Your One Best Piece of Advice for a Newbie.

[CTValleyRR]

So what I'd like to know.... have any Newbies seen this thread and found it helpful, or is it just us old farts pontificating?

[joe323]

Don,t  be cheap by quality products from the begining. You'll save more and be happier in the long run

[jmbjmb]

There is no one right way to built a model railroad.  Don't be afraid to jump in, build something, run it awhile, and then take it apart and start over.  A 4x8 is not wrong if it works for you and you learn something.  Mixed eras, equipment, etc is not wrong if you're learning.  Try one path a while and then change if it suits you.  Freelance, prototype, whatever starts you on the path.  All the rest, research, planning, search for perfection, can come later as you learn and explore.  This is a lifetime hobby with as many do-overs as you want to try, not a one chance to get it right exercise.

 

jim

[RideOnRoad]

CTValleyRR

So what I'd like to know.... have any Newbies seen this thread and found it helpful, or is it just us old farts pontificating?

Yes, yes, and perhaps.

[tomikawaTT]

Get wheels rolling sooner, rather than later.  It may slow progress (the hand on the throttle isn't using spiking pliers) but it's the best way to justify the effort needed for progress to occur.

For the longer view, don't expect your first layout to be your last.  Skills improve with use, and interests change with time.  If, when I was railfanning the New York Central and trying to figure out how to model my favorite (NY,NH&H) Scherzer rolling lift bridge, someone would have told me the theme to which I'm building my, 'Last in this lifetime,' layout...

Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)

[Anonymous]

Wash all Plastic Structure kit pieces before assembly.  Some may have traces of mold release left on them from the factory to which paint will not adhere well.  Pre-paint pieces on the Sprue before cutting them off, then touch up paint after assembly. 

[PM Railfan]

You need one thing... a sign. A nice big sign that prominantly reads:

"DO NOT DISTURB when I am in train mode. Violators of this rule will be shot. Survivors will be shot again!"

 

Actually if I was to pass on just one item, it would be 'time'. Time for all the little things. In life, you get out of it what you put into it. So, the more time you put into your modelling, the better your result will be. That includes all facets of this hobby, design to benchwork, trackwork to scenery, operations to enjoyment.

This and the sign will serve you well grasshopper.

 

 

[tstage]

CTValleyRR

So what I'd like to know.... have any Newbies seen this thread and found it helpful, or is it just us old farts pontificating?

Probably the latter, as I think this will end up being like a time capsule that someone will unearth in a forum search in 2024.

Tom

["JaBear"]

CTValleyRR

So what I'd like to know.... have any Newbies seen this thread and found it helpful, or is it just us old farts pontificating?

Maybe, hopefully, and I definitely will fit the last category in 2024. 

 

"A good question from our rather cerebral Bear!"

 

Brent, I had to look cerebral up in my diKshuneri and I can rest assure you it is not a word that would be usually associated with this Bear.

 

Thanks to all the further contributors.

 

Cheers, the Bear.  

[zstripe]

JaBear,

WOW! I'll be 82 then. Think I'll live another ten year's? Who knows where evil's lurk, EH!?

Frank

[MisterBeasley]

"Yes, you can do it."

Too often, modelers are intimidated by the great work of others.  But, none of us was born with a modeling gene.  We don't have an airbrush instead of a middle finger.  We learned everything we know.  You can learn, too.

[Pruitt]

Take all the advice you hear with a grain of salt the size of Rhode Island. YOU know what you want, and while advice is great, evaluate every bit of it for a fit to YOUR desires.

[Bayfield Transfer Railway]

My advice?

Patience.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and us "old timers" didn't get these huge collections in a day.  I still have the first Athearn boxcar I bought in 1970, and it still runs.

Make a budget, make it reasonable, keep to it, and in four or five years you'll be astounded at how much stuff you have, just like the rest of us.

["JaBear"]

Thanks to All Respondents for taking the time to share your advice.

Have Fun!!

Cheers, the Bear.

[richhotrain]

Thanks to All Respondents for taking the time to share your advice.

Have Fun!!

Cheers, the Bear.

 

Ja Bear, how about another new topic???

Rich