Opinions on this book?

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Does anyone have any opinions on Tony Koester’s Realistic Model Railroad Building Blocks?

(book image courtesy of Amazon.com)

I’m considering buying it but would like to get opinions from the forum.

Thanks.

2

No idea. Have you tried looking to see if it has any reviews on Amazon? Maybe http://barnesandnoble.com/ ?

3

Well written and I have a copy. I would say it is a must for a railroad library. It makes sense and helped me get some focus on my layout.

4

i just bought it and have started reading it but nowhere near finished . so far i think it’s better than his “Realistic Model Railroad Design” which i didn’t really get a lot out of .

it explains the concept of LDE’s , layout design elements , which Tony has also explained in magazine articles and especially in issues of Model Railroad Planning . lots of examples , you could take a few of them and design a complete layout from them (in fact i think Tony does , later in the book) , or apply the principles to your favorite prototype road

5

I’ve read the reviews online at the book stores but I don’t trust the sources as much as the opinions of those on this forum. Some obviously have little or no experience in the hobby before they read these books.

6

This is “The World (of model railroading) According to TK”; the book presents some interesting theory regarding the developement of a theme for a model railroad and then carrying this theme into a practical design application - TK’s theme is always “OPERATION” and that is the orientation of this book.

I happened to be in my LHS the day the book first showed up from Kalmbach and, after thumbing through a copy, I bought it; I found it interesting reading and I don’t resent having bought it, but, as is typical of TK, there were places where I scratched my head and had to go back and reread the previous few paragraphs in order to try to figure out just what in the you-know-what he was talking about - I, however, am used to this with TK; his “Trains of Thought” frequently winds up on the ties and there are elements of this book which do also. Still, its probably a good book to have in your library and it is worth the few bucks you’re going to have to fork out for it. I would recommend it.

7

I understand. I was just trying to help, as I know some of these posts go unanswered. You didn’t have to worry about that this time, though.

8

If you are unfamiliar with the concepts or just want all of Koester’s thoughts in one place, it’s a good book. Otherwise, most of this has been covered in the annual MRP’s and other articles by him. The concepts are not new for the most part, but he has given them a name and explained them very well.

Enjoy
Paul

9

Paul,

Thanks for the feedback. I see you live in Northern VA. I’m in the process of moving my family to the area. Can you point me to a good hobby shop in the area?

Thanks.