As I have mention before I collect incentive per diem era short line boxcars and have collected some short line locomotives as well…
What’s your collector “achilles’ heel”?
If you mean collector in the sense buying something, putting it up on display and never doing anything with it, RR wise, nothing. The things I buy for my hobby are intended to be used. No display cases around this house.
Must agree with cjc, where is the fun on NOT looking at your collection of boxed cars? oh well, everyone to their own taste.
Ok…Let me rephrase the question since collector can have 2 meanings…Operating(those that use their collection) and those that don’t.
Are we operating collectors?
I like old steam engines, especialy articulateds, but they have to be part of the layout and I have to be able to afford them. Thus it is a small collection.
I am also collecting weeds to see how many different kinds of trees I can make, but this is a little different.
Nope. Very little of my stuff is stock. Virtually all has been modified in some way and most is painted, decaled and weathered. Even buildings.
Dave H.
Nope. No way. Train stuff is to be run and “played” with. I do however have a collection of vintage 1960’s era matchbox cars. They are shown below in a nice display case. It would look rather funny for a 40 something year old to be playing with his matchbox cars outside under the tree [:)]
I’d have to say yes to that. I don’t plan to have a static collection of unused engines and rolling stock, but I certainly have more than will fit on my layout. Some sit in boxes underneath, but I try to bring them out and run them now and then.
I suppose my “collectable” rolling stock is ice-bunker reefers, in particular beer cars. I don’t have a lot, but I’m always looking for another one to add to the family. I’ve also got 11 old Mantua clamshell hoppers, the ones that actually will dump coal loads out the bottom. I had 10 when I was a kid, but when I saw one at a shop for a few dollars, I just had to have it. There are still 5 of them wrapped up in 1960’s newspapers waiting for me to cut off the Talgos and install body-mount couplers.
Aside from Marvin the Martian memorabilia, and of course fine steam locomotives, I don’t collect anything. So far, I have about the same numbers in both sets…11 items. I hope I can reduce the inflow of locomotives as it is getting crowded.
Billboard Reefer cars, Alco PAs, & caboose. For non-train things it would have to be fossilized sharks teeth, dinosaur bones, Model Motoring Slot cars, Vintage Stereo Equipment (stuff that actually sounds good), classic movies, Looney Tunes, Vintage Computer equipment, and I used to collect Ford Mustangs & Merc. Cougars but that consumed wayyyy too much space so I sold them off.
Well, in that case, yes.
Southern Railway Brass steamers. I have at least one of every loco produced specifically for the SRR, except the new Ls-1 2-8-8-2’s from Precision Scale, (out of my current price range) and the old Westside tractor.
As a professional tax preparer, let me coment on the use of the word “Collector”.
In IRS parlance a collector is a person who buys items mainly for investment purposes. That would include art, stamps, coins,and probably brass imports. These are items that are primarily displayed, rather than used for personal enjoyment.
Collectibles when sold are subject to the 25 percent tax rate, not the 15 percent capital gains rate.
Items bought to use for personal enjoyment, i.e., televison, computers, and probably model trains, etc. are items of personal property.
When sold any gain on personal property is taxed as capital gains at 15 percent. If sold at a loss, no capital loss is not permitted on personal property.
If you bought a 1970’s brass important for $75.00 and used it in your hobby and then sold it on e-bay for $350.00, you will be required to report a capital gain of $275.00 on Schedule D. The tax at 15 percent would be $41.25.
Note that personal use items cannot be depreciated.
Before offering any “collectibles” for sale consult with your tax advisor.
Nope. Everything I have is meant to be used and enjoyed, granted, not all at the same time. The rolling stock, structures, etc I scratchbuild and detail to the nth degree are built to be run and useful. To me, what enjoyment is there to a static collection, be it trains, obscure records, etc if you don’t make use of it.
I am a collector right now in hopes of building another layout so I can then be an operator again some day. I am constantly adding to, and refining my roster to hone it into a fairly correct representation of the Rio Grande in two major time periods (late 60’s and 1980’s). Over the years I bought many things which looked generally right and I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve divested myself of most of that and tried to keep my “collection” from growing too big. But with the boxes stuff comes in now, you could have a certain number of items and replace it all and now it takes half again the space in storage! 
Although as a tax “collector” I’d point out the IRS really isn’t all that concerned about you selling your train stuff for more than you paid for it unless that buying and selling trains is your business and/or you’re seeing a substantial amount of income from it. They’re really looking for capital gains derived from the sale of stock or houses and office buildings.
My collection of railroad equipment that will not see regular service on my layout is rather limited:
- Three U.S. prototype 4-8-4s (NYC S-1, N&W J, SB GS-4)
- One U.S. prototype catenary motor (PRR GG-1)
- Two box cars with club heralds and reporting marks.
Everything else I own is either intended to fill a slot in projected operations or material for planned kitbashing projects. That includes structure kits as well as rolling stock.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Most things I own are collecting dust these days…Does THAT count?
The collector is the top lead of a transitor in a standard electrical diagram. That’s fairly useless information in this context, though.
I like to refer to my brass track as a “collector’s item.” In my town, they usually collect on Wednesday mornings.
Hey, I just thought of something. My old brass track is metal and plastic, so I can put it in the recycle bin!
I collect CANADIAN railroad locomotives. I also collect diecast cars, mostly 1/24 scale, I have over 500 in my collection.
Guilty.
I collect oddities. I have the 3 Bachmann early train sets (and I left HO before I bought them). I also have a bunch of Sn2 car kits and one locomotive (plus some HOn3 kits for future conversion). I have a weakness for New England structures. There’s also an O scale pay car. And so forth.
I have kept all my HO and O stuff even though I have been in S for over 10 years.[:-^]
I keep buying ahead for that big retirement layout - I think I’ll need an airplane hanger.[(-D]
I have all the NMRA Heritage and Living Legends cars made in S.
Enjoy
Paul