It is that time of the year again and I have to ask a question. If you have a Christmas tree in your home, does it have a train running around it?
Tree, yes. Trains around it? No. I don’t think my wife could take the thought of more trains in the house. A train room full of them is more than enough.
Because I moved the Grand Piano from what is now the train room to the living room, space is a little tighter than it should be so the logistics of a train around the tree just don’t work anymore.
I would like to build a Polar Express Z scale setup for the centre of the dinner table. We usually have about twenty people for dinner on Christmas and put a 5’ x 10’ sheet of plywood on top of our regular dining room table to accommodate the crowd. I think a 18" x 6’ layout would fit nicely in the centre as we leave all the food on the island in the kitchen and let people serve themselves. This leaves lots of free space on the table.
I picked this train up for $20.00 at the school garage sale. It had one broken wire. All the little presents stack up on the flat car. I am still racking my tiny brain trying to figure out if I can find a place for it.[^o)]
I have a string of “rice lights” on the timer mode at the entrance to the train room. They’ll be cut up and applied to buildlings and rolling stock as needed after the holidays. Other than that, I consider being a model railroader as a lot like having Xmas 365 days a year.
Brent,
Got a Jacuzzi? Your wife would probably kill You. LOL.[(-D]
Maybe Richhotrain, could use it on His bathtub layout. [:-^]
No Train, No Tree…been a long time for Me, quit having Birthdays also. [:'(] I just enjoy my Son’s 9 footer and the Grandkids.
Take Care! [:D]
Frank
You have just given me an idea Frank! We have a bathtub race from Vancouver Island across the strait to Vancouver. I would win the best dressed tub contest for sure. Now if I can only figure out how I’m going to keep it on the track![oX)]
We set up two trees – one in the living room with “normal” ornaments (including a moose, a lobster and a skunk which is why normal is in quotes) and one in the dining room entirely with train themed ornaments (and all red, green and yellow lights), relying heavily on the Hallmark “Lionel” series of ornaments, some of which are darn nice little scale models. Some years I do drag out some Lionel track and run either Lionel or Marx trains under that train tree, to the horrified amusement of the cat. The trains were not (alas) my childhood Lionels but stuff my late mom found at rummage sales when I was an adult – a Marx steam loco and cars for $5, a complete Lionel set with plastic steam loco (friction wheel chuffing sound in tender) and cheap plastic cars with track and transformer for $15, and the real find, a die cast steam loco and plastic cars with track for $1.
There is a nice tradition for my closest train watching buddies to come to our house for a steak dinner the Friday before Christmas, then we watch slides (or digital) until about midnight. That is often the only time the O-27 trains are actually run because one of the guys is a Lionel collector.
Dave Nelson
Not around the tree, but every year we set up our son’s old plastic, battery powered train in the other room. That thing still runs just fine after 25 years. I also put up an HO scaled, lighted Xmas tree and a Santa checking out a chimney on the layout every year.[:D]
Some great responses guys. Forgot to link this in earlier. This is my tree. Happy Holidays to all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t26iVyEDoR8&list=UUpHqhmFwy1TArj3t9zzJQTQ
I don’t have a train around my tree at home because we have one of those Roomba vacuum cleaners. However, at work I have an inexpensive G Scale set around our tree that visitors can enjoy.
Being an interfaith couple my Hanukkah train custom built from post war Lionel components will be up and running around the tree in a few days. I will try to post a pic on the CTT forumand maybe here
Yes I do. My late wife bought me the Polar express and every yer I add a car, tracks, houses, figures to go under the Christmas tree. My two girls (9 and 11 )LOVE it and they always help assemble the track, set up the figures and houses. Great tradition and it brings back fond memories of when their mother was living.
parts 323,
I see you have the Eat 'n Park smiley face ornament on your tree…hmmmm, does King’s make a Frownie ornament? [:D]
Ha Ha. I never liked Kings food. Hartley Blimp, I ment Hartley King screwed that place up.
Rub a dub dub, Rich HOs layout in the tub [(-D]
Unlike the past 15 years, sadly this year there is no Christmas Tree Forest nor any trains running around them. Last year I think we were up to 18 trees. Lord willing they will return next year.
But you know what our catch phrase is. If there isn’t a train it isn’t an offical Christmas tree.
No, because the killer cats would attack the poor train!
I’ve got a 1955 Lionel GP7 in perfect condition that I never run, because of the cats. Plus a bunch of postwar cars to go with it.
I understand about the cats.
I used to do an HO train in the floor around the tree, but it does tend to get in the way of presents. Now I just have a N scale train in the tree, and yes, it does run.
