Creative Dioramas with Don Gray
When you start creating your own model railway layout or diorama, there are decisions to make. Like whether to copy an existing railway or build a completely fictional railway. Which rolling stock will you include, and what scale will you start in?
To provide some inspiration, we interviewed Don Gray, one of Hornby’s illustrious development engineers and model makers. He told us how his childhood interest sparked a 30-year-long career with Hornby and his journey with model railway layouts.
Q: Firstly, can you give us a background of how your journey started?
A: My journey started when I was a child, so I’ve made models for years. I’ve always been handy; always been able to make things. As a child, I was always banging things around in the workshop, helping my dad (or hindering him, more like!) I got into making model boats first. Then model cars – I used to race them. I was always interested in making things.
My first job was at a toy company in Canterbury as a trainee model maker. I saw the advert, applied, and got the job. I worked there for about seven years and wanted a change. My next job was in London for a company that made models and did special effects for TV, films, and advertising. That was a great job; I really enjoyed that. It’s a different skill set to learn and a different sphere of model-making. Unfortunately, that job folded after a little while.
I was looking for work, and I knew one of the guys who had come to work at Hornby. So, I got in touch with him and asked if there were any jobs going. He said yes, we’re employing, and we’re looking for people like you.
I’ve been here at Hornby for 30-odd years now. I’ve seen a lot of changes. I started in the Research and Development department. We had a whole team of model makers that made all the prototypes. Everything was handmade. There was no CAD or rapid prototyping. There was a set of draughtsmen in the technical office producing technical drawings, and once the design was finalised, you’d be given the drawings to work from. You had to literally hand-make whatever was required to test the models out.
It required all sorts of different skills and working with materials like metals and plastics or wood for pattern making. I’ve loved my work here which is varied and creative and, of course, challenging on occasion.
Q: You said you were into model-making as a child. It seems that the childhood journey into adulthood means the hobby stays with you. How do you capture that interest from an early age?
A: I think that if you nurture children when they are of a certain age into doing something they enjoy, it can work. Initially, not all children have that interest. For example, if a grandad is setting up his new layout and a new grandchild comes along and looks at the layout, it opens a whole new world for them. Encouraging them instils that creative spirit in them to make things, which is a beautiful thing. It can lead to all sorts of artistic careers.
Q: Like working at Hornby?
A: Yes, like working at Hornby! (laughter)
Q: What was your first-ever layout?
A: I can remember; it’s all coming back to me now. When I was a young boy, my dad had come back from somewhere with some track, a few odd coaches, and a Queen Elizabeth loco. It was a very old Tri-ang loco that sparked as it shot around the track. I can remember that hot smell. That was my first layout, and it was nailed down to an old board which was shoved under the bed. I started exploring options and wanted to make it look nicer. I managed to find glue, some wallpaper paste, and scatter material. I made it look a complete mess, but I had fun with it, which was the main thing!
Q: Do you think the hobby can be good for your mental health?
A: Absolutely. If you’ve got a job that requires concentration, you become totally absorbed and focused on that and it’s a great feeling. I find myself at work with the radio on and music in the background. When someone comes in, you get a jolt when someone is trying to talk to you. You become totally focused on what you’re doing, such as paying attention to an especially detailed part or rubbing something down to get it ready for painting. I find myself going into the zone, and it’s a great distraction from the worries of the day.
Q: That leads me nicely to a quote by Colin Rae from Model Rail Scotland. He was part of a team that made the “Alloa” layout which took five years to build. He said, “You’re basically taking yourself into that little world or that little diorama that you’ve created. It just takes you away from all the hustles and bustles of what effectively is quite hectic lives that we tend to lead.” Do you agree?
A: Yeah, exactly. If you’re building the layout as I have done at work for various purposes, for display in shops or exhibitions, you create a miniature world. I’m doing it to order, and I know I’ve got a plan to follow, but you can make whatever is in your head. Or, working within the strict guidelines of making a particular replica of an era station – you can go out and take photographs of the buildings. You can replicate those at home. You become totally absorbed in that model world, and it’s a world in which you create a miniature. You can just go deep into it.
Q: What would you say is your biggest pleasure when creating a layout? Choosing which locomotives and rolling stock to include, or the scenics and groundwork?
