Just joined up and reading as much as I can on the trains I've recently aquired.
A little background - my Dad had toy trains when I was growing up, some of which he had when he was a child in the 1930s-40s. They typically only came out around the holidays. They were mostly Lionel as I recall. Nothing fancy, but we had fun with them.
Fast forward, my Dad has been gone a few years now and one of my brothers ended up with his trains. I have plenty of other hobbies (boat racing, outboard motor restoration, R/C boats, etc.) and items of my Dad's, so it wasn't an issue, but I still remembered the trains fondly. My eldest is now 6 and has loved trains since day one, starting with basic wooden trains, followed by a Lionel Little Lines set when he was 3. I happened upon a 1950s era Marx set, in the box, while antiquing with the Missus this fall and grabbed it, not really knowing what I was getting myself into.
Turns out the set I got was in pretty good shape and it didn't take much to get it working. The Marx 666 is pretty stout and really works beautifully! And the 6-year old loves it!
Found another box of odds and ends at a shop last week, including a Marx 495 and a few tin plate cars. Got that engine working, too, and my "collector" gene seems to be kicking in. My wife seems to be understanding, so far... She let me set some track up under the Christmas tree!
Hi, Chinewalker and a hearty
I think I'm safe to say that a huge majority of the members here have followed in dad's footsteps in the introduction to railroads and model railroading as a fun hobby.
By your description your exposure to trains has been toward the larger scale, three-rail or tinplate end of the spectrum. You will find that, for the most part, there is a bit of a divide between the Lionel, A-F, Marx, enthusiasts and the "scale" group.
Both have their place and some want it all... nothing wrong with that!
You might want to browse the forums and website of Kalmbach's publication dealing with the "Toy Train" hobby at Classic Toy Trains.
http://cs.trains.com/ctt/f/95.aspx
Either way, glad to see you here and—Welcome Aboard!
Ed
Welcome to the forums.
My Dad didn't have trains, but both parents helped in getting me started with Lionel.
A house fire has switched me to HO, mostly due to space requirements.
I agree with the above that the folks over on the Classic Toy Trains will have more up to date information for you.
Good luck,
Richard
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Chinewalker My wife seems to be understanding, so far... She let me set some track up under the Christmas tree!
My wife seems to be understanding, so far... She let me set some track up under the Christmas tree!
Wives, the same people who won't settle for laminate counter tops in the kitchen. Noooo, they want granite or, better yet, quartz.
So, what's the problem with me using the entire basement for my layout?
Huh? Huh?
Rich
Alton Junction
Thank you for the welcomes! You are correct - I seem to be gravitating toward the O27 style 3-rail stuff my Dad had. After clicking about a bit, I did figure that the Classic forums might be more suited for my interests. Thanks!
I do a bit of model building, though, and will keep tabs on what's going on over here, too. I'm hoping the interest my 6-year old has now carries over into full-blown hobby as he gets older. I have a 20-year old stepson that I've tried for years to gain an interest in SOMETHING that didn't involve a screen and game pad, with little success.
In any case, we shall see where the hobby takes us!
- Scott
Scott - welcome back into the hobby ! Want to take a minute and invite you into Jeffries diner where discuss Hobby and non hobby ( within reason ) hope to see you soon !
YGW