I have read some back issue, and this was one of my favorite sections! I am 13 myself, and it sometimes seems like I’m one of the only teens that is completly obsessed with model railroading. I like to hear from other teen modelers, and I think Student Fare helped older (adult) modelers realize that there are many teens that are serious about the hobby, not just little kids playing with train sets.
I for one would welcome a forum dedicated to Newbies. This one is way too cluttered with 4 x 8 layout questions, over and over again.
Incidently, the only answer to that question should be don’t do it unless you are in N Gauge. The equivalant in HO would be 8 x 16 feet. Now THAT would be a nice layout with lots of possibilities.
What I was saying was, not all teens are on 4x8s! I have a 12 by 22 layout, which features operation with a yard job, a local, a pig train, and a through freight, on a freelanced line running from White River Jct, VT, to Concord, NH. That seems to be the stereotype of teen modelers, newbies on 4x8s running train around in circles! I have been a model railroader for 7 years!
Tyler has basically hit the nail on the head. The hobby has and needs a strong teen showing. A major part of that is shaking the reputation of 4x8 layouts designed simply for continuous running. I’m not saying that this isn’t at all valid, nor am I saying that 4x8’s are useless (I enjoyed an operations oriented 4x8 for many years).
Nowadays, I have an 7x11 railroad designed primarily for switching. The line is well ground as a branchline from Bellows Falls, VT. Plans are in the works (with construction beginning soon) for expansion to a 15x24 railroad modeling the B&M’s Cheshire Route from Bellows Falls, VT to Winchendon, MA, focusing on the operational hotspots of Bellows Falls and Keene, NH. The railroad will and does focus on realistic operations via 4 cycle waybills, car cards, with dispatchers directing train traffic. My general system is based on Joe Fugate’s system as well as a well known modeler in the Boston area, Keith Shoneman. A group of teens in eastern New England are planning a car-sharing and routing system like that used in an Ohio club. Our railroads, under an umbrella corporation like the V&O alliances, would connect and we would track a car’s progression across the railroads that their routing dictates, basically showing more of the car’s trip. The purpose of this description is not merely to describe my railroad and plans, but is to demonstrate that teens can be strong modelers in this hobby.
On the note of Student Fare, the discussion regarding whether it should come back has occured on this forum before. During the time I subscribed to MR, Student Fare didn’t exist (I didn’t subscribe for long–I spent to much time flipping through it instead of working on the railroad). But as a general proponent of teen participation and discussion, I’d enjoy seeing it in the magazine.
Why was it removed? Was there a lack of material, or a lack of interest?
13 here and I support this idea also. I am sick and tired of going into LHS and having them stare at me when I ask a decoder question or ETC. Were just as serious as you guys are. Thank you.
Agreed. I started when I was 12 and liked Student Fare a lot when it was in MR. Even as an adult, there were 13 year olds that could still teach me a thing or two about some aspect of modeling. I suspect the problem today is that most teenagers spend way too much time in front of a computer or game console to become model railroaders. If I see a teenager in a hobby shop today asking about trains, I know he or she must be very different from their peers and try to give them as much encouragement as possible.
I also have no problem with 4x8 questions. Yes, they may get repetitive and even tiresome at times but these forums exist to help everyone. Segregating “newbies” in their own forum is distasteful to me. [2c]
I agree completly! When I ask other teens what their favorite thing to do is, they reply “Oh, I don’t know. I like video games” and that kind of thing. I’m glad I have something to devote my time, money, and frankly, life, to, not just wasting it on random things like computer games, sports, ect.
There’s nothing wrong with any of these things, but most people you meet don’t really love anything, they sort-of like a ton of different things. Some would say these people are more balenced, but I tend to think of it as “unfocused”
Most of my friends that know of my obsession make fun of me, I just ignore it. I like to think that they’re just jealous. [:D] Even they have admitted that it’s nice that I have something that I love.
TrainMan TY, check yuor PM.
What I hate most is being treated like a kid, AND saying our hobby is dorky. My firend has asked my, why do you spend your money on this stuff, yoy should save for collage. I just said, collage is far enough away, I’ll have plenty of time to save up money.
I’m 63 years old and must say that for this hobby to stay alive and viable teen and yes even female member’s will be its life blood. We have in our org. AMRS 5 or 6 young teens and several Young ladies that are valuable members.
And yes another vote for the return of Student Fare to the pages of MR !
