a current thread regarding a young adults attempt to build a layout seemed to highlight the reality that model railroading and the responsibilities of early adult life, in particular college, are not compatible.
i often read posts lamenting that there aren’t enough kids involved in the hobby or how to encourage them.
Like many of you, I saved my pennies and built a small layout while in high school. But by the time I was in college studying engineering, i didn’t have time for it. I also tried building a small layout after getting married when I bought a house. But I eventually realized that kids and work on the house didn’t leave much time for it.
I think model railroading is not well suited for young adults because, unlike many hobbies, it requires 1) a dedicated space, 2) a commitment in time to build, complete and maintain, besides 3) $$
I think the more likely way for young adults to participate is if they can help a parent or nearby group who are the primary builders of the layout.
I assume my experiences are similar to many of you. But if they are not, how were you able to participate in the hobby while in high school, college, post college and as a parent?
Greg, I believe I understand what you mean, and I mostly agree. But, not completely. I don’t see this as an either/or situation. Depending on one’s motivation, and how much weight one assigns to a given undertaking or passion, we all organize our time accordingly. And our talents…and moolah.
If one has the support of important and influential people around oneself, and is willing to dedicate the time and other requisite resources, we can all do pretty much what we want, when we want.
Some of us become skirt chasers full time, others take apart lawnmower motors and fix 'em (or so we tell each other[:-^] ), or we collect comic books. A fully functional model train layout isn’t beyond the pale in my view. It may be difficult at that age, 14-28, but it’s by no means impossible.
I guess lucked out, my father built me a 12’ x 12’ room in our garage when I was 12 years old, I had my own Den or Man Cave as they call them today.
I had free run of the entire space from 12 until I moved out of my parents house at 21. And no I wasn’t an only child, my younger brother wasn’t interested in having his own Den or trains. When I did move out my brother removed what was left of my trains and took over my Den.
I had no problems through high school or college working on my layout. I would do my school studies in my Den and still have time for my railroad.
My only hang up or slow down was girls but I still made time for my trains, not as much time but I kept at my model railroading. Maybe that is why I got hooked so deeply in my hobby. Even my girlfriend liked my trains.
I tried that on my own kids but it didn’t take. Out of more than I can keep tack of offspring,
Notwithstanding your experience which I “expect” is reasonably typical, what you should be asking is
“What hobbies are really for young adults?”
and
“Are the hobbies requirements which you listed, impediments just for young adults?”
or to go a step further
“Is not having all or some of those requirements an excuse to procrastinate?”
On becoming a young adult, my hobby priorities changed from building model aircraft to fast women and even faster motorcycles! It was only when I s
But like many, I had to keep it small. I had 4x8 in the second bedroom when our first child was born. But I immediately built the second layout in the master bedroom 6x6.5 - it was a pretty large bedroom and my wife is fairly understanding.
Over the next several years and moves I started several small layouts some of which had track. I also built a few models. But mostly I did very little while my three sons were growing up.
When I attended Penn State University, there was a model railroad club conveniently located in the basement of the Hetzel Union Building. You could grab a cheeseburger at a snack cafeteria and go hang out in the model railroad club between classes for an hour or so, without needing to walk back to your residence, either on or off campus. We had a lot of fun running that layout!
I worked weekends for a good train store, and trains were still expensive back then versus the minimum wage I earned. In fact, I think they are actually cheaper today relative to pay rates and cost of living (more detail, but the detail is offset by Chinese labor/price markup structure). I’m still financially strapped today: kids’ travel baseball, possible transfer to a private Christian school from public school. It never gets easier.
There never is or seems to be money enough, yet I make do.
I have coworkers who go spend an awful lot of money on golf. Between the cart fee, the playing fee, and the drinks/food before and after, I can skip the lousy golf, and purchase a gorgeous HO Intermountain Autorack instead–and have something for my money spent. I’ll take the autorack every time!
It’s all a question of priorities. Where there is a will there is a way.
When I was single, before wife and kids, I had much more disposable income than ever since. I was able to buy any kind of train I wanted. In my first apartment, I had a 5’x9’ flat table spaghetti bowl of track layout, and was able to run some brass articulateds on it. I had a blast with it.
I will turn 50 in a few weeks. I patently reject the thought that the hobby is “too expensive” for today’s generation. I would say that there are a lot of colleges offering totally worthless degrees (as in would you like frie
I think it all depends on the individual. My previous layout started in my late teens and continued into my young adulthood in the early-mid 1990s. As a young adult I had my own job and my own car, so I was free to go to hobby shops and train shows in the area. My interest in the hobby also waned during young adulthood (mid-late 1990s) due various factors, i.e. career, my other pursuits (music, community activism, travel), but also because I had grown frustrated with HO scale because the curves on my layout were too tight for the rolling stock I wanted to run and the hobby was no longer fun for me anymore. So then my layout gathered dust for years.
