Scaleforum 2013

[Terry Bendall]

No tally of where visitors came from kept but I did talk to two members from Australia, one from Canada and a well know Scottish member living in Aberdeen and working in Azerbaijan who I have seen at every Scaleforum for the last four years. I gather that we also had several visitors from various countries in Europe. There were of course UK based members who had to travel a long way including someone who lives 200 miles north of Glasgow, and one member who travelled from Aberystwyth by train on Saturday morning (7 hours) and then did the return trip in the evening. Such examples tend to put in the shade those who were grumbling about much shorter journeys, but made longer for them by the move to the new location.

Some people may know that on Saturday morning there was a road accident on the M25 in the middle of the morning which closed the M25 between junctions 7 and 8 for several hours. This may have held up some visitors but had we still been at Leatherhead EVERYONE would have been held up.

We don't have the final visitor numbers yet, but it looks like they were down a bit on last year which appears to happen to any show that changes its venue. I know that it happend to ExpoEM when that moved from Bletchly to Bracknell. I do hope that there is no one in the Society who decided not to come simple because of the chnage of location because if you did, you missed a real treat, as several people on here have said already. It would appear that some people found it difficult to find the new venue - perhaps we attracted lots of people who have yet to sample the delights of RailEx. How anyone can miss the brown signs directing vistors to follow the red A&E road signs is beyond me, and in any case I thought I was the only person in the country who did not use a sat nav system. Perhaps next year we will have blimp flying about 200 feet up to show where we are.

I have heard it said that "Its not the same as Leatherhead." No it wasn't - it was MUCH better ( ) and we would not have been able to fit in three large layouts, and the smaller ones, and the test track, and the additional traders and the extra demonstrations, and the wide gangways without the extra space that we now have.

So now we sort out all the things that need to be done after the show, put the quipment back in store and do the accounts - and then we think about next year and we have some special things lined up for that as well.

But was it the best Scaleforum ever?

Terry Bendall

[martinm]

Congratulations to all concerned with the show - the organizers, the exhibitors and the stewards.
Most importantly, some really good modelling was on show, just the inspiration we need.
An excellent show; more space for layouts and, perhaps more importantly, for demonstrators. Despite the extra space around the stands, they all seemed just as busy.
The extra space also seemed to encourage the small 'en passant' discussions, without impeding the normal flow around the show.
The coach from the station was good, though seemed underused, perhaps the railway was responsible for that?
I'm already looking forward to next year, what will we be offered then? - 'special things' sounds promising!
martin

[decauville1126]

Putting together a show of this magnitude is a major exercise, so all credit to those who slave tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure that it all goes well on the day.

It seemed more spacious than Leatherhead, which in turn was just so over City university days! What would have been nice was a few chairs here and there to allow those of us burdened-down with purchases to sort ourselves out and rest our weary feet. Posted pics do tend to show an ageing-male demographic ( and I'm one of them!) at the show.
Also handy to sit and grab a bite to eat but there may be restrictions on food consumption in the hall?

I've seen some gripe about the parking but a few minutes on Google Streetview showed that within a short walk to the east of the railway under the bridge there was oodles.

There are many comments on various forums which all reflect personal tastes and thoughts but which sometime overlook that P4 is a niche interest. And that is where the demonstrations spring to the fore to tilt towards the practical.

They provide face-to-face contact to show and discuss aspects, problems, solutions, or just provide the inspiration to try. I very much enjoyed Jonathan Hall's resin demo and as someone who has tried but not got very far in this practice will now give it another go. This is where Scaleforum can score heavily by inspiring.

The test track courtesy of the Risborough club was an excellent idea and I found it very useful - thanks to Ant and his colleagues.

But my final thought is that I'm pleased that the earnings from the venue go either directly or indirectly to benefit a worthy organisation.

[the fatadder]

Really good show, well worth the 2 hour drive.
Layouts were impressive as ever, and the trade had almost everything I needed.
The scrum on the second hand stall remains one of the worst I've seen (though worth it for the bargains, getting home to find a wagon kit had wheels and buffers worth the price alone was very pleasing, as was getting the Akins et al gw wagon book for the princely sum of £6

The best bit for me was Brian's lathe demo, and letting me have a go with it turning down some wheels. A lathe is now on the birthday list for my 30th next year...
Other than that it was good to catch up with people I've not seen in ages, and get inspired by some great modelling.

Thanks to terry and all the volunteers for putting on such a great show!

[gavin]

Just to say - an absolutely wonderful event as usual. Thank you very much to all those who put the effort in to organise it, wherever it is
Gavin Clark

[Tim V]

Back very tired from demonstrating at the show (no EM at S4M was on my placard...). I didn't get much chance to look around the show, but it looked good.

