Size matters!

Having printed out a full-size track plan a few days ago, I've spent quite a few idle moments since just staring at it, laid out on the floor, wondering whether this or that siding has enough space between it and the next, etc! Actually, my main concern was whether the whole thing was just too small to be able to get away with modelling a convincing scene.

Last night I decided to do some comparisons, with my all-time favourite layout, Hursley, using the track plan in MRJ. Now Hursley was (is?? I've no idea if it's still in existence) modelled in 7mm scale, so I needed to do some maths to scale the plan down to 4mm scale. After a bit of mental juggling I came to the startling and rather pleasing conclusion that Hursley would, if modelled in 4mm scale, occupy a space almost identical to the size of my new layout - give or take a few inches. I'd been expecting it to be quite a bit larger, given that the photos convey quite a spacious feeling.

I know this all sounds quite uneccesary and over the top, but its so difficult to gauge size and scale until you actually see something in 3D. A track plan, while fine for measuring clearances etc, still doesn't give a very accurate feel for how it will look when built. So to be able to see another layout (or photos of it) that is (albeit in a smaller scale) roughly the same size, helps greatly.

(The keen-eyed among you - and those who are familiar with Hursley - will get no prizes for noticing the very striking similarity in track plan between my layout design and Hursley. Think what you will of it!)