Well, between MR and college, I believe that education always comes first. Even a few dollars now can make a difference of thousands down the road as a result of compounded interest (thousands from a few bucks is more applicable to retirement savings, but the idea holds true in any application).
Between railroading, and let’s say video games, I place my money into railroading. But between education and recreation, education is far more important.
Yes I would agree too. But for now, all I need to do is make one more Big purchase, so…
I’m 16 and I’ve been a model railroader since I was 12. I love model trains, but only now, after destroying my parents confidence and getting no cash for the hobby am I truly ready to build my layout. I’ve tried four times and all of them have been failures except the first life-like kit set I built. I have made horrible mistakes and am paying the price for it now, even after all of the reading and research I’ve done. More awareness of people my age might have made my attempts more successful. I also play in the band, ride horses, play videogames, and am a scifi and internet junkie. I have never been able to speak about my hobby, and you know what…BRING BACK STUDENT FARE!
Mistakes? ME TOO![:I]
Well…I guess I have been fortunate enough to not catch all the flack that a lot of teen modelers do.
I’m 18 and have always been obsessed with trains. With how much I would talk about them, those around me just came to realize that that was my thing and not to question it. When Mom would take me to hobby shops before I could drive, I would initiate discussion with the owners about certain products or prototypes and got into some excellent talks with them. One time, an employee and I were asking questions back and forth trying to stump each other. Needless to say, that lasted a good while before the subject changed.
I have been asked by others why I like trains…But no one has ever told me that I’m wasting my money.
I have no layout yet for I am not fortunate enough to have the space, nor money at the moment. Time right now is plentiful however until I get a real job here. I did have a plan at one point, and it was a 10 x 14 around-the-room layout with double tracks, a yard, and plenty of switch as well as continuous running.
I think Student Fare should be brought back to Model Railroader. However, it is people like us that need to submit the content before it can be published. MR needs the material before it is put in the magazine; and they do not have the time and resources to go out and investigate to find decent material on strictly school-aged railroaders. It needs to be sent to them.
I haven’t met another person that’s into trains that was meant to me. The only people who make fun of me are my non-model railroading friends.
I would submit articles to MR, if they would make it easier; right now, you need to send a DVD type thing to them with your article and photos on it, as well as a typed manucript. I contacted them, and they told me this. Apperently it can be around a year before your thing gets published.
I’m going to submit my article as soon as I can.
Somehow, you got some bad info.
http://www.trains.com/mrr/default.aspx?c=a&id=366
This link explains that you can submit text on diskette, Zip disk, or CD. Since you are accessing this forum from a computer, and that computer can surely put files on one of those formats, I don’t see your issue. Surely you also have a printer to output hardcopy?
Photos can be 35mm transparencies or electronic files.
And yeah, sometimes it takes a while.
On the other hand, you can post to a free web page or to this list instantly. On-line is faster than print.
All this past and future nostalgia for Student Fare is a little baffling to me. It was in the magazine when I started reading it as a teen myself in the '70s, and I thought it was a waste of page space. Most of it was just letters from guys about the simple 4X8 they built with a couple of sidings. That and asking questions like “should I solder my feedwires or use screw-in terminal tracks.” There was the occasional more-interesting topic, but mostly it was the same stuff month after month.
Information is much more readily shared in this forum and on websites than waiting for something to be published in the pages of a magazine.
I’ve returned to college and I’m around late teens and young adults all the time. They are much more interested in getting information on-line, from YouTube, MySpace, etc., than reading it in a magazine. If the idea is to get more teens involved in the hobby, the pages of MR is the not the most effective way to do it. This forum reaches more teens more effectively than a monthly feature in MR.
If the idea is to show your teen buddies that model railroading is cool, the articles in MR are a good way to show what’s possible, whether written by a teen or an adult. But I’m willing to bet that most teens will be more impressed by a well-done presentation on-line on a website, MySpace page, etc.
I have always enjoyed Student Fare as a kid and adult. I started model railroading in the early 60s with a big Lionel trainset. Back then the hobby was very popular and you were looked down upon by your classmates if you didn’t show an interest in model railroading - most boys either had a trainset or wanted one. How times have changed! I’m glad that MR is bringing back Student Fare as it helps youngsters and adults share ideas about modeling.
Huh? Are they actually bringing it back? I was just suggesting that they do. I was hoping that the editor would see this so they would know that there is still intrest in it.