Creating your own backscene

[bulleidboy]

The lift-up section, which houses the Manydown branchline, ends up against a wood-chipped wall. I found a picture of a dis-used line (track lifted) with the old track bed heading under a bridge, which I placed at the end of the line - it is in black and white (I printed it this way), really to see if it was a possibility? Any thoughts - and have you done this? Printed in colour, and with a few bushes/trees it might look ok? There are lots of similar images on Google.

IMG_1100 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[RogerB]

Looks just the job Barry. R-

[Steve M]

Barry, you just triggered my OCD!
Could you skew the perspective slightly to make the tracks line up a little better?
That will look very good.

[Walkingthedog]

That definitely works Barry.

[RogerB]

Barry, you just triggered my OCD!

Blimey, a fellow sufferer. R-

[bulleidboy]

I'm not sure - it seemed a good idea, but there is only about half an inch between the end of the lift-up section (behind the buffers) and the wall - so not a lot of room to play with. Also the picture is landscape A4, and I really need a picture twenty five inches wide and about seventeen inches high. The lift-up section rests on a length of 2x1 screwed to the wall. The lack of depth means it will/would be difficult to place bushes/trees to give the depth to the scene. The other idea would be to run Metcalfe Retaining wall along the wall with perhaps a tunnel entrance behind the buffers with a picture behind the tunnel portal - maybe a picture looking into a short tunnel? Whatever I do, it will not be ideal, as the car park/station entrance is going to stop dead up against a wall. Not the best picture, but it shows the wall I'm trying to lose.

IMG_0612 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[Hound Dog]

And here was me thinking that it was only my layout that consisted of a multitude of compromises - LOL....... I have great faith however, that whichever direction you choose, it will end up looking as fab as the rest of your layout.

Cheers Richard

[Steve M]

Barry, if you move your photo to the left it would look as though the track under the bridge lead to the car park. If you can find other photos to fit either side you could give the impression that the rails and the TT are adjacent to woods or a rock face.
By layering photos after sticking them to mountboard you would create a 3D effect. I think there’s a layout on the forum that has used the technique recently.
All you have to do is find the photos.

[bulleidboy]

I'm having second thoughts (always a worry ) - I might put a length of Metcalfe Stone retaining wall with the backs of two recesses cut out (vehicle access to the car park), and a tunnel entrance behind the buffers. I have already positioned the correct sized card against the woodchip, which will have a backscene glued to it. I'll probably have "third" thoughts

[Mountain Goat]

I think the idea is an excellent one. Shame you can't find a pic of a dissused bridge or tunnel that was abandoned to give an excuse as to why the line no longer went any further. A tunnel is probably easier as quite a few lines were closed from the Beeching era onwards due to this and even before. I am thinking of a line somewhere in the upper Neath valleys which was closed in 1974 as it had subsidence issues, and also in the Beeching era when they were going to close the Heart Of Wales line and only keep the lower end to save money but the tunnel at Strata Florida collapsed so the cost of repairs meant that they closed the Carmarthen to Aberystwyth line instead which is a shame because that line used to provide a direct rail link between North and South Wales where the Heart Of Wales line did not.

A tunnel mouth with a small viaduct in front of it where the line in front of the buffers is stopped short of such an obsticle is an idea?

The good thing about having an abandoned line is that it gives the illusion of space.

Actually if the track where the buffers are is curved slightly it will line up with the picture better.