Aberdeen Model Railway Exhibition
This was my first year attending the annual Aberdeen Model Railway Club exhibition, held at RGU Sport in Garthdee. The event was very good, with a wide variety of layouts, trade stands and other forms of modelling well represented.
It’s a good number of years since I last went along to a model railway show (we used to go along to both York and Darlington quite regularly) and it was interesting to see what has changed (lots more digital control and effects) and what remains the same (trains still derail and points don’t work when required). With my height advantage I was able to get to good views into some of the marshalling yards, something that was always a bit mysterious when I was smaller.
The layouts covered the popular gauges with both OO and N well represented, and there was a good mix of modern image and period settings. Probably the most delightful layout was that of the Isle of Man railway. Handcrafted steam trains running on methylated spirit ran on a track that wound its way between bright yellow gorse and red stone walls.
There was also a fun set based in Switzerland with numerous levels and trains seemingly running continuously. Elsewhere Aberdeen MRC were conspicuous by their plethora of Apple devices controlling the fully digital Caley Junction and East Neuk’s impressive Law Junction held plenty of interest with long freight trains rumbling along. There was a lot of careful shunting going on at Dunbusin (Moray MRG) and Wilberforce Junction (Perth MRC) was busy with classic British Rail Class 37s thundering away on mixed freight duty.
I must have spent a couple of hours just wandering around and enjoying the layouts; a remarkably therapeutic way to spend a bitterly cold October afternoon.