Model railroader buys himself into financial trouble...

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Hello all.

I was at one of my favorite train shops in the city today, and ran across a guy (Jim) that was telling me that he got so caught up in his model railroading hobby several years ago that he maxed out three major credit cards and got fired from his job for taking too much time off so he could work on his layout… He said that he finally got his eyes open one day when his wife told him she couldn’t take it anymore and threatened to leave and divorce him.

I love model railroading as much as anyone else, but I’m not going to ever let it get so out of hand that it threatens me financially, endangers my job or my relationship with my girl!. Well, not the first two at least…

Tracklayer

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Too much of anything is not good for you.

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I’ve seen a few guys like this, not quite as extreme though. One fellow started coming to operating sessions of another friend, started a small layout, acquired a lot of hobby items, etc., then after a while no one heard of him again. Never did hear what happened.

A few guys started coming to our club meetings, participating in events, obviously acquiring stuff, and then they never showed up again. Seems like these guys wanted to be “instant model railroaders”, but just buying a lot of equipment doesn’t necessarily make one a model railroader.

4

I frequented a hobby shop years ago where the owner of a company was a UP fanatic. He would buy four or five of every brass engine when they came out. I was there when he picked up six big boys all custom painted. One day he just dropped off the face of the earth leaving the owner with about twenty engines in various states of paint completion. Turned out his business failed. I figured he could live for several years selling off his collection which from what I understand never was run as he didn’t have time to build a railroad.

5

There’s probably a lesson here for many folks, and not just model railroaders. The prototypes prepared annual financial budgets and stuck to them. So everybody, where is your budget? Do you adhere to it if you have one?

No need to answer, but give it some thought.

I sometimes think of the old Milwaukee Road’s slogan: “America’s Resourceful Railroad”, as I work on my railroad. That’s why I buy junk and fix it up instead of buying new-off-the-shelf if I can. In spite of that I have more than I need or I can run at one time on the layout.

Think QUALITY instead of QUANTITY.

6

Sounds like a great theme for the Springer or Murray Povich freak show crowd.

“Help me (insert hosts name), Model Trains are ruining my life.” Family members can come on the show and confront the offending MR and a brawl ensues . The mind boggles with the possibilities. [xx(]

Jim

7

Model Train junkees? Can anybody recommend a shrink?

8

Wasn’t there an article in MR a couple of years ago titled, “Model Railroading Saved My Life” or something like that?

-George

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I bought some cars and loco’s from a guy at a train show that had the same problem with maxing out his credit cards to buy model railroad stuff. I kind of felt bad buying the stuff at probably 50 cents on the dollar but what do you do. He was very upfront about why he was selling everything. I just wish he took VISA, I would have bought a lot more, lol.

10

This happens in ALL hobbies. I’ve seen it in photography, knife collecting… even in fishing… gotta have the latest bass boat with a 200hp Mercury, best depth finders… right down to top of the line rod and reels. And not just one, many. Maybe it’s a kind of obsessive compulsive disorder thing.

Where’s Crandell when you need him?

JaRRell

11

That I think is a symptom of a much deeper problem, lack of financial control. A lab rat will starve himself pressing the candy button instead of the food one. I see this alot with the gamblers who dont know when to stop spending money inside a casino.

A budget I think is something worth talking about here. Im running a certain amount of money per month and so far there has been no real problems yet.

But THREE credit cards? That is flat too much; I hope he kept the trains with him because he’s going to be paying on them for YEARS.

A simple 4x8 with top-dollar hobby stuff can get close to a thousand dollars and a garage railroad run you into 5 figures.

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[quote user=“Heartland Division CB&Q”]

There’s probably a lesson here for many folks, and not just model railroaders. The prototypes prepared annual financial budgets and stuck to them. So everybody, where is your budget? Do you adhere to it if you have one?

No need to answer, but give it some thought.

I sometimes think of the old Milwaukee Road’s slogan: “America’s Resourceful Railroad”, as I work on my railroad. That’s why I buy junk and fix it up instead of buying new-off-the-shelf if I can. In spite of that I have more than I need or I can run at one time on the layout.

Think QUALITY instead of QUANTITY.

[/quote user=“Heartland Division CB&Q”]

dont have a budget if i got the money for it i will get it unless I need it for something else.

But as for buying junk and fixing it I usually do that. I do buy off the shelves new but if theres something at wathers 50% of shelves I will grab it up and fix it. I got a fire water pump truck with working lights for 10.00 cause of the rer light broke off a few dabs of glue and its brand new cant tell where I glued. Same with a cop car the bottom was falling off, well came to be the clip that held the bottom to the body wasnt casted right so I had to file and instant cop car with lights. Alot of my Busch cars are things that had issues, I have car that had a mirror knocked off Its not Busch car but I decided i could park it so you dont see the side withthe missing mirror. Cheap affordable and looks good. So I dont soend the full price and it needs work a tube of supe glue is 2.45 for gel has plenty of glue to do what I need. So you pay 10.00 a car and maybe .01 worth of glue to fix it

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I can see it coming now: The Atlas Rehab Center for MRA (Model Railroading Addicts). [:D]

I agree with those who have already posted that it’s not about this hobby in particular, but a personality issue in general. Chances are if someone is overspending time and money on this hobby, there are other similar issues in their lives as well. Perhaps due to OCD?

