Hello everyone, I am 25 years old and from France. I recently completed my degree in embedded systems/electronics and I watched a video of an elderly German man who spent 30 years constructing an exact replica of the Stuttgart town center before he passed away in 2011. It was very inspiring for me. I decided to reconnect with my old hobby of model railroading, building plastic models and painting them with an airbrush, etc. It was love at first sight as an adult because I didn't like it when I was young; it required too much skill and patience that I didn't have yet. It is quite remarkable how, as I have grown older, I have come back to this amazing passion. With the help of the skills I acquired in the workshop of my engineering school and in my personal projects of programming and designing electronic circuitry, I am completely fulfilled. The content you produce is of excellent quality and usefulness, and I sincerely thank you for your hard work and dedication.
For model railroading, I enjoy the movement of freight from one place to another the most, followed closely by operation in a reasonably realistic manner. A number of years ago I have got involved in a virtual interchanging group which is really interesting and most of the more recent model railroad layouts I build are specifically to enhance the movement and virtual interchanging of freight between origin and destination locations. But I also like to have my trains run through a scenically interesting landscape.
Electronics, specially learning DCC, was the biggest learning curve. Still really a novice there. Like to see trains run through scenery and that's what keeps me there.
My interest in model railroading got started when I bought a Bachmann HO scale 'Harry Potter Hogwarts Express' train set for my kids back in the early 2000's. It was a yearly ritual since to get that train set out to run around the base of the Christmas tree. My kids grew up and Dad inherited the train set so I continued to get that train set out every year at Christmas time and that grew into fascination and hobby for me..now I have a collection of train pieces and I enjoy using them year around. I haven't jumped into the hobby 'whole hog' to the point that I have a complete display with scenery, buildings, etc. but I enjoy watching my trains run around the set and I've learned quite a bit about railroad history I concentrate on accumulating pieces related to local railroad activity where I live. I bought a couple of large reproduction prints from originals taken of railroad activity where I live I use them for backdrops for my setup and that adds a lot of character to my setup. A fun hobby.
I started building my HO railroad in the 80's to be able to spend time with my kids. Nothing fancy, each had an area where they could build whatever they wanted. When they moved out the layout was taken apart and put in boxes. During COVID and now retired, I started again with the plan to teach myself to build scenery. Progress has been slow but steady and as a bonus, I am now able to expose my Grandkids to the hobby.
For me the skill development aspect of the hobby is very rewarding. Learning painting techniques has been cathartic and creating scratch built structures has opened up a creative side 🚂
Running trains is the end goal, I guess, but as I've gotten older I love finishing scenes with nice scenery and kit-bashing. It's just so relaxing. And when a small scene comes together, it's a win.
As a 14 year old I'm not great at scenery but I love doing it it is just so fun, and I have learned so much about woodworking and electrical stuff and stuff like that with some help from my dad. I am so glad I got into this hobby even though it can get expensive at times
Good to see that some young people are still getting into this hobby. Yes, it can get expensive, and even frustrating at times. I have actually been into model RR since the late 1980's...on and off. My tiny (2x3 foot) N Scale Hammer Valley Model RR has been a WIP since mid-2020. I love every minute I can spend on it. Even have a few videos posted from it. I am also playing around with some T-Trak module ideas. BTW, I am not that great with scenery either (You will see what I mean if you see one of my videos, LOL).😂
I’m 13 and I’m starting a diorama, this will be my first project involving glue, turf, and a foam base (instead of a folding table, I’m having a lot of fun so far! Nice to see there are other younger people getting into this hobby like me!
Hi Steve yes love my N gauge layout and spent a few hours last week pulling it all up and now I going to relay the track and do a few things that I didn't do to start with like a run around track a few more sidings into the industrial are and carriage shed. All this has come about owing to watching you guys on UA-cam and I know I will want to do something else (missed out on this build) when I finish it. N gauge is a good size when you live in a caravan but not the best for big fingers lol.
I enjoy going to model train shows to see how everyone brings their railway to life. It is great to listen to someone tell me where their layout is going too now, and their future plans for it.
