Philosophy Friday -- The Allure of Trains

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
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“The Allure of Trains”

Railroad Crossing - 1923 - Edward Hopper

Railroad Crossing - 1923 - Edward Hopper

What do you suppose is the “allure” of Model Railroading, aside from simply the trains themselves? What is the fundamental essence of the hobby? Is it building something? Creating art? Socializing? Operations and simulations? What do you suppose draws people to model-- as in recreate in miniature-- trains as opposed to slot cars, military war-gaming, or even just creating elaborate dioramas? Why is there not a thriving subculture based around modeling the automobile and it’s landscape? [Actually there is…, although I don’t know about the “thriving” part.] Model railroading is one of the few hobbies where the hobbyist actually goes to great lengths to not only represent the supposed focal point of the hobby-- the trains-- but the environment in which they operate as well. And while there are certainly varying degrees of implementation along the various lines of effort: bench-work, laying track, scenicking, building structures & rolling stock, operations, etc., these elements are generally, more or less, universally included. In the case of bench-work and track, perhaps it’s obvious-- they’re kind of a requirement in order to run the trains themselves. But the rest is certainly not required, and yet nearly all of us-- even the ones who are “only into operations”, generally include scenicking and some modicum of structures, if only to indicate where the trains should begin from and end their operations.

This isn’t a question of “who’s a model railroader”, nor a question of “what’s a model railroad” [well, maybe it is a little…], nor “is model railroad an art form”, or any of those usual ones-- this

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The allure for me is firmly rooted in my past. This was a hobby that I did with my father when I was a child. It is a hobby that I am able to enjoy with my own boys. There is a strong sense of family bonding associated with it. Couple that with the desire fo model a buygone era and we see a stong link to the past.

Why trains? Well perhaps my Dad surcumbed to the marketing ploy of Hornby back in the 60’s?

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I like the hobby because it is offers a lot of different things to do and keep the mind thinking, from the design of the layout, the challenge of wiring up a bunch switches, the excitement of turning a plain piece of plywood wood into a city or a forest, taking a box of plastic bits and turning into a building, and the thrill of seeing it all come together when the trains start going around the layout flawlessly. Since I have gotten into MRR I also have enjoyed reading about the trains I run and going out and see them in real life running down the tracks.

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What is my preference in jobs? What is my preference in computer games? What is my preference in household chores?

They all point to the same thing - I like to make things. If I can’t make the real thing, I like to make models of it. At work I’m a rocket scientist, in missile defense. Actually building and flying a missile to test the system is rediculously expensive, and you only get one shot. So, I’m in the Modeling and Simulation group, and we build computer systems which are almost as complex as our radar itself, on which we simulate every aspect of our target, the atmosphere, and even the position of the sun, all with the highest fidelity we can get, to “improve the breed.”

Guess what computer games I like. Right. Flight Simulator. Sim City. Civilization. (No, not The Sims. That’s a bit too toy-like for me.) The pattern develops. And, as you might imagine, I’d rather rewire the basement than wash the floor. It’s just so much more creative.

What other hobby allows me the freedom to create like model railroading? Where else can I learn so many skills, and let my own interest and enjoyment determine how deep I go into each of them? Where else do I have the kind of god-like power as I do over the town of Moose Bay?

There are times when I ask myself (philosophically) if I need the trains. After all, I spend more time building structures and scenery than anything else, and that’s what I enjoy. But, it’s the trains that hold it together. The tracks are the cords that bind the hills and the bay to the town, the houses, bars and hotels. It’s the trains that turn a static model into a kinetic sculpture. The trains breathe life into the scenery. Without them, the play is nothing but a stage set, just like the trains are nothing but actors doing a read-through, sans costumes, without scenery.

