How much do you allow yourself for you R R to spend or should you say Budget yourself?

[Anonymous]

I really don't have a set budget. I improve as my founds allow I need to have my train room dry walled. but my income is kind of hard to budget for that expense.
some day it might happen.
I am happy to have a train room to run in for now. Latter on when i can have it done we will have it dry walled. and all the extra niceties add.
im doing what i got to do to survive and enjoy my R R,
Happy R R to you.

[kstrong]

Hard to determine, really. My wife and I each take out an "allowance" each week which we can spend any way we like, be it dining out, shoes (her hobby) or trains (my hobby). Since I do a lot of scratchbuilding, I don't have the need to spend boatloads of money on the latest and greatest offering from XYZ company. My weekly allowance gets me my weekly dose of building materials. Expensive purchases, such as landscaping material, track, or live steam locos are figured into the budget and planned for accordingly.

We treat our weekly allowance as a bill that we have to pay. It's our philosophy that it's important to remember to pay yourself. You work hard for the money, so you deserve to reward yourself for the work you do. It's not a license to spend like Donald Trump, though, which is why we set it at a specific dollar amount, in concert with our other monthly expenses. So, if I know I want to buy a bunch of detail parts, I don't eat out. If I'm spending the week on other projects, I have the choice of spending the money or saving it for the following week. After a month or so of careful spending, I've got $100 or so that I can blow at Caboose Hobbies without any worry that I should be spending the money on other things.

Later,

K

[Anonymous]

kstrong
i was just rembering the older fellows coming in the train shop boasting i still have xxxxxxx much left in there Lionel budget they couldn't find any better condition uhits then what they had already. or they couldn't find this that or the other.

[John Busby]

Hi train me
In theory which is entirely my own theory
I get $50 AU per fortnaght for the trains and $2000AU at tax return time
In reality more often than not the $50 shrinks when the domestic bills come into play.
so it is a case of save save & save to get things. [:(]
The last two years the $2000 has started the railway I really want
live steam powered[^][:D] this year will hopefully see the last of the proposed steam fleet
ordered after that the fun begins as I will have a battery powered
Loco or two and railmotor to build.
regards John

[Anonymous]

yea im sure that a lot of us don't have a budget just for are R R but i have met some that do i have a friend thats waiting for his gg1 and passeger set.

[ghelman]

Unless I am planning something big I don't exactly budget. After I get paid every two weeks I have money budgeted as extra. Sometimes it goes on the RR other times on the many other hobbys I have gotten myself into. Most of the time it is divided. When it is Spring time (as it is now) out it gets tricky. I want to be on the golf course, but, it is also the best time of the year to work on the RR. It is also the time of year my wife has her projects. So the real answer is I budget a certain amount for some kind of entertainment.
Have a great RRing day.

[Anonymous]

I allow myself £30 a week.,which equals about $57.Then again,like Kevin,this is what I allow myself.I rarely spend it .Once I've brought my wood and bits of plastic I am happy for a few months.A typical scratchbuild will cost me £15 ($28) for the bodywork ect but will cost me $100 to import the powered truck.Even importing,I still save a fortune compared to prices in the UK.But then again,I cannot buy what I am building so how can I put a price on it.Mind you,I did spend £1000 ($1,306.85 ) last year to expand my track a bit.Even though nothing came out of the house budget I think the wifey would have rather spent it on something else.The way I look at it is that we both earn a fair bit of money with our jobs.You can't take it with you.
If it comes down to a nice meal out in London for the evening,the trains always lose out.It's a hobby after all !

[Capt Bob Johnson]

I am in the fortunate position of going to the poorhouse with a loaf of bread under each arm, so I don't budget for my RR; I take it out of petty cash! On the other hand, I do run a budget that ensures that all bills will be paid when the bill comes; and I don't contract something that I don't know where the money to pay for it is! Plastic is what gets one in trouble; I prefer to pay cash in green American Dollars so I can control the expenditures. If the money ain't in my pocket, I don't buy it!

[Anonymous]

Every bill gets paid, we stock the larder, go to the pub and then look at what's left. Not a lot most times. I tend to get my stuff on the plastic then swap it around on zero% deals so it doesn't cost me interest.
TROY, in town today and saw a twin car set on the rails, 'Progress Twin Car' if memory serves me right, a very nice piece of kit. Still doing a lot of engineering work south of North Pier, trams from Fleetwood terminating there and buses doing the rest.
Cheers,
Kim
[tup]

[Anonymous]

Hi Kim.The twin cars are a nice piece of kit.Got to build a big diesel for the boys first.

[grandpopswalt]

I don't have a budget for the hobby. But I have a pretty good idea of how much I can afford to spend annually. I also have a good idea of how much I've spent year-to-date. So it's simple math, annual allowable $$$ (-) YTD $$$spent ( =) $$$ available to spend.

Walt

[Anonymous]

Whatever's left after the rest of them are done with my wallet[V] Really I tend to work on one thing till it's done so it's easier to budget that way.

[powlee]

I don`t really budget either. A note can stay in my wallet untouched for a week or so. When I spend, it usually quite a lot but then go into a lull for a few weeks. I use the plastic mostly. Pay for the trains and get the airmiles. Got tempted on Ebay today. Got beat by somebody who paid more than one would buy new in the shop.

All the best
Ian P

[Anonymous]

I don't have a budget either, i spend in bursts them nothing for years, except at the landscape yards.

