gambort

I suggest going to RAILBRICKS and looking through their instructions section before buying any instructions. If the model you want is there, then the eBay seller is probably stealing it. So you get instructions for free from RAILBRICKS and do not support dishonest sellers. Tim

Masterful. Blogged.

Thanks again everyone. Actually it would be two large investments. More seriously there's actually less brick there than you might expect (although still a lot). There's a lot of baseplate on show cunningly disguised. I'd guesstimate there's probably 10-15k pieces there. Tim

^ Thanks for the kind words. Very much obliged. We now have the honour of being front-paged here, on RAILBRICKs and on TBB (which is kind cheating) :)

Thanks for noticing that. We have adapted various "real" model railroading techniques for this layout. The cloth allows the free form shape that allows us to work at more angles more easily.

Thanks everyone. It was great fun making this. Tim

At this year's Brickvention I once again had the pleasure to team up with the very talented Mike Pianta (scruffulous) for a town/train diorama. Like last year's Ararat we went for a rural Australian town theme, and again set it in 1972 to maximise our building fun. This time we chose Elmore for its distinctive train station. You can find many more pictures by some wonderful photographers at the convention in the layout's flickr group. While we'd learnt a lot from the previous year this one presented new challenges. Not least for me how to bring large buildings in my aeroplane luggage. And for Mike how to assemble large base segments without ever getting a chance to see them all together. Luckily we were able to overcome the challenges and I'm very happy with how it turned out. Apparently the TLG judges were too as we were honoured to be awarded Best in Show.

Hehe. I think that was my fault and it was an accident. I think of '"real" model train' as meaning '"real" model railroad' and answered the second question. But of course this is not true. But we probably all agree that it _can_ be either. Tim

We have winners!. And thanks to everyone who entered. It was great to see so many excellent models inspired by the best Ideas Book ever. Tim

Our opinion counts, but doesn't answer the original question IMO. And to be add a little more detail to my original response I do consider plenty of LEGO train MOCs to be "real" model rail. My response is a bit of both: On the one hand I think it does summarise what is required to have LEGO trains considered as more "serious" or "real". If you flick through the pages of a model rail magazine you rarely see layouts that don't have a lot of attention put into the off-the-rail bits. Certainly that, and non-orthogonality, are the main differences I notice from most LEGO layouts. On the other hand it is also my perspective on what I want out of a LEGO layout. I want a LEGO layout that looks like a "real" model rail layout made from bricks. But I've never been keen on saying what others should or shouldn't do. Tim

'Model', 'LEGO model' and '"real" model train' are three different classes of things. The question is not "are LEGO models classed as models" or "are LEGO models "real" model trains to their creators" but "are LEGO trains classed as "real" model trains". This implies a (somewhat) consensual position by the "real" model railroading community. You can call things whatever you please. As can I. But I'm pretty sure my view is probably closer to that of most model railroaders than yours is. Although I may very well be wrong. Tim

You can interpret answers how you like, but I was responding to the original question: Are LEGO trains classed aw "real" model trains? Which has nothing to do with how good or bad LEGO models are, but what they should be considered to be. It takes a lot more time and a lot more work to achieve a realistic standard in LEGO since every element needs to be made from scratch. In my opinion that extra time is required for me to consider a LEGO layout a model train layout. YMMV. Tim

Yes but how often is a LEGO train of the same standard? There are plenty which are better and more accurate (IMO) than many HO kits, but the lower quality kits are often used only in the context of a layout. Obviously we're never going to be able to get to the detail level of, say, a good O gauge layout. But in principle the same standards as N should be doable. Tim

To me it's an important distinction. Even a lower-quality model rail display is generally more 'realistic' than a higher-quality LEGO one. Whether or not you care about this is a different matter. But I reckon most model rail hobbyists do. Tim

I'm going to throw some controversy here: I think that most LEGO layouts are not 'model rail', but I think that LEGO can and sometimes is be used for 'model rail'. To be more precise I think that an important aspect of 'model rail' is the 'model' side. It's not just the trains that represent reality, it's the landscaping, geometry, buildings, vehicles and other accessories. To have a true 'model railway' you need to have a good go at most of these elements. The same attention paid to the trains must be paid to the cars, the trees, the roads etc. Most LEGO layouts don't go this far. But a very few do :) I'll not exaggerate the controversy by linking to those I believe meet the criteria. Tim

Whoops. Just realised I forgot to post a 'contest is closed and thanks to all entrants" so... Contest is closed and many thanks to all entrants. Loads of great entries. Judging might be a little slow given that one of the judges has just had a new baby, but we'll let you know as soon as we can. Tim

There's about 38hours to go on this contest. So don't get confused about dates :) Tim

^^ Excellent to hear :) Concrete Rail Bridge by gambort, on Flickr And there's another example entry from me. Tim

I confess I've not read all this thread but... You can download a PDF with all of the specs for the PFS control commands from... somewhere. I'd guess Philo probably has it and if not knows where to get it. Might be useful for you. Tim Bingo. http://www.philohome.com/pf/LEGO_Power_Functions_RC_v110.pdf

David tweaked the instructions quite a bit to make it buildable so these are the 'official' instructions for it. My original MPD had many mistakes. Tim

I hope it's acceptable to bump this thread to remind everyone that there is only one month left on this contest. There was a lot of interest here but so far not many entries. I'm hoping to see that remedied ;) Tim

Great character on all of the figs. Very nice work. Tim

You'll note that HoMa is using Big Bens Bricks medium drivers in that which are a much more appropriate size and might work better with the PFS since you get a shorter wheelbase. Personally I've always stuck to motorising a carriage for my steamers in general. Aside from allowing me to make them look better, it also means they can be 9V or PFS which is useful for me. Of course I'm a 6w/7w builder and fitting a 3x3x6 M motor in something that small is all but impossible. If you're building 8w you'll have more space to play with. All that said I have been trying to work out how to do exactly what you're hoping to do. If I have any great ideas I'll pass them on. Tim

I've kept the below general as I avoid commenting on contest entries until the contest is over. So don't be offended that I've ignored the model. It's purposeful :) For public benefit I will say you've definitely got the idea of what we want for the contest. Fancier than a modern set and looks like it would fit in the 7777 book. I'll add one other thing: the colours certainly don't have to match with 7777. It's totally awesome having all the new colours for buildings (tan, dark red, sand green etc.) and I'm very happy for people to use them. Tim

Hi all, I just blogged something relevant to this. If you're planning to build an entry for this contest I suggest you check it out. It seems to me that there's some misinformation floating around over what is an acceptable technical level and I hope this goes some way to clarifying details. Tim