Converting Our UK Layout to Japanese - Yamanouchi Oshika

[Toni Babelony]

Hmmm. Awesome! I'll remember to buy as soon as I'm in Cologne! (and they actually have a recent copy).

[Fenway Park]

I purchased CM yesterday and read the article with interest.

Hopefully, we will get some more people interested in Japanese railways.

Congratulations

[keiman]

Tried getting a copy yesterday but could not, will have to try a bigger branch of WH Smiths.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Thanks for the comments reagrding the article...hopefully those who have read it enjoyed it. There was one notibly absent section...that realting to the trains themselves. This has not been overlooked, just put back to another edition...hopefully part two will come out in a few months time.

Back to the present, and Saturday saw the second showing of Yamanouchi Oshika in full Japanese form; at an exhibition in Oxfordshire, along with about 25 other layouts...none of them Japanese though!  The layout behaved very well, with only a couple of minor glitches, and attracted a lot of interested from the punters.

I did not manage to get too many pictures, however the few I did capture are below.

This shot of the town seems to be the standard image of the layout now. The Kiha 40/53 combo in the platform are Tomix and Micro Ace models respectively.


I recently managed to get hold of one of the 'Hyper Construction' diggers, which can be seen in this image, just behind the Tomix crane.


A Micro Ace EF64 threads its train of Wamu box vans out of the yard...


An overall view of the layout...


And finally a mug shot of some of the responsible. An unusual picture as yours truely is on camera...second from the right

[KenS]

What an excellent layout.  The car-park is making me drool (okay, I'm a bit odd, I'll admit it  ).

[bikkuri bahn]

What an excellent layout.  The car-park is making me drool (okay, I'm a bit odd, I'll admit it  ).

Yes, actually that's quite a nice car park, probably b/c it uses space efficiently.  On the prototype I usually hate car parks, as they usually are built on the station premises formally taken up by the freight shed or loco depot/coach storage tracks, in other words, places that held great railway interest.

[Bernard]

What an excellent layout.  The car-park is making me drool (okay, I'm a bit odd, I'll admit it  ).

Beautiful layout.....and I agree the car park really draws me into the layout.

[KenS]

The March issue of CM finally made it to my local bookstore.  Great article: well presented, lots of detail but done in a way that should be accessible to someone not familiar with Japan or Japanese trains.  I learned a few things, and enjoyed reading it despite already knowing a fair bit about the layout from this thread. And the photos really show it off to advantage.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

It has been a while since I have update on progress with the layout...quite simply because there has not been too much over the previous month or so. That has since changed, and further modifications are underway.

Incidentally, thanks for the postive comments, both about the layout and the article.   

As I have mentioned before, there are still a number of areas that I feel need improvement on the layout. I have long gone on about the balance, and still it is not quite correct. It is difficult to reconcile the flat area to the front against the high ground behind. The area behind the motorway bridge has always been up for further work, so last Sunday we had another on of our work days.

This involved the removal of the waste ground to the front, as well as part of the lower industrial estate. This area will now be raised, and change to a residential area, using some of the rather nice Skynet appartment blocks.


The landscape will be created from a very dense foam, as with much of the rest of the layout...



Also, in preparation for the redevelopment of the area behind the flyover, we needed to create a new way of accessing the yard for road vehicles. There will now be an access road from more or less opposite the higher industrial estate, crossing the branch, and dropping down to serve this whole railway area. So far, only the supports and ramp have been put in place.


We seem to have given ourselves lots more work to do now...still, we have another 5 months until the next showing...

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Astonishingly it has been over three months since the last update!

Work has been carrying on around the country end of the layout, however continued issues with my computer (I'm writing this on my work laptop) mean there are no pictures for the time being. Hopefully this will be resolved within a couple of weeks. The landscape is growing behind the motorway and the new residential estate, made from Skynet appartment blocks, is taking shape.

We need to be pretty disciplined here as it is due at the Gaugemaster open day on September 10 - 11. Just over a month left!

Finally, some may be interested to know that part two of our article in Continental Modeller is due in the September edition...

[keiman]

Will definately be down to see it in the flesh.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

At last, I have my computer back! 

More activity has been going on with the layout, especially behind the motorway. Here one of our club members is getting practical with the framework for the new hillside...



Also, the same club member has been building up one of the Skynet apartment blocks. He is of the opinion that it is one of the best kits he has worked on...the parts fit together really well and it needs very little toning down once complete. I have a second one of these on their way from PlazaJapan...

[The_Ghan]

...the parts fit together really well and it needs very little toning down once complete. I have a second one of these on their way from PlazaJapan...

Hey Claude,

That first apartment building ain't finished until I can see the washing hanging out to dry on some of those balconies!!!   

Cheers

The_Ghan

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Hey Claude,

That first apartment building ain't finished until I can see the washing hanging out to dry on some of those balconies!!!   

