There have been a couple of posts lately about layouts after death. In one case, a son, new to MRR wants to continue his Dad’s layout. In another we read about a huge layout being broken up, sold and trashed.
I have 2 young sons, and assuming that my wife would choose to stay in the same house, my layout would continue to get a lot of use.
It’s kind of morbid, but I think it does us all good to think about mortality and what we leave behind on occasion.
What would happen to your layout?
I’m only 26 so I can’t even begin to think about this! I should godfather someone older’s layout.
If my father has anything to do with it, it’ll all go on the burn pile, as he has no use for ‘childi***oys’.
Take a look at Jeffrey-Wimberleys “hardcore modeller” thread… please.
My wife and I were actually talking about this topic yesterday. I have well over 2000 diecast cars as well as the trains. I said she is probably better off to light a match and walk away, lol. She said she would keep a couple locomotives and the cabooses, everything else would be sold off, with my blessing.
Since this house and acreage is far more than my wife could handle alone, and since she is unlikely to want to hitch up with another man (I care not, but I don’t think she would), she would put the place up for sale and probably move closer to our children or to her sister. If that were to happen, she would probably offer the layout to someone who would go to the trouble of dismantling it (I did take the time to make it modular). Failing that, a recip would do a great job on it.
If John Armstrong is not immortal, neither is his layout. Since I am no John Armstrong, …you can figure out the rest.
-Crandell
Yep,
Been thinking about that, with an ill Father-in-Law and his wishes starting to be spoken for the first time.
I’ve tried to buy some nice pieces. I can’t afford Brass, not do I have a lot of high-end DCC/Sound Equipped engines. If I started to tally things up, just in Engines and Rolling Stock it would probably amount to a good size down payment for a new Car. Of course this is “MY” value, which is a discounted from MSRP Value.
Currently, There is only one person that runs my DCC Layout, and that is me. Could someone walk into my house, fire up the layout and run my engines without much problem? Probably not! It would take some doing, but I’m sure someone could figure it out.
Who would I want my best stuff to go too? My Son or my Grand Son for sure. The Grand Son has shown the most appreciation for what I have now and I’ve bought many of the new pieces with him in mind.
So, Another thing to ponder and get written down for some future party to deal with.
Crandell makes an interesting point. Perhaps it would behoove us all - for the sake of our families and loved ones - when designing our layout or any future layouts, to consider how it could be more easily disassembled and transported elsewhere - whether that be for a move to a new location or, sadly, because of our own demise.
To answer the question, everything but the bench work (i.e. the locomotives, structures, DCC system, etc.) would/could probably go to my adopted nephew.
Tom
My wife would sell most of it off. I suspect that she might donate a few pieces to my closest friends so they could build one more layout for a charity raffle, that would be a nice way to be remembered.
Rick
I would hope that my wife would donate all the stuff to our local train club, or to the local train museum(s). I’m sure those guys would know how to operate everything and make the best use of the rolling stock and structures.
On the other side of the issue…The LHS here regularly gets items from the estates of former modelers. They sell them at a fraction of the original cost of a kit. I’ve been able to pick up some perfect, and already weathered, buildings and rolling stock this way.
Living so close to a big run down major city, if I died today or live another thirty years or so, odds are my house will be broken into, even before I die, and I expect everything will be destroyed. So there probably won’t be anything to leave. Except the insurance money.
vsmith… it wouldn’t even take that much for mine.
I’d have to say, my wife would pick it up off the floor and give it to my dad, who’d probably keep it with his layout, boxed up in a closet somewhere.
Kevin
This is an interesting topic for me, as I just suffered the loss of my wife to cancer two months ago, which does get you focused on your mortality, amongst other things… I am now on my own in a semi-detached townhouse that I will probably stay in. I have a relatively large n scale layout under construction, and quite a bit of “stuff” in the form of rolling stock, locomotives, structures built and unbuilt, etc. None of my 5 adult children are interested in the hobby. My grandsons are too young to be involved at this point. I am not in any clubs. I am known at the local hobby shops. I guess I need to be telling the kids how to dispose of all this stuff to their maximum benefit and minimum trouble. Not something I had really thought about too much until now. I am only 53, so all things are subject to change, though!
David
David,
I am very sorry to hear about your wife. [:(]
Tom
This exact post arises here about every 6 months, and sad to say most posts state they HOPE their layouts and equipment are disposed of properly, well, you may be in for a big surprise, your intentions and what really happens seldom comes true, just think, someone who has no idea about a train layout will be assigned to sell or dismantle the layout (good luck) and someone else will try and sell off all the train stuff with no knowledge of it’s value, even most auction houses still think model trains are 'toys" I have heard of two local widows who sent all those old toys to the dump, brass and everything – Remember, a lot of you guys insist on lying to your wives about the real cost of those brass engines. Read some previous posts on this subject for some real horror stories. So make sure tell someone the real value of the layout and how to dispose of it, or start to reduce it now. I hate to admit this, but vsmith hit it right on the head ! !
I don’t have a layout just yet but if I was to die today, I would hope that my wife would keep all of my trains for the day that my 2 year old boy would be able to use them. I loves trains so much now, but I don’t know if he would if I left. I guess that everyday he wants to watch the Polar Express. But if I don’t die today then I know that him and I will have a great time. Last, I think my brother would take them if nothing else. Him and I are close, and he knows how much my trains mean to me, just like I know how much his VW’s mean to him.
Ok, here’s my 2 cents worth.
I attended the John Armstrong auction, back in late March. IMO, the family did the right thing, by calling the best model railroad speciality auctioneer, Bob Charles, and disposing the rolling stock and such to the O scale community.
As was alluded to earlier in this thread, most general auctioneers have no clue as the valuations, what brass even is. Most only know Lionel, and maybe American Flyer.
That said, here’s what wil happen to mine. (spending 23 years in service to the nation, I had to think about this)
The small Lionel collection is to be broken up between my three children, as is the American Flyer.
The HO brass is to be split between my two sons (both model railroaders) and the HO rolling stock, what they want, is also to be split between them. The rest is to be donated to my club, do be done with what they will.
The N scale will go to the younger son.
The O scale (non-Armstrong) will probally go to the younger son, except the kitbashed 2-8-8-0 which the oldest som wants. The Weaver FA/FB1 will go to my daughter, as she helped me paint them.
The Armstrong cars are to be split between all three.
Now, what they do with it is their problem, as I will be quite comfortably DEAD! [xx(]
Maybe John Allen had it right. I just helped a women sell the stuff from her son’s collection. It was a bitter sweet occasion. She was glad to see people get the stuff who could appreciate it. I just bought some stuff from a widow who has been selling it at flea markets.
I assume my kids will have a sale and burn the rest. I hope its not too soon.
Well, seeing as to how I’m only 14, my dad would definately keep the layout if I were to die.
If my dad were to die I’d probably keep much of it, but sell some of his stuff that I have no interest in (such as his 750+ covered hoppers…I’m more of a city guy).
Are model railroads eligable to be put into a will or other official document that must be followed?