IS IT ME OR?

[claycts]

I have been looking at the price of things a freight station $49.00. A Farm supply $34.98. Turntable $299.95. How does a YOUGER PERSON ( the future of this hobby) get into this with those numbers? That is a LOT OF LAWNS TO CUT. I know they can by the ENTRY LEVEL things but we all inderstand how long they last and how "REAL" they do not look. Just my obervation.
Enjoy
George P.[?]

[cheese3]

I am a young person, being 15, and I just save up money for a long time. Like I want to go digital because I am building a bigger layout as we speak. I am going to have to save for at least 6 months before I can get something. Sense this is a hobby i don't mind waiting to get something because I will have the rest of my life to expand. While I am waiting and earning money by the usual grass cutting I like to improve the things I have.

[claycts]

Adam I commend you on your effort, What kind of DCC are you thinking of?

[ARTHILL]

Hang in there young guys. I built my first layout at 15. Paper route and grocery stores brought in some money. Birthdays and Christmas were also good. Prices were just as high compared to earning power. I'm not sure its anymore fun now, but it sure isn't less fun. My 70th Birthday party was still a great source of good new stuff. There is always money enough for what we really want.

Art

[ereimer]

well going by most kids i see they could simply have a talk with their parents , and say instead of buying a $100 pair of nike shoes they could buy the $19.99 walmart specials and the freight station . kid gets what he wants , parent spends less money , both happy !

[oleirish]

No it's not you,It is the times. I've been asking the same questions myself,every time I go to theLHS! Now that I'am retired I would like to sit down and build a nice building or things like that,but??????????????? again the money thing.Like the turntable $299.00 is way to high for me! Atlas has been makeing a good turntable for years,But it still has a nine inch deck,Indexing is good,nosie is not! engine shed is priced right.After all these years why has'nt altas improved on this ?Like a 15' deck and quite motor,and they could stay under $100.00.
I guess thats life,hats off to the youngsters that are staying the course!![bow]
JIM

[grandeman]

Young guys, listen carefully. Dad (or Mom) has a job. [:D]

Seriously, save as you can and start small. You can add on later.

[claycts]

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man

Young guys, listen carefully. Dad (or Mom) has a job. [:D]

Seriously, save as you can and start small. You can add on later.

AMEN! Just use what I used in the 50's. Mom and dad you know where I am and who are my ftiends and Remeber that I asked for a TRAIN fro Christmas NOT a BLACK LEATHER JACKET.
The times are different but the logic is the same.
Have a good 4th!

[roadrat]

those of you looking to save a few bucks and still put in some good buildings should check out PikeStuff's buildings very affordable and very kit-bash-able, A two stall engine house for $16.36, a two story office building for $9.39 , and the kits are made to easily attach together.
check out some of there stuff at this link,

http://www.discounttrainsonline.com/HO-Scale-Buildings-and-Structures-Pikestuff/HO_BLG_541_1.html

bill

[Anonymous]

I agree with the start small and save as you can. I have been working for years and just now getting my stuff put together. Another idea is just check the web you can find a lot of good stuff on the web for a lot less but do your research so you dont end up with junk.

[davekelly]

Ah youth. Yes, the cost of this hobby can be high. But wait, the best is still to come. Mortgage, insurance, prescriptions, new roof, kid's braces etc etc etc. If I knew then what I know now . . . . . ... .

[Anonymous]

When I started into HO gauge, I was just as strapped for cash as any other 12 year old. But I wanted a layout. I could not obtain my goal through direct purchase of the things I desired. I began to purchase other peoples broken and discarded railroad items. I begain to follow the how-to articles in MR. Through the years, MR has taught me how to build freight cars ( the old Dollar Model articles), how to modify and detail the strange locomotives that were available, how to build structures (may E.L. Moore be sainted), how to build bridges and trees (bless you Jack Work), and every thing a layout might require, even a full turntable complete with indexing. The on-going series called Pillar to Post covered so many potential problem areas I nearly wept when it was discontinued. That series was the embodyment of taking you by the hand and constructing a layout. I became a kitbasher, a scratch builder, a rebuilder of other folks junk. I did get my layout up and running, and within my miserly budget.

