Right around Christmas of 2005, I had this revelation that as a relatively new homeowner I now had a fairly dry, habitable basement that I could only dream of when I had my first model railroad as a kid. So I ordered the latest Walthers catalogue and have been buying more Kalmbach books ever since, in hopes that when my own kids are a bit older we might build a layout (I recently dismantled my old one from my parents’ basement). I also joined the forums here, but we’ve had a busy 2006 so I haven’t posted in awhile.
The next logical step was to renew my MR subscription, and they got me with their teaser rate of $30.
Don’t get me wrong, it is still the beautifully composed, well-written magazine it has always been, but something seemed odd. Sure enough, I pulled out a copy from 1988 and the current version is only about half the size of the old one. Even a back issue that I ordered from 1999 has over 200 pages.
I recognize that all magazines are mostly advertising; this was true then and is true now. And I also have only one new issue to go on, so maybe I am not making a fair comparison. But why such a drastic change? Is the hobby no longer growing? Are there fewer companies advertising in paper magazines because there is so much out there on the web? Are there fewer people getting into the hobby and writing about it, at least in an actual paper (as opposed to online) magazine? Some of the hobby shops I used to frequent in the NYC/NJ area, e.g. the famous “Red Caboose” are no longer even listed in the back. What is happening?
This should be a great time for model railroading, with all the technology and everything; I also see the potential for more of the hugely-represented baby boom generation getting more into the hobby as they retire or change careers (I am 33 so maybe I am way off on this). Still, the feeling of holding a magazine in my hand that
It appears that the Internet is taking over a lot of our hobby. In case you aren’t aware of it, several magazines have folded in the past short while - Model Railroading and Mainline Modeler. Both of these as well as MR have suffered drastic declines in their circulation. Way back when magazines were the only way to find out news about the hobby, they ruled. Now that most of the info needed can be found for free with a few clicks of a mouse, printed info seems to be on the decline.
MR seems to be more of a “show and tell” magazine, only featuring slick, glossy versions of the hobby; perfect photos, perfect layouts, etc. With only the finest of layouts that many can’t even aspire to. RMC is still going along, it seems to have continued along with articles where modelers actually build models rather that only relying on already assembled ones.
Much of the info on the 'Net can be found in e-mail lists such as YahooGroups and the like. Many of the SIGS (Special Interest Groups) have their own lists, websites, and glossy high quality newsletters that supply much of the information that at once was only available in the magazines.
I see in this month’s RMC that Toy Train Heaven has cut back their 6-8 pages of boring text ads to a one page listing that refers to their website. That seems to be the way of the current hobby.
I hear ya Bob B. but I would point out that, possibly inspired by the “pretty picture” phenomenon, I really do suspect that more layouts feature decent scenery today than they did back when MR focused more on prototype drawings and articles on building cars and structures.
You hear references by some manufacturers that the hobby is in trouble, but train shows seem more popular than ever. It is getting hard to judge just how popular – growing? Dying" holding its own? – the hobby really is. Indeed it is getting harder to say just what the hobby of model railroading is. Is it building, operating, …?
Yes MR is smaller than it used to be at its peak – maybe RMC is too – the NMRA magazine Scale Rails is getting bigger and bigger, interestingly enough. Some very fine smaller magazines that catered more to the builder type model railroader have fallen on hard times, as much due to age or illness of the one or two guys who ran them as to popularity or sales, I suspect. Special interest magazines of all types are finding it hard to sell an affordable magazine in enough quantity to make a go of it.
Between the magazines, the internet, chat rooms, news groups, forums, and websites, I suspect there has never been as much written material about model trains as there is now.
Also ironic is that because of the nature of the internet and forums, someting discussed at length a few months ago is buried so deeply that as a rule people just start discussing it all over again “from scratch” as it were. That is where real paper in my opinion has the advantage.
I guess I am comparing the experience here to the magazines I get for my Mustang. I am into newer Mustangs (1980’s - current; I own an '00 GT). Many of the people who are into newer Mustangs are younger, tech-savvy–you kind of have to be to be into cars these days. Yet just when you think all these folks would toss their paper 'zines in favor of the Internet, the monthly publications get bigger and bigger; more and more parts become available, more and more advertising for those parts–just like for model trains. The Walthers catalogue is easily 50% larger than my last 1991 version.
It follows then that I was just a tad puzzled that the most ubiquitous model train magazine is half the size it used to be when the appeal of the subject seems to be just as broad as ever.
We’ve debated the “Health of the Hobby” issue here a number of times. We’re all concerned about what happens when us Boomers start falling off the demographic cliff on the way to the Big Roundhouse in the Sky (or the fiery basement trainroom [}:)],) but for now, the hobby seems to be healthy. There are still plenty of manufacturers and suppliers, but the entire distribution chain is changing and evolving. I suppose this applies to print ads, too.
I just got my first subscription to MR, and my first copy arrived a couple of days ago. I enjoy the articles, and I spend as much time on the ads as I do on the “content.” (Yes, MR, you may qoute me next time you’re negotiating ad rates.) I’ve never had a subscription to this magazine, and I didn’t buy mags much when I was younger, so I’ve got nothing to compare it to.
I was happy to see that Lionel went mass-market by distributing through Target stores for the Christmas season last year. I think that will boost the number of young modellers a lot, both in O-gauge and in other scales.
I pulled out my copies from 1948-1954 and the new ones are larger. The articles are not any better, but they are as good. The pictures are A LOT BETTER. They have been around a long time and have rolled with a lot of punches. WWII certainly produced some interesting changes. I looked at Walther’s 1944 cataloque and that sure was different.
MRR is still my number one inspiration, just edgeing out this forum.
I have also noticed that Model Railroader has become more of a “show and tell” magazine that mostly showcases large, perfect layouts that money or unlimited time can create. Although this is OK once in a while, I wish it had more in depth articles on kitbashing, scratch building, and columns geared toward intermediate as well as beginners such as Student Fare, Ask Paint Shop, Looking Back With John Page (or other veteren MR) etc.
Despite it’s shortcomings, I still get some modeling information out of MR and also subscribe to RMC and NGSL for my special interests and scratch building fixes. I also rely heavily on the internet as you can find anything pertaining to modeling. I’ve noticed that NGSL features more smaller layouts that concentrate on scratch building with in depth explanations that can be used by beginners as well as advanced modelers.
I’d go just the opposite. When I watch people attempting new things and pulling it off–like Tom’s ball signal, or your waterfall, I think to myself, “If they can do it, I can do it.” However, when an ubber layout appears in MR, I think “that’s really nice” but I don’t give much of a thought as to whether I could do it.
Even though today’s magazine is thinner than a magazine from the late 1980s, you need to compare article content. I’ve done that and you will find todays skinnier magazine has about the same amount of content. What’s changed is the internet – advertisers don’t have to use MR to get the word out to modelers, so the ad content is less.