My prototype only has 9 locomotives in the first place, so there's a bit of a cap there.
John-NYBW I began operations, I have way more locos, freight cars, and passenger cars than my layout can handle.
This where I failed horribly.
I designed the next layout completely for personal operations, and set out on a three-year project to build all the freight cars, passenger cars, and locomotives I need.
I carefully designed the operating plan and arrived at the following numbers:
90-110 freight cars.
17 passenger cars.
30 locomotives.
I don't want to go into the detail here, but it was a very exacting list.
After three years, this is what I have accomplished:
150+ freight cars finished.
0 passenger cars finished, but over 50 purchased.
10 locomotives finished, but over 50 purchased.
This is what we call a major failure in executing the plan!
The worst part is I have over 100 brass and craftsman kit freight cars still waiting for assembly.
It should be obvious that I love freight cars. I have strived for lots of variety in the fleet and lots of uniquely styled freight cars. It is also obvious that I really don't give a hill-of-beans for passenger cars.
I have added a storage drawer system to the plan so I can fiddle cars off of the carfloat between operating sessions.
I don't know what all this means, but I am having fun.
My wife loves her new 10 by 11 closet with room for lots of shoes and purses!
-Kevin
Living the dream.
riogrande5761 yeah, I get that. But for all of us, it's relative to the size of our layouts. Unless you are like many who store equipment off the layout. Then I guess there is no limit. Tophias Suddenly, I've come to realize I have way to many engines! Close to 40! Yikes! Only 40?
yeah, I get that. But for all of us, it's relative to the size of our layouts. Unless you are like many who store equipment off the layout. Then I guess there is no limit.
Tophias Suddenly, I've come to realize I have way to many engines! Close to 40! Yikes!
Only 40?
NittanyLion My prototype only has 9 locomotives in the first place, so there's a bit of a cap there.
Rich
Alton Junction
With all the excess equipment I have accumulated I thought of myself as a pack rat or a hoarder but after reading all these posts, I'm starting to realize I might be the norm rather than the exception.
I only have about 20 locomotives, or, more specifically, powered railroad devices, including trolleys and subway trains. Really, it's enough, and my layout is dual-era, Steam and Transition. I have a few dummy diesels but I don't count those. I have no powered dummies.
My only recent engine buy that didn't fit my road and era is a GG1. I model the Milwaukee, but dang it, I had a Lionel O gauge GG1 when I was but a wee lad and I had to have one. I have no plans to buy any more engines. If someone produced one of the Milwaukee electrics like the Little Joe or the Bi-polar, I might get one, but the DCS-equipped ones from MTH don't seem worth the trouble.
On the subject of promoting domestic tranquility, I remember a show I went to where one dealer as giving out sub shop sandwich bags to bring new engines home in and disguise a 2-6-4 as a large meatball with cheese.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
richhotrain NittanyLion My prototype only has 9 locomotives in the first place, so there's a bit of a cap there. But do you have all 9? Rich
But do you have all 9?
Halfway there
NittanyLionHalfway there
Does that mean you have 4 1/2 of them?
I been questioning my locomotive roster and freight car cap. I have several locomotives in different regions.
My main roster is Amtrak, NYC, and Conrail. My ideal number for a decent diesel roster 8-12. Unfortunately that number was been overwhelmed by my love of Amtrak locomotives.
I've somewhat learned what to buy and not to buy. I'm still missing Auto racks, containers, maxi stack, refrigerator car, flat car, gondola, tank cars. Rethinking about modeling the 1990s since I can't afford forcing myself getting Auto Racks and Maxi stacks with containers. To fully model the actual timeframe I desperately wanted. The late 1980s was my second choice including the New York Central.
If all else fails I will have a variety of equipment to sell in the next 20-30 years.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
[/quote]
good marketing!
TophiasI have no powered dummies.
What is a "powered dummy" locomotive.
It’s a loco with a bad decoder.
SeeYou190 Tophias I have no powered dummies. What is a "powered dummy" locomotive. -Kevin
Tophias I have no powered dummies.
I think that was me being quoted. I guess I meant powered unit.s that are not fully functional controlling locomotives, like an F7B.
This unmaintained forum software is really difficult to use on my tablet. They dump more advertising on us all the time, and the whole thing at the bottom of the page is not train related, so it just annoys me.
MisterBeasleyI guess I meant powered unit.s that are not fully functional controlling locomotives, like an F7B.
OK. Thanks for the clarification. It was not a term I had heard before, and it sounded like an oxymoron when I read it.
SeeYou190 MisterBeasley I guess I meant powered unit.s that are not fully functional controlling locomotives, like an F7B. OK. Thanks for the clarification. It was not a term I had heard before, and it sounded like an oxymoron when I read it. -Kevin
MisterBeasley I guess I meant powered unit.s that are not fully functional controlling locomotives, like an F7B.
Believe me, Kevin, I felt like some kind of moron, oxy or otherwise, when I read what I had written!
MisterBeasleyBelieve me, Kevin, I felt like some kind of moron, oxy or otherwise, when I read what I had written!
Oh boy, the number of times I have written dumb stuff could fill a volume or two.
MisterBeasley Believe me, Kevin, I felt like some kind of moron, oxy or otherwise, when I read what I had written!
richhotrain I have a few powered locomotives that I have referred to as "dummies" or worse, but those words cannot be printed on this forum.
"Dummy" would have been the nicest thing I ever called my N scale Bachmann 4-8-4 I had in the mid 1980s.
MisterBeasley SeeYou190 Tophias I have no powered dummies. What is a "powered dummy" locomotive. -Kevin I think that was me being quoted. I guess I meant powered unit.s that are not fully functional controlling locomotives, like an F7B. This unmaintained forum software is really difficult to use on my tablet. They dump more advertising on us all the time, and the whole thing at the bottom of the page is not train related, so it just annoys me.
