twhite You said that your Dad won't let your sell your stuff--is it possibly because it was a gift from him to you, like a Christmas or birthday present?
You said that your Dad won't let your sell your stuff--is it possibly because it was a gift from him to you, like a Christmas or birthday present?
Well, 3/4 no and 1/4 yes on the answer to that question, I buy the stuff my self, because none of my family members knows what to buy, like scale, what the hecks a santa fe northern?, (still continuing) is it the right pain job? So I just ask for money for birthday and christmas and get the stuff I want but covers a little less than 1/3 of the stuff I have, most of it I bought with my own $$.
BTW: I do get all A's (well I have a 89% in LA which is 1% away from an A), I play football, I'm on on the chess team, I work on the farm and I mow yards, so dont't think I set around at home doing nothing but this.
Ok now to get to what I came on here for,
I redid the track and this time I think I'll add some building and scenery (other than a grass mat).
It's just a simple loop but I took yalls advice and added in a couple spurs, I branched of the main line, then I put a switch conected to the one connected to the main and it loops around and the origen switch goes back at a slite curve then straight.
Model railroading is a multi faceted hobby. There is building rolling stock, operating, benchwork, tracklaying, electronicking, weathering, layout design, prototype research, structure modeling, scenicking, kitbashing, painting and decaling, DCC, model photography, computer control, scratchbuilding, railfanning, and doubtless others that will come to mind. Think about which parts have appeal to you. Try some of the ones you haven't tried out yet. Not all of them even require a working layout. For the rolling stock modeler even the simpliest layout allows him to watch his latest model actually run, as opposed to a mere static display.
As far as a "starter" set. Think of it as a collection of track (always usable) rolling stock (basis for kitbashing or repainting), a power pack (always usable). Plus, you will find the market value of used model railroad stuff is pretty low, hardly worth putting it in a yard sale.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
BNSF,
I often read your threads. I got young kids my self, younger then you but still, I see a lot of the issues that you are facing with them. And as Stein put so well, sometimes we adults suffer from change of interests to often ourselves. I know I do.
But here is my real point of this post. I think you get some bad posts against you quite frequently just for being young. And your not the only young person in this hobby that suffers that nor is this the only forum that this happens in. Your spelling might not be perfect, but you are young. Some other people here has bad spelling to. I know that my English is far from perfect. But it seems to be more accepted if you are older for some reason. Or perhaps more correctly, it is less tolerated from "kids". I have often seen threads that has some pretty bad attitudes against young people. The "everything was better back then" crowd can get noisy.
So stick with this hobby if you like it. Change and change again. It's normal and OK. As long as you are having fun that is alright. Keep on posting and keep us updated on where you go.
Magnus
Stay in Model Railroading and only model in one scale.
Russell
LillenBut here is my real point of this post. I think you get some bad posts against you quite frequently just for being young. And your not the only young person in this hobby that suffers that nor is this the only forum that this happens in. Your spelling might not be perfect, but you are young. Some other people here has bad spelling to. I know that my English is far from perfect. But it seems to be more accepted if you are older for some reason. Or perhaps more correctly, it is less tolerated from "kids". I have often seen threads that has some pretty bad attitudes against young people. The "everything was better back then" crowd can get noisy.
Well said! I've seen bashing happen to many younger members of this forum (myself included) because their work (photo quality, spelling, weathering, just to name a few) were not quite up to scratch with some of the other posters' work.
The thing is, with some of these cases, I've seen other older posters with work of the same quality, and no one degraded them for it! Age seems to be a generalization of work quality. I've seen work by teen modelers that would put some older modelers' work to shame.
I wonder why the older members do this, do they think we don't care? When this happened to me, I was hurt, and now I have to work to not keep a grudge against those involved. You know who you are!
However, most people here are very respectful of us teens, treating us as equals and taking our advice seriously. Still, many of them, no matter how good their intentions, treat us a little differently than others. They end PM's with phrases like "Your layout shows much potential for someone your age" and such. Why does our age have anything to do with our layout potential? True, many younger modelers act differently than adults, but still, there's something to be said for equal treatment without any assumptions about age.
Don't get me wrong, the posters I mentioned have extremely good intentions, and I appreciate their advice, and they have almost achieved mentor status in my mind. It's great that veterans of this hobby can help those of us who haven't been around as long.
The teens here tend to band together, there are both a "Teen Railfan Place" and a "Teen Model Railroader Place" on these forums, which I frequent, and I also belong to a teen forum dealing with both model and prototype railroads. I count many of them as my friends.
I'll second that, Magnus, Keep us updated BNSF!