Even today, with considerably more expendable cash, I continue to scratchbuild many of the things I want. I find enjoyment in the creative side of the hobby. I also know that if you want a layout badly enough, you can still find a way to fulfill your dreams and not break the bank. It may not be the easiest path to a layout, but it will get you there, I promise you that.

It is a great hobby, a little something for everyone, and all the challenges you might want to face. It can also be a lot of fun if you will let it.

Steam will rise again, just as soon as I put the pot on the stove.

Tom

[selector]

Amen, Tom. I definitely have neither your skills nor your experience, but I applaud your philosophy and determination. Someone once said, "Where there's a will, there's a way." Or, as my Grandfather told me once, "If you want something badly enough, you'll go to no end of trouble to get it."

[wrumbel]

I started my first layout in 1960. My dad bought the piece of plywood and made 2 sawhores to put it on in the basement. After that I was on my own. I dyed sawdust for grass and roads. A little paint and spread out the sawdust and it looked good. I know that in the 60s we didn't have all the neat things that are around now, but we all had to dream about the day we could get that first steam engine, or a new piece of track. Switches were expensive and who could afford to have powered switch machines? The times have changed, but the dreams go on.

Wayne

[ChessieFan13]

well lads.....being a younger adult (26) with the rigors of being on my own ......wife and son.... you gotta do what you can........think about it ........if you can cut some small corners then you will all be surprised how much money you can save for stuff for your pike........instead of going to McDonalds make a sandwich at the house....there is 7.00 for the rr............forgo the movie...another 15 bucks....candy store is right out........you can also maby collect pop cans to recycle....that reward is two fold.....helping clean the earth and money for the rr........drive less there is less gas used there for more money for the rr....dont forget about all of the other things you are doing for money for your rr....it add up quick.......these are a few tried and true ways to make xtra dough for the layout cause thats how i make some of my hobby money

[HAZMAT9]

My recommendation, get creative. Sit with a piece of paper and pencil and make a list of the structures you'd like to have. Then figure out which ones' you can scratch-build out of cardstock or something similiar. Do a few drawings or better yet if you can view a pic of an existing kit this can also give you some ideas. Then get yourself some glue, a few plastic pieces (tubing...etc) for those odd shaped pieces. Cardstock, plastic pieces and glue are fairly inexpensive (pocket change), and you can build up a pretty nice structure fairly cheap plus you can build your structures to configure to your layout. Good Luck, Steve

[Anonymous]

I'm a young person (17) and since job are tight in my area making money is not an option. With Walthers plastic kit going for $40-$60 for what I want it's just not possible to afford them. Likwise I like building craftsman kits and at $60-$80 that just doesn't work either. So I am finding scratch building much better. While a building might cost $35 to but I can build one from scratch for $15 or so. Mat board is good stuff and since I can get it for free that saves big amounts of money.

[claycts]

My $.02 I have saved a ton looking in the local reading paper, Trading Post, I wannta and such. Also going to train shows and swap meets have brought a few good itmes. I am just worried about the new people getting in and getting burned. Hobby Lobby has a lot of things at 50% off with coupons or on line.
Takes care and keep the SHINY SIDE UP!

[davekelly]

Another way to stretch a limited budget is to do more modeling with each structure kit. I've been working on a Walthers Merchant's Row II for quite awhile now. Each store has different color brick and stonework. Paint the widow, doors and frames. Block out different areas of the buildings so when it is lighted some rooms look empty just like in real life. I'm currently attempting to put in some rough interiors using the ideas in the Kalmbach structures book.

I've spent about $30 so far on the building and some paint and about 6 weeks now working on it, which comes out to about $5.00 a week. Much more budget friendly than if had just assembled the kit, then built another and another etc etc.

[Anonymous]

About twenty years ago I really wanted a computer. When I sat down and really figured out what it would cost to get an Apple IIc it came out to about what I was spending on a two pack a day smoking habit. I gave up the cigarettes, got the computer and will likely live longer.

