Search results

Yes, visibility is a problem. People don't see trains as much as they used to 50 years ago. It's hard to get interested in something, i.e., as a hobby, that you're not exposed to very much. And what we see very often are dirty, rusted, graffiti-covered freight cars. Hardly an inspiring sight...

A couple of comments I've seen have stimulated a few of my little grey cells: "The working world of today is based on total mobility, forcing people to veer away from hobbies requiring relatively permanent layouts." "What younger people see when they open a model railroading magazine is...

Your pictures are outstanding! I did a double-take on the 'diesels in the snow' photo, and the track-and-scenery scene is right up there with some of the best I've seen on this forum! KUTGW!

Unfortunately this article is no longer available on Yahoo's site... Sorry, the page you requested was not found. The story or page you were trying to access may have expired.

I think a hobby's trade publications make a big difference in peoples' interest in that hobby. How do other folks feel about the 'big ones' in model railroading - MR & RMC?

I think a hobby's support organizations can be a big factor in promoting the hobby. To what extent do you-all agree with this idea that the NMRA has become "pro-HO"? What are your opinions about the traveling "World's Greatest Hobby" show?

Thanks for your observations! I was definitely not trying to imply that I think the hobby is dying. Changing may be more like it, but it seems that by and large the industry publications - NMRA's Scale Rails, MR & RMC - are not seeking out and embracing the changes that may be taking place. (I...

Excellent points, conrailmike! 1. If there are 'huge detailed layouts be that you don't hear about' (and I'll bet medium-sized amounts of money you're right about that), maybe there's a market for a semi-annual or even quarterly magazine like "Great Model Railroads". 2. Some of the things I've...

Those look good! I, for one, would like to see pictures of your basement layout, as it progresses, too.

Here in the Kansas City area, Dish shows it on the DIY channel (111 here) at 4am Central Time on Sunday mornings.

That's a very interesting point. We see a lot of articles about people (mostly men) of various ages, and their "About ..." blurbs refer to what they do or where they work or if they're retired, but few if any articles focused specifically on railroad models created as a result of retirement...

I just found out from another thread that the legendary V&O (Virginian and Ohio) that was built by Allen McClelland is no more. On this month's Scotty Mason podcast he interviews Tony Koester and Tony says that Allen and his wife have bought a smaller home in a retirement community and are...

Have you considered a more modular approach -- to make dismantling and moving easier? For example, David Barrow's "Domino" construction techniques have fit the bill for a lot of people who move fairly frequently.

I had one of the Bachmann QJ's for a while -- they, too, suffered in the performance dept. because they were too light. Gorgeous model, though...

I, too, voted for the "a few times a week" category, but it really depends on (a) how busy I am, and (b) what topics are showing up in my favorite forums. Sometimes a week or two will go by between visits, and other times I'm on here for hours...

Actually, I just bought an HO MDT and one of the cab conversion kits from Boulder Valley Models. Of all the excellent suggestions, I thought this was the best way for me to go (given my modeling skill level - if you could call it that!). P.S. I put one of my HO SW-1s on the On30 track with...

Cool! I'll get busy looking for one of these!

Do you mean literally take an HO scale switcher and just build up the cab? That would certainly be about the quickest conversion!

That sounds like a good idea. I'm using Peco code 100 On30 track (with wider tie spacing than HO track), so wheel flanges should be no issue. Maybe I could take an HO SW-1 mechanism (for example) and find an O scale shell that would fit?

How about something like this as a starting point? It's an Atlas O. Is there any chance I could just push the wheels closer together (to HO gauge)? Thanks for your feedback!