I recently got in the hobby after years of "thinking about it" I had been into R/C aircraft since 1989, and still am. I really enjoy the designing and building a plane that flies the way I want, but I never "detailed" them. As the kids are grown and gone, house and car paid off, I started checking into model trains as a winter hobby. The current crop of almost ready to fly planes surpass my building skills and are cheaper than I could build so I needed something to do in the winter months. As I dabble in electronics, I immediately gravitated to DCC++ and JMRI. My layout is just in the beginning stages and have 18 turnouts controlled by 2 different Arduinos that are then controlled by JMRI. Still tweaking to do there, but am moving on to scenery and buildings. My plan is to make as much as I can on my own. More disciplines to learn. The layout is N scale as I like the idea of a larger distance for the trains to cover. I have gathered cinders from the road (used on the roads in the winter for traction) and sifted for ballast, rocks etc. I have designed a few buildings and such using Fusion360 and scratch built or 3D printed. Long story short... There are SO MANY aspects to this hobby that drew me in. Although hording, I mean collecting is not one of them. ;-)
I enjoy running trains and watching them run I have a 4x8 layout currently in the works got the table built from one of your videos and I used any rail to mock up what I want to build and I'm trying to figure out how to build my inclines as the pink foam board is pretty Ridgid and doesn't bend well I'm trying to figure this out
Great video!! Perfect for someone to watch and see if Model Railroading might be right for them. I have a 4' x 8' N-scale using Kato Unitrack. And I have 3 separate circuits with no turnouts. It's all DC and for me it's simply about running trains and "railfanning". I love the ambitious idea of having a larger layout with DCC, turnouts, and yards to be able to do real operations... but the extra price and potential for mechanical issues and derailments makes me stick to what I have. To me, the most important thing is that it works flawlessly. If you use wide curves in Kato Unitrack and keep the grades generously below 2% ... that's a pretty easy way to ensure no derailments. in the past I have built other layouts and attempted to use flex track (in both N and HO) with various success... but to make it able to withstand temperature change, I've found it very hard when the layout is in a garage... that process is truly a skill that one must perfect as opposed to just clicking Unitrack together. And don't even get me started on hand laying your track, I can't even believe that something people do, but it is. A friend of mine hand lays his HO and he can do 6" of track in about four hours. I think that is insanity but he loves it.
I can't tell you what my favorite aspect is, but I know my least favorite is carpentry! That's why I watch your videos. Model railroading is great when you are young as it teaches you all sorts of skills that will be helpful throughout your life. So while I'm not a good carpenter, I'm also not afraid to try things. Ditto electrical and electronics. Now if only model railroading involved plumbing maybe I wouldn't hate it so much!
Nice video Steve, I don't have the space yet but I'm obsessed with creating a roster that depicts 90's CSX era. I think I'll have way more rollingstock than my future layout will ever handle 😁
I was quite ignorant about trains and the hobby, BUT being an eccentric, eclectic, introvert who has watched many videos, done some reading and have learned the skills by trial and error. My current layout is a work in progress, 4’x8’ N gauge and every time I play I learn. Great topic for UA-cam, another great video by a Steve!👍🏼👍🏼
Take a look at. Z scale track without the roadbed. It disappears 😉I’m an N scale guy that’s small enough for me. Z scale is good if you’re just building a simple loop railroad. But switching is a completely different process. My friend tried I warned him but sometimes people need to see for them selves.
I just did two videos on Z scale but used track with roadbed. It would be hard to use without roadbed I think. I also just bought a T gauge set (half the size of Z scale), but you will probably never guess how I plan to use that train set.
@@StevesTrains God Bless I’ve never even heard of that and I’ve been modeling since six years old. But that small I would guess as a carnival train ride. For your n scale. Nice job on the videos, my name is Sam, if you type in my full name given by UA-cam you may be able to see some of my layout which will be coming down and rebuilding a new N scale around my whole basement. That will be going on UA-cam from start to finish. If I could figure it out. I’ll probably get help from my grandson with that. The only thing I know on computer is add to cart.
How about switching to small scale? You can get quite a bit of Z scale train into a couple of feet. Heck, you might even go down to T gauge, you can put an entire layout in a small suitcase.
