, and allowing that not every show provides steps, and not every visitor thinks to bring them, lower seems fairer.
cheers
Ben A.
Some good notes there although I have to disagree with the following:-
Quote from: PostModN66 on November 17, 2013, 03:09:47 PM
7) No "do not touch" signs! A negative note, even if politely expressed
I've seen too many cases of spectators poking and prodding trains and scenery to agree with this I'm afraid, especially with models becoming ever more adorned with fine (breakable) details. Either use a low perspex screen to discourage it or if notices are used they can be more polite than just "please do not touch" ;)
Quote8 ) Operator round the front for easy communication with the audience
Definitely not practical for most layouts, especially where there is a large control panel for points or a fiddle yard where trains need constant supervision or swapping around.
Quote12) Some form of audience involvement/participation
Can't see why? Personally when I go to an exhibition I want to see
other people operating their layouts - that's what I've paid for! :D
Paul
Jon: thanks for starting this thread. Good, healthy discussion here. :thumbsup:
I too have my own thoughts, and while I agree with many of your points, I must side with Sprintex in that there's no way I want to drive a layout I just want to look at.
I have also been guilty of walking away from a layout before a train even got out of sight... for the simple reason I didn't like it.
I do like higher layouts, though.
George
Quote from: PostModN66 on November 17, 2013, 09:56:45 PM
My barrier is a length of light plastic pipe from B&Q resting on two light plywood brackets that are Velcroed to the layout. It is designed so that if anyone pushes against it, it gets knocked off and falls to the floor. Net result - everyone politely stands behind it. It probably gets knocked off by accident (sometimes my clumsiness!) about three or four times a day. People are always very apologetic, and of course I tell them it doesn't matter at all and it is designed that way, which is generally a good introduction for a conversation.
I have painted the pipe with black and yellow stripes to fit with the industrial theme of my layout.
Cheers Jon :)
Any chance of a photo please?
Quote from: Sprintex on November 18, 2013, 06:04:47 AM
Some good notes there although I have to disagree with the following:-
Paul
Well - it took a bit to get going, but eventually aroused some interest! :)
To answer your points Paul -
I'm guessing that people advocating "Do not touch" labels is because they are seen as a necessity rather than an experiencing enhancing thing - No-one has ever said "the effect of your layout is spoilt by the absence of a "do not touch" sign! ;) As I have said, no-one has ever touched mine, and if they did I have designed the layout so that it would be unlikely to do any damage if they did. Place your fragile details towards the back of the layout! They probably don't touch because I am at the front and because of my barrier described above.
By the way - I hate those Perspex screens! I have walked away from perfectly nice layouts because they have them! (And I guess few people have ever thought - "that's a nice layout but I wish there was a bit of Perspex in front of it"!)
Operator round the front - needs to be designed in at the planning stage. Perhaps a small panel to operate the goods yard - that kind of thing. It certainly seems to make a big difference in being able to chat to people without holding a conversation over the layout that detracts from the experience for other viewers.
Audience involvement - well, optional of course! And varied - it doesn't have to be driving trains. I have a few switches and controls of scenic items (most notably a little digger) that children can operate. Some people are interested in the signalling which tries to be authentic as possible, and some people have been invited round the back to help with the fiddle yard. At the recent High Wycombe show one long-suffering father said "of all the layouts we have seen at all the exhibitions we have been to this is the best experience we have ever had". Cool! 8)
By the way - on the topic of layout height, Lofthole is roughly 4' to rail height. This provides a good viewing experience I would suggest for people between 4'8" tall to around 6'2", which includes most adults, and in fact, most wheelchair users can see it albeit at a flat angle. I take the needs of wheelchair users (and potentially people with dwarfism, although I have never seen one at an exhibition) seriously; my periscope is light, professionally built and has a really wide field of view; a few wheelchair users have been more impressed with the periscope than with the layout :(
Cheers Jon :)
Quote from: PostModN66 on November 18, 2013, 08:17:07 AM
Audience involvement - well, optional of course! And varied - it doesn't have to be driving trains. I have a few switches and controls of scenic items (most notably a little digger) that children can operate.
