Train Club, or no Train Club?

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Some clubs can be good and others bad. I guess we have been lucky as I have been a member 23 years so it must have been good for me! Now our dues are only $25 per year we have 3 shows throughout the year that brings in working capital in addition to dues.

We support 4 layouts but they are not large in comparison to some clubs that have only one scale. But living in a rural area we have to have the 4 layouts to attract members from all scales.

Most of our members have their own home layouts and the members take turns having OPs sessions, as the club layouts are really only for show displays. This makes it easy to gain experience on many different types of layout designs and learn different techniques in doing scenery, track laying and benchwork as all of the layouts are in different stages of completion.

A number of members have stated that they thought they were fairly well experienced when they joined and figured that they would not learn much due to the show type of layouts the club has. But once they were there a while they were amazed at how much they did NOT know. And they were able to save lots of dollars by using ideas that they saw first hand on the club layouts and the member’s home layouts.

Now most of them would never have met the other modelers as they did not know them otherwise and some club members are a little shy about having strangers at their home layouts. Once the new member has some time at the club and they show an interest in learning they get a key and are also invited to participate in the OPs sessions. They soon are one of the regulars and so it goes with then next new member.

We have over 40 members and some travel an hour to be at our meetings.

My club due’s are $25.00 a month. Each member gets a key to the building and can operate the layout any time they want. If you want to go once a month, that’s fine. If you want to go 6 times a week, that’s fine too. I think the due’s are a little high, but we rent the building, pay an electric bill, pay insurance on the layout, and have a savings account for future projects. Each month the club has a business meeting laying out the net income, as well as the monthly bills so it’s all out there for each member to see. It’s all in the up and up.

Selector, this is exactly how I feel about clubs and the other hobbies I enjoy - I could not have said it better.

I’ve been a member of a few clubs and they have all been beneficial in one way or another. I learned a lot and working together on projects got me involved in aspects of model railroading I had not really considered. Most important, I met other model railroaders.

Yes, you can certainly learn by reading the books and doing things yourself, but maybe someone can offer a new twist on the books and magazines or show you the techniques in action.

Of course, membership in a club works best if you contribute and join in.

Besides, it’s a great way to find people to help you on your layout. Especially on the parts you might not enjoy as much as others.

As far as I know, the nearest clubs are 20-30 minutes away by car. I’m more concerned with “commuting” to a club than with the dues. With the way gas prices are going, it won’t be long before it costs more to get to and from the clubs than it does to be a member.

So far, I’ve got plenty of work to do on my own layout, and I don’t think I’d have time for a club, too. But, I’m open to the possibility of joining one once my own layout is more or less “finished,” or at least as finished as any layout can ever be.

Generally, I like the comradery that is inherent to a club. Railfan trips, work sessions, open houses are all part of the fun.

BUT (and listen up boys…), if you hear the terms Roberts Rules or Standards & By-laws come up regularly at a monthly meeting…walk. You want to join a railroad club, not a debating team.

The floor is yours.[;)]

Absolutely! The ONLY time such should be discuss is at a new club or a change in by laws.We had a change in by laws about 3 years ago because we thought 4 of the by laws was not for the best of the membership or club.We changed these outdated thoughts and added newer and more relaxed by-laws.

The next thing up is the use of sound in DC because of the availability of DC sound units and more DCC/Sound locomotives being capable of being operated in the DC mode.

TrainManTy,
From Central MA? I’ll take a stab and say you quit the Worcester Club (since they are, in fact, moving). I hear that another group has bought the old layout intact and in place and is looking for membership. BTW, if dues are $15 a month, shouldn’t that be $3.75 a week instead of $5?

At my club, The South Shore Model Railway Club, Inc., of Hingham, MA (www.ssmrc.org), dues are $27 a month (almost a dollar a day). I am a 14 year veteran of my club, and while not all the sailing has been smooth, I’m still glad I’m a member of this club. Where else can you get so much entertainment for a dollar a day? [:)] I live about 35 minutes away (without traffic), so I only get to be there twice a week. But since I’m both the Mechanical Dept. Chairman, the Operations Chairman, and the lead electronics tech for the layout, I am pretty committed (some say I should be committed, but that’s a different story…[;)]). I’ve learned so much from being in my club that I wouldn’t be half the model railroader I am today without being a member.