Why so expensive should be the question?... i was considering funding this hobby for my 6 year old but looking at a prices of one train and few coaches .... and i am like nah. Shame as i should be the target audience just turned 40 have young children with some income to spend and i want to give them manual skills via play.. but when the prices are this hefty its looking like the youth are priced out .... no offence but too old retired rich folk.......come on this is how a hobby dies price gauge the loyal people and don't bring in new people?? if the youth couldn't give two sh*ts and rather play fortnight or some video games instead where is the future market? in 20 years watch this hobby shrink to almost obscurity i just don't understand the whole pricing , i build scale models and such and so i understand a hobby can be expensive with quality kits... but no way should two engines and a few coaches cost almost the same price of a PlayStation 5 ......... try asking a kid ps5 or this train? i don't mean to sound negative , i want to understand
@@StevesTrains Pricing is a HUGE deterrent. I recently (few years ago) got back into the hobby after being away from it for over ten years. Thank God I still had (have) a lot of my old model RR stuff. Talk about sticker shock! If I didn't have all that stuff from years ago, I could NEVER afford to get into it again.
I recently got back into model RR after years of absence. Talk about sticker shock. Thankfully I had/have a lot of stuff from my earlier days in the hobby. I do find that some pretty good deals can be found at model RR shows. Mostly on used items, but sometimes you find decent prices on new as well. Even Ebay can turn up a few decent deals here and there. Deals are out there, but I definitely agree that new stuff seems to be way overpriced.
Maybe the best part is actually that the hobby includes so many thing 🙂
Hello everyone,
I am 25 years old and from France. I recently completed my degree in embedded systems/electronics and I watched a video of an elderly German man who spent 30 years constructing an exact replica of the Stuttgart town center before he passed away in 2011. It was very inspiring for me. I decided to reconnect with my old hobby of model railroading, building plastic models and painting them with an airbrush, etc. It was love at first sight as an adult because I didn't like it when I was young; it required too much skill and patience that I didn't have yet.
It is quite remarkable how, as I have grown older, I have come back to this amazing passion. With the help of the skills I acquired in the workshop of my engineering school and in my personal projects of programming and designing electronic circuitry, I am completely fulfilled. The content you produce is of excellent quality and usefulness, and I sincerely thank you for your hard work and dedication.
Miniature world , yep . UA-cam is so much fun to show the world and learn about the hobby.
For model railroading, I enjoy the movement of freight from one place to another the most, followed closely by operation in a reasonably realistic manner. A number of years ago I have got involved in a virtual interchanging group which is really interesting and most of the more recent model railroad layouts I build are specifically to enhance the movement and virtual interchanging of freight between origin and destination locations. But I also like to have my trains run through a scenically interesting landscape.
Electronics, specially learning DCC, was the biggest learning curve. Still really a novice there. Like to see trains run through scenery and that's what keeps me there.
Spot on Steve lots going on and liked .Thanks for sharing DD.
My interest in model railroading got started when I bought a Bachmann HO scale 'Harry Potter Hogwarts Express' train set for my kids back in the early 2000's. It was a yearly ritual since to get that train set out to run around the base of the Christmas tree. My kids grew up and Dad inherited the train set so I continued to get that train set out every year at Christmas time and that grew into fascination and hobby for me..now I have a collection of train pieces and I enjoy using them year around. I haven't jumped into the hobby 'whole hog' to the point that I have a complete display with scenery, buildings, etc. but I enjoy watching my trains run around the set and I've learned quite a bit about railroad history I concentrate on accumulating pieces related to local railroad activity where I live. I bought a couple of large reproduction prints from originals taken of railroad activity where I live I use them for backdrops for my setup and that adds a lot of character to my setup. A fun hobby.
I started building my HO railroad in the 80's to be able to spend time with my kids. Nothing fancy, each had an area where they could build whatever they wanted. When they moved out the layout was taken apart and put in boxes. During COVID and now retired, I started again with the plan to teach myself to build scenery. Progress has been slow but steady and as a bonus, I am now able to expose my Grandkids to the hobby.
For me the skill development aspect of the hobby is very rewarding. Learning painting techniques has been cathartic and creating scratch built structures has opened up a creative side 🚂
Running trains is the end goal, I guess, but as I've gotten older I love finishing scenes with nice scenery and kit-bashing. It's just so relaxing. And when a small scene comes together, it's a win.
