CLOSED////////The Coffee Pot is still on and over 3 years. Here we gather as friends with trains.

[ChiefEagles]

Welcome Nittany   Hang around.

Turned cold and windy.  Been working in train rooms.  Wiring done.  Now to get them hung up and out of the way.  Then move tubs in.  Plenty of room.  Ate a nice snack and now watching a movie for a break.  Stay warm.  Later

[Anonymous]

To the Forum.  Nice to see some additional Navy Blue and White to offset all the Scarlet and Grey!

Like Doug (cnw) recommended, look for one of the starter sets from MTH or Lionel, they will get you going with some track, transformer, engine, and some rolling stock... after that... the sky's the limit!

[Sturgeon-Phish]

 

Hello All-

 

I am considering starting a toy train collection as a new hobby. Can you give me some advice as how and where to start?

 

 

Thanks- NL

Trains are a great hobby.  Before you start buying everything in sight, think about what you want your hobby to be in 2, 4 and 6 years.  Figure if you want a layout or not, and when.  Think about what scale, and modern or pre- or post war.  There are so many aspects it is wide open.  Which brings  me to the point, do a lot of reading and asking questions before you dive into the deep end of the pool.

Jim

[ChiefEagles]

To the Forum.  Nice to see some additional Navy Blue and White to offset all the Scarlet and Grey!

Scarlet and Grey all the way.

[Brutus]

Nittany - what they said!

Kurt - Happy Anniversary!  Have a great day, sir!

My Christmas present shipped - hurray!

[Buckeye Riveter]

To the Forum.  Nice to see some additional Navy Blue and White to offset all the Scarlet and Grey!

Scarlet and Grey all the way.

[dwiemer]

Welcome to the forum.  As others have suggested, I would start with a "Starter set" and build up from there.  Some pretty exciting things have happened over the last 10 years of O gauge trains.  One thing that sets O gauge apart from the others is the great accessories and the many fun things that you can do in many different directions of this hobby.  For many of us, we have fallen back in love with a hobby we enjoyed as kids.  Many memories to have and relive.

If you did have trains when you were younger, you may want to collect some of what you grew up with.  If you have no specific train you want, or specific railroad, my suggestion would be to get some copies of "Classic Toy Trains" (they run this site), or "O Gauge Railroading".  Look through them and you will see some great things of what can be done.  Then, if you have a model railroad club nearby, or a train store that has a layout, you can get some ideas of how far you want to get into it.  I would also get copies of the latest Lionel and MTH catalogs so you can see some more of what is out there. 

You can also send messages to folks on this forum who live in your area and see if you can visit and learn how to build a layout, etc.  Lots of great people here and it is a great site to visit often and ask questions to learn.  One suggestion is that at the top of the thread list is a thread for new folks to ask questions that have been asked and answered plenty times before.  While we don't jump on someone for asking a common question, you would be better served checking for such questions as you don't have to wait for a response.

Enjoy this place and this hobby.  Glad to have you.

Dennis

[sir james I]

Welcome nittany

O boy wrote a thread and something ate it. I'll try again but it won't be the same. Cold and windy tonite. Kurt may have had rain or snow as he lives west of me and that stuff was in his area.      Brutus- I have had my ice cream but saved some for you just don't bring Chewys spoon. Paid $3.09 for reg. most places $3.15/$3.19. No trains today, went grocery shopping and goofed off after that. Later y'all  GO BUCKEYES        Sir James

[Brutus]

Hi Sir James - thank's for the icecream!  Mmmmmm, love that Butter Pecan!  Watching some good old Popeye cartoons I bought on a dvd from the 1930s and they are great!

BTW - noticed the Lowes and Home Depot ads are selling holiday wreaths and family trees etc.  "tis the season to hide the reason again.

[sir james I]

Evening Brutus, you knew it would be butter pecan didn't you?

[Brutus]

Wasnt' sure, I heard there was a pecan thief running around here???  NOw, do you pronounce it Pee-can or p-kahn?  Either way it's good!

[sir james I]

p-kahn, the cooking show says its p-can

[fifedog]

To the Forum.  Nice to see some additional Navy Blue and White to offset all the Scarlet and Grey!

Scarlet and Grey all the way.

Chief - didn't you mean Scarlet & Rhett...?

[Brutus]

Ah, well the Butter makes it better -

Fifedog, I see everyone has their Christmas stuff out, any luck getting a new tower?

[fifedog]

Brutus - Actually, yes.  Joann's Fabrics has its HOLIDAY INSPIRATIONS line out now, which included a bell tower.  It's more tapered then the one that met calamity, and will take up less space in the background.

