I have mostly HO and N scale locomotives, but not a single foot of track! No working/operating set up/layout. I've thought about building something in our downstairs finished basement now that the kids are off and running on their own. I've read about the whole DCC thing going on, and I'm really thinking about building, although digital is completely foreign to me; my dad and I had O gauge Lionel's set up when I was a youngster. About 1/4 of my locos are in a curio (display case) in the dining room along with Chevelle related stuff. My wife has railroad related items (signs, timetables, pocket watches) nicely arranged in a bookcase in the living room. In the office, I've got models of military aircraft hanging from the ceiling. Between the Chevelle stuff, railroad stuff, and planes, guests that stop by wonder what the heck our hobbies are! I was wondering if any other T.C. members collect trains or other "machines"; is this a personality trait of ours?

I have a few grand invested in HO model trains since the late 80's. Got into it at just about the same time I was getting into cars. I was a kid then and didnt have a license for a car. Its all still sitting in the closet in the boxes waiting for the day I get a room for building a layout of my own.

www.Modelrailroader.com. Been subscribing to that magazine for the last 15 years. Lots of excellent info.

I also have some of the O gauge Lionel stuff from the 50's. My dad used to add to the layout every Christmas and did so until my brother and I got "too old" for such things. Currently the collection is up in the rafters of my garage waiting for the grandkids to get a little older. It might be fun to play with trains again, esp. in the winter! Train stuff sure has gotten pricey-kinda like car stuff I guess.

I have an N guage setup on a 4x7 foam board... I made the board completely out of foam so it'd be light and easily movable.... It's been in storage for a while but I'm really contemplating getting it out, I'm definitely getting a digital controller if I do.... I have enough sidings to park 4 trainns and it'd be awesome to be able to run 2-3 at a time....

i don't have a layout, but I do alot of custom building and painting in HO scale during the winter months.

http://www.railimages.com/gallery/johntyson?page=1

John.

Lionel stuff from the 50's? Wow...better hold on to that stuff. If I remember right, if you've still got the original boxes they came in, they're worth quite a bit. And the better shape they're in, the better. I've still got the collection my dad had when he was a kid that my grandfather bought him, post-WW2 stuff. I also had a small 4x8 layout when I was younger built on styrofoam board, very lightweight and movable/storable. I've never tried custom painting/airbrushing/decalling myself, but always wanted to try it. During the winter months, when car season is suspended, is when I assemble loco kits, weather/detail them, and put them on the shelf. Nice stuff to look at, but I've gotten the bug to actually run them lately. The digital route seems to be the way to go nowadays, but it's voodoo to me. 20 years ago the idea of being able to control features like forward/reverse/off headlights, flashing ditchlights, automated block and crossing signals, and turnouts from a single handheld controller was unheard of. I remember my last layout had a maze of wiring for seperate blocks and turnout controls. And now with DCC, I understand you can program the performance parameters of each loco. You can mix and match Athearns, Katos, and Proto 2000 locos and they'll all respond the same. 20 years ago, the fastest loco either pushed or pulled the other locos in the consist when the throttle was opened. And all the headlights were on! I suppose every hobby evolves with the technology available, whether it's our cars, trains, or bow hunting. Just haven't decided to go with HO or N...decisions, decisions...

I have a TON of HO scale trains that have been sitting in my closet for years now. I also had (note I say had) an American Flyer train set from the 1950s that my brother stole while I was away taking a company sponsored training session and sold it for drugs :mad:

The rest of the trains I have are still in very good shape and are all operational, I just don't have any space to set them up. Plus with my ladyfriends children coming over for visits (all toddlers mind you), if I did have a place to set it all up, it would all be destroyed within a week. :(

I have ALL of my Lionel trains from the 50's when I was growing up. I have a layout that measures 25 by 12 and run the trains everyday. I ran these same trains when I was a kid on an "L" shaped layout that my dad had built for me. Throughout the 90's I purchased a lot more rolling stock, some new Lionel engines and Lionel operating accessaries. There's a shot of one small coner on my homepage. It's a very relaxing hobby....just one of MANY I have. I want to retire so I can build a new and improved layout! Some of my new engines have "Railsounds" (digital sound AND control). I enjoy creating the scenery as well. It's great fun! The coolest part of still having my old Lionels (the oldest, and my first, dates back to Christmas 1948) was watching my son play with the same trains I played with when I was his age. Can't beat that. :thumbsup:

Golly, that's got me thinking. I've got all my dad's HO stuff in storage. Nothing too exciting - a few locomotives, a dozen cars, a few unfinished kits, some buildings. I started getting into it when I was 11 or 12. It was one of those father-son things. I've thought about getting back into it from time to time, but there are just so many hours in the day.

It sure is a fun pasttime though.

I started a big HO layout in the attic above the garage with my kids in the 80's. Got the track layed out, half the land scaping done and started a few buildings, theme was a logging operation and sawmill. It languished when they got older, then I tore it down. We how have an oval set up we put under the Christmas tree. I kept all the cars and engines but sold most of the extra track and accessories. It was fun but just one more hobby I didn't have time for.

Most of my stuff is in boxes in the garage... Nothing too fancy, all pretty much well used by kids (mostly me), but still some good pieces...

I started a large 17'X10' "L" layout in the basement when I was 14, but as soon as I was 16, I never took the time to finish it...

Now, my house doesn't really have room for a dedicated layout, but someday...

Most of my stuff is HO, with a couple of Athearn EMD DD40s (dual electric motors, 4-axle trucks, but they need a wider turning radius) and unique "BART" (San Francisco Bay Area "subway")... Must have several hundred feet of track and 20+ cars...

I also have a late 1940s/early 1950s American Flyer that was my mother's... Nice, but I'll mostly use it for display only, as I enjoy the detail of the HOs, and they are what I remember as a kid anyway...

Model Railroader.. I still love to see the detailed layouts...