It picked up again in 2006 after I dismantled that layout, sold off my HO collection and switched to N scale, where I had a renewed interest in the hobby due to getting acclimated to N scale and building a new layout.
I left the hobby in my early teens. Too many other interests and no desire to build a new railroad. My role model was a neighbor who had an around the basement layout. We did not have a basement, just a room, we called the utility room and the 4x8 took up a lot of space and the plasticville structures weren’t very pretty.
Came back in my early 30’s when I did have a basement, left in my late forties when I gave my house to a woman I didn’t like anymore. and then back again in my early 60’s
If I was a teenager today choosing between a DCC loco and an Iphone, I would chose the phone. It’s not just that MR is too expensive, the cost of living in the modern world…netflix, cell phone, laptop, internet access, movies are all more expensive. Even if you have enabling and spoiling parents, it costs a lot to keep a teenager in the manner they would like to be accustomed to.
My college did not have a model railroad club, but we all got a good laugh at the freshman orientation meeting, when a kid, with a high pitched, nasal voice asked “Does this school have a fencing team” We did not have one of those either.
It is all about choice in life. I still don’t get it when people consider that getting married and /or having kids isn’t a choice. I didn’t get married and have kids until I was forty and quite a few of my friends are still not married and some of those that are never had kids. Think about what you want out of life and get going. Nothing bad will happen to you if you stay single and take advantage of all the things the world has to offer including playing with trains.
Having two kids was without a doubt my best adventure and it shot by in a flash, so now it is back to other things. Raising kids should be your primary interest when you have them. Unfortunately, we have had to take in a few for short periods of time on occasion as their parents considered them things that got in the way of their lives.
You can’t have it all in life, but you can have an awful lot of it, choose wisely.
I joined the hobby at age 10 and built a layout at age 13. I left the hobby totally at age 16 when cars, girls, college, then young career-build simply took over until age 28. Then, I began to buy MR again and built a few models in my singles apartment. Got married and bought a house and after a couple of years of getting that put together, built another layout, then another until a recent move has left me layout-less at age 54.
There is a long time to pursue this hobby and just because they don’t have the time, space, or funds to enjoy it totlly how they want there is likely going to be time when they can. Stay tuned in and never give up the dreams.
I have been in the hobby all of my life. There have been periods when there was no free time for hobbies, but I felt I was a model railroader in spite of that.
I recall busy college years when I worked full time while being a full time student simultaneously. Not much time for trains, but I did what I could.
I like seeing the older, more experienced model railroaders who patiently encourage younger. less experienced model railroaders to improve their skills.
Perhaps so…but we’re all here, ain’t we? We have a mutual love for railroading or the scale versions of them, all 13M across the globe. We all do what we have to to achieve our aims. For some of us, it’s whining to our parents for some discretionary cash/space/time. Some of us find other ways. You found your way. We all ended up here, in our train rooms, or our beds while we read ourselves to sleep, married, divorced, repeated…s’alla same.
Some bright person opined in mixed company, “Where there’s a will…”
BTW, and no bank will recognize this currency, but I’m glad you’re here. [:)]
When I was a young adult, I was on active duty and just the two moves I made to different bases precluded participation in the hobby. I tried to work on Athearn BB kits, only to ship them home to my dad to store for when I got out. Then, getting out and going to college sort of preoccupied my time- not to mention social pursuits. By the time I considered returning to model railroading, I was a homeowner and settled- sufficient factors that allowed for more permanent planning and participating. When you are young, young folks’ “fancies” tend to turn in other directions than assembling rolling stock and laying track.
I remember having my Lionels when I was 5 years old. When I grew a bit older, I sold them and switched to HO, which I built and worked on through my teenage years. When I went to college, I was told to pack them up, which I did. They ended up in the basement. After my Mom moved and that house got sold, I moved the boxes of trains from apartment to apartment to apartment, and finally to my house, without ever opening them. In about 2000, I was 53 and finally had space and time. And money. I loved it, and I was able to start and continue a layout. The 30 years from college to then was a time to keep my trains on hold, almost forgotten, but they were never lost.
My twenties, thirties and forties were simply full of other pleasures and treasures, young ladies and finally my daughter, the youngest lady of them all.
I don’t regret the path my trains have taken. They were there when I wanted them as a boy and as a young man, and they were there again to bring back to life in middle age.
As much as we like to think of this as a hobby for everyone, it really is for those who have the space, time and money to do it right.
I have a similar story. Moving a few boxes full of train stuff around with me through my entire life was nothing. I started R/C airplanes 46 years ago and they were a bear to move with their 6 foot wingspans. They did come along and in my current house were put in the crawlspace when we moved in, in 1996. IT looked like a small airport down there when I would go down to get the Christmas stuff. There they sat all perfectly functional and ready to go, until our flood last November.[:(]
The insurance money will buy me a couple of BLIs CP 2-8-0s. So maybe all those aircraft relocation trips were worth it.[(-D]