Hi all, my initial thought post Scaleforum are as follows:
Firstly, a big thank you to Steve, Phil O, and Terry for helping-out by standing-in whilst I was called away for the Lecture, like John I wish we'd had more time for a natter, but as was quite clear, it was very busy both days.
For me it was a very enjoyable weekend, especially so to spend time with John, who kept me topped-up with tea and jelly babies.
I was very impressed with John's COT track display pieces, and kept pinching them to show visitors. I didn't hear a single word of criticism (constructive or otherwise), even the Scale 7 chaps who are a discerning bunch were very impressed indeed.
Clearly, the enthusiasm for Templot generally and Plug Track in particular is very high indeed, more so perhaps than the discussions/feedback and general input here on Templot Club might suggest.
There was a significant hiccup in Sunday's classroom session where I was looking at creating and exporting bricks. I think I may have been visited by a gremlin, as try as I might I kept getting the
'you haven't selected any timbering bricks - do you want to export all templates' message. After some time, during which I mostly managed to conceal my panic, the chair labels mysteriously appeared and all was well. I hadn't noticed that the chair labels were missing up to that point. Speaking to an audience and using Templot simultaneously is not easy.
I suspect that the 'bug' may have been related to switching between T2 & T5, but cannot be sure. I've spent time this evening trying to replicate the symptoms and can't. So this isn't an official 'bug' notification post but it may make some sense to Martin or Steve.
I will make a video to show the process this week and post it to the Scalefour Forum for those who may have been confused by my apparent incompetence. The audience were kind however, and I was embarrassed to receive a round of applause on both days.
What was clear to me was that lots of folks are getting a great deal out of their own experiments with Plug Track. I spoke with several folks who had invested in 3d printing equipment specifically for Plug Track who liked the fact that they could produce the parts without CAD skills. Many of those I spoke with commented upon how useful they found my videos, and how discussions on here have helped their understanding of the 3d printing process generally. This was very encouraging, and got me thinking about several new videos which might benefit our community. (with the proviso that I'm still learning myself)
Again, everyone I spoke with understood the experimental nature of Plug Track and were keen to join-in for the joy of doing so, recognising the ongoing development work which has been going on.
A comment I heard from many was how encouraging it was that there was innovation in the hobby, and how it might attract folks into the hobby especially young people. I whole-heartedly agree this these sentiments.
If that proves to be the case, then these newcomers will be starting their journeys with a foundation based upon prototype practice which will be encouraging for the finescale side of our wonderful hobby.
John, I completely agree with the suggestion of having a large screen. Should we do this again I will make sure that we have one.
I'll write some more thoughts soon when I've had time to properly decompress, but right now I have some COT trackbases looking at me and some code 125 rail kindly donated by John - guess what I'll be up to next.
Martin, I wish you could have seen the enthusiasm first-hand. I think you'd feel very proud.
Finally, I counted only 5 folks who asked me directly about the availability of GWR chairs. Far less than I'd expected.
Best wishes,
James
p.s. The Plug Track Roadshow will next be appearing at the Uckfield show in October