As a 14 year old I'm not great at scenery but I love doing it it is just so fun, and I have learned so much about woodworking and electrical stuff and stuff like that with some help from my dad. I am so glad I got into this hobby even though it can get expensive at times
Good to see that some young people are still getting into this hobby. Yes, it can get expensive, and even frustrating at times. I have actually been into model RR since the late 1980's...on and off. My tiny (2x3 foot) N Scale Hammer Valley Model RR has been a WIP since mid-2020. I love every minute I can spend on it. Even have a few videos posted from it. I am also playing around with some T-Trak module ideas.
BTW, I am not that great with scenery either (You will see what I mean if you see one of my videos, LOL).😂
I’m 13 and I’m starting a diorama, this will be my first project involving glue, turf, and a foam base (instead of a folding table, I’m having a lot of fun so far! Nice to see there are other younger people getting into this hobby like me!
Thank you, good talk.
Hi Steve yes love my N gauge layout and spent a few hours last week pulling it all up and now I going to relay the track and do a few things that I didn't do to start with like a run around track a few more sidings into the industrial are and carriage shed.
All this has come about owing to watching you guys on UA-cam and I know I will want to do something else (missed out on this build) when I finish it.
N gauge is a good size when you live in a caravan but not the best for big fingers lol.
I enjoy going to model train shows to see how everyone brings their railway to life. It is great to listen to someone tell me where their layout is going too now, and their future plans for it.
I recently got in the hobby after years of "thinking about it" I had been into R/C aircraft since 1989, and still am. I really enjoy the designing and building a plane that flies the way I want, but I never "detailed" them. As the kids are grown and gone, house and car paid off, I started checking into model trains as a winter hobby. The current crop of almost ready to fly planes surpass my building skills and are cheaper than I could build so I needed something to do in the winter months. As I dabble in electronics, I immediately gravitated to DCC++ and JMRI. My layout is just in the beginning stages and have 18 turnouts controlled by 2 different Arduinos that are then controlled by JMRI. Still tweaking to do there, but am moving on to scenery and buildings. My plan is to make as much as I can on my own. More disciplines to learn. The layout is N scale as I like the idea of a larger distance for the trains to cover. I have gathered cinders from the road (used on the roads in the winter for traction) and sifted for ballast, rocks etc. I have designed a few buildings and such using Fusion360 and scratch built or 3D printed. Long story short... There are SO MANY aspects to this hobby that drew me in. Although hording, I mean collecting is not one of them. ;-)
Like 244👍👍👍
Thank you for sharing such a great video!
I enjoy running trains and watching them run I have a 4x8 layout currently in the works got the table built from one of your videos and I used any rail to mock up what I want to build and I'm trying to figure out how to build my inclines as the pink foam board is pretty Ridgid and doesn't bend well I'm trying to figure this out
Great video!! Perfect for someone to watch and see if Model Railroading might be right for them. I have a 4' x 8' N-scale using Kato Unitrack. And I have 3 separate circuits with no turnouts. It's all DC and for me it's simply about running trains and "railfanning". I love the ambitious idea of having a larger layout with DCC, turnouts, and yards to be able to do real operations... but the extra price and potential for mechanical issues and derailments makes me stick to what I have. To me, the most important thing is that it works flawlessly. If you use wide curves in Kato Unitrack and keep the grades generously below 2% ... that's a pretty easy way to ensure no derailments. in the past I have built other layouts and attempted to use flex track (in both N and HO) with various success... but to make it able to withstand temperature change, I've found it very hard when the layout is in a garage... that process is truly a skill that one must perfect as opposed to just clicking Unitrack together. And don't even get me started on hand laying your track, I can't even believe that something people do, but it is. A friend of mine hand lays his HO and he can do 6" of track in about four hours. I think that is insanity but he loves it.
Cool. 👍
I can't tell you what my favorite aspect is, but I know my least favorite is carpentry! That's why I watch your videos. Model railroading is great when you are young as it teaches you all sorts of skills that will be helpful throughout your life. So while I'm not a good carpenter, I'm also not afraid to try things. Ditto electrical and electronics. Now if only model railroading involved plumbing maybe I wouldn't hate it so much!
