Okay, I'll admit it. It's going to be a very small OO layout - around 30 inches by 15 inches. Micro-sized some would say. And there's nothing at all original about it either. It's a straight up copy of the beginner's layout featured in a number of videos on the 'World Of Railways' website (https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/tec ... p-by-step/). But I'm thinking it may well be helpful for fellow 'newbs' if I create this thread so that they can hopefully learn from where I go wrong, as I'm sure I inevitably will.
Why this layout?
There are a few things I knew I wanted in my first layout but much is still not certain. What I am certain of is that there'll be a few cock-ups along the way. My assumption is that the bigger the setup the more expensive and/or time-consuming these mistakes may be to fix. So it makes a lot of sense to start small and work my way up. My second consideration is cost. Starting any hobby from absolute scratch is expensive however one plays it and the smaller and simpler the layout, the less I figure I'll need to spend.
With this reasoning in mind when I came across the branch line terminus layout linked to above, with it's step-by-step video explanations, I got very excited.
The layout has a lovely little countryside halt (something I am keen to model), a goods shed on which I can cut my scratchbuilding teeth, requires just a few wagons and a small shunter type engine, and although it has just a few feet of track it does have a couple of sidings to help add operational interest. There's even a small dock and water element. Perfect!
More than that, there's obvious potential to include the layout in my next build simply by changing the line that goes to the fiddle yard into one that connects with the second, larger layout.
Blooming shortages
Step one if I follow the videos should be building the baseboard for the layout, but thanks to... no, I'll avoid any non model railway rants. Thanks to 'a national shortage' of building supplies, my local DIY supplier has no plywood available. So while I'm trying to source some without paying the earth for delivery, and working out the best way to do the cutting work myself, I decided to have a stab at building the station halt and the goods shed.
Lesson one - read the reviews
As mentioned above the latter is scratchbuilt, so I've ordered some sheets of Wills brick and corrugated plasticard online. The halt is also a Wills kit and is apparently pretty simple to construct so I've gone and bought one of those too. First lesson - always double check suppliers. I initially wanted to go with a small supplier, really just to help keep them going by giving them some business. Prices seemed competitive compared to a larger, well known trader, but just before I hit the 'confirm purchase' button I thought I'll just check the comments on their Facebook page. I'm glad I did. They were scathing. Orders not fulfilled or only met in part. Promised refunds not forthcoming. Delayed deliveries. A real tale of woe and proof that smaller does not necessarily equal better in terms of personal service. I shut the page down and instead placed my order with the larger firm.
While I await the postman I now need to gather together a few other modelling/painting items and I'll be on my way. It's all very exciting. And you're most welcome to join me on the ride.
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