If I had to vote for a topic/thread that I thought was one of the most informative and interesting threads that I have seen here in the forums (in the magazine side anyway) I certainly would vote this one in the TOP FIVE threads I have read.
There (so far) are only 19 replies but the information is TOP OF THE LINE and very informative. I have very much enjoyed reading this thread and have certainly learned from reading it.
One other thread that comes to mind as very informative is/was Nora’s thread called, Stupid Question Thread. I bring this thread back to page one from time to time because it contain some very good information and can also cut down on the number of repeat questions that seem to pop up about every 6 months.
Let’s hear about some of the threads that you think are TOPS. You can post a link here to them if you so desire.
Off hand, I’d have to say Nora’s “Stupid Question Thread”. It is very informative,
and I’ve had one or two questions of my own answered there. Also like Zardoz’s
Humor thread.
There have been many threads that have been informative, albeit short (such as the passenger car thread Jim cites). A good question is asked, concise answers are given, then the thread fades into the sunset, perhaps to be resurrected by someone dredging through old threads, looking for topics of interest. While none specifically comes to mind, that doesn’t diminish what they brought to the forum.
One category of threads is always particularly interesting, especially for us foamers - that’s the ones where real railroaders speak up and tell us how thing are in the real world of railroading. You just never know when one of these will crop up.
That said, one thread has combined a lot of those good questions and concise answers - Hats off again to Nora, who, incidentally is turning what she learned into a railroad career. I have to put “Stupid Questions” at number one.
Zardoz’s humor thread has, indeed, provided an entertaining aside. And, our fixation on food aside, the Diner has provided us with a way to learn a bit about each other. There’s not a lot of railroad information, but it is a place to “gather” just for the heck of it.
I think people from all kinds of backgrounds and interests, if they’re interested at all in passenger trains, would enjoy the current Sleeping Car Configurations post. For me at least, it is one of those “everything I want to know . . . but am too ignorant even to frame the right question” type of threads.
I would also point out that long threads frequently meander in unanticipated ways. Therefore one part of the thread could be very interesting to one individual and not another, then later on interesting to most, or to nearly none.
I’m a generalist (polite word for “dilettante”) and am also very much enjoying the Canadian Rail Operations post. There’s a post for British ops too that is enjoying explosive popularity.
And if you’re in the mood for something silly, go to the CTT forum and check out the topic about keeping things serious–it got going just before Hallowe’en and as you might expect, was taken as a challenge to free-associate and introduce non-RR topics.
By the way, that was a great question–wish I had thought of it!