How Much Rolling Stock ?

[twhite]

Holy Cow catcher guys

Why does the name Amelda Marcos keep coming to mind

we need a seventh step group for the box car affliction

Terry--

Call me "Imelda", then.  I just got back from RR Hobbies in Roseville.  Went over to buy some brass washers, came back with an Accurail Santa Fe boxcar and four new 50' Athearn reefers, which I need like another series of holes in my head. 

Oh, yah, I did remember to get the washers, LOL!

I need a TWELVE-step cure, but I know it's useless

Tom

Come to think about, I'd bet the principal reason the LHSs stock washers and like is so we'll come in and buy lots of other stuff on impulse.

Mark

Mark: 

Funny you should mention that.  As I walked out of the store today, Mike, the owner reminded me of the time that I came in for some Kadee couplers and walked out with a brand-new brass PSC Rio Grande 2-10-2.  As he told me, "You know, Tom, I didn't have it in the display case long enough to get a good look at it." 

Oh well---

Tom

[tatans]

These questions always end up with the same results, some people have 68 others have 3,000  the quandry is to those who do not collect by the hundreds is why would a person hoard so many cars with no intention of ever using them, what could be the reason??? Most think it's quite a joke to have so many cars they can't count them and they are still out there buying more, doesn't sound too funny to me . But-----we can all do anything we want can't we????

Every time one of these polls turns up on this forum the results get more exaggerated each time, are we to really to believe the vast amounts of cars or locomotives listed??? it is astonishing, I never believed the amount, but I'm afraid I do now. Imelda was right.

[cmrproducts]

Joe Fugate had some formulas on his web site once that would help calculate how many trains that could be run on a given layout.

The formulas also would calculate the number of cars needed for the layout and the length of trains.

Now I had already set my train length and had been having operation sessions twice monthly for a number of years.

For fun I plugged in the required info and set up the formulas in a spreadsheet so I could easily make recalculating things easier.

According to the calcs. I would need over 1000 cars on my layout to make the required number of trains run.  While I am only at 850 cars so far I feel that the 1000 cars is quite close to what I will be running.

Now I ran these formulas on an already built layout and it was fun to see just how close they were to what I had been running for the past 2 years!

I keep adding 5 cars at a time (about once every month or two) and let them get mixed into the system.  This way I can ease up on the actual number of cars that I feel I will need and will be able to see when things get to the point of starting to clog the yards too bad!

BOB H Clarion, PA

[markpierce]

Holy Cow catcher guys

Why does the name Amelda Marcos keep coming to mind

we need a seventh step group for the box car affliction

Terry--

Call me "Imelda", then.  I just got back from RR Hobbies in Roseville.  Went over to buy some brass washers, came back with an Accurail Santa Fe boxcar and four new 50' Athearn reefers, which I need like another series of holes in my head. 

Oh, yah, I did remember to get the washers, LOL!

I need a TWELVE-step cure, but I know it's useless

Tom

Come to think about, I'd bet the principal reason the LHSs stock washers and like is so we'll come in and buy lots of other stuff on impulse.

Mark

[markpierce]

Terry--

Call me "Imelda", then.  I just got back from RR Hobbies in Roseville.  Went over to buy some brass washers, came back with an Accurail Santa Fe boxcar and four new 50' Athearn reefers, which I need like another series of holes in my head. 

Oh, yah, I did remember to get the washers, LOL!

I need a TWELVE-step cure, but I know it's useless

Tom

When the LHS cashier asks me if I found everything I needed, my usual response is "and then some."

Mark

[Hoople]

About 30 freight cars and cabeese.

Rolling stock... Add 8 passenger cars.

38.

Mark

[HEdward]

Hey, if it wasn't for Box Car Addicts, our LHS's might be fewer in number.  Just don't get into debt over your trains and we'll all be just fine. 

ps-Danbury CT had at least a dozen women that bought a pair or two of shoes every week from Alice or Gay at Filene's.  I wonder where they got their shoes after Filene's left?

[twhite]

Holy Cow catcher guys

Why does the name Amelda Marcos keep coming to mind

we need a seventh step group for the box car affliction

 

Terry--

Call me "Imelda", then.  I just got back from RR Hobbies in Roseville.  Went over to buy some brass washers, came back with an Accurail Santa Fe boxcar and four new 50' Athearn reefers, which I need like another series of holes in my head. 

Oh, yah, I did remember to get the washers, LOL!

I need a TWELVE-step cure, but I know it's useless

Tom

[modelmaker51]

I stopped counting at about 500 10 years ago. I've probably added another 150 - 200. There are about 300 cars on the layout, I change out about 1/3 every 2 or 3 months.

[C&O Fan]

Holy Cow catcher guys

Why does the name Amelda Marcos keep coming to mind

we need a seventh step group for the box car affliction

[dale8chevyss]

About 15....

 

 

I've been a MR enthusiast for about 10 years but more serious for the past year or so.  I'm working on it.  I don't feel I need too much for a 4x8. 

[Tjsingle]

I have about 15-20 that are on my layout and 15 in storage, so 30-35?

Tjsingle

[markpierce]

I have too many to easily count, after all, I only have 20 fingers and toes.  I do know, however, I have more than enough and am still accumulating.  I can't overcome the addiction.

Mark

[Last Chance]

4 Gondolas

6 Covered Hoppers

6 Hoppers Coal

6 Heavy duty flats of different kinds.

8 Boxcars

6 Coil Cars

12 Tank cars Chemical

4 Tank cars Pressure gas

6 Tank cars Furnance Oil.

and a few others like reefers etc

 

Half this number is one switching session at the industry on the railroad.

There are boxes that hold about 200 more peices destined to be sold or sent to Club service.

 

I made the decision that no rolling stock will be bought unless it can be used on the existing layout. Ive had way too many impulse buys.

[sparkyjay31]

Wow you guys!!!!

I only have 6 that are in use as of right now.  Of course I'm only in the hobby for 1 year.  Take my 6, multiply that by 10 years and I'm at 60 pieces.  Even that seems like ALOT of rolling stock to me!!!

[loathar]

About 60, but I'll probably only use about half on this layout. Some don't fit the era and some are...well...crap. I'm trying to get in the mind set of quality over quantity.
(Not that there's anything wrong with quantity.)

[trainnut1250]

Around 130 super detailed cars that I built.  Around 50 super detailed cars that my friends built.  Around 100 super detailed kits that are in boxes unbuilt. Around 300 cars of varying quality that have been given to me over the years, most of these are in boxes. not on the layout. I have room in staging for around 270 cars, not including yard space or siding space at industries. 

As a rule, I try no to pay more than $10.00 per kit, many were bought on Ebay for far less.I'm most proud of the cars I built.

I have been buying cars for the current roster since around 2001 when I decided to get out of Marklin and switched to two rail DCC, American prototype.  As you can see there are lots of guys who have been in the same scale and format for many decades who have much bigger collections than I.  Most of the old time guys I know could open hobby shops with their collections.  Its just an obsession, er ah hobby..

However many cars you think you will own/need...Triple that number at least....

John Armstrong cites the car aquisition syndrome as one of the main reasons model railroaders become dis-satisfied with their layouts.  Mainly that they run out of storage space and don't like having to shuttle cars on and off the layouts to off layout storage.  One layout I know is completely clogged with cars crammed in on every siding.  Personally, I'm trying to avoid this problem, not sure how sucessful I will be in the long run.

Guy

[Texas Zepher]

So the question is how many pieces of rolling stock do you have?

I presume you mean freight only?   Ummm Too many, umm more than will fit on three layouts, umm a storage unit full,  ummm can I count by the case,  ummm I think it would take too long to count. oooh ooh I know the right answer is - all of the above.   I think I've purchase at least 40 at-and-since the Great Train Expo just last February... and Tim Allen style -- uh oh uh oh uuuh .. there is another sale tomorrow!   Help! - Restrain me please.

[Autobus Prime]

Folks:

I think I have about two dozen, which is too much. My railroad would operate fine with about half that. Most of it is train set quality, bought used and refurbished to tide me over until I get better stuff.

The number of cars needed depends on the railroad. If you want to do things cheaply, design a small railroad with low-key operations and save. :)

[Anonymous]

In operating condition in the right era; I have 30-something, allo of which are currently on the layout. In operating condition but not correct era I have about 7, then in non-operating condition I have somewhere around 15.

[MisterBeasley]

In what condition, I'm afraid I must ask.

I've got maybe 50-60 in good running order, with Kadees.

There's one unbuilt kit downstairs, and 3 more waiting for a ride home from my LHS.

There are about 15-20 oldies with horn-hooks that are worth upgrading, but I don't have room for them so I'm in no hurry.

I've got a mess of old passenger cars which range from "falling apart" to whatever condition comes right before "ashes to ashes, dust to dust."

Even restricting the count to the ones in good running order, though, I don't have room on my layout for everything.  I am kind of dual-era, though, so I don't mind the idea of having only half of my rolling stock on the rails at any one time.

It does, however, make me wish I had staging...

[twhite]

About 7 years ago I went through my drawers of rolling stock and gave away about 200 pieces to my grand-nephew.  It was all stuff that wasn't applicable to the period I'm modeling (1939-53) and I was a Very Happy Camper.  I'd thinned my inventory down considerably and it was all fitting the time frame. 

I've replaced those 200 cars and then some.  I'd say right now I've got about 700 pieces of rolling stock--all within the time period I model--and I'm one of those guys who can't go into a hobby shop--no matter what ELSE I'm looking for--and NOT come out with another model.  I can make up a train of fifty reefers and not even DENT my collection of PFE's.  And that doesn't even begin to touch my collection of ART's, FGEX's, BREX's and SFRD's.  And I don't even want to go into how many Intermountain Rio Grande drop-bottom gondolas I've got. 

And I'm heading over to RR Hobbies this afternoon to pick up some little brass details that I ordered.  God only knows what else I'll come home with once I wander down the freight car asile, LOL!

Tom

[rfross]

How much? Probably three or four times as much as I really need for interesting operations. Like others here I had been purchasing HO rolling stock and loco's for twenty some years and had a whole closet full that I sold off when I switched to two-rail O scale. I ended up with nearly three hundred pieces of rolling stock, at least a dozen locomotives and a bunch of structure, vehicle and other assorted kits.

I told myself that I wouldn't let myself fall into that trap again. So what have I done? I've bought more O-scale rolling stock than I really need and now it's time to thin that collection out.

At the moment my two-rail O scale rolling stock includes one VO-1000 and one SW1200 loco (Northern Pacific livery, of course!) and probably sixty some freight cars. I have a shelf switching layout under construction that is about thirty linear feet in length. So sixty freight cars is overkill.

[jamnest]

I have 235 pieces or HO scale rolling stock.  I am trying to build a prototype inventory of rolling stock that would be in the Kansas City area in 1981.  My home road is the KCS with a shared yard (Joint Agency Terminal aka Knoche Yard) in Kansas City with the Milwauke.  The majority of my rolling stock should be "home road" stuff which would be KCS and MILW, both difficult to find and not duplicate car numbers. 

I do keep an inventory in an Excel spread sheet so I know which cars and numbers I already own.  This is helpful when shopping on Ebay.  I also take the list with me to train shows and swap meets.

I also have a 1981 edition of the Official Railway Equipment Register so I can verify the rolling stock that I get did run during this time period.  The research aspect of developing a prototype roster for this era is very enjoyable.

 

[HEdward]

1 N scale tank car found in my brother in law's toolbox after he passed away.

A four car Marx train set from the pre or post war era.

About 40 freight cars and six functioning locos in HO that are mine.

Another two locos, two dummies, ten freight cars, three wooden passenger cars visiting from my other brother-in-law who moved to Kalmbach's hometown.(I tried to get him to get a job there, but he likes running a bookstore)

I don't think that I have enough room for 1000 cars in HO.  Maybe Z.  Maybe I should give away my lone N scale car like Don Z has, but I'm not set up to post a picture of it.

[tomikawaTT]

I've given up on my inventory lists!!  How about 14 boxes, each approx 14"x22"x12" - not counting about 40 or so pieces that are the grandsons'!!  Scale vehicles?  I'm still putting them in Plano boxes - will have a count on them in a couple of weeks!!  Newbies, don't get upset - I've only been collecting since the late '50's!!

I resemble that!

Actually, two of my late '50s locomotives (Tensodo 0-6-0T and Kawai solid lead 0-4-0T) are on my layout now, along with a couple of Tenshodo bakelite (!!) freight cars from the same era.

I'm still unpacking things from my (now 4 years ago) move, and discovering things I had forgotten I have.  Yesterday it was a Bachmann ATSF 4-8-4 that I thought I had left behind at a club I used to belong to.  After a quick lube job, it ran!  But it sure looks out of place on a purely Japanese layout!

Of course, I'm still looking for a couple of my MU cars...

Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)

[lvanhen]

I've given up on my inventory lists!!  How about 14 boxes, each approx 14"x22"x12" - not counting about 40 or so pieces that are the grandsons'!!  Scale vehicles?  I'm still putting them in Plano boxes - will have a count on them in a couple of weeks!!  Newbies, don't get upset - I've only been collecting since the late '50's!!

[BRAKIE]

At last count 288 HO cars and 37 N Scale cars.

[stokesda]

You might be a model railroader if you've ever told yourself:

"I can quit buying freight cars any time I want!"

[Don Z]

Terry,

I don't think I'm anywhere near the norm in regards to number of cars. I have been buying rolling stock for about 15 years or so, often buying cars simply because I liked the paint scheme of the car. I started buying without thinking about whether the car would fit in on a layout yet to be planned or built. As a result, I now have a crazy mixture of steam era, transition era and modern era cars that would drive an operations planner batty.

Now that my layout is under construction I have discovered the fun of researching the prototype to help develop the operational side of my layout. This has helped me focus on what road names would be seen in the area of the country that I'm trying to model, as well as the type of motive power that would be present as my timeline becomes more defined.

I also had the opportunity to purchase a lot of cars from other people that were changing scale or getting out of the hobby. These are the cars that have been subjected to the give away program....they don't meet my criteria, but based on the response, others can and are using the cars on their layouts. I'm happy to be able to be in a position to help others by giving away the cars. In my opinion, it wouldn't be worth the hassle of listing them on that auction site.

Still looking for a C&O car,

Don Z.