Modellings tips and answers - Modelling shelters - Videos

This week in history

On the 18th of April 1971, a serious fire at Kentish Town West railway station (London) saw the station close for over a decade. The station eventually  reopened on the 5th of October 1981.

Shelters, kiosks and small huts appear on most layouts, they are amongst the cheapest models you can purchase and are often an early consideration during the construction of a new layout when the budget can be easily swallowed up by trackwork, but, should an adolescent layout's essential space filler be given a little more credibility?

It's true enough we often use smaller structures to temporarily bulk out dioramas until grander alternatives or scenery can be developed, but in a twist of fate, shelters and smaller structures often end up being employed as important finishing touches too, so you should always think very carefully about how your initial small building purchases will fit with your layout's identity as it develops. The good news is, there's a massive choice out there particularly when it comes to small station buildings and shelters. In 00 gauge, station shelters portray all sorts of different styles from old fashioned wooden ones to contemporary glass effects, there are double-sided shelters for island platforms and single-fronted shelters for the solitary platform of a country halt, there are even shelters designed to complement larger structures should you wish to add to your layout as it develops. Whatever your needs, it's worth searching for a shelter that really compliments what you are trying to achieve with your layout.

Away from the station grounds smaller buildings have an even larger role to play. In real life small buildings and shelters are everywhere, but how often do we think to model a public toilet, village forge or a snack bar in a car park or lay-by? A few bus stops dotted here and there or a bus shelter sunk into the hedge of a country lane can make a huge difference to your scene considering the relative size of the model.

Although smaller buildings are often a lightly considered purchase to use up small change or fill a bit of space in the early stages of a layout, their potential as a credible model should not be underestimated, that little humble station shelter could be what defines your station a little further down the line.

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Unboxing videos

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• Wills Kits SS39 Crossing Keeper's Cottage OO/HO Gauge
• Ratio Models 248 Modular Covered Station Footbridge N Gauge
• Kibri 39158 River Passenger Launch OO/HO Gauge
• Wills Kits CK15 Stone Goods Shed Bank and Crane OO/HO Gauge
• Peco KNR-8 15ft Wheelbase Pallet Box Van N Gauge

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