So Here I am, busting a gut and trying to keep to my original intenton of recreating my childhood in N gauge. I was brought up in South London in the 50s and 60s so era 5 rules the roost and is reflected in my small but growing fleet. I was used to Southern Electricss moaning and spitting along the line at the bottom of my Grans road and seeing the most beautiful Pullman carriages parked up in sidings at the bottom of the road I lived in, so you can see where I'm coming from. And then I saw the Graham Farrish creation of the fabulous Midland Pullman diesel set in Nanking Blue and then I saw the Hornby entry into N gauge in the form of the Brighton Belle and then I saw those N gauge WW1 sets and then I saw some of the American Streamliners and then I saw......well I'm sure you are catching on. So which one of me owns this layout, the purist or the funster? Your views will be appreciated.

Both ?

Any particular reason you can't make a second "fun" layout where 'anything goes' in addition to the main one true to the period you desire ?

Mike

Its your railway - you can run whatever you want.  Why not have some sessions where you run the Southern Electrics and some where you run whatever you want..

I run current day North Kent Line, 465 Networker, class 66's but I also have the Blue/grey 4CEP and I have ordered a 5BEL (Umber & Cream as thats how I remember them).  Once the Schools comes out - there might be yet another excursion running through Northfleet...

My choice...

Interesting!

My childhood was spent (up to 18) around Orpington and Chelsfield so I too can remember the Southern Region trains spitting sparks especially in wet weather!

My layout will never be identifiable in it's location for the very reason of being able to run what I like, when I like AND jumble up the rolling stock if I want!

Only today I had an 08 pulling some German flat cars and a Japanese wagon together with a couple of American gondolas! 
(Just to test the track, you understand!)

Model railways are a fun thing anyway, if it weren't there would be many fewer interested parties!

Regards, Peter.

Sure those gondolas weren't Venetian, Peter?

As to the OP, I too bought the Blue Pullman even though it never ran on the WCML, I believe. It certainly never ran in the area my main layout is located, and this from someone who does not like Rule 1

I'd just like to point out that the oft-rumoured "Model Railways Realism Inspection Inquisition" is just that, a product of rumour which is mere myth. I myself am committing some egregious plausibility violations on my Japanese layout, which are glaringly obvious if you squint at the individual car numbers, and am planning to acquire some British/European stock on my forthcoming trip.

Anyway must go, some people in crimson suits are trying to batter the door down.

Quote from: newportnobby on September 25, 2014, 08:46:13 PM
Sure those gondolas weren't Venetian, Peter?

Did Lima ever make them for Venetian modellers?  I rather expect they were more like fish bellies!!! (Boom, Boom)

Oooh the funster all the way..

When this hobby is nothing but a chore then don't do it any more.  I'm also one of these nightmare people who run whatever they feel like.  One thing you could do however to assuage some of your purism, if you have the room, try and have part of your layout that is shall we say geographically neutral, that way you have a spot where everything looks at home.  I'm planning this on my layout, but it is hard as it has to cater for Canada, UK, mainland Europe and Japan!

Graham

Many thanks for the sage advice from all of you, I'll put my pondering cap on.

I to have a similar problem , my real self says it's got to be GWR steam as the station is Stonehouse but then a few green diesels crept in and so could still be legitimate ,But then some other region Locos arrived  OK still all right ,now into charter trains or diverted due to engineering work. Now comes the real problemI managed to buy a Voyager real bargain , then some more modern diesels then my son treated me to my first real holiday in 67 years we went to Canada while there his friends took me to two model shops and baught me some Canadian freight cars so of course I had to have a diesel to pull them then my son baught me a Canadian steam loco so of course I had to have some vintage coaches for it to pull,You can see where this is going .RULE ONE its my railway I like watching TRAINS Whats the point of a hobby ENJOY what you ENJOY don't worry about anyone else. Bob

Yeah, run for fun, if you want to mix'n 'match just do it!

I think I might be in a small minority here.  For me, part of the fun of planning a new layout is doing the research, and finding out what locos and rolling stock would have been used in the location and era being modelled. I then acquire the appropriate locos, and no others, however pretty and heavily discounted they are.  I don't have a lot of money to spend on modelling, so it's probably a good thing that my mind works this way.

Richard

I think what this shows is that there are as many views on this subject as there are modellers, and nobody is right or wrong. The only time you need to be a bit stricter is if you are intending to exhibit your layout. Then, I think, you need to aim for a certain amount of realism and not mix up stock from different eras in any one running session. Otherwise, whatever people get up to in the privacy of their own homes is their business...

Chris

If your model is inner city based as it sounds like, it could really be any large town, so if your mix and match stock looks odd to you, try running stock which goes together in different batches. However if you are happy with the mixture, rule 1 applies.