LillenI think you get some bad posts against you quite frequently just for being young. And your not the only young person in this hobby that suffers that nor is this the only forum that this happens in. Your spelling might not be perfect, but you are young. Some other people here has bad spelling to. I know that my English is far from perfect. But it seems to be more accepted if you are older for some reason. Or perhaps more correctly, it is less tolerated from "kids". I have often seen threads that has some pretty bad attitudes against young people. The "everything was better back then" crowd can get noisy.
I think you get some bad posts against you quite frequently just for being young. And your not the only young person in this hobby that suffers that nor is this the only forum that this happens in. Your spelling might not be perfect, but you are young. Some other people here has bad spelling to. I know that my English is far from perfect. But it seems to be more accepted if you are older for some reason. Or perhaps more correctly, it is less tolerated from "kids". I have often seen threads that has some pretty bad attitudes against young people. The "everything was better back then" crowd can get noisy.
Well said! I have seen all too many posts degrading younger members (including myself) because their work (photos, spelling, and weathering, just to name a few) isn't up to scratch with some posters. Is it because they're young? Too often, I think it is. Some of the bashed work is actually better than that of a few adult modelers, but those adults don't get degraded by the general populace (with a few exceptions) because of it. That's not to say everyone bashes the younger modelers in question, but unfortunately there are quite a few bad apples who do out there...
Why do they do it to teens? I have no idea. Maybe they aren't afraid of offending us, or they simply think we don't care. That couldn't be farther from the truth. When this happened to me (a how-to video I produced on basic weathering was the provocative in this case), I was hurt and offended for a couple days, and I still have to work hard not to carry a grudge against a few specific posters, the worst of which suggested (for the second time!) I keep my work in Teen Model Railroader Place! Now that's definitely age discrimination!
Most members here are very good to us teens, treating us as equals, and not throwing us all into one catogory labeled "Teens" when looking at our work.
I'll second that, Magnus. Keep us posted BNSF!
EDIT: What's up with all those posts by me? I tried several times to post a message, but I got an error... Then a few minutes ago I got an email saying:
The post was approved and is ready to be viewed at the URL below.
Concentrate on your school work. Once you've gotten that HS diploma in my book you've got enough to pass through life reasonably well. Read an extra book above and beyond your school assignments. Books about trains, books about planes, books about junk like Stephen King novels(want some? I've inherited a bunch of those) just don't let the trains get hurt. My original set is Lionel HO and I've got the entire thing including the original brass track. In fact, the train is getting it's own loop when my layout gets built just for show and since it can't be made DCC operable, it will remain isolated from the rest of the railroad.
Go out and do something! Play a sport. Go for a run. Connect with a local drunk and sneak into bars...oops, DON'T do that! Get a resonably decent camera and take photos. Until you have a "permanent" layout space, break out the trains now and then. Being a train nut doesn't mean that you have to ignor the rest of the universe.
BTW-reading alot will improve your spelling via immersion and we won't be harping on it as much.
agreed play sports, I play Basketball, baseball, and run track, balance my honors schoolwork, and some how find time to railfan, and build my layout
dstarr Model railroading is a multi faceted hobby. There is building rolling stock, operating, benchwork, tracklaying, electronicking, weathering, layout design, prototype research, structure modeling, scenicking, kitbashing, painting and decaling, DCC, model photography, computer control, scratchbuilding, railfanning, and doubtless others that will come to mind. Think about which parts have appeal to you. Try some of the ones you haven't tried out yet.
Model railroading is a multi faceted hobby. There is building rolling stock, operating, benchwork, tracklaying, electronicking, weathering, layout design, prototype research, structure modeling, scenicking, kitbashing, painting and decaling, DCC, model photography, computer control, scratchbuilding, railfanning, and doubtless others that will come to mind. Think about which parts have appeal to you. Try some of the ones you haven't tried out yet.
Ok lets see.... I've done (from your list) operating, tracklaying, a little electronicking, layout design (I guess what I've done counts as that), model photography (just my ho layout and locos), railfanning (I guess this site and swap meets count).
Ones I haven't done (with a reason of some sort).... building roling stock (do you think a 7th grader that plays foot ball has time for that???), benchwork (I forgot what that was this morning), weathering (i'm short enough on cars already), structure modeling (I move my track around to much, I'll give it a try), I'm skiping a few, DCC (I want to but I aint got the $$ .)
I finished my new track plan yester day, it is a loop with 4 sidings all conected, and I plan on adding oil idustry and a town.
Generally if you're tired of a layout, there's a problem...it doesn't work right (bad tracklaying, poor maintenance) or isn't fun to operate (no switching opportunities, just going round and round) etc. I'd try to track down what you don't like about this layout and use that info in doing your next one.