The only decent "interactive" element I've seen was on a large scale layout. There was a cameo right at the front of two men digging a hole in the road, and a push-button nearby on the front of the baseboard that said "Push me". When pushed a squirt of water came out of the hole just at the right height to get the little so-and-so >:D
Paul
Quote from: GrahamB on November 18, 2013, 08:14:13 AM
Any chance of a photo please?
I don't have a photo of the whole set-up, but here is one of the brackets. It connects to a leg of the layout via the Velcro (so if it was kicked it wouldn't bring the layout down), and the pole which is about 15mm diameter goes in the notch. The bracket is about 18" long overall.
(http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/gallery/53/thumb_8372.jpg) (http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?action=gallery;sa=view;id=8372)
Cheers Jon :)
Quote from: Sprintex on November 18, 2013, 08:54:19 AM
The only decent "interactive" element I've seen was on a large scale layout. There was a cameo right at the front of two men digging a hole in the road, and a push-button nearby on the front of the baseboard that said "Push me". When pushed a squirt of water came out of the hole just at the right height to get the little so-and-so >:D
Paul
Hi Paul - You didn't like my little digger then when you saw it at Royston! :(
Cheers Jon :)
Didn't remember it being interactive that's all Jon, memory isn't that good :D
Paul
I prefer a 'higher' display level for layouts. Bending causes pain these days (I've got a prolapsed disc now) and I wouldn't like to collapse on a layout trying to get a better look with a back spasm. Also most exhibitions offer (either to rent or loan) 'hop-ups' or periscopes for kids these days.
With regards to theft at model railway exhibitions I think it's fortunately still quite rare (although obviously not unheard of), but eternal vigilance is required. Usually known thieves are spotted and the word quickly goes around the exhibitors.
I'm not a fan of Perspex/glass screens - they are often scratched and soon get grubby during a show (with finger marks, snot from kids with their noses pressed up against it, and atmospherics) making it hard to see through. But there is a problem of touching and potential damage caused as a result which is very real - I've experienced it on my layout when exhibiting (several times) which has caused damage. Usually it is kids with wandering fingers who want to grab but not exclusively. Sometimes adults will want to poke and prod.
That's why I like a barrier at the more family and community oriented shows (whereas enthusiasts scale shows are less problematic as attendees are more likely to understand the delicate nature of scale models). However, the barriers needs to be set back as parents often lift kids to sit on it and then their swinging legs are in range. But I do like those proper firm barriers that you can lean on to watch. It's difficult and there is no quick and easy panacea.
H.
If ya want to see "interactive" done to perfection, Hamburg is the place to go!
Bealman's Euro adventure comin' :sleep:
Our club layout has been running for nearly 20 years and we have found that sometimes even barriers and signs don't stop people from touching so when we are at large exhibitions we put up perspex.
Unfortunately some of the culprits are too young to be able to read the "don't touch" signs and some are old enough to know better. Our signs read "children, please don't let your parents touch the layout"
At smaller shows we leave the perspex off but have to watch very carefully for children who try to put their fingers in front of a train to cause a derailment. You can usually spot the naughty ones and then have to watch them very carefully. It's easy to see which children (and adults) have been well brought up and those that haven't.
I might add that our audience is mainly members of the general public and not railway modellers so there is an almost complete lack of rivet-counters but we do encounter lots of people who have no idea that model railway items are still available as none of the larger stores stock them.
We always generate a lot of interest wherever we go and on whole people are very well behaved but as my mother used to say "there's always one!" ;D
I have used perspex fronting on 3 of my 4 exhibition layouts (Morfa Nevyn, Abersoch and now Portpatrick Town). Essential in smaller more cramped locations where robust barriers are not available. Yes it gets finger, and worse, marks but these clean off easily enough. Main concern is children hanging on it - possibility of breakage.
I do use those springy door stops for a lightweight barrier - partly to delineate the width required for the sector plates. But I have screwed large eyes into the ends to take the rope. Height is always debatabe. My first layout, Gramsere was on a pasting table, Morfa Nevyn and Abersoch not much higher. Portpatrick is a little higher still. Low layouts good for wheechair users and small children (saves the backs of parents and as I now am, grandparents). But fair point about bending - my own back is not what it was! That said I have taken my grandchildren to shows where some layouts were so high even the typical step was not high enough - which is annoying. And the 3 older ones are too heavy for me to lift much these days.
