Beginnings of the Loonar Module project. A layout for trying scenery building techniques, and test running 9mm gauge railway equipment in a variety of scales. The track loop has an 8” radius, and the layout’s footprint is 24” x 24”. Inspired by Frédéric Mottet’s Plage Bel Air, Bob Telford’s Falcon Rock, and Ontario’s backcountry.
That was to have been an Instagram post to briefly explain the origins and influences of the layout, but I thought, what's the point? To me Instagram seems more like advertising. Ok, Blogger is too to a certain extent, but it appears to still have the potential for non-trivial engagement as writing isn't shifted to the back burner.
So, influences. I wanted a little layout for trying scenery building techniques for use on the E. L. Moore dioramas, the Elizabeth Valley RR, and the LOL Mk II (if I ever get around to building it). While wondering what shape such a layout should take, I came across the Plage Bel Air and Falcon Rock layouts in Voie Libre. Plage Bel Air had a lot in common with my old LOL, and I was impressed by the Falcon Rock concept (which also appeared in the October issue of Railway Modeller). Into the mental mix-master they went, along with thoughts of modelling Ontario backcountry scenery, and eventually the Loonar Module popped out.
One unexpected result so far has been that this little thing has taught me a lot about the fun of building a small and simple layout. It's easy to try new things, and no tasks are too onerous, time consuming, or expensive. For reintroducing me to the pleasures of layout building, I'm most grateful.
I for one am certainly engaged with your writing in a non-trivial way. Though Instagram is, as you put it, more like advertising, it can also be a way to let the image make an impact without too many words getting in the way. Still, I think you made the right choice in this case, as I'd want to know more about this image if I hadn't already been given a context through your previous blog posts.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think I'll post an image or two to my Instagram account when the layout looks more finished. And I must admit when I posted a picture of my old LOL layout, and it got 10x more views than any of my other posts, it made me think about what I liked about that layout, and why I was not making progress on my big, modular streetcar layout. The result: LOL Mk II, The Way Out Layout, is now under construction.
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