The “golden ratio” is important, too.&

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Civ is one of my favorite games too-- but it saps a lot of time. I haven’t been able to play a single game since I had kids… :frowning: (but having kids makes up for it :slight_smile:

I agree with your assessment that it looks strange to have disconnected pockets of animation-- such as your ferris wheel. Which is why having animated street (traffic) lights seems odd to me. Having them lit but frozen seems much more appropriate given the general moratorium on animation that most railroad modelers seem to have, at least to me.

John

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Ever since I was a little child, I was attracted to trains. Was it because my father took my brother and me to the train station on weekends to watch trains - I don´t know. Being born in 1956, most of the trains we saw in those days were still steam powered. A steam locomotive was like a huge animal, being very much alive. Cars were still rare in the days of post-war Germany and the commons means of travel was the train. My father read the trainboards to us - there were trains going to Ventimiglia, Rome or Brindisi, others all the way to Istanbul, Geneva or Paris. Trains also meant going on a vacation for us, as we took a train to reach our vacation destinations in Austria, Italy or Switzerland.

The attraction to real trains was extended into the small world when I received my first train set at the age of 7. Now I was able to re-enact those dreams of traveling to far destinations, in the small little world I was able to create - I guess this is still what I am doing now.

My little world is a modular layout made up of mini modules measuring only 6" by 12". Each module is an LDE of its own (except stations - they are made up of 3 modules). By re-arranging the modules, I can create a new little world each time I built up the layout (takes only 5 minutes).

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Ulrich,

Do you think there are common sizes-- whatever the dimensions work out to be, and of course relative to the selected scale-- that things turn out to be? Like structures and their footprints, both the actual footprint, and one for the extended footprint which includes whatever infrastructure that is related to it. For example, let’s say a trans-loading facility which, in HO scale let’s say, might have the actual footprint of 8 inches by 6 inches, and an extended footprint of 12 by 10 when you add in the tracks on one side, the parking lot for the trucks on the other, and a bit of road to connect it to the rest of the layout. So, in round terms, perhaps you could say that the general footprint for that is 12 by 12 inches (rounding up to the nearest convenient quantum, which in my mind is perhaps 3 inches).

And so on? So that there are several “standard” block sizes, and they don’t have to be square, that was just a suggestion / example?

If so, what sizes would you say exist?

john

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For me, I enjoy railroad modeling and model railroading because it allows me to build “a whole little world” and that world WORKS. In both model and prototype, the landscape and cityscape are tied to the railroad, and the railroad is tied to its surroundings.

(Missouri Pacific diesels pull southwest-bound freight train over US Highway 77 underpass 2 miles north of Refugio. Ca. 1985.)

(“Generic” southwest layout 30 x 40 inches built in ten days with out-of-the-box commercial models.)

And a model railroad is something that works in miniature very much like the real thing, to a large part because of the FIXED GUIDEWAY nature of its mode of operation.

I enjoy building models just for the sake of building models…

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Why Trains? you ask.

Simple. Trains allow you to operate powered models indoors. Powered models that move are way cooler than static display models. The rails handle the steering problem, unsolved for car models until the invention of the slot car in the early 1960’s. And, you get to be the engineer, the glamor occupation of earlier days.

Powered airplane models have some of the same appeal, but the deterrent is the ever present possibility of a crash, instantly turning a beautiful model into junk. And gas powered aircraft are an outdoor hobby because of the noise. Trains are an indoor hobby that takes some of the curse off of winter.

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What is the “Allure of Trains?”.

The allure is being able to recreate the real thing in your basement. The possibilities are endless, and the fun is endless. With other hobbies they tend to get boring at some point. With model railroading, you’ll never really get bored. If you get tired of laying track, build some structures. If you get tired of running trains, lay some track.

Also I became fascinated with trains when I was a kid. And getting that first train set for christmas was a memory I will always remember.

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Addressing the animation question.

I do think that this is heavily influenced by the purpose of the model railroad and who the intended audience is. Adult modellers tend to be much more interested in detail and realism. Children and non-modelling adults tend to gravitate to animation and other things placed on the layout for entertainment purposes. I sense that the historical emphasis on somewhat unrealistic toy like animation scenes from Lionel et al, is somewhat sneered at by “real modelers” but just look at what happens at trains shows. It is the module with the animation that draws the crowd on the modular layout.

So, each has their place. I can quite well understand why a serious scale modeller would avoid unreal looking animation, but I can equally see the attraction for those that have a primary purpose of providing entertainment to the unwashed masses.

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I have to agree with “Motley”.

However, the “Allure” I think actually began with the coming of the Iron Horse which opened up the whole country to everyone in the form of travel and adventure.

When the people in our society began having some free time, they began creating miniatures. When the miniature creations were of the Iron Horse, people started to figure out how to make them actually run on tracks because they were mechanical. Then things just took off from there.

Every time technology advanced, so did our hobbies, and so did our miniature Iron Horses, which still represented travel and adventure, although we may not be consciously thinking of them in that way.

Therefore, we build a miniature world, in whatever form we choose. And as we have added “operations”, we have added actual travel and adventure in the form of purpose for our Model Railroads.

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– What is the fundamental allure to our hobby? What draws us to the trains and moreover, building complete environments in miniature for them to operate in?

There are a number of highly diverse reasons for model railroad participation that draw various individuals to our hobby. Probably the three paramount ones can be outlined as follows.

For many years it was the creative challenge posed to serious craftsman-artistic types by model trains, whereby inherently talented folks could create miniatures of real world scenes and massive equipment by their own hand. To many, the hobby was/is a form of 3-D art. Incidentally, layouts of yesteryear were often more to look at then to seriously operate. That is why MR’s 50 year push for “operations” was a dismal failure until recently.

There are individuals that have been drawn to the hobby because of its “power” aspect. It fulfills a fantasy of controlling a huge and powerful machine, albeit in miniature and even the enviroment itself!. Particularly in the age of steam, locomotives were often regarded as almost alive and having mastery over such a ground shaking beast was an ego booster and every boy’s fantasy! This same situation exists for folks today who play military war and fantasy games.

Still another segment of the hobby is composed of individuals who look at our pursuit (perhaps more subconsciously that consciously) as simply playing with toy trains…something they may often recall from their youth. Likewise, there will be those who were denied Lionel, Flyer, or Marx train sets as children and are now fulfilling their dream of actually having a set of toy trains.

– Why trains?

Basically, the draw can be said to be essentially the same as for R/C cars, airplanes, powered model ships and a few similar items as adult hobbies. There is the creative aspect, the control fantasy, and the obvious lin

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Part 2. I’m noit sure what this has to do with the allure of trains, but it was part of the question…

“Is there any such thing as a “golden ratio” in model railroading with respect to how we lay out the various elements on our layouts-- the ratio between the amount of switching to mainline running; the amount allotted to cities versus countryside; the distance between major features, and so on.”

If I had a HUGE layout and all the space and all the time, I would probably like 25% switching to 75% mainline running, and 25% allotted to cities versus 75% allotted to countryside. The upper level of an imaginary layout I drew just an exercise approached this ideal.

This had the same theme as a layout I actually built in a space about 3 x 7 feet, which had the opposite proportion.

I LIKE modeling cities, so my layout under construction is 80 percent devoted to one city with multiple distr

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For me the allure is the total package.

Start with the artistic. The layout plan. Free lance or prototype each plan is a unique interpretation of railroading. It may be a particular railroad, or a place, or a memory, or a dream or some combination. But whatever it is, it is yours. Even if you follow a published track plan you modify it, use different buildings, scenery, or trains, operate it your own way, etc.

Next you have the building. Even using RTR cars, engines, track, roadbed, control systems, benchwork, etc; you still have to figure out what your layout needs and put it all together. But you can also build the cars, engines, track, benchwork, and/or c

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John,

I hope I am getting this right, as I am reaching the limits of my English more rapidly these days.