Mr. B, I had that problem (pop up ads) as well on my IPad. Taking a suggestion from Randy I switched browsers from Google to Safari and downloaded the app AdBlocker Plus. Since then I haven't seen one ad. If you use an IPad give it a try.
SeeYou190 NittanyLion Halfway there Does that mean you have 4 1/2 of them? -Kevin
NittanyLion Halfway there
There's a slug on the roster built out of a GP40-2 and I have an extra GP40-2 frame, so... Sorta?
TophiasMy point is it's a bit disappointing that I won't be buying any additional locomotives
Ya, I wouldn't bet on that. There's always newer / better engines coming along. Even engines from 20-30 years ago may not be all that great compared to newer versions of the same type of engine.
BTW I'm building a layout designed to rotate time frames, roughly from late steam era to early 3rd generation diesels...so roughly 1930s to 1990s. If all your engines are from one era, say 21st century, you could always start getting engines appropriate for earlier times.
Say you model BNSF now...you could start getting BN engines so you can model the same location, only in 1970s-90s. If that works out, you could get some GN engines and add the 1950s-60s era.
Course then you have to buy more era-appropriate freight and passenger cars. How about some steam engines? Hmmm.....
Tophias--
I get excited and sometimes buy too much more than I should. For a multitude of reasons that maybe are better left out of this discussion, I realize that I only really need about 8 good engines to operate my railroad.
I tend to have a favorite engine, or group of the same engine model, such that others don't get run much at all, and can easily be sold.
Right now I have about 30 extra engines for sale, some on consignment at a local train store now owned by my friend.
wjstix Tophias My point is it's a bit disappointing that I won't be buying any additional locomotives Ya, I wouldn't bet on that. There's always newer / better engines coming along. Even engines from 20-30 years ago may not be all that great compared to newer versions of the same type of engine. BTW I'm building a layout designed to rotate time frames, roughly from late steam era to early 3rd generation diesels...so roughly 1930s to 1990s. If all your engines are from one era, say 21st century, you could always start getting engines appropriate for earlier times. Say you model BNSF now...you could start getting BN engines so you can model the same location, only in 1970s-90s. If that works out, you could get some GN engines and add the 1950s-60s era. Course then you have to buy more era-appropriate freight and passenger cars. How about some steam engines? Hmmm.....
Tophias My point is it's a bit disappointing that I won't be buying any additional locomotives
Stix, you're killing me! So, just send a check to cover the cost of all these additional engines and we're good!!
Tophias Stix, you're killing me! So, just send a check to cover the cost of all these additional engines and we're good!!
I find train shows are the worst place for picking up excess items. They are a mine field for impulse buyers of which I am one. I'll find an interesting item at a very reasonable price and decide I have to have it even though it doesn't fit the theme of my railroad. I was just straightening up my storage shelves and came across two such purchases. One was a set of 5 Rivarossi heavyweight B&O passenger cars in Pullman Green with interiors. They are really nice cars although they would need a few upgrades. The problem is it would be a stretch to have a B&O passenger train anywhere on my rails. The other was a Pennsy lightweight diner and kitchen dormitory cars. If it was a coach or sleeper I could work them in as through cars on one of my passenger trains but not these. Besides the passenger cars, I have several structure kits gathering dust that I picked up at train shows without giving a thought to where on the layout I could put them.
I have 10 RTR locomotives and 5 locomotive kits in S scale standard gauge and 1 RTR in Sn2. O scale 2 rail I have 5 RTR and 2 kits. O scale 3 rail I have 4 RTR. On30 I have 5 RTR. HO I have 9 RTR and 4 kits in standard gauge and 4 kits in HOn3. N scale I have 2 RTR.
For a total of 47 plus maybe 4 or 5 more that I have forgotten about. These have been accumulated over the 50 years I have been in the hobby.
For my current S scale layout under construction 9 of the locomotives will be used - although the other S scale locomotives may make an appearance from time to time.
I also have a test layout where I set up temporary tracks to run all the others from time to time.
I have a fondness for small steam, but I have already bought all that are/were available in S scale (as opposed to S hi rail) over the last 25 years or so that are not brass.
But I will buy others in S or other scales as they appeal to me. I enjoy the collecting part of the hobby as well as the operating part.
Paul
Call me crazy for only having three N&W locos--two for the main and a switcher one for the yard. I def need more. Too bad it's near-impossible to find a decent priced N&W loco without sound included.
I am at this juncture or more aptly Junction. My solution is dot build 2 display cases for the excess and rotate my engines. I was trying to stick with late steam transition period and early 60's but I'm beyond that now with no chance of clawing my way out of this hole.
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=5959
If one could roll back the hands of time... They would be waiting for the next train into the future. A. H. Francey 1921-2007
FergmiesterMy solution is to build 2 display cases for the excess and rotate my engines.
I have something similar.
I own a lot of locomotives that do not run, and I will never make in running condition. These are what I call the "prop fleet", and they are used for phtotographs only. These spend their days on a shelf until needed for pictures. Then they see the layout in staged scenes... then back to display.
I have some running locomotives that are one breakdown away from joining the prop fleet.
A very interesting thread.
How do I know when to stop buying more locomotives?
Dawn says I should have stopped ages ago.
To be honest I have now drawn the line of no more locomotives.
With 59 diesels and 32 steam locomotives that is it. Way too many for a layout 11ft x 8ft.
If we move to a bigger house ------?
I then thought if we did move to a larger property, what kind of layout would I have? No matter what I thought, it always came to the same answer. A new layout would still be Leeds Sovereign Street and Crown Point Yard with more scenery.
David
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought