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Following the success of their Scalectic competition Sussex model retailer Modelzone have announced another competition, this time for a pair of fantastic Hornby train sets.

There are two prizes in this new competition which will run until new years eve. The first prize is a Eurostar train set that would set you back £120. A fantastic train set that features a Eurostar locomotive and passenger carriages along with a generous amount of track.

The second train set up for grabs is a £60 City Industrial train set. Now this is my favourite. These are the locomotives from a bygone era when trains like this would haul freight as well as passenger along many of Britains now disused branch lines.

To be in with a chance of winning all you need do is pay visit to the competition announcement on the Modelzone blog and answer one simple question. The question has been chosen to coincide with the James May’s Toy Stories episode in which he and his helpers re-establish the long disused rail link between Bideford and Barnstaple in Devon. You are asked ‘what is the distance between these two stations’. The answer is, of course, 10 miles.

So why not get your entry in and hopefully you will be a lucky winner.

The NEC in Birmingham played host to a model railway exhibition in 2006, and showcased some truly amazing model railways from high powered modern electric to old-time elegant steam locos, as the following video shows:

A great many locos in some very imaginative scenery and something I have never seen before, busses running on roads surrounding the track, driven by what is known as the Faller System.

The Faller System is a method whereby a model vehicle such as a bus or car has a motor, batteries and front axle which is then attached to a magnetic guide arm. A thin metal wire is then laid down, usually below the surface of the track, plotting out the course for the vehicle, which it then follows.

This system has allowed for even more realistic train sets, with not only fantastic train, track and scenery, but also moving traffic alongside the trains with the ability to sync these up to certain routs and obey traffic lights. Now all that is needed is for this to sync up with level crossings to provide the ultimate in train set realism.

We have found two videos we feel best demonstrate the system and the realism it creates:

Building a model train set is a fantastic, although somewhat time consuming hobby. With all of the buildings and train set accessories available, you can create an entire town or even a city – the only restrictions being your time, space and money!

Why not have a look at these clips to get your imagination going to give you some ideas and inspiration for your own model train set?