6" by 12" for a straight module and 12" by !2" for a corner module in N scale is not much real estate for anything, including scenery. To be able to mix & match the modules, just like dominoes, track location is fixed - no flexibility there. This modular system is based on Kato´s Unitrack, so even track length, bridges, etc, are pretty much fixed as well. Each “block element”, like platform width/length etc. needs to follow the same set of rules - they need to be in “standard sizes” to be compatible.

Just take a look at some of the modules:

In fact, this system is all about common sizes. May sound boring, but you´d be surprised at t

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John, I expect there’s a different reason for each person. I got into model because I fell in love with the protoype, and there just isn’t room in my bedroom for a 1:1 scale 4-8-4. A friend of mine mentioned wantign to see the model railroad club after seeing the pictures on my Facebook page. More for the scenery and design I think, though I don’t know for sure. I quit reading minds, too many empty voids. One thing that helps our hobby is the dynamics of it. A car kit, a diorama, all pretty permanent. But even if the scenes don’t change, the trains themselves do. Different train, different movement, and it’s all hands-on stuff. There’s also much to learn in the hobby, and deep down, the human spirit still likes the tinkering of wood to some degree.

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–I have had an interest/love of trains from small child age. When I was about 8-10 my father bought us a Marx o27 set for Christmas after we showed GREAT interest in a bunch of old lionel trains stuff a neighbor was garage sale-ing. I wanted it BAD, but my father knew what I didn’t- it had been stored in the basement long enough to gather some rust and such, with no guarantees it would run, and ata price that he could spend on a new set. SO he said “maybe for Christmas”. I had actually forgetten aobut it by then, and so was really surprised Christmas morning to find the set set up next to the tree! The following Easter, the Easter bunny brought another train set. Actually before this, I had an old Marx o27 windup train with tinplate cars on a circle of track to play with as a younger child.

Also I used to LOVe watching the trains go by on the road crossing we had to cross to leave or go home. I used to love watching the Chessie stuff go by!

As a teenager, my father finally settled on a three interconnected loop layout that could run 3 trains at once {with 3 transformers} and built the sturdy 2 4x8 “L” shaped layout a

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Great topic, John, and congratulations on being selected to moderate these forums.

– What is the fundamental allure to our hobby? What draws us to the trains and moreover, building complete environments in miniature for them to operate in?

I’ve pondered this set of questions for decades (not constantly, but consistently). I started model railroading as a teen. When I began my career I had to suspend my participation in the hobby – model railroading is a perfect hobby in every way, but one: it lacks portability. During that time I tried hotrods, static model cars and airplanes, R/C airplanes, R/C boats, fly-tying/fly fishing, and dollhouses. They were all

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- What is the fundamental allure to our hobby? What draws us to the trains and moreover, building complete environments in miniature for them to operate in?

I have always been someone who likes to take things apart and reassemble them (with varying degrees of success I might add) to find out how they work. So for me the allure is knowing how the benchwork, trackwork, wiring, scenery, locos, cars and all the other elements of a miniature environment work together to create a model railroad.

– Why trains?

My parents tell me that when I was little, I always wanted a ‘too-too-twain’ for Christmas so they bought a wind-up toy and later on a Lionel set. I can remember sitting on my grandmother’s porch and watching the steamers come through town - her house was one block from the tracks and it would literally shake - so for me it goes back to a childhood fascination.

– Why the general prohibition on animation? How come if we animate something it tends to feel “toylike” and yet we’re able to look beyond that and suspend our disbelief when it comes to the trains themselves?

Didn’t know there was a general prohibition - but I would certainly add it to my layout.

– What do you think about “golden ratios” and common “block element” sizes? What do you see when you look at your layout? Are there somewhat obvious sizings and distributions to the elements you’ve created?

I have used John Armstrong’s formulas to develop my current plan and they have helped solve a variety of potential issues. But I also remember an article in MR many years ago I think by Dave Frary when he talked about view blocks and creating scenes. This is something I have also tried and it has enhanced the overall appearance of the current layout. I have found that when I use this technique it almost forces the use of d