Presumably you have also noticed that you are paying for the improvements ....
Dave Nelson
RTR MAY REQUIRE add on of grab irons and other nitpicking stuff.
Blue Box kits with Kadee couplers and proto wheels perform very well versus the more expensive RTR siblings. Besides, the kits foster a sense of ownership because you invested time and work getting it together.
A stack of parts gaurantees rebuilds of worn out rolling stock and possibly saves you the hassle of contacting Athearn trying to get a door that arrived missing or badly warped.
Any other english corrections??
Falls Valley RR,Um, RTR doesn't always "require" add on grabs or other detail. Kadee cars come to mind, or Branchline's RTR products, InterMountain, Athearn Genesis, etc.
To me, a built kit does not foster a sense of ownership. A sense of accomplishment, yes, absolutely. But I feel the same sense of ownership over everything I own whether I built it or bought it RTR or was given it as a gift.
Paul A. Cutler III************Weather Or No Go New Haven************
Paul3 wrote: Falls Valley RR,Um, RTR doesn't always "require" add on grabs or other detail. Kadee cars come to mind, or Branchline's RTR products, InterMountain, Athearn Genesis, etc.To me, a built kit does not foster a sense of ownership. A sense of accomplishment, yes, absolutely. But I feel the same sense of ownership over everything I own whether I built it or bought it RTR or was given it as a gift.Paul A. Cutler III************Weather Or No Go New Haven************
Post corrected. For your viewing pleasure without mistakes.
Falls Valley RR wrote:RTR MAY REQUIRE add on of grab irons and other nitpicking stuff.Blue Box kits with Kadee couplers and proto wheels perform very well versus the more expensive RTR siblings. Besides, the kits foster a sense of ownership because you invested time and work getting it together.A stack of parts gaurantees rebuilds of worn out rolling stock and possibly saves you the hassle of contacting Athearn trying to get a door that arrived missing or badly warped.Any other english corrections??
Paul3 wrote:Falls Valley RR,Um, RTR doesn't always "require" add on grabs or other detail. Kadee cars come to mind, or Branchline's RTR products, InterMountain, Athearn Genesis, etc.To me, a built kit does not foster a sense of ownership. A sense of accomplishment, yes, absolutely. But I feel the same sense of ownership over everything I own whether I built it or bought it RTR or was given it as a gift.Paul A. Cutler III************Weather Or No Go New Haven************
I'm with Paul on this. Unless a fellow is planning to spend 10 or 15 years building their railroad, some level of RTR is required. Just assembling, aligning, integrating, connecting and troubleshooting all the stuff is plenty of work.
When I retire in 26 months, I hope to have a lot more time to spend on my trains and buring a few afternoons or weeks on a scratchbuilt project should be possible. Today, just getting it together and making it look and work right is plenty to do.
Joe
Building my own kits, whether structures or rolling stock has never given me a warm and fuzzy feeling that some claim. I've used both kit and RTR for both and it is usually a tradeoff between time and money. If money weren't an issue, I'd opt for almost all RTR. Also entering the equation is availability. If I need it for my layout, I'll get it in whatever form is available. My pride and sense of ownership comes from the way I assemble the various components into my layout, not in piecing together those components.
Unless one is actually building everything from raw materials, we are all compromising to one degree or another. Even "scratchbuilders" use parts produced by somebody else. It's all a question of where on the production line we choose to step in. In my case, I prefer getting as close to the end of that line as I can afford to.
Both sides have their downside. With RTR if you want a whole fleet of the same car you'll need to pay more than you would if you bought a bunch of kits plus if you want more cars than they have road numbers for you still need to renumber them or wait for the company to make more.
With the kits you'll need to spend a lot more time especially if you bought them undecorated to paint and decal for your chice of roadname and numbers. It all depends just how much you want to put into it and which is more important to you.
sfrailfan, I think most peole have missinterpretted your question.
I can relate to what you are saying, with todays current R-T-R, I find as you do that their are variations in running quality, I guess mass production on a more automated scale can cause some of this.
I note that some times tha blackened wheels will cause problems for some time, even though they are (indicated as) electrically conductive, lubrication is also a point of contention with me, many of the manufacturers state do not lubricate, I take every locomotive on its own merits, there are still some brands that are dripping in lube, while others rely on the engineeering plastics self lubricating ability.
Case in point (Atlas N scale Shay, do not lubricate instructions, yet the pistons (rods) are metal running up and down in a metal housing that is less than smooth, I consider lubrication and even a slight smoothing of the surfaces important to obtain 'slow, smooth' running).
Even with the R-T-R, we still have to utilise 'some' of our modelling skills to get the best (or what we expect) from a model, and like anything, a running in period properly executed can make or break a model.
Hope I have answered in the right context.
Teditor.
Teditor
davidmbedard wrote: joe daddy wrote: I'm with Paul on this. Unless a fellow is planning to spend 10 or 15 years building their railroad, some level of RTR is required. Just assembling, aligning, integrating, connecting and troubleshooting all the stuff is plenty of work. When I retire in 26 months, I hope to have a lot more time to spend on my trains and buring a few afternoons or weeks on a scratchbuilt project should be possible. Today, just getting it together and making it look and work right is plenty to do.Joe 10-15 years? David B
joe daddy wrote: I'm with Paul on this. Unless a fellow is planning to spend 10 or 15 years building their railroad, some level of RTR is required. Just assembling, aligning, integrating, connecting and troubleshooting all the stuff is plenty of work. When I retire in 26 months, I hope to have a lot more time to spend on my trains and buring a few afternoons or weeks on a scratchbuilt project should be possible. Today, just getting it together and making it look and work right is plenty to do.Joe
10-15 years?
David B
David,
If you avoid RTR, that, in my mind means you scratch or kit build everything. Track, turnouts, buildings, cars, locomotives, DCC equipment, signals, the list gets long quickly. Make yourself available 8-12 hours a week and quickly you start spending time that quickly adds up to years. Then there is the stuff you have to build manually anyway, benchwork, scenery, wiring. Time is money.
Nothing wrong with RTR if you can afford it. And the prices are not that much higher anyway. Take adding a DCC sound decoder to a locomotive. Bachman 2-8-0 DCC ready $100, Tsunami $80, Speaker $10, spend a couple of hours and blow the decoder in the process. I sold all the parts because it was only $20 more to buy the same engine RTR with Tsunami, and it works perfectly. A no brainer for me.
Certainly only my 2 cents, but it is my time and money, do with yours as you will.