Albury held its annual exhibition at the end of May and it was very enjoyable. I am amazed at the quality of the rtr Australian models now available and it is pleasing to see that Australian prototype layouts are now the norm. Unfortunately I forgot my camera but I remembered it for the Epping clubs exhibition at Thornleigh over the long weekend.
Again it was great to see so many Australian prototype layouts and the quality of the layouts was exceptional. I have heard a lot of good things about the 7mm scale standard gauge layout Arakoola and it didn't disappoint. I liked the photo backdrop and the size of the models.If I ever decide to model something other than narrow gauge I will give 7mm standard gauge a lot of consideration. I have spent the last few days pondering if I have enough space for an interchange between the Bogong & Geehi and the NSWGR, but I don't think I have enough room unless I redesign the layout.
There were lots of excellent HO layouts but unfortunately most of my photos aren't good enough to show. This photo of Wyee shows the quality of modelling on display. Ray Pilgrims blog Bylong has some good photos of the show.
The only narrow gauge layout was exhibited by Geoff Nott. It is always inspiring seeing Geoff's work and makes me want to get into modelling some scenery on my own layout
Geoff and friends ran clinics all weekend showing the modellers of the future how much fun building scenery can be.
It has been worthwhile for me visiting these two exhibitions even if I didn't see many On30 layouts. I find exhibitions thought provoking and they help me to work out what aspects of the hobby that motivate me. Not only have I caught up with lots of people I haven't seen for awhile but I have been inspired to get working on the layout and to try and lift my standard of modelling to somewhere closer to what I saw.
Cheers
Murray