I was concerned that it didn't feel like Scaleforum, it felt like Railex. Same venue, same accommodation, same food, same pub in evening.

But then there was a large discussion about “standards” among a group of members, and suddenly it DID feel like Scaleforum. A members show, not a general exhibition. So it ticked the boxes.

On the subject of how far people travelled, one person had travelled up on both of the two days from Dorset. I did hear about one person who was moaning how he had travelled a long way – all the way from Slough. At 27 miles, a tad less than some of our Australian members who'd travelled 12,000 miles.

[David Bigcheeseplant]

It was weird being at Stoke Mandeville Stadium and it not being Railex, Things seems to run ok although I did notice a break of power to the centre islands a couple of times on the Saturday, At Railex we try to ensure that the three ring mains that the power is taken from is equally worked out so one is not over loaded.

I am sure next year there will be changes on how things are done, but we have nine years of running Railex and know the things that are likely to crop up, maybe be some more tables in the exibitors cafe area would have been good, and getiing the floor marked out with tables and chairs in the correct areas before traders and layouts are let in does same a lot of hassle.

As we were leaving a was asked if I had far to go home, about half a mile down the road was my answer!

[Paul Willis]

It was weird being at Stoke Mandeville Stadium and it not being Railex, Things seems to run ok although I did notice a break of power to the centre islands a couple of times on the Saturday, At Railex we try to ensure that the three ring mains that the power is taken from is equally worked out so one is not over loaded.

I am sure next year there will be changes on how things are done, but we have nine years of running Railex and know the things that are likely to crop up, maybe be some more tables in the exibitors cafe area would have been good, and getiing the floor marked out with tables and chairs in the correct areas before traders and layouts are let in does same a lot of hassle.

Thanks very much for the feedback David. Much appreciated.

We will definitely deal with these points next year so that it is an even better experience than 2013. And I've very pleased that the trip home was a convenient one for you

I suspect that like this year, the TT 2014 on the Isle of Man will interfere with my plans to be at the next Railex. However I know that it will be another great show, and enjoyed by all that attend.

Cheers
Paul Willis
Deputy Chairman

[Eastern]

I'd like to add my thanks to the organisers. I thoroughly enjoyed the show. Saw some very good layouts with some inspirational modelling.

As usual I spent more than intended, but got some good bargains from the Bring and Buy. Now I have to do some more work myself!

Had a brief chat with Paul Willis/Will Litchfield while examining Paul's Y14 Chassis.

The venue is good, if more difficult to get to for me. There were clearly some problems for several traders who found their card machines wouldn't connect (including the Stores) and as some one mentioned there was at least one loss of power in the centre of the hall. Teething troubles aside, it was well organised.

I can't wait until next year!

[Paul Townsend]

Pretty tired but very contented this a.m., still got to unload the car!
I found it an excellent show in a good, really well lit venue.
Easier to get to from Bristol than Leatherhead and better accessible pubs on way home.
Lunch on Sunday was much better than Saturday...just as it should be.

Having worked the Broad Gauge Society stall for two successive years, it was great for the BGS, good for me too, so ta to my four helpers.

Well done Terry, only minor glitches in a well organised event, astonishing with all the new challenges the team must have had to face.

Excellent system of stewards managing the unload/reloads.

Next year when I will have to pay to get in it will be perfect!

[David Bigcheeseplant]

Even though I only had under a mile to get home, I did have to drive to Didcot and unload the Wild Swan stand got back to the stadium at 7.30 so Kevin who was also with Wild Swan could pick his car up.

The hall is a metal box so the signal for card machines does depend on the possition and network used.

I did notice a few people dragging tables over the floor at breakdown, the stadium tries and protect the floor and does instructs us to lift and not drag stuff to keep it ok, they do provide mats to ensure these go under metal legs of stands to reduce point loads.

I understand the dinner on Saturday was not the best, although the pub is the closest to were I lived for the last fifteen years I have not eaten there, and if Terry had asked I may have suggested a better venue.

I hope that enough people came to break even as I know the costs involved in running Railex, as its not the basic cost of hall hire but the add ons that ramp the price up.

[Paul Willis]

The hall is a metal box so the signal for card machines does depend on the position and network used.

Yes, there were several trips that I saw from traders (and our very own Membership Secretary) out through the doors to wave a card machine in the air. I also made the trip with my laptop for a couple of Templot demonstrations, as the latest (and free, don't forget) versions have to "phone home" when you start it.

I do have an idea or two about how this could be resolved with the use of technology. For Railex, have you explored the idea of a local relay station for the signal to trunk it into the outside world?

I did notice a few people dragging tables over the floor at breakdown, the stadium tries and protect the floor and does instructs us to lift and not drag stuff to keep it ok, they do provide mats to ensure these go under metal legs of stands to reduce point loads.