A: I like the scenics, to be honest. For instance, I quite like trying to achieve what’s in my mind to get the cliff face right. It does take time, and I’m learning all the time. Without a shadow of a doubt, Hornby offers such a range of scenic materials. There are different techniques you can use. We are blessed with the internet – it’s a wonderful place for learning. If you look at YouTube, we’ve got some good videos out there that show people what to do. Equally, with a bit more research, you come across different people’s ideas about how to do rock faces, mountains, valleys, lovely grassy meadows, streams, and rock falls. There’s a whole wealth of information out there. We’re lucky that we’ve got a good range of products there that will cater for most people’s needs. If you’re a model maker like me, you’ve got an assortment of odds and ends, bits and pieces, and scraps you can go to, and you think, ah, I can make that from that. With a bit of ingenuity, you can create something out of something else.
Q: What would you say is the beauty of the Hornby TT:120 scale when creating your own layout?
A: Ah, the ‘TT’ scale is fantastic. I love it. With ‘TT’ in the development process, we were going to do this completely new scale, and it opened up a whole new avenue for Hornby. It was Hornby Railways sized down to – I wouldn’t say a more manageable size because ‘00’ is manageable – but ‘TT’ is literally “Table Top”. On this table that we’ve got in front of us, you could get a handsome little layout, you could have a siding, buildings, scenic material, and it’s not taking up a huge amount of space.
Once you’ve done it and created it, you don’t have to leave it in place. You can pick it up, put it down the side of a wardrobe or under a bed. It makes life so much easier for getting it out, having a bit of a play, leaving it set up for a week. Then, if you want to have a change of scenery, you need the table, or you need the space, pop it aside, and it’s not taking up a huge amount of space.
The rolling stock is so lovely, beautifully detailed, it runs well, and it’s just a great thing to have. I’ve been so privileged and lucky to have been involved in the development of that. We’ve got some great designers working with us and producing these items. A range of steam locos, up-and-coming diesels, rolling stock of wagons and coaches, and more in the pipeline.
There are the Skaledale buildings to suit that scale, and of course, hot tip: if you’re building a layout and want to decorate it and make it look right, don’t go mad with the size of the trees! That’s the bit about dealing with ‘TT’. Have a think about how big the buildings are, the people are, in relation to the trees. Don’t forget that you don’t have to use the biggest trees; they would be huge, giant redwoods in comparison. Think of scale. You don’t want to get mixed up with the ‘00’ buildings with the ‘TT’ rolling stock. They won’t reflect each other.
Q: Any tips for beginners creating their own model railway diorama?
A: Just take your time and fix the track down well. Make sure it’s all looking good and, of course, DCC. I think it’s the way to go; I would definitely use DCC. We’ve got some very skilled engineers that have worked out how to get decoders and speakers in such a small space, and you know, lighting in the coaches, it’s marvellous, so utilise all that with DCC.
Q: Where do you find inspiration for your dioramas/layouts?
A: You’ve got to look at nature; look outside; look at the environment in which you live. Whenever you’re out walking, step out your front door and just have a look outside. Just try and observe what the road surface looks like. It’s not all black, matte black, bland, monochromatic finish. It has tones in it. The road surface is different, as is the concrete pavement and pathways. Try and use some paint to simulate that.
Use nature as well. It can be unruly, it’s not all uniform. It’s not flat and regimented. Nature is random. You can be a bit random with scattering your bushes, trees, and materials. Perhaps, you can just try to take a photograph. Take a mobile phone out with you and snap a hedgerow, for example. Replicate that back inside using bits and pieces.
Go out in the garden, and you can probably use twigs and things you might find in the garden. Bring those in and put them on your layout. That’s something you could try.
Q: What is the most ambitious layout you have seen or created?
A: I don’t go to shows or anything, but I do see some extraordinary layouts in magazines which are photographed. They’re works of art which I think is the best description of them. From a personal point of view, I can see the teams of people working on them have spent an extraordinary amount of time and energy in doing so. The layouts are beautiful, and the team have often captured a particular era of a railway in detail. Their attention to detail with the buildings and rolling stock is exceptional.
Q: Thank you very much, Don.
A: My pleasure.
Ready to start your own Hornby TT:120 layout?
Join the Hornby TT:120 Club to enter our Diorama Challenge.