Buckeye - was just thinking of you while watching the special about OHIO STATE vs. MICHIGAN STATE...very entertaining.

[kpolak]

Nittany:  Welcome!  I picked up the trains again as a way to keep my sanity raising two children.  You can find projects that only require small increments of your time, and running trains is very relaxing.  Forums, and magazines are a great help!  Also, look for some local shows to meet some new people, and to see some trains and layouts.

Anniversary Dinner went great last night!  Eldest selected Roast Pork Fried Rice over Pizza, watched movies, and left us to the fireplace.

Sir James:  Went for Bride's truffels about 4:00pm, downtown Ann Arbor...High winds and sleet.  Nasty, Nasty, but we were able to get the chocolates.  I called ahead...good thing, I got the last 1/2 lb of rasberry trufflels.  Last time I bought more chocolate, they didn't get eaten.

Eldest road bicycle outdoors for the first time yesterday.  Very exciting.

Kur

[Jumijo]

 

Good morning from New England, where freedom began!

Still raining out there but expected to clear away by this afternoon. The rain has given me a chance to see my new car's traction control system in action. Very nice!

The wife and I had a very romantic evening last night. It was good to go out and have some fun by ourselves. It was a bit of a late evening though, and I'm a little bit tired this morning. Not to worry. Tomorrow is Saturday and I'll get to sleep in until somewhere close to 6 am. Then my 3 munchkins will come in and pounce on me and ask me to go downstairs with them...I love it! 

So today is "Bring your train to work day"? Right now on my desk is a Lionel pre war 0-6-0 switcher (8976), sloped back Pennsy tender (228B), and a similar vintage NYC large, tuscan colored caboose (19400). They are sitting in front of one of my monitors. I also have a nearly pristine 726 first generation pilot that I got for free at Charles Ro (the lady there likes me ). There's also a vintage Lionel billboard and some signals here.

Welcome Nittany. Good to see some new people here on the forum! Good luck train shopping.

 

 

[Buckeye Riveter]

Buckeye - was just thinking of you while watching the special about OHIO STATE vs. MICHIGAN STATE...very entertaining.

fife - Did they tell about the time the Michigan militia lined up on the border ready to attack Ohio?  We got Toledo and Jammie Farr out of that deal, and they got the UP. 

BTW, Michigan State is the green team , Michigan is the blue team .

Doug - At least you could wait to mess with my trains for a couple more weeks.  I spent three hours getting a switch to work.  Of course the switch is a key component to the layout and is in a very hard to reach location where I need to crawl under the layout and poke my head through an access hatch inside the mountain.

Big weekend on tap in Buckeyeland.  Parties and more parties.  Free beer!  Free food!  Loose women! Doesn't get much better than that!!

Go BUCKS!!

[jonadel]

I think after tomorrow's game Loyd Carr will fall into the category "nice to have known you". Here's an even funnier scenario-- if the Iowa Hawkeye's beat Western Michigan (and they should) they will qualify for a bowl game. Can you say "too many bowl games"?

[kpolak]

Should be an interesting M vs OS game tomorrow.  I'm not sure OS will be able to cope with the loss to Illinois...I don't think Mr. Carr will be responsible for a win.  It's OS's to lose.

High noon Buckeye!

Kurt

[A&Y Ry]

Lisa and Chief

22.3F here @ 3,500' altitude in the balmy Carolina mountains but thankfully the snow has stopped and the wind is down to 6-7 mph. Sun coming up over Sugar Mountain where the snow blowers are working full time on the ski slopes. Power was off due to high wind damage in some sections including the nearby college campus but we dodged it somehow. Weather Station on Beech Mountain across the valley reported zero temp last night and 52 mph wind yesterday.

I have got to set up some Christmas trains [probably on the carpet]. Family is coming up here for Christmas---all congregating in Raleigh for Thanksgiving. Since dismantling my five-track shelf operation here I have been an armchair O-gauger. Reading train books and lurking on Forums is not my idea of railroading. Considered giving up O-gauge and running for mayor of our Elk River community but reading the experience of a certain Eastern N.C. Mayor scared me off.

Probably use a 7' oval of Realtrax I soldered together [via 14ga. buss]as a round-the-tree track and currently stored/hanging on the garage wall in Greensboro. Sons and Grand Daughters tend to favor stinking diesels so I will leave the Mikes and Pacifics in Greensboro in favor of the Carolina DOT trains, a Southern RS-3 short freight and the Thomas train for the littlest one. 

Lisa, you definitely need a break from  your recent family Nursing chores. Glad to see that your Hubby is well and active again.

