Only every few weeks. But it never lasts long. That’s the good part of our hobby, it (the RR) is patient with us. My wife’s hobby is gardening and those things would just take over the whole place if she didn’t keep after them. It should work out fine when I retire as she’ll be out in the yard most of the day and I’ll be in the train room.
cwclark, I think that phrase sums it all up. This is a hobby, a form of entertainment, FUN, not something you ‘should’ do. When we reach the point of feeling like we ‘should’ do something on our layouts it’s time for a break. Only you can decide how long that break has to be.
Don’t feel bad Chuck, I suffer the same feelings, though mine are becomming more frequent and severe.
Part of my problem is the line between work and hobby is blurred, since I have done trains for a living in the past, and don’t have a regular job. The fun is slowly running out because it’s all I do anymore. Bad feelings build up until I dread working on the layout at all. Then something breaks, and I get in the mood again, but usually it is short lived. I have this huge layout all planned, and construction started, but I keep stalling out. Perhaps I’ve bitten off more than I can chew. The size certainly doesn’t help.
In a way it’s like being a drug addict. It keeps taking a bigger and bigger score just to get the same high. This is what brought me to design this monster, the need for more. I don’t want to let the monster win, but I’m tired. It is so hard to get excited about anything anymore.
I get in those moods myself.With kids,a full time job etc. it is hard to get down to the layout sometimes.I think I get more exhausted than anything else from everything going on.I also have an old car I have been neglecting that I need to get out and work on.Too many thing going on,not enough time.Dan
I’m way too new for that, but I did have moments of anxiety in my drive to get the layout to the point where I could be happy and run trains. Sometimes the magnitutude hits you when you replay in your mind all of the steps that are coming up, all of the painting, sculpting, filing, shimming, soldering, wiring (whoa, Randy), and so on.
Chuck, I would like you to go back and re-read your first sentence above. Notice anything? It is a word that begins with ‘s’ and comes after, “…like I …”
Tell me, who is it that is telling you that you should work on the trains? Why is this?
It seems to me that you have perhaps lost some perspective. There is no “should” in a hobby except that which you impose upon yourself.
May I suggest that you you exchange ‘should’ for ‘want’ or ‘would like’? That changes the meaning of you opening remark immensely, doesn’t it? If either of those two doesn’t fit in the sentence due to other interests or priorities, you won’t have to beat yourself up!
Am I making sense?
Apology: Sorry, Attaboy, I did not read through all of the posts and missed your insightful message. I repeated it here, to my regret. Good show, and you are right on the money.
I think we are just discussing human nature. My second hobby is fly fishing including tying my own flies. Just because I don’t tie flys everyday, or don’t go fishing every day, does not mean I’ve given up fishing. I have found over the years I have the same approach to model railroading. Just because I’m away from the layout for a week or two does not mean I no longer love the hobby. Sometimes I’ve simply got to stand up, stretch out and smell the roses (armpit?). This is one great hobby. And it’s better than my wife. When I walk away and leave it, it doesn’t make funny noises.
Steam will rise again.
Tom
I’ve been in this hobby on and off for years. Through changes of life, work,marrage,kids other misc things. In the late 90’s, I just decided to get out of the hobby and try something else. I started building model cars, painting them and customizing them, I really enjoyed it for about 4 years, but just that ‘Bug’ I still had and as a kid that drew me back. I learned alot from building cars that I use now on my trains. (Sounds a little like Terry Thompsons story).
Great movie!..
As for getting burned out on model railroading. I’m one of these people that’s into it for a few years then out of it for a few years, which is the way I’ve been since I was a kid. I get off into other things, and when I get burned out on them I come back to trains. I’ve never owned more train stock or had as large of a layout as I do now though. As I grow older it seems that I’m getting more serious about the hobby. If and when I get tired of it, I cover my layout with a plastic sheet, lock my train room and walk away for a couple of weeks or so until it sounds like fun again.
trainluver1
You know what? Every single Post on this Topic is very nearly in agreement “across the board.” This comes as no surprise because even though we may have “approached” M.R.ing from different angles, that “bug,” passion, drive, obsession, what ever we wi***o call it, won’t go away. What makes us keep coming back? This is a “shot in the dark,” pure speculation, maybe even a personal “fantasy,” but here it is! Some where in our “life’s experience,” a deep, indelible impression came to us through association with real and model trains. Maybe it is a shared Family involvement in the past; a dream of creating a utopian scenario in miniature; building your own Empire with “your own” hands; the excitement of awesome power, weight and speed sitting on two ribbons of steel; the stress of getting “orders” right without the dread of “real life” hazzards? I don’t know but somewhere, sometime, some place and some people got us into this and all or some of the above sustains us. What do you think about it? Regards to all.
