Let's start at the very beginning. There were known parking issues due to on-site works. There was an alternative car park with a mini bus service to the door. We didn't do this and adopted a gig approach. Perfect parking spot 50 yards from the gate. There were no toe-to-toe punch ups at the door like last week. One desk for cash, one for card. No queue. Sensible. A high end £12. Pretty much as expected, so here's what I wrote three years ago with a couple of tweaks in parenthesis
Wood End and Beyond
Sunday, 12 October 2025
Farnham show 2025
Let's start at the very beginning. There were known parking issues due to on-site works. There was an alternative car park with a mini bus service to the door. We didn't do this and adopted a gig approach. Perfect parking spot 50 yards from the gate. There were no toe-to-toe punch ups at the door like last week. One desk for cash, one for card. No queue. Sensible. A high end £12. Pretty much as expected, so here's what I wrote three years ago with a couple of tweaks in parenthesis
Thursday, 9 October 2025
Scottish OO gauge layout in Railway Modeller
And we're off! Regulars will have noted that there has been an RM layout based in the Highlands ticking away in the background which hasn't had much mention here for obvious reasons. This month the series commences with some baseboard butchering and my fight with some bullhead points. The whole project was not without its problems and there were endless supply issues, meaning that the construction window went from nearly a year, to about four and a half months. I'm hard to avoid in Smiths (or whatever it's called this week) with the Superquick goods shed build mentioned in earlier posts running in BRM. The Scottish (Caol) is destined for the Glasgow SEC show, though I doubt that I will be anywhere near it. As far as I know, this will be it's only public showing. With the baseboard kits shifting to a 9 and 10mm MDF construction, she's a weighty beast.
Note that though I've had bits of the cover before, this is a first. This will now be a regular occurrence and my next cover shot will be in 2050.
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Tuesday, 7 October 2025
A corner section in OO gauge
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Sunday, 5 October 2025
Fareham Exhibition
The negatives: Appalling entry system done via very unpredictable computer and churning out festival-style wristbands. Total overkill for a single price arrangement and a queue to match. This mostly made up of gentlemen of the expected age holding the right amount of cash. Not a great start. Then the door guards to a single basketball court with one way in/out doors and, even fairly early in the weekend, a poor customer attitude. The price for all this was a high end £12. For that I want something fairly special on a regional local club show.
Show: 4 Mostly down to the doors
Rucksacks 1
Catering 2
Parking 9
Thursday, 2 October 2025
Stalling: Designing an urban layout in OO
This would only require three points as above. The scenics would be a 1960s style card building base with a couple of vintage Airfix items tossed in where needed, i.e. the butchered footbridge. The one or two figures on the platform are cast items from Dinky thus completing the vibe. The feel of it in my head would appeal to 'gentlemen of a certain age' and would definitely be the anti-DCC/sound approach.