Dave-the-Train wrote: Just enjoy the fact that that is not £4,000.00 ... plus Her Majesty's Excise duty and the trader's mark-up... plus postage and packing or the cost of fuel going to get it (currently 91.5p per litre - about $7.25 a US gallon).And, just to really cheer you up... most toy trains drop about 50% in value in the first year except for the really high demand items (that cost more in the first place)... and try to sell off fast to recoup your costs and the price will nose dive into a crevice in a glacier and never ever re-emerge however much the planet warms up.MRR are like any hobby... they cost.The good news is that on their own MRR won't usually damage your liver, addle your brain or give you a nasty disease. Well, maybe two out of three ain't bad...
Just enjoy the fact that that is not £4,000.00 ... plus Her Majesty's Excise duty and the trader's mark-up... plus postage and packing or the cost of fuel going to get it (currently 91.5p per litre - about $7.25 a US gallon).
And, just to really cheer you up... most toy trains drop about 50% in value in the first year except for the really high demand items (that cost more in the first place)... and try to sell off fast to recoup your costs and the price will nose dive into a crevice in a glacier and never ever re-emerge however much the planet warms up.
MRR are like any hobby... they cost.
The good news is that on their own MRR won't usually damage your liver, addle your brain or give you a nasty disease. Well, maybe two out of three ain't bad...
I've got news for you brother railroader, I'm just as pure British as you are as far as my blood line goes... My father was a Williams and mother was a Ferguson. The only difference is that I just happened to be born on this side of the Atlantic... 99% of what we watch on the tele is on BBC America.
Sorry about the queen's tax and all. Maybe one day that will all be a thing of the past. You might suggest to Her Majesty (in all due respect) that she begin charging the tourists admission to London...
By the way. What's the latest word on the "Red Dwarf" movie ?. I read that it was in the works a couple of years ago, but haven't seen or heard anything since.
Tracklayer
Hummm, lets see... I think I'll need to add a column in my spread sheet for "Date Purchased" ! I did have some rolling stock and a few Locomotives from the past, but to be honest, I would say a good 10K was spent this year. BUT, I have an rationalization!!! I sold one of my Harleys and I’m therefore SAVING money. (Anyone ‘buying’ this??)
Loco wrote:Well I offically hate this thead! I was off today and couldn't keep from thinking about this. So I went through and updated all my "stuff" Total? It's $13,802.35 and that includes shipping & taxes. Gads.
G'day mate, we also have the same Queen from downunder! Ever since we introduced GST few years back, now we got to pay GST on freight as well! That's coming from overseas!
You are right, it's fairly safe except the few things in the 'Murphy's Law' thread! LOL Or unlike in R/C, you tend to try to show off with the biggest jump and that tends to make you put in new parts every now and then...
Hahaha...you are asking the wrong crowd! True hobbiests are the poorest guys in the world like me! They put every cent they can into their hobby and just all adds up over time! The type of people you should be asking is the ones who doesn't have a hobby! Got some people I know sometimes telling me they are cashed up, what should they do? And I asked him the same question! LOL
claymore1977 wrote: So, um, hows about tossing some of this cash my way eh?
So, um, hows about tossing some of this cash my way eh?
Very true! And people thought hobbiests are nuts! At least we got something to do in our spare time rather than partying and take drugs or whatever!
tigerstripe wrote: Plywood Pacific $648DCC $564playing trains & ignoring the honey do list......priceless! I stopped counting years ago, it's worth every penny, you can't put a price on happiness!
Plywood Pacific $648
DCC $564
playing trains & ignoring the honey do list......priceless!
I stopped counting years ago, it's worth every penny, you can't put a price on happiness!
Oh my! I passed $4000 some time ago. I have probably passed $20,000, but it's not really important. I spend what I can afford to on the hobby. That has varied over 35 years with some years just renewing magazine subs and other years probably spending a couple of thousand - most years are somewhere in between.
Currently, I have most of the cars and locomotives I want for the layout - I still add some as they appeal to me, but spending in this area is down.
Will probably start my next layout this month so I will be buying lumber, track and roadbed. Most of next year my spending on those three things with maybe some scenery as a relief activity. But of course there is a train show at the end of the month, another in February, and...
Enjoy
Paul
Dave Loman
My site: The Rusty Spike
"It's a penny for your thoughts, but you have to put your 2 cents in.... hey, someone's making a penny!"
I guess I've got 8 or 9,000 in model trains and collectables now, but thats over bout 25 years too.
So I don't figure I've done to bad. Most of it's came from swap meets, flea markets, yard sales and some Ebay.
I do have some extra stuff I plan on selling off next year.
inch
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/4309
Just one more locomotive... one more locomotive, and I promise not to spend any more money on model railroad equipment! Just one more locomotive... please? Please? Pretty please?
doc! we need a bed and a 42 mg application of coal for this one!
-Dan
Builder of Bowser steam! Railimages Site
ukguy wrote:It never stops...... just lays dormant for a while.............
