Golden Jubilee Layout Challenge

Happy New Year!

Now down to business; you have only 30 months to complete your 2mm layout for the said competition. A start now would definitely be a good idea. There are a plethora of blogs springing up detailing progress by various members. Unless I'm expelled for verbal verbosity, I'll tell you about my plans and their execution here on the NEAG blog.

I'll keep my powder relatively dry until I've committed a registration form, but at this time, I can tell you the following:

1. The layout will be based on a real location.
2. It is somewhere in the North East of England and set c.1960.
3. It will utilise almost all of the alloted 9.42 sq ft.
4. It will be DCC.
5. Post competition there will be some changes; principally that the staging will be larger and a continuous run established.
6. I will need to get my finger out post-haste if it is to be anything like!

The Scalefour Society ran a similar challenge a little while ago. If we can emulate the success demonstrated there within our own Association, it would be amazing. There are however, in my opinion, lessons to be learned from our larger brethren:

1. Make and keep to some sort of timetable, so you aren't building a whole layout two weeks before the show.
2. Try to work to an overall standard; certain layouts had very poor scenic qualities despite being in "finescale".
3. Get a bloody backscene. Nobody wants to see a beer belly as a backdrop to a railway!

There we are. I intend to refine my plan over the next week and proceed to cut baseboard material in the middle of January. Meanwhile I need to keep the loco activity moving forward too...!