When i did wylam and gateshead, i had non stop people touching.
Mainly due to the snow effect, people wanting to know what it felt like and if it was stuck onto most places of thr layout.
Then with locos sitting in sidings they try pushing them to see if they move.
I had no signs up but i think next exhibition i may have to as i dont want to be going down the perspex option. Too many occasions trains were knocked over just by someone touching the layout and budging it hard enough to knock stuff over.
Standing around the front is a no go for moorside, as its constantly operating the control panel, swapping locos and rolling stock we physically cant stand round the front. If theres enough of us operating i will make myself available to chat but we dont have time most of the time.
Interesting topic. I've just been invited to show my layout at a small show next year and it is interesting to hear what people have to say.
Whilst I hate to admit it I am worried about the possibility of locos or stock going missing.
Also I need to think about getting some proper legs for my layout, I've been using my ironing board as a temporary stand but I need something a bit more sturdy and stable and I'll need to get the height right.
Hi John,
I really wouldn't worry about theft too much. It's one of those things that goes round exhibitions and causes a flutter, but doesn't seem to happen in reality too often. I reckon gangs intent on large scale organised crime are more likely to go for diamonds or drug dealing than toy trains. A full load of trains for Lofthole is 14 trains, plus plenty more in the stock boxes, sometimes with minimal supervision, and nothing has ever been nicked, as far as I can tell. I just keep my less replaceable locos (CJM 92!) under slightly closer observation!
Anyway, in extremis, the exhibition should be insuring your stock (including, I believe in transit to and from the exhibition) - worth checking.
I would look into sturdy legs though; or make sure of a suitable barrier between you and your ironing board. Getting the height right = impossible as everyone has a different view (....4ft....4ft......he whispers...sublimally......)!
It would be a shame to let worry about any of this spoil the enjoyment of the show, or create a siege mentality!
Oooh - and don't forget lighting!
Cheers Jon :)
I must admit that if there is a sturdy barrier in place I do use it to lean on if veiwing a layout for any amount of time (thats me just being lazy) however I would see bending down to get a better view of a lower set layout as being purley an extra option (if your back allows) however layouts set too high for kids or people in wheelchairs and their only option to view it at all is to use a hop up or periscope respectively then I would find this to be very off putting.
I don't like to see perspex fronts but I do thoroughly understand why people use them.
Do not touch signs don't bother me at all, again I understand why people feel the need to display them, in fact sometimes I have to bite my tongue when I see a member of the public reaching out about to touch a layout when all I want to do is shout GET OFF IT! :veryangry:
Some really interesting views on here. :thumbsup: I think there is no hard and fast right or wrong answers here, just what works for you, and as I'm designing the next foray into exhibiting (hopefully) at the moment I'm interested to see the collected experience here.
Cards on the table, as a helper on Jon's Lofthole Oil Terminal and with him helping out on my Horseblock Lane, you'll be unsurprised it 's 4 foot high!
It sits on a table with B&Q legs and I have found at exhibitions the tables can be wobbly. However, experience has shown that enthusiastic operating of switches, (yes, they're on the front to encourage audience participation from children) can lead to layout wobble also and a mod for bracing the legs is in hand.
There is no sign or barrier and it's operated from the front. Being only 54 inches long it's easy enough to keep an eye on stuff, and we've only had one grabbing incident, this from a child being held exceptionally close by his Mum who fancied the cement lorry parked tantalisingly at the front. No harm done but a light barrier along the lines of Lofthole wouldn't go amiss for next time out.
Lighting is a simple daylight effect fluorescent tube. It is worth considering the impact of your lighting on those around you as at shows if you're not parked in a corner it can be quite intrusive for other exhibitors.... Don't ask me how I know. ;)
Am I odd, then? My layout is specifically designed:
1) To be viewable from any direction, hence no backscene
2) Stand at a height of around 1m
In fact the entire idea is that the viewer is looking down at a "slice" of the earth, which just happens to contain some railway. I may even go so far as to have "open" buildings on the edges where they're "sliced through". I think the concept fits the more modern era of Google Maps & Google Earth, and I wanted to drag things kicking and screaming towards the future.
Now, I don't yet know if the finished layout will work (and the illusion may already be somewhat ruined by the presence of some Dapol uncoupling magnets), but I figured it was worth a try.