Cheers

The_Ghan

Indeed, along with the playground toys and rubbish bin bags that also come with the kits.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

More work has been going on behind the motorway. Now the superstructure of the hills are in place, with some material used for rock faces which is new to me. It is an American product called - I think - Sculptamould. It is a sort of dry papier mache, which when mixed with a little water forms a plaster-like coating. It is very easy to use, dries within about 30 minutes and, most importantly, it is lightweight.

This has been used to give a little more texture to the overall scenic base, which is formed from fine wire, fixed to wooden battens, and covered with 'modrock'...



Also being worked on is the hillside to the front of the layout. This now has the motorway running through a low cutting, before crossing the flyover.



There is a very obvious dip in the hillside, which is a valley eroded by a small, and now diverted steam. Once the foliage has been added this will be less noticeable. Its main function is practical. The boards fit together scenic-side in for transportation. That dip allows the hill section of the other board to fit in, so keeping the layout more portable.

The landscape is certainly dwarfing the class 115-1000 EMU, which has decided to come out and investigate what all the fuss is about!

[cteno4]

Hey Claude,

That first apartment building ain't finished until I can see the washing hanging out to dry on some of those balconies!!!   

Cheers

The_Ghan

Indeed, along with the playground toys and rubbish bin bags that also come with the kits.

claude,

there is a nice brass kit of washing and also of bikes by M craft

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10103742
http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10103740

also a whole upgrade kit that gives you nice, more scale, railings for all the balconies. unfortunately its 1.5x as the original building costs!

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10103739

but perhaps the plastic ones are just beefie public housing style. stuff like this usually was not built with much esthetics in mind...

cheers,

jeff

[scott]

The terrain work is looking good, and the Nagano 115 fits right in with the steep slopes! 

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Hopefully we will be able to add some colour and texture to the layout tonight. There is a longer session planned for next Friday which will hopefully see some concerted progress made.

Incidentally, part two of the Continental Modeller article is out now...

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Last night we broke open the paints and started with the base-coat work on the hillside behind the motorway. The lorry has been provided to give some scale, as well as the MA KiHa130 set...









At present we only have the initial paint layer. Flock powders and trees will be added to the green areas, whilst the grey rock-faces will have some slight colour variation added to provide some more detail. It's amazing what difference a little bit of paint makes.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Plenty more progress to report this week.

The hillside section is now more or less complete. I have tried to pick out details in the rock face with different shades of grey, however did not want to festoon the area with bushes and trees as it is quite steep. Time will tell if I feel more trees are required, especially in the valley. 





The new access ramp to the yard - replacing the old access now obliterated by the new cliff face - is also more or less complete. This has an insulation foam base, with a plywood fascia. The road is thin cork strip, painted a concrete colour. The linings are created with a thin black pen. There are a couple more details to go here, such as barriers and signage.





More generally, the area where the apartments will be located is also taking shape. Again, the access road is thin cork strip, painted with Woodland Scenics concrete colour. We will need to do a little more fixing here, as some of the cork has lifted. The flat area around the flats will be garden and parkland...quite a few trees will be growing here!







Finally, although there are no pictures this week, the decision has been made to electrify the tram line. We'll see if it will be operational by the time of the exhibition in a couple of weeks, but the track has now been wired and a Gaugemaster Shuttle unit dug out in preparation...

[keiman]

Look forward to seeing it in a couple of weeks time.
Also got my copy of Continental Modeller.

[KenS]

Alas, the August issue just showed up this weekend (Barnes and Noble, at least my local one, is slow).  So I'm going to have to wait another month to see it.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Just a brief update this time.

We have more or less completed the area at the front of the layout, which includes the two apartment blocks in a sort of park land. There are still a couple of bits to add, which we shall do next Friday, when the layout is being set up at the show! This involves a couple of trees, and a few extra bushes.



We have also completed the tram line! This is fitted with a shuttle unit, meaning the two trams we have for the line will shuttle back and forth throughout the day with no intervention from us. More pictures will be posted, when we have the layout fully set up.

[keiman]

Looking good, was in the shop today looking at a few bits and pieces ready to buy stuff when we come down(10% discount seems making it worth while).

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Hopefully meet you next week then...

[keiman]

Don't know which day we will be down, If it's fine want to sort out a few things on one of the cars.
Be easy to recognise -probably have a Subaru or Japanese themed top on.
Beard, glasses and thinning hair as well

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I'm sure we will find a way to recognise one another. We will all have name badges anyway - mine being Nick. That said, asking for Claude will be understood!

[keiman]

Nice to meet you today Nick, the layout definately looks better in the flesh.
Been able to see some of the buildings I had wondered about getting and seeing them makes me realise they won't be suitable for my plans.
Keep an eye out for those bits I mentioned.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Thanks Mike...yes it was good to meet.

Comments have been noted, and have been added to the list of various improvements being looked at over the next couple of months.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Finally, after a fairly sizeable gap, I am able post a couple of pictures of the layout at the Gaugemaster show. I have also been able to make a couple of Photoshop changes to the backgrounds on two of them.









I also have some videos, which I will endeavour to upload in the near future...