We'll speak to the hall management about those, as I'm not aware that anyone mentioned it to us as an issue or as an aid during the preliminaries. Obviously we don't want to upset them in the slightest, as I had nothing but helpfulness from the hall staff all weekend.

I understand the dinner on Saturday was not the best, although the pub is the closest to were I lived for the last fifteen years I have not eaten there, and if Terry had asked I may have suggested a better venue.

Never mind. You live, you learn. The pub clearly oversold their ability to deliver food en masse and it was initially selected on the basis of convenience for those stopping near the show, after a long day. The atmosphere was certainly chatty during the meal, even if that itself was protracted.

We won't repeat that experience next year, and may try something different. Your idea of fish and chip deliveries on Friday evening was truly excellent, and for those of us that overlooked partaking in it definitely had rumbling stomachs from the delicious aromas. I nearly stole some of Jeremy's chips!

I hope that enough people came to break even as I know the costs involved in running Railex, as its not the basic cost of hall hire but the add ons that ramp the price up.

We had a drop in attendance year-on-year, as all shows seem to do when they move.

The much more important thing is that it was an excellent show, in a great venue, and that putting on Scaleforum and Scalefour North each year are one part of the package of benefits for members to help and inspire them in their modelling. In that regard, the Society shows are priceless.

Cheers
Paul

[Philip Hall]

I would like to add my appreciation of what perhaps was the best Scaleforum ever. I too had a few lingering doubts about the 'atmosphere thing', but once we were open, it very definitely was Scaleforum, not Railex or any other show. The extra space was great - at one point I was standing in the middle of an aisle with the camera on a tripod talking to Terry Bendall, and he commented that we couldn't have done that at Leatherhead without clogging the whole thing up.

A comment was made about having some chairs in the hall which is a very good idea. However, I think we had every spare chair in the place put out! At one point on Friday evening Will Litchfield and I were struggling to find enough for all the stands until another cupboard revealed itself (right behind Cheltenham Models, who were very helpful even though they were half set up). Even then, the few spares we had were quickly snapped up. Maybe there might be some more available somewhere we didn't know about.

It was quite some achievement to mastermind the move to a new venue, so I think we owe Terry a tremendous vote of thanks for all his hard work, not just in the organisation but in the lugging about of all the paraphernalia - and in bringing a lovely layout as well for us to enjoy.

Philip

[PeteScR]

Big thanks to Terry and his team for an excellent Scaleforum. We (DEFine) were doing the D&E demoing and were delighted at the response we got with people stopping by and chatting about our D&E projects and theirs.
With regards to the meal, we had a great time which proves that if you are in good company and having a laugh then that's what is important.
Well done to everyone who contributed to the event!

Pete

[Philip Hall]

I have just been reminded of something which was a result of my using, for most of the 'candid' pictures, my wife's little lime green camera. I was about to start taking the pictures of the presentations when Iain Rice leaned over and said "I refuse to have my picture taken with a camera that colour..." Maybe he didn't notice that I carried all the gear into the show with one of her suitcases, also bright lime green....

Philip

[Will L]

Not sure I'm an expert on the quality of Scalefora but that one was fun, even if the feet hurt by the end of the second day.

It was all a very pleasant reminder that this isn't just a great Model Raillery show, its also a significant social event, with various random groups of like-minds springing up in odd corners and putting the model railway world to rights.

I'm please to be able to report that Terry was seen to by smiling by mid way through the Sunday afternoon, which I took as a good sign, though whether the smile survived having to unload that large van load of stuff when he got home is another question. As a hobby,I suspect organising exhibitions is up there with banking your head on the wall (lovely when it stops). I think the thanks we owe Terry know no bounds.

The expectation was that those of us appointed to spend our time behind the society stand could expect to get some input from the "we prefer Leatherhead tendency", but I'm happy to report only one such while I was at my post.

Random point of interest from a weekend shared with Flymo's big read ball, (photographic evidence provided),

scalef 1.jpg

I did spot one interesting insight into the layout hight debate

scalef 2.jpg

and the fact that if you've met Knuckles your going to recognise his dad.

Will

[jim s-w]

I thought it was good too and a lot less stuffy than leatherhead. The atmosphere that everyone seems to rave about at the old venue always seemed awful to me and at least to my mind reinforced the stuffy outdated atmosphere that the society has tried so hard to dispell. (I only ever paid to get into leatherhead once, all other visits were as an exhibitor)

My only gripe is that the gents who kindly did parking duties needed to actually tell people what to do rather than just standing arround expecting to be asked.

Comparisons with railex are inevitable but let's face it, once actually in the show it's just a typical generic sports hall so it could be compared to any number of other shows in that regard.

Looking forward to next year.