Maybe the two of you could work togather and do an outdoor garden railroad[:D]
I think my interest will always be tied to the first layouts I saw as a kid at the LA county fair in Pomona. There was an indoor 2-rail O guage layout, and an outdoor layout of a non-standard scale that was 100% scratchbuilt (this is believed to be the largest garden railroad in North America). It has since been replaced by G scale.
I’ve seen many, many, many super awesome layouts in MR over the years. But for some reason, when I’m daydreaming about my future layout, thoughts of those first 2 layouts are always stronger than the layouts in magazines. Always. Both had handlaid track, many scratchbuilt items, etc., so to me that always seems like the “correct” way to participate in this hobby. I can’t shake it!
So for me, it’s my opportunity to still be a kid. I’m just a slightly more sophisticated kid than I used to be. I’ll be the first to admit they’re toys, which helps keep the hobby in perspective.
Not to mention, being a mechanical design engineer, I love to design, build, and tinker with things. Wait, maybe my career is just a slightly more sophisticated form of being a kid?
Oops - I thought I was posting on the “what MRR’ing means to you” topic - this one seemed similar. Oh well…
Ted, I understand your comment, and believe that to be essentially true. When you think about it, those thundering, tall, imposing monsters threaten to leave the track; a young child would be rooted to the nearby ground in fear, but also fascination. Back in the mind, you know you’re safe, but the thrill as a locomotive approaches is tangible. That explains my interest in trains (that and the various valve gear designs).
Ted, I think you’ve hit on something there.
With me it’s always been a compulsive thing-like all other hobbies I’ve been involved in. When I get into something I lose all control, and go after what ever it is I want no matter what. There’s been times when I wanted an item so bad I couldn’t sleep until I got it. Then several months later after the fever died down, I’d think to myself how stupid I was about it…
trainluver1
My dad is to blame for my interest in trains.He used to take me to work with him.He was an assistant trainmaster for Chessie-CSX in the 1980s.He would either let me ride with the yard crew or set outside the office and watch trains.I can remember watching trains from queensgate hump tower as dad was on the first crew to work in the new tower.They used to laugh at me running from side to side.I dont think my interest will ever waine for trains because of the experiences I had with my father at the railroad.I was the only one interested in trains of all 3 kids.That brought me and dad closer over the years.Dan
Trainluver1, thanks for sharing that, and for being honest. I’ll bet that there are a couple of dozen daily readers here who are exactly the same way…and I am right there. I’m not sure I entirely regret the expense of my layout, but perhaps I regret not being more patient and disciplined in my approach to the planing. This is not to say that I am unhappy with it, but I could certainly have done considerably better.
Because of my drive, tossing and turning at night thinking about what I was doing, and so on, I won’t be doing this again for a while…even if I win the lottery (don’t buy tickets on principle…)
Been there, done that. Nice to know I am not alone in my single-minded focus.
I’ve been in the hobby since 1953 and I’ve been experiencing the “Grand Mal of Burnouts” for about three years now. I’ve done everything I can think of, to recover from it but nothing works anymore. Maybe it’s time to call it quits. Who knows, maybe after I retire in a couple of years, I’ll feel better and return to the hobby, you never know. If I do, quit for a few years , I’ll visit on occation, but probably won’t be active. It’s a bad feeling, when you feel something slipping away, and you can’t stop it.[:(]
Yes I’ll go on and off like this as well,Usually I’m too busy in the suwwer months enjoying the outside.Makes for a nice winter/fall retreat however.As someone once said Rome was not built in a day. Rob
Yeah, I’m pretty new to the hobby so i’m generally pretty pumped about it. I will often though get busy and not feel like modeling but as soon as I see a new MR mag i’m ready for more trains YEAH[:P][:P]
I am in one of those slumps right now with school there just isn’t any time.