[joeh19012]

I'm glad to see that there are some young people actively involved in this wonderful hobby! [:)][^][8D]

The difficulties, especially the ones surrounding funding, sound awfully similar to what I encountered many years ago. A lot of the advice already posted makes a great deal of sense: save up, trade off something else to get the train stuff, etc. I did some of the same things, and I also always asked for railroad equipment for birthdays, around Christmas time, and so on. A neighbor owned a toy store, so I used to buy Matchbox cars for the layout at a discount.

My main suggestion is to try to use some of the less expensive kits that you can find at some toy stores or at mall hobby shops (and online). The Walthers structure kits, for example, are really nice, as are many of the imports, but you can still do fairly well with less expensive kits from manufacturers like Bachmann, Model Power, Life Like, and IHC. Even Atlas, whose locomotives are expensive, has a decent line of inexpensive kits. These kits lend themselves to relatively easy kitbashes, and you can paint them any way you want to make them unique. I filed off the molded letters on one of these buildings and put in my own dry transfer letters instead. You don't need a lot of special order detail parts, either. Suppose you want a different kind of window in a kit. Buy the kit you like, and for about the same price, find another one that you would otherwise have passed up that has the right kind of windows. Modify the first kit, use the windows from the second kit, and when you're done, you not only have a unique structure, but also a collection of parts that you can use another time.

Not a lot of money out of pocket, no long searches on the internet, no waiting for detail parts on back order. There are other similar bargains you can find--you just have to think creatively and maybe put off a fancier layout until you have your own space in which to put it.

Above all else, enjoy the hobby, and have fun! [:D]

[IRONROOSTER]

When I started out, I had 2 Tyco engines, several Tyco cars and MDC cars, Atlas track, Atlas kits - station, lumber yard, control tower. It all worked and I had fun with it. I also bought some parts and scratch/parts built some freight cars and structures. Tyco is gone but the rest are still here. Maybe it isn't the best stuff compared to other lines available, but with a little paint it can look all right. Maybe MR could run a column on dressing up the cheap stuff.

I'm not sure where we lost track of this as a hobby and got so serious we forgot how to have fun. I read some of the descriptions of operating sessions and I'm thinking this is like having a another job except you don't get paid. They now are having clinics on how to fill out the paperwork for model contests. Sometimes I think we need to lighten up a little. This is a hobby, you spend what you can afford and have fun.

Enjoy
Paul

[selector]

Paul, yer a man after me own heart, Bud. Some people call having fun sleeping on a slung hammock 400' up a cliff face on the first night of a three day climb. For others, it is completing the perfect tie-off on a Shadfly in anticipation of next Saturday's fishing trip.

I like running steam locomotives, and enjoy diverting them from rail-to-rail. I enjoy the sound, and I find that seeing and hearing them do that on a modest layout that I bulit merely enhances the effect. I could just as well do that on a substantial kitchen counter and let my mind fill in the rest.

I couldn't agree with you more that these ops sessions that take weeks of planning, six guys, and a days worth of coffee, just have no appeal for me. I appreciate that they make for a joyous event for those that do them, but you won't see me there.

Choo, choo!!. Love the sound of that airpump, too.

[:D][yeah]

[claycts]

A little insight: I plotted my track plan and had it on the table at our meeing. To say it got blown apart was being nice.
Mr X. "A point to point is the only REAL RAIL ROAD(I agree this is a model)
Mr Y "This is no good you can run it with one person" (I am one person what is the point?)
Mr. Z "You are not going to waste your money and build that are you? There is not enough yard sapce and the aisle allow only one operator and there is a loop around the room a train can just run all day on." (Yes I will build it, There is plenty of yard space if you do not have a desire NOT TO HAVE YARD SPACE, I am ONE PERSON so that works well. and yes there is a DISPLAY TRACK all around the room that will be DC and DCC so I can run the old Tyco and marx engines I have)
I short I had a job I retired and I am not looking for another job. I am not forming a club that spends 2 nights a week planing to run a session that lasts all of 1 hour with 12 people trying to run all over each other trying to stay on schedule. WHAT schedule?
Give me the Circle around the 4x8 with 1 spur track and a passing siding that was when it was JUST FOR FUN.
I asked Mr Z if he wanted to suggest a better design, his answer was "I DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING YET BUT I AM THINKING ABOUT GETTING SOME THINGS" I lovearm chair critics don't you!
George P.