Jim

[Rod Cameron]

Excellent show, congratulations to all concerned. DRAG was as usual out in force, with a 75% attendance.

I've put some snaps on RMWeb over three posts starting here:

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index. ... try1175172

Here's some of them

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[Terry Bendall]

I understand the dinner on Saturday was not the best, although the pub is the closest to were I lived for the last fifteen years I have not eaten there, and if Terry had asked I may have suggested a better venue.

Funny that. The suggestion for the pub that we used came from someone called David Lane who lives in Aylesbury.

Of course the delay in serving the meal was of no concern to the visitors.

Terry Bendall

[sammakins]

Hi everyone,
Visited Scaleforum on the Saturday and had a great time. One thing that jumped out at me was DRAG's scenic diorama. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of it and I cant remember its name! Does anyone know if there's any pics of it online or did anyone get any they could send me? I'm determined to show my dad!!
Cheers
Sam

[David Bigcheeseplant]

The blub below is from the info sheet I send out to Railex exhibitors and traders regarding the Aristocrat

The Aristocrat is a Fullers pub and offers London Pride. On Friday night there is usually a good live band in the function room at the rear although it can get busy, if you want to sit and chat the other pubs are better!

I must admit the first year we did a Saturday night social there were a few hickups but in the following years things went really well.

A tip from Railex when marking the floor tape a sheet of paper to the floor with the confirmed info on the stand ie: Stand name, number of tables booked, number of chairs booked if power is required this is very helpful if something needs to be checked and helps those putting out the tables and chairs plus those doing the electrics.

When I went for something to eat on the Sunday the cafe had run out of chips and were serving hash brown instead, Adele the cateering manager remarked they had got through sixty bags of chips, which they don't get near on a Railex weekend which gets close to 3000 visitors!

I have not missed a Scalefourum since I joined in the early eighties and the venue was the City University (I expect many remember Jo Palmer with her tea trolly back then), each venue seemed to have it own sort of atmosphere and it always takes a while to get used to a change, Stoke Mandeville does offer the space to do possibly anything you want to do at a model railway exhibition.

[David B]

One thing that jumped out at me was DRAG's scenic diorama. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of it and I cant remember its name! Does anyone know if there's any pics of it online or did anyone get any they could send me? I'm determined to show my dad!!

Not DRAG's but John Farmer's, DRAG diehard. I shall risk EditorJames' wrath in posting this image of Netherhope.

Apologies (especially to John) - I mis-named the diorama and image. I have corrected the name in the line above.

Nettlehope 1a.jpg

[Rod Cameron]

Hi everyone,
Visited Scaleforum on the Saturday and had a great time. One thing that jumped out at me was DRAG's scenic diorama. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of it and I cant remember its name! Does anyone know if there's any pics of it online or did anyone get any they could send me? I'm determined to show my dad!!
Cheers
Sam

Some more here Sam http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index. ... hope-halt/ - also the tree interior photo above.

It's called Netherhope, based on a former halt in the Wye Valley north of Chepstow.

[Horsetan]

.....When I went for something to eat on the Sunday the cafe had run out of chips and were serving hash brown instead, Adele the cateering manager remarked they had got through sixty bags of chips, which they don't get near on a Railex weekend which gets close to 3000 visitors!.....

Maybe Scaleforum attendees are just more determined to eat less healthily......

[Lord Colnago]

OK, now its the Chairman's turn to have his say.

Firstly, let me say that I had a thoroughly good time ALL weekend and even the required Sunday morning recovery period was fairly easy! Whether the new venue was a factor or not, I couldn't say but my wallet wasn't so much emptied as torn to shreds.

I found the extra space available made for a stress-free atmosphere and as has been commented elsewhere, one could have a conversation mid-gangway and not foul up free passage for everyone.

This year, I was asked to judge the Chairman's Cup and Armchair Modeller's Challenge, along with Iain Rice. I was pleased to note that several classification winners were much younger than myself, which I found encouraging as it will be this next generation of modellers that secure our future as a Society. Unfortunately, we did not have very many entries to judge and it does seem that there has been a long term downward trend when it come to the number of entries. On the other hand, the standard of some of the models put into the display case was right up there and its interesting to ponder on why such obviously talented modellers didn't feel the need to enter the competitions. Food for thought.

Lastly, I would like to join everyone who has kindly taken the time to express their thanks to all those involved in the running of the show. We had some truly excellent layouts, our demonstrators imparted much useful information and as far as I know, most traders went home happy, having done good business. Finally, a special mention to Terry for all his efforts to put on a terrific show, which has plainly been enjoyed by the vast majority who came, and for managing the smooth transition from one venue to another. As always I feel inspired after Scaleforum and this year is no exception so its off to the workbench now.

John Chambers.