My old layouts.

[Paddy Mac Namara]

I hope this might of interest to new and old modellers alike to show how the “addiction”…oops sorry… hobby progresses. Below are photos of my old layouts.(I remembered I had them on photobucket) some of them featured on the old forum.

I suppose as for most of us my first layout started with a Hornby starter set when I was around twelve (cue barrys tea ad). By the time I was 16, it had progressed to a double track layout (I think) on an 8 x 4 chipboard in my bedroom, I had some station buildings and a couple of locos. I remember I used to buy track directly from Hornby with postal orders…..aah remember the days before ebay.

Anyway it wasn’t girls or cars that distracted me from the hobby but we moved house, and there wasn’t enough room for it, I managed to sell the layout to a rather unpleasant man.

So fast forward to 1999 and my wife (oh how naive of her) bought me a flying scotsmans set. Set it up and played with it a bit…but had no permanent space for it (the ankle biters had arrived). Until 2004 when I got my shed/office in the garden.

So 1st layout was around 2006, 2nd 2007 around this time the kids were getting curious so I built them (me) a layout to keep them away from mine. 3rd layout around started around 2008 and completed 2010.

Now in 2010 I started playing golf, which in itself does not interfere with modelling time as I usually prefer to model during the winter evenings, but it does distract one and can be and is very time consuming (wasting?)….so in 2014 I was able to start the process of devoting the entire office space to a layout… just took a bit of time dismantling the old layout and sorting things out before I could start on the new one and that’s where I am now….

1st layout

2nd layout

3rd layout

[Paddy Mac Namara]

and last one kids layout

[jhb171achill]

Fascinating! A great way to show how the hobby develops. Wish I had photos of mine going back to age 12 but I have NONE of the first, its extension, the second, third and fourth.

 

Hopefully soon No. 5 May feature. Plans in hand.

[Noel]

That's a marvellous series of layouts and photos. Love it. You must have had so much fun with those layouts and the children growing up with model trains.

[Paddy Mac Namara]

Thanks for comments guys. I think my favourite is 2nd layout, goods yard terminus with loop under the "mountain". Kinda sorry now i dismantled it.

[roxyguy]

Lovely to see those pictures. You get a great sense of enjoyment from looking at them.