A Bowaters Layout

In my last post I mentioned I'd got a book on the Bowaters railway of Sittingbourne, inspired by my friend Rob who plans to model this line in 009. I've been looking through the pictures and soaking up the atmosphere of this characterful line, I knew little of it before but now I can see why Rob has been inspired to capture the system in model form.

Now Rob has started his own Blog to chronicle the planning and building of his model. Although he had ideas of a large layout of the whole system in his garage, he has now decided to start small and build a series of modules, and has a plan for the first one. Each can be a complete, operational, and exhibitable layout in it's own right, but together a picture of the whole system will be built up. I think this is a great idea as like me, Rob has work and family commitments for his time, but the modular approach means a completed layout will be achieved sooner. Also the models will not claim to be accurate renditions of exact spots - without a lot of space and time that would be impossible - but will aim to capture recognisable features and the character of the locations. I can't wait to see this layout progress!

If you have enjoyed seeing Rob's work with an airbrush and paintbrush, he has set up another Blog to showcase his talents in this area, and is open to commissions for both painting and kit-building.