It's a hydra, I tell ya! You cut down your roster by a car or two, and four more nice RTR ones show up in the latest magazines. What's the intrepid modeler to do? (Hey, wait a minute...did I use the words "RTR" and "modeler" in the same sentence? )
My upper lip breaks into a sweat just thinking about this. I spend about $5000 last year for my first layout, then wife convinced me to get the basement finished, so $10K for that, plus a new wood stove since the previous monster that came with the place was old and uneconomical...not to mention huge. When it came time to install the carpet, it quickly became crystal clear that Layout Numero Uno was history.
Layout Numero Dos is about 75% done, and I am into it for about $2000, with no more substantial expenses foreseen. I have acquired four locos this year and about five pieces of rolling stock. I also upgraded three QSI chips.
Trust me on this one....it stops here and now.
$19,752.58 without tax on my Lionel collection. I have a combined value of $2,750 on my N scale equipment (almost exclusivly second hand, but good condition).
Lionel collector, stuck in an N scaler's modelling space.
Well I offically hate this thead! I was off today and couldn't keep from thinking about this. So I went through and updated all my "stuff" Total? It's $13,802.35 and that includes shipping & taxes. Gads.
reklein wrote: Ian Rice hints pretty strongly at that with his small layouts book
Ian Rice hints pretty strongly at that with his small layouts book
Who publishes them?
GUB
GUB says"While the attic awaits I have built one one diorama and am starting another larger 30" x 60".
I'm not sure this isn't a way to go. I really like to build stuff and dioramas would let a person build a number of unrelated things not associated with a layout. Ian Rice hints pretty strongly at that with his small layouts book
cwclark wrote: hello Mark, There is an old saying that if you want to have fun it's gonna cost you....i'm willing to bet that since 1977, i've spent over $40,000 on 6 different layouts in this hobby. But it's fun, makes me happy, and to a degree I don't mind spending the money on it. I'm not going to go out and max out the credit cards all at one time , but i will spend money if I think i'll need it someday and the price is right. What i do is look for good deals even if it's not going to go on the layout for years. There are many places to find good deals so that you don't have to spend retail prices on your MRR items. I'll look thru Trainworld ads, go to an LHS and check out the specials and deals on consignment items, Walthers supplimental mailer catalog, the internet to compare prices from one dealer to the next dealer, trainshows, and even have found stuff in estate and garage sales at dirt cheap prices (some folks don't realize what they have that they are selling) , and occasionally from e-bay. I hope this works out for you, but I know i could never make a promise to myself like that because I enjoy the hobby too much to do without for that long.....chuck
hello Mark,
There is an old saying that if you want to have fun it's gonna cost you....i'm willing to bet that since 1977, i've spent over $40,000 on 6 different layouts in this hobby. But it's fun, makes me happy, and to a degree I don't mind spending the money on it.
I'm not going to go out and max out the credit cards all at one time , but i will spend money if I think i'll need it someday and the price is right. What i do is look for good deals even if it's not going to go on the layout for years. There are many places to find good deals so that you don't have to spend retail prices on your MRR items. I'll look thru Trainworld ads, go to an LHS and check out the specials and deals on consignment items, Walthers supplimental mailer catalog, the internet to compare prices from one dealer to the next dealer, trainshows, and even have found stuff in estate and garage sales at dirt cheap prices (some folks don't realize what they have that they are selling) , and occasionally from e-bay.
I hope this works out for you, but I know i could never make a promise to myself like that because I enjoy the hobby too much to do without for that long.....chuck
Hey Chuck!. Hope all is well with you and yours.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not getting out of the hobby, just shutting down my spending on anything train related for one full year. I need a new computer and several other items that I've been puting off for too long...
Mark (Tracklayer)
$40,000 and still adding. I have been only been working on my latest layout for 5 years (25 x 75 basemnt) but I still have a long way to go.
Having 3000 feet of HO track, 300 turnouts 850 cars and 50 engines plus the DCC system, it is no wonder that amount has been spent.
Although I am slowly getting into Cub Cadet lawn tractor restos
But it sure is a lot cheaper than Show Cars!
BOB H - Clarion, PA
This is a very interesting thread. I have been back in the hobby now for about two years. However, my endeavors have been limited to collecting various Tools, Supplies, Literature, Kits, a couple of Locomotives and a few peices of Rolling Stock with the idea i would use these purchases eventually when I build my attic empire. The attic empire requires a great deal of expenditures to even get the room ready for a layout. While the attic awaits I have built one one diorama and am starting another larger 30" x 60".
I guess at this point I am an armchair modeler and in so doing I have set up a Spreadsheet similar to what someone has posted earlier keeping track of all expenditures. My thought in doing so was to run my model railroad like a real railroad. I have also kept a journal specifically for the Model Railroad to keep track of ideas etc., The total to date is somewhere around $3,000.00, which is quie shocking when I look at what has been amassed thus far. Although disappointed in not being able to start the attic empire, I am having fun with the other aspects of the hobby.
Afterall, it is all about having fun, no matter how much is spent. Right?