'Realism' means different things to different people, leading to all sorts of kerfuffle and hot air.

By our very nature, this particular Group is keen on:

Very close physical resemblance to an actual full-sized prototype

for which we make absolutely no apology.

We expressly support everyone who also feels that way, while appreciating that other styles of Gauge 1 can also create that subtle, elusive quality we call Atmosphere.

Evocation:

In the hands of an imaginative child, a crude toy train becomes a Mighty Express because, beyond the physical substance of any representational model, there's the Dream that it Evokes. It may be of faraway places or childhood memories; working life or glorious holidays - who knows? No mystery about my predilections: childhood nights puctuated by loose-shunting; Pacific expresses to the seaside; tinplate track skirting the lawn followed by a railway career - but that's just me.

What matters is what style of Gauge 1 stirs you, because your dream should guide your purchases - perhaps to the point of affecting your choice of Scale and Standard. And given the price of Gauge 1, you certainly don't want to be heading off down blind alleys.

Different views:

Brunel's heart-stoppingly daring Thames bridge at Maidenhead:

Maidenhead Bridge, Photo Nancy 2008

How might your inner eye feature this bridge in a layout?

You could package it complete with road bridge, fishing skiff, barge and towing team, plus every twig, rush and ripple, all into a highly detailed glass-case Model Railway . . .

Maidenhead Bridge, Engraving: Bourne 1836

. . . worthy of Pendon's famous Museum:

Pendon Museum: Acorn Bridge, 1:76 Scale 1999-ish

Or you might simplify and stylise it:

Maidenhead Bridge, Litho: Bourne 1838

. . . casting concrete arches for your garden:

Paul Abrams: 10mm Scale 2005-ish

Then again, you could focus almost entirely on the workings and spectacle of the live steam locomotive and, leaving bridge and landscape mostly to imagination, run it on a conveniently raised plank . . .

Maidenhead Bridge, Oils: Turner 1844

. . . which, to be frank, is precisely 'where' huge swathes of 'Organised Gauge 1' are currently 'at'.

And no wonder, given that even the most basic live steamer can evoke this unique kind of magic!

Reinhard Fichtl: 1:32 Scale, Standard track: 2009

And you can't get much more basic than this home-built engine to LBSC's 'Chingford Express' design (incidentally, the only non-Swindon engine on this page):

LBSC design, maker unknown, 10mm Scale, Standard track, Photo: Station Road Steam:

Such an engine is a Caricature - in a good way - conveying, like actors' greasepaint, the bare essence with economy of means. It's at home with basic rolling stock, whether vintage tinplate, kit-built or, like this beginner's delightful first train, scratchbuilt using simple tools, economical materials and generic 10mm scale components. No rivets to count, somewhat chubby wheels, but quick results at modest price, freed from the time and financial constraints of super-detail and super-accuracy:

Martin Jennings: Scratchbuilt, 10mm Scale, Standard track 2008, Photo: David Halfpenny

Sue Knight: oscillator locomotive + kits, 10mm Scale, Standard track 2009, Photo Chris Harnett

But suppose planks don't satisfy you? When you saw the snow scene above, did you peer instinctively to identify the locomotive ? (* Answer below). Do you favour a more railway-like landscape, perhaps with proper track layouts and signalling ?

If you're actually hankering for 'larger-scale Pendon', it's certainly achievable . . .

Mike Palmer: scratchbuilt 10mm Fine Scale 2015

Steve Harrod: kits and scratchbuilding, 1:32 Scale Finescale 2009

. . . but in that case, 'basic' models won't do.

Unlike the snow scene, these last two scenes need highly detailed models of consistent scale. And once you've started a scene of this kind, just one coarser item out of place can be enough to puncture the illusion. Exactly like Bourne's engravings, you commit to fill every corner of the frame to the same standard, and then to light it all with consistent subtlety.

(Mercifully, the key word is Scene: you don't have to manicure an entire landscape all at once - well, not unless you are exhibiting it, of course.)