Brilliant - I am all in favour of trying something exciting and different. :thumbsup:
Lots of interesting design challenges in there - looking forward to seeing it develop.
Cheers Jon :)
Quote from: Vanders on November 19, 2013, 01:09:32 PM
In fact the entire idea is that the viewer is looking down at a "slice" of the earth, which just happens to contain some railway. I may even go so far as to have "open" buildings on the edges where they're "sliced through". I think the concept fits the more modern era of Google Maps & Google Earth, and I wanted to drag things kicking and screaming towards the future.
Interesting development, although not entirely new. The T gauge layouts I've seen are rather 'looking-down-on-a-map' type and there are several layouts without back-scenes and that have cut through buildings on the boundaries. There's even a layout without a back-scene board for all round viewing but the operator wears a kind of apron that is printed with a distant scene so he becomes 'invisible' behind it.
H.
There was a nice 2mm FS layout (Queen Street Goods?) which used to be exhibited where you viewed it from one end of the yard ie effectively looking down the yard, which I always thought was effective.
I saw a good, small 4mm layout over the summer (Tremore) which had no "traditional" backscene, but lots of built up foliage which again I thought worked well.
Cheers, Mike
Quote from: H on November 19, 2013, 01:28:17 PM
There's even a layout without a back-scene board for all round viewing but the operator wears a kind of apron that is printed with a distant scene so he becomes 'invisible' behind it.
H.
Was he a Predator? :o
Quote from: PostModN66 on November 17, 2013, 03:09:47 PM
1) Good lighting
2) A backscene (it ruins the effect for me when you can look through the layout and see "giant" middle aged men, coffee cups and soldering irons in-between the buildings)
3) A proscenium arch to frame the view
4) Fiddle yard not visible in the same view as the layout (you should have to step to/go round the side to see it, if at all so it doesn't detract from the effect portrayed)
5) Layout height - high enough so you're not looking down from a helicopter! A tricky one this as some people are in wheelchairs, and need to be accommodated - I have a big periscope. Children can stand on chairs!
6) Something moving at (nearly) all times
7) No "do not touch" signs! A negative note, even if politely expressed
8 ) Operator round the front for easy communication with the audience
9) No hands (or elbows) in the view. Sometimes operators dangle their hands over the backscene, ruining the effect, or in explaining something point excessively to the thing in question
10) Check the switching before you give it a shove! Often a "stalled" loco is stationary because the points are set wrong or isolating switches thrown, but a finger appears and gives it a premature push.
11) A "story" - so people can get some sense of what they are looking at. A visible timetable can help with this, or at least an explanation of where the trains are coming from and going to.
12) Some form of audience involvement/participation
13) No "wobbling". Level the layout, brace the legs as appropriate, don't lean on it so as to make it shake.
The last one is an aspiration: 14) No derailments or stalled locos! This is never 100% achievable, but at least keep the rails and wheels clean, quarantine poorly running stock.
Some good thoughts in there, mostly simple things that can make a big difference to how atractive a layuot is to the viewer...
1) so many simple options these days (strips, spots, LED etc etc) but not decorative fittings on a length of unpainted 4x2 and please point the spots at the layout not into the viewers eyes...
2) I doesn't necessarily have to be a traditional painted sky. tall buildings/ hills/ trees to the rear of the layout can do the same job of masking the undesirable sights behind the layout.
3) Yes - where the design of the layout allows. - It isn't always possible on layouts designed for 2 or 3 sided viewing.
4) or even better not see the F/Y at all!
5) There isn't a simple one-size-fits-all ideal layout height so I say make it comfortable for the operator who has to spend up to 8 hours behind it.
6) depends to some extent on the style of the layout - a busy urban mainline you would expect constant movement. A country branch less so, but there does need to be something else in the detail to keep the viewers attention in the (short) gaps between trains.
7) If only they weren't necessary - so long is it is polite or humerous (one saw one the read '
children - please remind your parents not to touch') I don't mind too much.
8 ) But there is nothing worse than the Operator wandering up and down in front of the layout blocking your view... [USA prototype and DCC controlled layouts seem particularly aflicted]
9) Does that include reaching over to uncouple?
10) Unforunately, somtimes the layout is easier to switch on than the operator!!
