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Overhead illusions

July 27, 2023 1:15 pm

There’s no overhead wire – but for me, that’s a compromise worth accepting to maintain excellent access to the track and trains below.

Everything we do in this hobby involves compromises. I was reminded of this earlier this year as I struggled with the question of overhead wire for my layout depicting the Niagara St. Catharines & Toronto Railway in S scale.

But where to compromise, and by how much, depends on each modeller’s priorities.

Legendary layout designer John Armstrong recognized this when he included two measures of relative emphasis as part of his “Givens & Druthers” planning exercise:

An example of Givens & Druthers, from The Classic Layout Designs of John Armstrong (Kalmbach, 2001).

John’s two sliding scales clearly illustrate two balancing acts the layout builder must undertake. For example, if the modeller fills the given space with track, to emphasize operation, there will be less available space for scenic elements around the track.

My previous S scale layout, Port Rowan, emphasized scenic realism by choosing a modest prototype terminal to model in my space and filling the space around the track with orchards, meadows, trees, and other non-railroad elements. As a consequence, operation was minimal.

Related to this, Jonathan Jones wrote an excellent feature in Model Railroad Planning 2023 about establishing hierarchies of importance for the various elements that go into a layout. He pointed out that if everything is important, then nothing is important. While Jonathan was referring to visual presentation, I realized hierarchies also apply to the Relative Emphasis sliding scales that John used: these scales could be created to assess any issue where compromise is required.

For me, the balance was between 1) building full overhead wire to maximize scenic realism, and 2) being able to reliably access track and equipment for maintenance, to maximize reliable operation. I opted for “2”, and have included only minimal wire above the tracks for my NS&T car barn layout.

But I also did some things to help convey the illusion of full overhead – as I explain in the August, 2023 issue of Railroad Model Craftsman magazine:

The article begins on Page 70.

I also have a product review on page 28 of this issue, in which I discuss the variable speed disc sander released earlier this year by Byrnes Model Machines. I’ve had this machine for several months now and it’s a joy to use.

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Posted by Trevor

Categories: Achievable Layouts, Influences, Layouts I have designed or built, Niagara St Catharines & Toronto Railway in 1:64, Publications, Railroad Model Craftsman, Workshop

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