[nickl02]

Product manufacturers don't always think of the younger modelers. I'm only 13 and I am always running out of money when I need to buy something else. Check yard sales and train shows for used equipment. When I build my layout I picked up lumber for benchwork of the side of the road.

[claycts]

QUOTE: Originally posted by nickl02

Product manufacturers don't always think of the younger modelers. I'm only 13 and I am always running out of money when I need to buy something else. Check yard sales and train shows for used equipment. When I build my layout I picked up lumber for benchwork of the side of the road.

Has anybosy ever thought of an ONLINE Flea Market for used items? List an item people call you, they buy you sell. EBAY is a pain, using PAYPAL is OK. Also we have the TRAIN SHOW where you HOPE to get a bargin. I am willing to host, at our SEECARR Club house a TRAINS ONLY Swap meet. This is in AIKEN S.C. any thoughts? We need to help kids like nickl02 and others get a bargin and keep going in the hobby. We do this all the time with cars. Every tried to go to NAPA and buy a fuel filter for a 1988 Ferrari Testtarossa?
George P. (Just trying to help)

[rrinker]

What? You mean you CAN'T just pop into the local auto parts store and buy Ferrari parts? The shock! [:D][:D][:D]

Takes quite a bit of work to organize a train show - but you definitely have some experience int hat regard, plus if there is no other show around to compete with, you just might start something. Around here there is a groupt hat puts on two shows a year and they actively do things to discourage competition with their show. It's nt liekt his is the perfect show by any means, they have no CLUE how to organize the vendors, unlike the Timonium show that seperates the scale stuff from the hi-rail and tinplate, these guys continue to mix and match, even thought he venue was expanded the other year witha new addition. And they CONTINUE to make the aisles WAY too small, no chance to stop and browse, the rest of the crowd will shove you along. The Model RR club I used to belong to attempted to organize a new show in a different venue, at a different time, not directly opposite the other shows. That had a nice logical setup to the show floor, plenty of room to walk around and browse, and a bunch of operating layouts. Unfortunately there were some shannanigans witht he other group and a lot of vendors didn't show up, and the show ended up being a bust. A real shame because it was a very high quality effort and well organized.

--Randy

[claycts]

WE do a CAR SHOW in November in Aiken S.C. www.seecarr.org Our charity is the restoration of the Rail Road Depot. The local Model Rail road club has a running N gauge and HO gauge display. My company is the sponsor. It would take me 2 min. to include a FLEA MARKET for trains. Would be outside this year but 2006 who knows. They are building a facility that may house it but I am thinking of the downtown building no clue what it rents for. I am willng just need to see what kind of support we can get. And from who. I need folks now for the November show, hard to find them.
If it happens then I would try and keep out the PROS that jack up the [rice THEN give you a discount back to MSRP. Seen that to many times. I will talk to the board of the local train club and test the waters. The admission deal sometimes keeps OUT the people that need the bargins. May use an EMAIL deal to give out passes or something. Anyway I am very fortunate to be where I am and would like to help some one else get there.

[rrinker]

I think you're on to something - it could get BIG if there are any decent number of modellers who aren't too far away. They car tie-in is great, you already have the publicity for that, and for some reason it seems cars and model railroading go together - in this state we have a license plate that features a Grif Teller image of a PRR K4, naturally I have this one, well just yesterday I passed a guy in a brand new Porsche Carrera S with one. A train shows usually half the cars have them, but they are usually on pickups and SUVs. Except for this one beautifuly restored GTO that shows up if the weather is nice.
There is a great combo show that runs here too, although the train part is display, not buy/sell. They call it Trains, Planes, and Automobiles, naturally it has them all, vintage aircraft, vintage cars, and both static train displays and operational layouts.

--Randy

[claycts]

I will post a topic and SEE