11) I would expect that to be covered in the show guide.
12) there are laouts designed with that in mind but I wouldn't expect it of every layout...
13) Yes but I've seen plenty of examples where the layout was more stable than the operators!!
Paul
Really interesting discussion here, the subject of layout height is one I have had a few issues with as my layout, Polpendra, is 50 inches floor to track and have been criticised for this a few times. I politely explain that I have back issues and it is at a hiehght that is comfortable for me to work on and operate. At one show, an individual got a little stroppy with me about the layout height but I think that as my layout was built primarily for me and home use with the occasional exhibition invite then the exhibiting is secondary to my own comfort. No point building a layout for 4-6 days a year if it is not suitable for the rest of the time. I know I could have different frames etc etc etc but I also prefer higher layouts for viewing other layouts anyway!
On the subject of backscenes, unless the scenery caters for it such as use of buildings etc, I much prefer a curved backscene rather then seeing rightangles in the sky.
Something moving all the time is something I try to do on my layout but as it is a small terminus station and I use cassettes for storage, this is not always pocssible and it is frustrating when somebody walks over as one train leaves and is gone befoore you are able to get the next train running. I helped a friend of mine exhibit his layout last weekend and we were , almost, able to keep something running all the time. It is a double track mainline and we stacked a train in the tunnel waiting to go onto the layout until teh train from the other direction left trhe scene before running out, this seemed to work well although the occasional passing trains on the front were run. A great day though!!
Your point 10, check the switching - A mega one and something I am terrible at, this is somehting that if you are running your own layout regularly you get better at but at a show when you are talking to the public as you operate, mistakes can happen. Maybe it is how you react that makes the difference as well?
I have a story/potted history on my layout giving a theoretical background to the station and (TIP TIME) a list of things to look out for - this works really wel and seems to keep people interested in the layout betweek trains, especially the sillier things such as my pride and joy - my elephant!!
Finally your last point, reliable running. I have a policy of 2 failures and its into the stockbox!! Making sure you have enough stock to only use stuff that will run well is very important, I think operators should remember that people are paying to see us 'perform'! This is just as much about preparation, wheel and track cleaning as it is about the actual operating. At the show last weekend, Russell and I had superb reliability due to many hours before the show ensuring the stock was ready and this resulted in a trouble free (mostly) show. TRouble free running also measn that as an oprator you can enjoy yourself much more without the worry of stalling and finger prodding.
Best wishes
Simon
Hi Simon,
Thanks for such a thoughtful and interesting post.
Do you know, I think that my preferred height of 48", nearly the same as yours, is a reasonable compromise. As I said further up, people in wheelchairs can usually see the layout (from a low angle), and seem generally happy with my super periscope for a better view. At all exhibitions chairs or similar are available for children to stand on, and it has the side-effect of limiting their movement and consequent accidents. I lose patience with layouts that are too low - say 3' 6" or lower. Maybe I should take my periscope and use it to get a low view!
Your point about the curved backscenes - taken - but I think this is on the cusp of being about the layout itself rather than it's presentation. I agree that curved backscenes are better. Lofthole doesn't have one, and it therefore isn't as good as if it did! I'm happy to admit the shortcoming!
Keeping something moving is a consequence of deliberate design as well as operating policy. I try and design this into my layouts. But then mine are totally focussed at exhibitions - I never run trains at home except to test the layout.
Your list of "things to look out" for matches my criterion of audience involvement; get people to engage rather than just watch passively!
All the best Jon :)
Lots of very interesting comments here.
Ever since reading one of Iain Rice's books I have been taken with the idea of having a fairly high baseboard/track height - he recommends 54 to 56 inches, I think.
I am 6ft tall and I reckon some of the layouts at Warley were too high. Fence Houses particularly comes to mind, but there were others. I found with these very high layouts that there was stuff I couldn't see properly.
I suspect I look at a layout with two different mind-sets. At one moment I look at the scene in the way one would look at a painting and at the next moment I want to see "how they did it".
That brings me to another point. One of the things I like about going to an exhibition is being able to see behind the scenes - how the fiddle yard is worked or how the layout is supported and displayed. These things are rarely visible in magazine articles even though they give a lot of column-inches to the use of 2x1 framing and 9mm ply.
...R