BTW eventually you need to pick one scale, there's only so much you can do running two scales on one layout. If you tell your Dad you've decided to stick with say N scale, and want to sell your HO stuff to buy more N stuff, maybe he'd be more agreeable??
I'd like to address your complaints, and then I would like to comment on one of Tyler's statements.
First, eveyone gets tired of something they have had for a while. The idea is to modify it so that it is not tiring or boring anymore, but more to the point is the fact that there are areas in your railfanning, model building, painting, photography, etc. that can stand improvement as is the case with us all. The point in bringing this up is that the hobby no longer is boring if you work consistently on pefecting your skills in these areas. Yes, I know, but it is tedious to do this kind of stuff, and do it over again and possibly again, and there is no instant gratification, but nothing long-lasting or worthwhile ever comes quick or easy. That is experience talking, and while I do not know your exact circumstances, I think at least some of it applies.
If your Dad doesn't want you to sell your stuff, see about modifying it so that it becomes more reliable. Improve upon what you have. Check those rail joints to make sure they're in gauge, have you clipped off too many ties to keep the joints in gauge, check and recheck your centerline radii, add the necessary things to your existing layout to improve your enjoyment of it.
On the prototype railroads we tell our younger employees who want to become engineers or advance in another job to "perfect your craft first." What we mean is to perfect and hone the skills in your current job as that will serve you as you advance to a new job. The same is true in the hobby of model railroading. You can meet many people in this hobby who think they do not need to learn any more, or who don't care to work at making their layouts better. The excellent veterans of the hobby such as Chuck Ellis, are always searching for ways to improve already excellent layouts. They learn about timetable and train order operations (now THAT's operating), signaling systems and how they work, they study and do research and put their newly acquired knowledge to the test, and continue until they get it right. If their layout isn't doing what they want, they tear it down and start over.
The bottom line is that it is natural to get bored with something that is, by your own description, a basic train set. So make it something more than a basic train set and gain new skills along the way!
Tyler, as to veteran modelers saying your work is "good for someone your age", while experience is not the only factor in quality modeling, it is a significant one. Only time allows one to try and retry things that will enhance a layout or model. Nothing is ever meant by anyone on this board, I believe, in a derogatory sense when your age is brought up in a sentence as used above. Everyone models at different skill levels, and some folks are better than others. In my opinion, you fit the bill for current advanced skills and future excellence.
If you feel you need to hide in the TMRP, that is unfortunate, because you lose out on the ideas available from veteran modelers who have learned over the course of 25 or 30 or more years, but if you want to play on forums such as these, then be prepared for constructive criticism. Outright bashing has no place here, and I have seen you and several other younger modelers trashed uselessly and without good cause. Takes a little leather on your back to play out here, because so may people will needlessly make unthoughtful and downright vicious comments about what they see or read.
BNSF, as to the posts regarding your photo work; remember many of us are at a point in our lives where it is difficult to look at a computer screen with aging eyes. Anything you can do to make your photos look more like the Southern cab unit photo ( very nice) and less fuzzy would be greatly appreciated.
I am glad to see that you are an excellent student. That, above all else, will serve you best in both your hobby and life.
We've all been there, and a lot of us sent models to the dumpster, and left our hobbies in a fit of boredom or uncertainty. Leaving the hobby is the worst thing you can do. Modifying your layout as you've said you will, is a good start. Most of all, ask questions! Now, keep going and keep us posted.
csxns Stay in Model Railroading and only model in one scale.
Ya'll on here know that I usually don't come out and post a disagreement, but I gotta disagree w/ the second part. I do agree w/ the first part, stay in model railroading, it's a great hobby. However, the secong part (only model in one scale) is not the best. If you want to model in two or even three scales, go for it. who cares, it ain't their layout. csxns has his opinion, and there's mine. By the way, don't take the bashings to badly, some people just love ripping people's heads off. Happened to me plenty of times, and I've seen it happen before, I usually stick up for the guy being bashed. Any pics of what you've done?
EDIT: Hey BNSF, when someone makes a comment about you're work that's downright nasty, show them this montgomery Gentry song called "What Do You Think About That?"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QytPoRLEhF0&NR=1
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
TrainManTy Why do they do it to teens? I have no idea. Maybe they aren't afraid of offending us, or they simply think we don't care. That couldn't be farther from the truth. When this happened to me (a how-to video I produced on basic weathering was the provocative in this case), I was hurt and offended for a couple days, and I still have to work hard not to carry a grudge against a few specific posters, the worst of which suggested (for the second time!) I keep my work in Teen Model Railroader Place! Now that's definitely age discrimination! Most members here are very good to us teens, treating us as equals, and not throwing us all into one catogory labeled "Teens" when looking at our work. I'll second that, Magnus. Keep us posted BNSF!