It's not hoarding if your stuff is cool. 😀
Collecting is a fancy word for hoarding
Most of my stuff is "cool" (at least to me, LOL) but I still consider myself a hoarder.
Nice video Steve, I don't have the space yet but I'm obsessed with creating a roster that depicts 90's CSX era. I think I'll have way more rollingstock than my future layout will ever handle 😁
It's fun, and less expensive than drag racing.
Can't argue with that, LOL. I am a race car driver as well, and...yeah, it can get expensive really quickly.
My astrophotography hobby can burn money faster than model trains as well!
@@StevesTrains I heard that. By the way, thank you for spelling that word for me!
I was quite ignorant about trains and the hobby, BUT being an eccentric, eclectic, introvert who has watched many videos, done some reading and have learned the skills by trial and error. My current layout is a work in progress, 4’x8’ N gauge and every time I play I learn. Great topic for UA-cam, another great video by a Steve!👍🏼👍🏼
Well Said 👍😃 OperateOnOperator
Take a look at. Z scale track without the roadbed. It disappears 😉I’m an N scale guy that’s small enough for me. Z scale is good if you’re just building a simple loop railroad. But switching is a completely different process. My friend tried I warned him but sometimes people need to see for them selves.
I just did two videos on Z scale but used track with roadbed. It would be hard to use without roadbed I think. I also just bought a T gauge set (half the size of Z scale), but you will probably never guess how I plan to use that train set.
@@StevesTrains God Bless I’ve never even heard of that and I’ve been modeling since six years old. But that small I would guess as a carnival train ride. For your n scale. Nice job on the videos, my name is Sam, if you type in my full name given by UA-cam you may be able to see some of my layout which will be coming down and rebuilding a new N scale around my whole basement. That will be going on UA-cam from start to finish. If I could figure it out. I’ll probably get help from my grandson with that. The only thing I know on computer is add to cart.
Thanks Sam! I’ll look up your channel and see if I can find the videos of your layout. Always fun to see what others are doing.
I am a collector, not a hoarder! (I am not sure there is a difference)
I have an excuse for my hoarding: "I might need that someday."
Replaying this video to my wife in her sleep
Hahaha
I moved and now I can’t do this stuff anymore. I’m in the process of selling off my stuff🤷♂️
I’m sorry to hear that. Hopefully you can still enjoy the hobby through books and videos.
I’ll probably just collect wierd trains or something from here . I don’t have the space to set up another massive track
How about switching to small scale? You can get quite a bit of Z scale train into a couple of feet. Heck, you might even go down to T gauge, you can put an entire layout in a small suitcase.
Why so expensive should be the question?... i was considering funding this hobby for my 6 year old but looking at a prices of one train and few coaches .... and i am like nah. Shame as i should be the target audience just turned 40 have young children with some income to spend and i want to give them manual skills via play.. but when the prices are this hefty its looking like the youth are priced out .... no offence but too old retired rich folk.......come on this is how a hobby dies price gauge the loyal people and don't bring in new people??
if the youth couldn't give two sh*ts and rather play fortnight or some video games instead where is the future market? in 20 years watch this hobby shrink to almost obscurity
i just don't understand the whole pricing , i build scale models and such and so i understand a hobby can be expensive with quality kits... but no way should two engines and a few coaches cost almost the same price of a PlayStation 5 ......... try asking a kid ps5 or this train? i don't mean to sound negative , i want to understand
Yeah the pricing is rough. It is certainly more of a hobby for those 35 and up with more available income unfortunately.
@@StevesTrains Pricing is a HUGE deterrent. I recently (few years ago) got back into the hobby after being away from it for over ten years. Thank God I still had (have) a lot of my old model RR stuff. Talk about sticker shock! If I didn't have all that stuff from years ago, I could NEVER afford to get into it again.
I recently got back into model RR after years of absence. Talk about sticker shock. Thankfully I had/have a lot of stuff from my earlier days in the hobby.
I do find that some pretty good deals can be found at model RR shows. Mostly on used items, but sometimes you find decent prices on new as well. Even Ebay can turn up a few decent deals here and there. Deals are out there, but I definitely agree that new stuff seems to be way overpriced.