No layout? What is your favorite part of hobby?


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djstrains

Well-Known Member
So many people I talk to don't have an actual layout, but enjoy other aspects of the hobby, such as rail fanning, researching prototypes, railroad simulators, and collecting rolling stock or memorabilia.

What do you enjoy most (other than having a layout)?
 
djstrains said:
So many people I talk to don't have an actual layout, but enjoy other aspects of the hobby, such as rail fanning, researching prototypes, railroad simulators, and collecting rolling stock or memorabilia.

What do you enjoy most (other than having a layout)?
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I can never choose a favorite. In fact, I'm guessing most people cannot. If it is about trains and railroads I enjoy it.
 
I am between layouts (just starting to lay roadbed and tracks). I enjoy the magazines and articles because they present ideas and techniques. I also enjoy the latest in steam videos on youtube. For example, look for the Cumbres & Toltec season opening runs, usually double-headed, for the past two seasons. Well worth the watch in hi def. Both N&W 611 and UP's 844 are active and getting good quality videos showing on youtube. If you are into the modern era, there's definitely no shortage there.

I also check six forums several times each day.
 
I love the research, and the railfanning aspects most. if they are running steam and it's not too far, I'm there. I work near CSX track and enjoy watching their stuff roll by.

I have a few favorite train movies too:
Emperor of the North
Sleepers West
Pocohantas Glory series
Pillars of Smoke in the Sky
and a bunch of other N&W steam stuff

Lots of books too.
1930 locomotive Cyclopedia is my favorite
C&O Power
N&W Giant of Steam
many others
 
Haha. No layout! How would I be a model railroader then? I enjoy the part where all the details align and a scene comes together.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
 
Due to divorce and some job layoffs/retraining etc. I was living in small apartments or basements for about 15 long years so I did research and worked on building a fleet of rolling stock which is reflective of my favorite RR and time period. I did a little kit building too.
 
Retired Alex said:
My passion is buying up old steam engine junkers and restoring them back to running condition.
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That sounds interesting. My problem on that front is that I find more junkers than I can fix in a finite period of time. I've still got a Bachmann 4-8-4 I started working on - new frame, can motor, new drive gear etc. way back in 1986 or so. Got about two weeks into it and ran out of time, still sitting there in its little box, waiting to comet o the top of multi-thousand entry list again.
 
RBMNfan said:
Haha. No layout! How would I be a model railroader then?
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A distinction lost on many folks, but if that thought is taken to the extreme logical conclusion then none of us would be model railroaders because we cannot model a "railroad" only tiny pieces or parts of it. Well almost not. There are a few exceptions we could model in whole like the 2 miles of the Louisville & Wadley. That would be a full "model" of a "railroad". :)
 
olson185 said:
The question is: "What do you enjoy most (other than having a layout)" It assumes one has a layout but is asking for answers other than "having a layout".
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Well, actually no, that was not the question! The actual question was: "No layout? What is your favorite part of the hobby?" ​I could go on with why I thought NOT HAVING a layout was requisite to answering this thread; but, will let that go.

To answer the question, my favorite part of the hobby is building models, Ie; assembling kits and scratch building. My second favorite is researching the Northern Pacific!
 
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