I stuck up for you on that thread. As you pointed out earlier, some of our work is better than some adult's on here. So maybe the adults need to put us down so that they can still feel better than us. I'm willing to bet I'm bigger than some of them too (5 ft. 11 and a half in., 195 lbs., pretty much gone through puberty, not even 14 yet sound big to ya'll? ) Tyler, I enjoyed the work you did in that vid to. And hey, we got just as much right to post a thread as anyone else.
TrainManTyEDIT: What's up with all those posts by me? I tried several times to post a message, but I got an error...
Could someone help? (And delete all those extra posts except for the first, I can't find the delete button on these new forums...)
Whoops. I am informed that Packers#1 shot the cab unit photo. Nice job P-1.....
ok here's some pics of my layout, don't be fooled by the boxes and bags and locos and cars,
An over view of the layout
Now to show you the sidings
I plan on making this area in to a town with oil for an industry, I'm planing the town now.
Been Nothing Since Frisco (BNSF) Ok lets see.... I've done (from your list) operating, tracklaying, a little electronicking, layout design (I guess what I've done counts as that), model photography (just my ho layout and locos), railfanning (I guess this site and swap meets count). Ones I haven't done (with a reason of some sort).... building roling stock (do you think a 7th grader that plays foot ball has time for that???), benchwork (I forgot what that was this morning), weathering (i'm short enough on cars already), structure modeling (I move my track around to much, I'll give it a try), I'm skiping a few, DCC (I want to but I aint got the $$ .) I finished my new track plan yester day, it is a loop with 4 sidings all conected, and I plan on adding oil idustry and a town.
Let's define some terms:Tracklaying does not mean opening up the EZ Track package and plopping it down on a board. Tracklaying means, at a minimum, working out the track's path, placing roadbed, and then adding flextrack. It can also mean handlaying, which I did as a teen myself.
Layout design means more than just figuring out what loops go where; a good layout is well-designed so you don't get tired of it and the planning can take a weeks or more.
Railfanning means going out to observe real trains in the real world, possibly including photography. This site and swap meets do not "count" for that. You have to get out and see the real thing in action.
Track laying is the act of placing track onto a prepared surface. It's not a term reserved only for flextrack/roadbed. Whether you're putting down flextrack or EZ-Track it's still track laying.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
jeffrey-wimberly Track laying is the act of placing track onto a prepared surface. It's not a term reserved only for flextrack/roadbed. Whether you're putting down flextrack or EZ-Track it's still track laying.
When someone tells me they were "laying some track," I'm sorry, but I don't picture them opening up the card of EZ Track and snapping it together.
I agree- video games are death.
Modeling the N&W freelanced at the height of their steam era in HO.
Daniel G.
Starting from what you have, have you considered:
1. Building a few structures? For instance, a gas station, a passenger station, a freight house, a factory, an oil terminal, a house, a store, a church, a school, a warehouse, a bridge, or engine house. Decent structures can be scratch built from cardstock for little money. With a color printer you can run off brick sideing, windows, lots of details. Place each structure on a base of plywood or masonite or foam board and then you can rearrange your structures as you rearrange your track plan.
2. Build storage shelving to fit under the layout.
3. Try for some three dimensional land forms. Scrounge some building foam and carve hills, ridges, mountains, embankments, what ever. The foam carves easily with a steak knife, (also just about any wood working tool). The idea is to break up the dead flatness of the table. You can leave the foam contours unglued permitting track changes.
4. Make a viewblock that divides the layout into two scenes. Run it down the center of the table. Cover it with a pre printed backdrop or try your hand painting a backdrop. Plenty of backdrops are just a blue sky with some white clouds floating in it. Trains pass thru the view block using tunnel entrances.
5. Repaint some freight cars. A spray can of red auto primer gives a fine box car red. Add decals for your favorite road and watch a low end car turn into something pretty nice.
6. Make some loads for your hopper cars. Cut a piece of soft pine to fit the open top of the car. Carve the top round like a coal pile. Paint it black, and then cover it with HO scale coal secured with Elmer's glue all.
Packer i was not bashing or ripping somebody's head off so you can stick it where the sun does not shine.
Packers#1 csxns Stay in Model Railroading and only model in one scale. Ya'll on here know that I usually don't come out and post a disagreement, but I gotta disagree w/ the second part. I do agree w/ the first part, stay in model railroading, it's a great hobby. However, the secong part (only model in one scale) is not the best. If you want to model in two or even three scales, go for it. who cares, it ain't their layout. csxns has his opinion, and there's mine. By the way, don't take the bashings to badly, some people just love ripping people's heads off. Happened to me plenty of times, and I've seen it happen before, I usually stick up for the guy being bashed. Any pics of what you've done? EDIT: Hey BNSF, when someone makes a comment about you're work that's downright nasty, show them this montgomery Gentry song called "What Do You Think About That?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QytPoRLEhF0&NR=1
TA462 Midnight Railroader jeffrey-wimberly Track laying is the act of placing track onto a prepared surface. It's not a term reserved only for flextrack/roadbed. Whether you're putting down flextrack or EZ-Track it's still track laying. When someone tells me they were "laying some track," I'm sorry, but I don't picture them opening up the card of EZ Track and snapping it together. I don't picture that either.
Midnight Railroader jeffrey-wimberly Track laying is the act of placing track onto a prepared surface. It's not a term reserved only for flextrack/roadbed. Whether you're putting down flextrack or EZ-Track it's still track laying. When someone tells me they were "laying some track," I'm sorry, but I don't picture them opening up the card of EZ Track and snapping it together.
I don't picture that either.
csxns Packer i was not bashing or ripping somebody's head off so you can stick it where the sun does not shine.Packers#1 csxns Stay in Model Railroading and only model in one scale. Ya'll on here know that I usually don't come out and post a disagreement, but I gotta disagree w/ the second part. I do agree w/ the first part, stay in model railroading, it's a great hobby. However, the secong part (only model in one scale) is not the best. If you want to model in two or even three scales, go for it. who cares, it ain't their layout. csxns has his opinion, and there's mine. By the way, don't take the bashings to badly, some people just love ripping people's heads off. Happened to me plenty of times, and I've seen it happen before, I usually stick up for the guy being bashed. Any pics of what you've done? EDIT: Hey BNSF, when someone makes a comment about you're work that's downright nasty, show them this montgomery Gentry song called "What Do You Think About That?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QytPoRLEhF0&NR=1
I know you weren't. I wasn't taliking about you then. The only reason I had quoted you was to disagree w/ the only model in one scale part and agree w/ stay in model railroading. I've never seen you rip someone's head off. I'm sorry if I offended you then.
4merroad4man Whoops. I am informed that Packers#1 shot the cab unit photo. Nice job P-1.....
Thank you. And in reply to your previous post, i agree that you need some tough skin to play out here. I've been bashed, and I've gotten critisised, but hey, you can't keep me off unless you kick me off, lol. BNSF, that looks like a great start to your new railroad.
BNSF -- you absolutely have time to build some rolling stock kits.
I would highly recommend against you getting a difficult kit (Branchline Blueprint Series, Red Caboose, or even worse Funaro & Camerlengo) as they take a lot of time, and a fair amount of skill to put together -- not to mention about $30-$50 (or more) in tools. Would hate to see you try one of those and get in over your head as it were. However you can definitely put together something that falls into the "shake the box" category. Some of the companies that make these kits are Athearn, Bowser*, Accurail*, or Roundhouse (there are probably others as well).
The first kit I built was a Roundhouse boxcar. It had a cast metal floor, a shell with molded on details, trucks/plastic wheels, Accumate couplers, and 3-5 detail parts (I think the air tank & 3-way valve for the brakes, the hand brake wheel, and maybe a few other bits). This went together in about 11 seconds**. Needless to say I was a little disappointed in how fast that went together.(I'm currently 22, and grew up reading the "how to" articles in MR where the author would scratch a steam loco or similar... so that had been my impression of "real" model railroading since I was old enough to check out the magazines from the Library). At the time I bought the kit (about 1 year or two ago), I didn't know the difference between a (more-or-less) "craftsman" kit and "shake the box". I quickly jumped in full-force and bought two boxcar kits made by Red Caboose, and have since graduated to the cast resin F&C kits (though they still don't look "just right"....). The first RC caboose I built took like 10ish hours to complete, and I've gotten that down to about 5-6 hours total to build the kits(no weathering).
Personally, I think that you should look into kits, they're (generally) less expensive than a similar RTR car, give a good deal of enjoyment while building, and the satisfaction of watching something roll past that you can say "I built that" about...
Then you find out about locomotive kits....
* These companies might make shake-the-box and more difficult kits, just be sure of what you're buying.
** In reality the car took about 20 minutes total.
-Dan
Builder of Bowser steam! Railimages Site