Do You Play With Your Toys?

[Anonymous]

My last two trips to a well known LHS here in NJ, on crowded Saturday afternoons, I used that terminology while speaking with people, to see if I got a rise out of anyone.

Most guys laughed when I said it. Some had no reaction. But there were a few guys that seemed to be genuinely insulted by my crack. Are you?

Isn' t the difference between men and boys ...... the price of their toys?

Or is model railroading a more serious endeavor?

I'm wondering this as I'm making, what is for me, a huge initial investment on a DCC system, 3 quality engines, and all the other stuff to get my two sons and I up and running. Trains seem to be the only thing on my mind these days.

Jim

[nslakediv]

I can admit that I enjoy playing with my toys, I'm in my mid 30's and have 2 youg children who enjoy it just as much as I do, the wife even gets into it. it is expensive but so is every other hobby.Randy

[cmrproducts]

Please! I operate my trains!!!!!!

BOB H Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

In response to te thread subject:

EXCUUUUSE ME?!?!? Why I oughta....

[orsonroy]

If I know the people I'm talking to, or want to let the air out of the baloons of some of the "serious" model railroaders who take the hobby too seriously, I say I'm going to "play trains". If the person has no idea what the hobby is about, I generally call it model railroading.

Hey, I try to be a pretty proto-based modeler, but that doesn't mean I let it go to my head. Deep down, any of us who actually run trains PLAYS with them.

I'm growing up; doesn't mean I have to grow old...

[twhite]

I'm 64, just about to retire from a career of teaching music in a high school. Last year, a fellow teacher and good friend bought me a T-shirt that says STILL PLAYS WITH TRAINS. I've almost worn that T-shirt out. I've been a model railroader since I was 14, I love the hobby because like music, it demands patience and creativity. It's also one Hell of a lot of fun. YES, I PLAY WITH TRAINS AND AM DAMN PROUD OF IT! Remember, the guy that dies with the most toys wins!

[BRAKIE]

Yupper,I play with my toy choo-choos!! [:D] And dang proud of it...You see any way you want to slice it they are still adult toys.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by twhite

Remember, the guy that dies with the most toys wins!

I have a comparative religion thing that uses that phrase.

highlights:
He who denies himself the most toys, wins - Catholicism
The toys made themselves - Atheists
He who dips toys in water has wet toys - Zen

There are about 40 on the list. E-mail me if you want it:
[e-mail]

I'd play with mine if I had enough track down, and enough time on my hands...

[tatans]

How nice to hear that some people actually (operate) -play - with their trains,and some even scratchbuild things and have loads of fun doing it, It is a far cry from "railroaders" who believe the hobby consists of hoarding trains and seeing who can spend the most money, great to hear from you folks, keep up the good work.

[egmurphy]

The hobby is big and varied enough to have room for all types. I'm awed by some of the layouts and scratchbuilt models. I'm completely puzzled by DCC and anything over 'Basic Train Wiring 101', so I think the controls guys are amazing. The realistic operational guys get a 'hat's off' from me for their ingenuity and knowledge.

But I just enjoy 'playing' with my trains. Fortunately(un?) there's not another model railroader around for miles to criticize.

Regards

Ed

[ben10ben]

I PLAY with my TOY TRAINS, and I'm proud of it!

[fec153]

twhite-so right. I'm 68 and when my garage is less than 95degrees I'm playing.
Phil

[fec153]

BRAKIE / egmurphy- From the other threads, I was under the impression u both
were serious proto modelers. Nice to read u enjoy running/playing with them.
From some of your posts both of u are rather talented. ENJOY!!!!!
Phil

[AntonioFP45]

I have an 8 to 9 foot long x 1 1/2 foot wide, test shelf. I enjoy sometimes just running my locomotives back and forth, looking forward to having them pulling trains on a layout in the future! I especially like seeing the "Mars light" action on the Proto E units! [:D][8D]

On my layout I will operate prototypically but I'm very sure there will be many times when I just want to see them run!----- Not necessarily on a schedule. [:)][:D][8D][;)]

[Jetrock]

Operation is play--just because it has rules doesn't mean it isn't play. When you play a game (whether it's Poker, Monopoly or Warcraft) you are following distinct rules and utilizing certain conventions in the process.

For many people, the challenge of following and beating this set of rules (winning the game) is fun.

Since our model railroads don't carry actual freight or passengers, any operation session on a model railroad is essentially a game, with distinct rules and objectives, and the object is to "win" by keeping the schedule, switching the right cars, etcetera. Fun.

Of course, as someone who spends quite a bit of time just watching real trains going down the tracks (I never mind having to wait for a train at a grade crossing--while other drivers are honking their horns or cursing, I'm gawking at the engines!), watching one's trains go 'round and 'round is a different sort of fun--call it "model railfanning."

The creation process--building models, painting and detailing, creating scenery--is another sort of fun. While I sometimes will sit back and admire my handiwork, personally I get a lot of fun out of building things. So that's "playing" too.

When you stop to think about it, plenty of other activities that people take really seriously--sports equipment, fast cars, etcetera--are also "toys" in the same sense as a model railroad. They are activities participated in or observed primarily for fun value, rather than for some practical purpose.

[BRAKIE]

Phil,I am a serious modeler but,I also realize its a hobby and enjoy having fun .Look,at the club I have a Athearn 50' double door boxcar..This car weighs about a pound and I have supper glued the wheels..When a new member brings his pride and joy to the club for the first time I have a partner in crime that gets his attention while I slip this car out from underneath the layout and place it in his train..Of course all of the cars on the layout is pooled for club use so he has no idea of what has happen.So when his engines will not move that 50 car train like everybody else's the cat calls begin. like : What!?? You better get that junk off the layout why they won't even pull our standard 50 car train.I would hide my face in shame etc,etc.The hapless new member doesn't know what to do or say..Then we break out laughing and I remove the car and say welcome to the club...I also catch some of the older members off guard with this car when they bring in their newest pride and joy.

[tomwatkins]

Yes I play with my toys. That's why I have them. I like building models that are pretty accurate replicas of the real things. I like superdetailing locomotives and rolling stock. I like building scenery that is accurate to the time and place I model. I also like firing up the layout and watching the trains roll. It's what I do for fun, and it's all part of playing with trains. If it ever stops being fun, then it's not a hobby. Then it would be time to change something, most likely my attitude towards it.
Have Fun,
Tom watkins

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by tatans

How nice to hear that some people actually (operate) -play - with their trains,and some even scratchbuild things and have loads of fun doing it, It is a far cry from "railroaders" who believe the hobby consists of hoarding trains and seeing who can spend the most money, great to hear from you folks, keep up the good work.

What's the point of having trains if you're not going to run them? [%-)}

[dano99a]

you betcha... I've also been accused of playin with my computer and my car.

[AggroJones]

Hells NO!

The way I was raised colored my thoughts on the word "play" as somthing to do with toys and being childish. Some members of my family use that to **** me off. "Play with your trains" as an insult. I spend too high a percent of my money and time doing this, so its pretty serious stuff. No play.

And I forshizle do not have any toys here!

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jetrock

Of course, as someone who spends quite a bit of time just watching real trains going down the tracks (I never mind having to wait for a train at a grade crossing--while other drivers are honking their horns or cursing, I'm gawking at the engines!), watching one's trains go 'round and 'round is a different sort of fun--call it "model railfanning."

Jetrock, I love the term "Model Railfanning!"

My 2 year old and I definately play with the trains...it's our together time. Trains are my in with her. Having my wife stay home and me going to work everyday, she has a natural tendancy to have her mother do everything for her, but with the trains it's just she and I.

[fec153]

BRAKIE- I like your attitude and approach to our hobby. I am mostly thumbs but have
put together many MDC and Athearn kits and one or two more difficult ones, but
Intermountain is beyond my talent. Keep 'em rolling and enjoy.
Phil

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by ben10ben

I PLAY with my TOY TRAINS, and I'm proud of it!

Yes Ben, you and I can say that with pride because of the kind of trains we have, but around here it is generally not wise to use the "T" word. It implies child's play, and this crowd is into some serious modeling.[swg]

It isn't about the money, it's what you do with the trains.[;)]

[johncolley]

I am really getting into operations and it has affected me so that now whenever I see someone trying to see how many trains he can get whizzing around his multi-tiered ovals, I actually cringe! But hey, each to his own thing, eh? So my local shuffles along at 35 mph track speed out on the main and slows down for street running, industrial, or yard work. That's what makes it fun for me! Happy railroading to all!

[Roadtrp]

I love playing with my trains. It is the #1 reason I am in Model Railroading. Sure, I want the setting to be nice also, and because of that I am trying to develop my modeling skills. But the ability to play with trains is what keeps me in the hobby, and what drives everything else.

You probably should know something about me though... I am 52-years-old, and I truly hope that I never grow up. So far, I think I have been successful.

[on30francisco]

Sometimes I just like to sit back and watch the trains going around the layout.

[Anonymous]

I don't play. And I don't have any toys.

[TrainFreak409]

I play with my toys. And, I run my models. It all depends on the item itself. If it came in a cheaper set, it's probably a toy. If it is, say, a brass locomotive, you don't play with it, you run, or operate it.

[8]TrainFreak409[8]

[Anonymous]

Oh! YEA. I live in my train room. Im tring to talk my wife to into putting in a second bed . Please remember IL. Central R.R.