Gas furnaces are agressively attacking my train budget.

Regards,

Dewey

[cnw1995]

Morning from a sunny and cold Crystal Lake where I am home to go to the eye doc. Now have to drop off a car as well where the brake light started shining. Ugh. My laws have rebounded on me.

Hi Dewey, get out something and run it -'tis the season to work on some sort of  layout!

[Jumijo]

Morning from a sunny and cold Crystal Lake where I am home to go to the eye doc. Now have to drop off a car as well where the brake light started shining. Ugh. My laws have rebounded on me.

 

Best of luck with both, Doug! And hey, it's only money!

 

 

[ChiefEagles]

Buckeye, I'm on your team.  Remember what Appalachian State did to the enemy.  Now you know the BUCKS have to win or you will not live that down.  [pressure is on for strong cheering]  Fife, I'm on Buckeye's side [only on this one].

Morning all.  Cold this AM but warming.  Busy afternoon so will get right on to the trains.  Did get the old saw mill running last night.  Getting wires tied up under layout so wife's tubs will slide under.

All have a great day.

[Anonymous]

Only time I do not root for OSU is when they play PSU... can't bring myself to ever root for that Yellow and Blue Northern school... the SMU of the North .

Check back later... have to get this website working for another group... why can't Microsoft make this easier to do... every time I set up a site I have to do something different because it never works the same way twice!

[RRCharlie]

39 in Jacksonville, FL last night.Up to 42 a half hour ago. Haven't done much with trains for a while. Getting papers graded in preparation for end of the semester. Florida State box car finally in at the Train Works. Will pick up tomorrow after class. Anxiously waiting for Legacy Command set and the NYC GP-7's. Still trying to decide whether to put Legacy in dining room or in train room. 5 1/2 pills and glass of O.J. on the rocks coming from the dining car shortly.(Self serve)

Wife is going to Gainesville,FL later today for a Gator Band reunion. 24 hours for me to turn the house into a total disaster area and get it cleaned up before she returns!

Welcome to the new comers and prayers to all with their aches, pains, and losses. Some of us are getting, or are, at that age where this kind of stuff happens more often than we would like.

Have a great weekend and enjoy life-trains especially. Mel Hazen; Jax, FL

[sir james I]

Good morning to all,

Another gloomy day in Mich. 34/42 is forcast. Can anyone report seeing the sun where they live? I got to sleep a little longer this AM wife doesn't watch the boys till 11.

My friend painted an old F3 shell NYC dark gray for me, now I need to decal it lightning stripes but Microscale doesn't fit the body right so I'll need to mess with it till I am satisfied with the fit. An MPC shell might have been a better choice as the don't have all the ridges. Oh well.

It's friday so everyone play nice...........Sir James

[Anonymous]

 

Good Morning All-

 Thanks for the replies, suggestions and the football talk. Looks like I have some reading to do.

Doug-  I lived in CL in 1982-1983 in a subdivision called Coventry, I believe. The population was about 18,000 then, I think. Moved to Harvard for a short period after that. I don't really have a preference as to any particular RR. I live in NW Indiana, near Chicago and we have a hobby shop in town that I'll check out tomorrow. I did see "South Shore" logos in the window.

Chief- Congrats on becoming Mayor. I was in Raleigh in August and it's a beautiful part of the country. Brunswick Stew is worth the trip! I did notice a few Yankee accents down there, though.

 Brent- What makes you a PSU fan?  Alumnus?

 

Take Care-

NL-

[Jumijo]

 

Train show all this weekend. And Jerry C. at Charles Ro tomorrow. Yeah, Baby!!! In the past, I've suggested the following to him. James the Red Engine, an add-on for the El Capitan starter set, and a mid -range transformer. All of them have come to pass or will shortly. Coincidence? I think NOT! Also need to squeeze in a Santa parade, memorial mass, and a dinner party Sat night. Sunday night I'll watch the Patriots stomp the Bills.

One of my wife's cousins got into O gauge just recently and is ready to begin building his benchwork. I've agreed to help him with that, the scenery, and with painting all of his backdrops. Should be fun to see it all come together from the ground up.

[mickey4479]

Good morning from Kansas City.  There is a train show in KC Thanksgiving Sunday.   I will be there trying to sell some 027 odds and ends and in particular a Railking PRR Mikado and an 0-6-0 switcher.  I will also bring my kitbashed wood reefer (Carstens) to see if anybody knows where the real car was used.  I will be searching for a used 3r rail PRR Decapod or a reasonable MTH Premier version perhaps.  Anybody in the neighborhood?