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Railroad Crossing (36059) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Crossing a railway can be dangerous unless you do it at a monitored or automated crossing. Computerised automation is a relatively modern thing, but in WWII and earlier it was either a much more manual thing that involved signals with manual booms, or electro-mechanical operated barriers if you were lucky. This set from MiniArt arrives in a small top-opening box and contains a combination of vacformed bases and styrene accessories. Inside the box are two sheets of vacformed grey plastic plus fifteen sprues of grey styrene, two of which have been nipped in two in order to fit within the box. There are also two small sprues of clear styrene, three individual lenses in red, amber and green, two small sheets of decals, a length of string and a short instruction booklet. The two bases are identical, but if flipped they won’t be noticeable beneath ground works and static grass. The two base plates form a sandwich with the track the filling, fitting flush with the rails, and a set of wooden planks that ease vehicles’ path over the rails. Each rail is pinned to sleepers/ties by individual cleats, and you’ll need to add some ballast between each one with a layer below to prevent it falling through. The bases are shallow and should be backed by a lower layer to ensure that things stay together during construction and handling. The roadway is cobbled with rectangular blocks, and the verge is slightly raised, so a combination of paint and groundworks will bring it to life. The accessories that accompany the bases include a large gantry with a set of signals at the top, and foot-pegs for the inevitable maintenance it will require. Linkages run down to the ground and away to a distant signal box, with toothed wheels at the bottom and a hand-cranking handle for emergencies. The clear parts are for the lamps, with the coloured lenses inserted into the signal arms for the lamps to shine through in the real thing. There’s nothing to stop you from lighting the assembly with tiny LEDs of course. The two booms are identical in construction, with a mechanism in a cast enclosure on a large stanchion that has a similar handle to operate it, and a geared wheel at the pivot of the boom that raises and lowers it onto the rest at the other end. A couple of level crossing signs with the international picket-fence symbol are supplied, and you have a choice of painting the triangular signs white and applying the decal with a clear centre, or using the decals on the smaller sheet with a white background. Markings There is no painting guide, but you can see some suggested colours on the box top, and everyone knows that grass is green(ish) most of the time. The decals for the signs are accompanied by some letters and numbers for you to use as you see fit. Conclusion Painting will be key to this diorama, as will the groundwork, which can include static grass, small rocks and various pastes and potions peculiar to diorama creation. What you want to place on the road is completely up to you, and you can see some options in the photo above. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of