This hobby can be as expensive as you like, in the words of my wife; depending on how deep your pockets are.She is a retired financial controller and the only finances she has to control these days is mine, so it is start and stop at the decision of the financial controller.


Rgds ian

[vsmith]

$100 a month. It used to be only $50.

I set a maximum limit to keep costs under control as you can go quite out of control if you dont watch how much your willing to spend. I have seen guys pulling out the plastic to purchase a new USA Hudson then hearing them say "Boy, is my wife going to kill me" Hehehe...

I decided when after a long hiatus from model RRing that if I was going to do this I would watch the $$$ as a means of self control, also I didnt have a lot of it to spare. I nickeled and dimed my way for the first two years of building, I still am sort of, but now that I have some experience under my belt I'm a lot more selective in my buying habits and a bit more creative when it comes to bashing and scratching on the cheap.
[8D]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by vsmith

$100 a month. It used to be only $50.

I set a maximum limit to keep costs under control as you can go quite out of control if you dont watch how much your willing to spend. I have seen guys pulling out the plastic to purchase a new USA Hudson then hearing them say "Boy, is my wife going to kill me" Hehehe...

I decided when after a long hiatus from model RRing that if I was going to do this I would watch the $$$ as a means of self control, also I didnt have a lot of it to spare. I nickeled and dimed my way for the first two years of building, I still am sort of, but now that I have some experience under my belt I'm a lot more selective in my buying habits and a bit more creative when it comes to bashing and scratching on the cheap.
[8D]

VIC
thats very true theres so much that looks like i would really like that but after we settle down
we become more selective but there are things i still want and have to save to get. [:(]
vic
thanks for word of wisdom [:D]

[CandCRR]

No budget. For engins and rolling stock if I see something I want I put a few dollars aside every pay period till I can afford it. The track comes mostly from my Wife - its not 1 to 1 but flowers = track, mulch and loam = balist, and bird houses and feeders = buildings.

[Tom The Brat]

Every week I meet my income goals, I give myself an allowance. Since that hasn't happened in a long time, I decided I needed to start a side business, so I'm selling G gauge trains[;)]

Most proceeds from train sales go to help feed hungry children. These hungry children!

[Anonymous]

torby
what you got fer sale any usat f'3's and price?

[Tom The Brat]

Sorry, USAT won't sell to me yet. Only Aristo. http://www.gardentrack.com

[espeefoamer]

My entire model railroading budget went to paying Uncle Sam this year[:(][:(!][:(][:(!][xx(].

[Anonymous]

No wife, no girlfriend(too tired to put up with them), no kids(found out what caused that early, and took precautions against it), no mortgage(paid for) ,no car notes(paid for), no rent(live in RV on job site), no utilities(included in job), no dog(got run over), no cat(except the stuffed one on the dash of my van),,,, no budget. Make good money, and not alot to spend it on, but trains, and the Infernal Rapeing Service. At sea 6 to 10 months out of the year. No place to spend it there. Nobody to leave it to. I'm gonn'a spend it on trains and traveling. Life's great!!!
I do N,Ho,On30,G, 7/12", 24" gauge.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by capt_turk

No wife, no girlfriend(too tired to put up with them), no kids(found out what caused that early, and took precautions against it), no mortgage(paid for) ,no car notes(paid for), no rent(live in RV on job site), no utilities(included in job), no dog(got run over), no cat(except the stuffed one on the dash of my van),,,, no budget. Make good money, and not alot to spend it on, but trains, and the Infernal Rapeing Service. At sea 6 to 10 months out of the year. No place to spend it there. Nobody to leave it to. I'm gonn'a spend it on trains and traveling. Life's great!!!
I do N,Ho,On30,G, 7/12", 24" gauge.

Your My Hero! Where were you when i was 20ish?

[Anonymous]

Probably mostly at sea. Ran away from home at 17, and went to sea. Been there ever since. Just turned 55.
I'm glad to hear I'm "somebodies" hero![:D][4:-)]
Only problem, it's awful hard to keep the train on the tracks at sea![;)] Thought about wrapping the wheels , and covering the tracks, with Velcro. Wonder what kind of consist it would take to pull that kind of friction?

[Anonymous]

Um.... well how much do I spend on trains? Ha ha ha ha $$$$$$$ Ha haha ha ha ....... $$$$$. ............ Too much really (blush).

Annie

[tmcc man]

I do not have a budget, I am only 14, and i use the money i get from things to buy trains etc. I am graduating from my grade school this year, and am using the money i get to buy Crest Train Engineer for my "in progress " layout

[Anonymous]

wellcome aboard tmcc man
its nice too see are young people getting involved its tuff starting but you got a great one.

[cabbage]

As most of my stuff is made of junk and scrap -I budget myself £10 per week.. The most expensive thing on my shoopping list are Couplers and Wheels -the two things that I cannot make myself.

As a consequense I often have Wagons and Carriages finished -but waiting for couplings and wheels!!!

regards

ralph

[Anonymous]

ralph
what kind of couplers & wheels are you in need of?

[Anonymous]

As I really caught a bad case of the RR bug, In the past 6 months, I've spend $13,560 (about 1/2 on 1 gauge, 1/2 on HO)... looking at that over the past 5 years that I've been "into" model trains... that works out to about $2300 or so per year or $200 or so per month...

Now building on that as a budget basis, and as I have a lot of good stuff to build on (due to my recent indulgence)... I now plan only to spend about $200 per month (Even if it means saving two or three months to buy a new express train car). When you consider that I spend more than that on fuel for two cars every month, it really doesn't sound that bad.