[quinntopia]

Claude, that looks just awesome!  It keeps looking better and better! Great photos too!  I wish I could've made the Gaugemaster show! Is it me, or are there a lot more shows in the UK than elsewhere?

[KenS]

It keeps looking better (I guess that shouldn't be news by now).  Definitely looking forward to videos.

And good to see the East-i E passing through, on a track inspection no doubt.  One of my favorite trains.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Claude, that looks just awesome!  It keeps looking better and better! Great photos too!  I wish I could've made the Gaugemaster show! Is it me, or are there a lot more shows in the UK than elsewhere?

Thanks...

There are a huge number of shows in the UK. That weekend, for example, there was another show about five miles down the road, plus another large one about 30 miles away - where one of our club's membership had a stall. And that was just in the local area, as simultaneously the big annual N gauge only show was being held up near Birmingham. On average there are a good ten to fifteen shows every weekend here...so plenty of variety to choose from.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

It keeps looking better (I guess that shouldn't be news by now).  Definitely looking forward to videos.

And good to see the East-i E passing through, on a track inspection no doubt.  One of my favorite trains.

Hopefully the videos will be uploaded this week...

Being a recent arrival, I was particularly keen to put the East-i  E through its paces. It is a really nice model.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

First of the videos to be uploaded... This is the East-i E set.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/5hxEPZZBqWI" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/5hxEPZZBqWI</a>

[Bernard]

I'm just going to repeat what everybody else has said but it's been a great experience watching this layout develop through photos, Thanks Claude!

One question, how has the reaction been from visitors and other modelers about the club's layout? (It has to be something that is unique.)

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Anther clip...this time of the tram line.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/eQMocvqz7xU" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/eQMocvqz7xU</a>

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I'm just going to repeat what everybody else has said but it's been a great experience watching this layout develop through photos, Thanks Claude!

One question, how has the reaction been from visitors and other modelers about the club's layout? (It has to be something that is unique.)

Thanks Bernard...

The layout has attracted a lot of comment; particularly pleasing have been positive comments from either visitors from Japan, or people who have lived out there. There are, however, a fair few people who despite plenty of clues do not realise that it is a Japanese layout - might help if I had a pagoda somewhere on the layout! Being designed as an exhibition layout, it it proved popular with the punters for the variety, and frequency, of the trains on the main circuit.

Most interesting though, is the reaction from other modellers. There are positive comments, but the fact it is Japanese seems to be a bit of a turn-off for them. Some are happy to talk about the various techniques involved - which are pretty generic anyway - many just look for a minute or so, and then wander off. As there are so few Japanese layouts on the circuit, I don't think it is being taken seriously as yet. Some of the other layouts out there, while good, do still convey the 'train set' approach - mainly, for example, using the Kato Unitrack. Nothing wrong in that per se, it is extremely reliable, but will always have the limitations of looking like Kato Unitrack, and therefore a little odd when passing through more detailed (dare I say it, grown up) scenery.

That will only really be redressed when there are more Japanese layouts out there; sadly not something I am holding my breath about in the near future.

[KenS]

I don't think I'd ever seen that close-up before.  It looks really good.  Particularly the way the right of way is lower than the grass around the building.  Although rights of way are often elevated for drainage, that's not always true, particularly when running behind buildings, and this just looks "right".

[Bernard]

The layout has attracted a lot of comment; particularly pleasing have been positive comments from either visitors from Japan, or people who have lived out there. There are, however, a fair few people who despite plenty of clues do not realise that it is a Japanese layout - might help if I had a pagoda somewhere on the layout!

Claude - you needed to have Gogi on the layout, then there wouldn't have been any doubt what you were modeling. 

[cteno4]

claude,

we get the same basic reaction to our japanese layout here in DC that you guys get. We are just starting to try to ramp up our scenery to higher levels as our first layout was the temporary setup with the more perceived scenery of a weekend floor layout in japan. i think its a bit out of the box for the local modelers to wrap their brains around, where as the general public usually gets the more exotic, out of the box approach as they dont have a lot of preconceived notions of what rr layouts 'should' be and are do not get the nuanced differences in the local layouts so they all kind of look the same to them.

I think the same goes for the trains and their variety. again the local modelers just think all the really wild and different looking trains are just toys and not real like the local trains are (but really really uniform and usually pretty devoid of much design!)

perhaps some more signs in japanese will help. those are pretty ubiquitous and dense in most every scene in japan! goji always does help, but does go off the more serious modeling side! but we do find goji is a real crowd pleaser and something that orients folks to japan right away! also draws a smirk from even the most serious local modeler usually!

cheers

jeff

[scott]

The layout is really coming along nicely. You guys are making lots of progress.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Another short update...Yamanouchi Oshika is on its travels to another show next month. This time was are representing Japan at the 2012 Eurotrack show near Southampton. It is quite a well-known show in the UK, and will be a great showcase for Japanese N Gauge.

[ia909]

Nick,

Am just booking Hilton Southampton to ensure I'm at the Solent show nice and early.

Greatly looking forward to seeing the layout. Will you be there?

Ian

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Yes, I'll be there both days...see you there!