Print a wall

Joshua's train set is getting regular use, but he's keen for it to look more realistic - which means finding ways to hide the plywood and gaping holes between the levels. There's a lot of board to cover, and very specific size gaps to fill, so the Scalescenes retaining wall and tunnel mouth kits seemed the best option - as being economic and flexible. I printed out a couple of copies of each, bought a sheet of mounting card, and made a start at the front of the layout where the tracks pass by the high level station.

The Scalescenes prints give an excellent finish - the colouring and detail is spot on. I used a laser printer which I think gives a more robust (damp and light proof) finish, albeit slightly shiny - though a coat of matt varnish could address that. However what you really get is a kit to make a kit - the print-outs need sticking to card and carefully cutting out before even starting assembly. This all takes time, is rather fiddly - and I'm never sure what glue to use. PVA can cause wrinkling, so I use Pritt-Stick on the sheets of paper - but it really isn't very sticky and can lift at the edges.

The benefit is the freedom to adapt the kits. For example the set-track curves and track spacing, combined with the overhang of modern coaches like this Voyager, meant the tunnel openings had to be much wider than any of the suggested shapes. No problem - though I was running out of space to fit a large enough opening, so it is rather tight...

At the other end the loop off the inner track cuts acutely under the station, making a very tricky spot to present realistically. I found some Wills vari-girder mouldings in the bits box, which made up a suitable looking beam. Supports, walls, and parapets were made up to fit and dressed with the Scalescenes prints to match the walls. The result works well, although the Voyager won't clear that innermost track!

Thus the front of the layout looks much more realistic and is a good spot to watch trains go by. Now this is a train-set and is to be played with, so I haven't taken as much care in places that I could of to get edges sharp and disguise paper and card corners. However it's still taken me a good few weeks, on and off, to complete this 4-foot long wall and three tunnel openings, but there's a lot more of the layout needing walls and three more tunnels. I think I'm going to have to think of some short-cuts!