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Been there, done that, not just with trains, but with life! I finally learned my lesson (that the financial institutions want to keep you in debtbecause it is a gold mine for them!) and got rid of all the credit cards. That is not to say I don’t overspend if I have the cash, (like at train shows and LHS’s) but I do tend to have and observe limits now. Also if there is some particular item I want I will do a layaway or actually save for it. What a concept! jc5729

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A significant part of the problem is the instant gratification so prevelant in our society today. In so many ways you can get exactly what you want immediately. This has led to many social problems including our terrible overall savings rate.

My wife once tried to convice me that a Mercedes Benz was a good “investment”. She is now my ex-wife… [:D]

One of the things I enjoy about this hobby is that you can build up everything slowly.

16

Layaway is a service that is at the will of the store owner. It is most helpful when there is a specific item that otherwise will get away. The important thing about it is get it out of the store paid off ASAP.

If you cannot even afford the basic 3 month term (usually 25% down and 25% monthly) then get out of that store until you have enough money to buy the train. I have a hard time doing that sometimes depending on the ups and downs of my part time work. Some months I dont buy trains, but exchange it for the pleasure of being with other locals who are working with the hobby in various ways. It does not cost a dime.

We recently retired massive debt and are in the process of paying off the home free and clear with the exception of insurance. I cannot understand why someone will run up credit to the max just for toys.

Years ago a roommate was making minimum wage and was charging his meals and eventually maxed out his availible credit. The boom came down when the minimum payment on that exceeded his income after expenses. The sad thing was I maintained plenty of meals in the fridge because I was always out on the big road. He had a choice to cook 30 minutes each night a dinner instead of carousing for 3 hours in a resterant every night.

17

Kind of reminds me of folks who would get so obsessed with Magic: The Gathering collector card game that they would skip paying rent, or get fired for too much absenteeism. Online MMORPGs produce even more horror stories, some of which border on the gruesome.

I had that going-wild phase when I first got back into the hobby, spending around $100-150 a month on average (including 2 or 3 ~$300 rampages per year at train shows) but once my shelf started filling I cut back. These days I’ll make an occasional hobby store run, but the shelf is still full. I have actually worked a couple of train shows selling off stuff, as my first waves of purchases were a bit indiscriminate (and provided a good opportunity to sell my own book!) but my to-build shelf is still full.

Currently I try not to buy more kits than I can fit on the layout–so the solution is to build more layout before I buy more kits! While I don’t always stick to that rule (sometimes things just refuse to remain unpurchased) it helps to remind myself that I just don’t have the real estate.

18

That reminds me of the story about the guy sitting at the bar throwing down one drink after another. Finally the bartender asked him what the trouble was.

The guy replied, “My wife ran off with the captain of our golf team”.

The bartender said, “That’s a tough one, buddy, but don’t let it get you down. You’ll find someone else”.

“Yeah, but he was a scratch golfer!”

19

I seen the same thing in Bass and Walleye fishermen…They spend mega bucks on a boat then more mega bucks for a new pickup truck…Now add hundreds of dollars in fishing poles lures,tackle boxes, trolling down riggers etc…I know of one that got a divoce…His wife threw up her hands in disgust after being home alone each weekend and this was after 30 plus years of marrage…

20

Possession has its roots in insecurity. The more deeply you attempt to grasp something , the more insecure you are about it, and about other things. It also generally means you are avoiding dealing with other important issues, and want the pleasure and excitement, fleeting though it always is, associated with awaiting something that you desire. For some, it is an over-the-counter purchase (instant), while for others, it is awaiting the package from a shipper.

Purchasing is an act of power, but as most of us know, it has, or ought to have, limitations…not the least of which is a firm commitment to a budget.

So, yes, personality is an important factor. So is the addictive component associated with intermittent reinforcement, such as the occasional win one gets while gambling…or the occasional arrival of a desired package in the post.

It is a small wonder, then, that some of our friends have a compulsion to re-acquire the ephemeral pleasure that one gets from a purchase, and that they will do this time and time again, even at their peril. The stark sign of such a thing is the drawers and boxes of unopened, seldom used, and simply hidden railroad items that number far more than they can rationally use.

I have had other intense interests, but due to family finances, never gave in to seriously incautious or purely self-centred spending…thank God. Now, on the other hand, I am retired, making much less, and am hanging on by the barest molecule at the end of a single finger nail.

…aaaand loving it. [:D]