Commission: Shades of Mountain Ash layout design...

Towards the end of 2022 I was commissioned to produce a scheme with a customer whom had been inspired by Renfrew but wasn't quite sure how to fit that with his own prototype interest...

Through my Layout Design brief process we considered what his drives and inspiration for the project were as well as any givens. This is an iterative conversation that takes place over email for a few weeks until it's clear what 'success' for the project will look like. The creative process can then begin and through consideration of what appealed in Renfrew, and desired prototype for this setting we worked through to a 'inspired by' faux location based in South Wales, as an NCB line alongside a BR branchline.

Shades of Mountain Ash as inspiration for the road over bridge and river crossing are quite plain to see, otherwise it's the feel of the place, the colours and textures and the town on the back scene that should set the scene. The layout is intended as a bit of a blank canvas so no road or railway signage will be visible allowing a 1950/60s steam era NCB layout to morph into a 1990s civil engineers yard. The form is the same as Renfrew, a shelf based cameo box with integral lighting, DCC yet manual turnout operation with a short fiddle stick on the left hand side beyond the road over bridge. 

Good news is that this layout will be progressing to a commission build, so expect to see progress on the layout during 2023, fully documented of course here on the blog. 

If you have an idea you'd like to explore and develop into a layout scheme then please do get in touch for a personal proposal using the form on the website, Facebook or the forums. My layout design service starts from just £160, and produces a standard alone 'brief' that you can use to guide your own build or develop further into a full commission. Until next time, more soon...