This Christmas micro layout was designed to fit neatly on top of a rotary Christmas pudding tin. Built in N gauge, the layout features an extremely tight track radius of approximately 60 mm.
To achieve the required curvature, standard flex track was modified by removing the sleepers. The rails were then carefully rolled to the correct diameter, after which PCB sleepers were installed to accurately hold the gauge. Once the geometry was locked in, the original flex-track sleepers were refitted in the gaps to restore a more conventional appearance.
The platform was 3D printed, then sanded and painted before installation. The station building is a Modelscene N Lineside Huts kit, part number 5185. After assembly and painting, aluminium foil was added to the interior to prevent light bleed, and a flickering LED was installed to provide a warm internal glow.
The traction poles are from the Greenmax 2183 Single Track Catenary Poles set and were painted to suit the scene. Overhead wiring has been intentionally omitted. At this radius it would be extremely difficult to install reliably, and it would likely be vulnerable to damage during handling.
Figures on the layout come from Noch sets 36821 Children in the Snow and 36926 Christmas Market, which suited the festive theme perfectly. The Christmas tree, while slightly overscale, was sourced from a local discount store. It had to be trimmed to roughly half its original height to fit within the confines of the tin.
Power is provided by two AA batteries, supplying both the track and lighting. The locomotive is a Kato Pocket Line engine, which runs reliably despite the tight curvature and low voltage power setup.
The baseboard construction involved laser cutting the baseboard from acrylic and plywood in layers that were then glued together. This should be strong enough to prevent warping and it sits nicely within the recess of the tins lid.
For the snow I used the Deluxe Materials BD29 Scenic Snow Kit, pretty much following the instructions, it’s applied like any other scatter material.
Overall, this was a fun and rewarding project that explored the limits of micro layout design while creating a festive, self-contained railway scene inside a Christmas pudding tin.
Pine Valley Estate Railway 