Well, I’ve been asked to muse on topics, but no ones really added a topic.
I guess the big ones are layout design and planning. Its been done to death everywhere else around the world, but it doesn’t seem to get mentioned in this country. Maybe because the hobby is dominated by S scale, to which the layout planning reply is ‘well, I’ll model a small country station, but have all these loco’s turning up’. So, how does one plan a layout where you can actually model stretches of the main line in a reasonable space, or rather, what does one model. One possibility is a stretch of line, with or without a station, with interesting scenery or terrain. Actual layout examples of this would be Gary Gloags model of the Manawatu gorge, or Cass. Why this may seem to be simple, there s something to be said for a layout with a minimal number of points and complication. Its very simple to operate. Trains can just be left for hours to wander through the scene while one does something else, like talk to punters, or indulge in a bit of reading at home. And the maintenance of the whole mechanical side is much easier too, which should be a major consideration. Another option is to model a junction of some description, or major rural station (Otaki). this gives more options as trains can wander through, or stop and indulge in a bit of shunting. For some odd reason this is a real crowd stopper at exhibitions. I once kept a crowd ( well, group) of punters entertained fro 15 minutes buy shuffling the same rake of wagons from 1 siding to another. maybe they were waiting for it to stall? Finally there is the high maintenance but extremely operationally interesting stations where the engines are changed (Otira, Arthurs pass, Paikakariki). This involves allot of operation for a home layout, and an exhausting amount for an exhibition layout, with only a railcar to rescue the worn out operators.