Photo 1
Chemins de fer de Bethoud by Michael Kohler Oe gauge layout Photo by Hunziker
Photo 2
Close up of the railroad station. Notice how the layout builder utilizes flats to tell his story whereby a full building just would not fit. Photo by Dani Hunziker 2017
Photo 3
Great overhead view showing both the cameo layout and Kohler's fiddle yard
Photo by Dani Hunziker
Photo 4
Fiddle Yard, notice the bottle handy bottle of wine. Yes, the banner is a bit of a distraction but that is life. Photo by Dani Hunziker 2017
Visit
This is not Saint Paul Minnesota being depicted but rather a small town in France. Here, Michael Kohler treats us to a spectacular exhibition layout in Oe scale; his attention to detail in a relatively small space is remarkable. Such layouts are also often called "cameo layouts". What follows are some random observations by your blogger. The highlight of this layout is his Saint Paul railroad station (Photo 2).
Choices
I noticed a platform (Reebok) in front of the layout - I suspect it serves a dual purpose: keep viewers from getting too close to the layout and as a tool for the operator to raise himself a bit to access its various features (I cannot see any lighting, but at other venues perhaps he clamps on some lighting?).
As with many if not most exhibition layouts, a fiddle yard is utilized which seems to attract as much notice as the main stage of his layout itself (Photo 3). I also noticed that its creator also chose not to employ wings to hide the ends of the backdrop - yet this presentation works. Kohler also chose not to employ a curved backdrop but again, his presentation works. A curved backdrop would have required a bit more work and model railroads simply cannot get finished in most cases unless the modeler falls back here and there to "good enough".
I appreciated his use of a valance - some model railroading authors describe this as a pelmet but in this case, it does not seem to hide any lighting so "pelmet" is not appropriate here. Kohler's valance serves to hide the end of the sky represented by his backdrop. I particularly liked how everything except for the layout is painted a flat black to keep attention on Michael's layout. Keeping with this theme, his fabric skirt is also black. I appreciated how the stickers (discussed later in this posting) are affixed to the side so as not to distract - other exhibition layouts often have such stickers affixed to the front, which this blogger finds a bit distracting.
Control
Kohler employs a walk-around throttle to control his trains - all the while standing in front of his layout so that he can chat with admirers (Photo 3).
Model Railroad Shows In Europe
Next to Kohler's layout appears to be a commercial vendor holding court; such European exhibitions are a combination of wonderful exhibition layouts on display and commercial vendors - the Brits have another word for them - "traders".
Notice the five stickers affixed to the end of this exhibition layout. These stickers generally denote shows that this layout has been displayed at and perhaps magazines that have featured this layout. In Europe, layout owners take it as a point of pride - as best I can discern - to be invited to exhibit at an upcoming show. In turn, the organizers often will provide some stipend to the layout owner so to compensate him - at least in part - for the cost of attending such a show. Of course, the compensation serves as a bit of an honorarium to the owner - and who doesn't want to be honored for their accomplishments? Remember, gasoline prices and I understand other costs of operating an automobile are higher in Europe than comparable costs in the states.
French Versus American Model Railroaders
French model railroaders seem to enjoy themselves more than their constrained American cousins, witness the handy bottle of wine and mineral water apparent in Photo 4.
Scale
What is Oe or 0e scale? in Continental Europe it is the notation for 0 scale using 16.5 mm track. In France and a few other European countries, O scale is 1:43.5; in Germany and in other European countries O scale uses a ration of 1:45.
About The Builder
Michael Kohler has a YouTube channel and a blog st-paul-0e.blogspot.com for those interested in learning more about his interests.
I found these photos at www.mb1q.com USED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY
Revised August 26, 2023
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