So far, I’d have to say it’s worth it for me. There have been times when I’ve wanted to quit because of what happens here or there, but it’s a fleeting feeling as then I think of all the friendships and potential new friends I would miss. So I stick it out.

It’s a simple fact that some people just aren’t cut out to be in a club. You have to be a team player and be able to work in a group effort. You must have the ability to accept criticism and not take it personally or you just won’t last that long. Or, as one of my club friends told me back before I even joined the club, “You gotta have a thick skin around here, kid.” Truer words were never spoken. You also have to be able to follow rules, respect others and their property, and most importantly have a sense that the club is more important than ju

I’ve been a member of two model railroad clubs in my life, and both were great for gathering experience, but both were also rife with politics.

I’m still a member of the second one, but I no longer work with the N scale layout, despite that being my favored scale. I had put a lot of work into the N layout to make it more suitable for operations, but an old member came back with a new buddy in tow, and they ripped out much of my work and replaced it with big loopty loops. I tried to play nice, but kept getting shouted down when I suggested anything other than roundy roundy running for open house.

I finally gave up, bought some HO equipment, and now enjoy running operation sessions on that layout, which is huge, very well designed for both open house continuous running as well as point to point ops.

But I only go to the ops sessions when I can, and occasionally stop by for a work session. I’ve built a few things for the HO layout at home and broght them in, but I’m more in tune with N scale scenery elements, so I let those guys do their thing on the HO.

I like the ops sessions, but I enjoy running trains at home with my son much more. I regard this and other forums as my club for gathering knowledge and sharing ideas.

Lee

I was in a club like that once…I enjoyed the coffee and shop talk as much as anything…We would watch railroad videos,work on models and at times run the layout…Of course you could talk,watch videos or run trains at any meeting it was totally up to you.Most like to talk shop.

As far as public displays I fully believe that is a club’s duty…That helps promote the hobby and can help the club financially by donations…My “home” club has open houses for food drives and Toys For Tots around the Holidays…We give back to the community for good will…

Paul,You will never hear me rant about by laws as they are needed.I will tell you up front after the breakup and reorganization I help rewrite the club’s Constitution and by laws…At that time we added some by laws we thought was needed at the time of reorganization.We changed these outdated thoughts and added newer and more relaxed by-la

Totally agree with Paul3–you have to have an organized structure, and rules and bylaws are neccessary parts of that structure.

I also agree with the mission to do public projects as discussed; our club does an annual layout(s) in a tent at the state fair, and we now do an annual G-guage layout in the winter at the zoo.

Jim

Yes. Many freight cars are well over $15 each as well. But as was said, if $15 isn’t worth it to you, then you shouldn’t be there.

It really is a question of the utility value of goods or services to the individual. Is $50 for five 1-hour dance lessons worth it when you can buy an instructional DVD for $30 and learn at home? Maybe, maybe not, depending on your circumstances. Same for a $65 per year American Express card…

A Railroad Clubhouse or Group will satisfy the needs of it’s Members, Provide a place to run trains, either roundy-roundy or actual operation. They will also support the Community in general by providing a place for people to bring children to enjoy trains and perhaps learn a hobby that might sustain them in the future.

Politics, Money and other issues that interfere with the Club’s overall mission is always damaging. Some people will be good workers, others go to enjoy the socializing that they may not otherwise get, and more get to run trains or work on (Learn on) a common railroad so that they may improve thier home roads or participate in the hobby because they dont have room at home.

It will only work if everyone has a pecking order, all have a voice in issues that affect everyone and goodwill towards the Public who may or may not be the only avenue of finaincal support.

People who disrupt or destruct other’s works because it does not suit thier style have a problem and that problem needs to be addressed. Perhaps that person did not have adequate space to add his or her work to the existing railroad. Perhaps thier idea of working on a model railroad does not take into account that other people may actually own or have invested thier time, labor and money (Materials?) into exisiting work.

Yes you have one who might pay 15 dollars a month or whatever that may not support a purchase of one good switch, but that person paying the small fee might actually benefit from the hobby for a variety of reasons (Lack of home space, lack of family support, spousal opposing trains; money expense etc) it might be the only way such a person on a fixed income be able to enjoy trains at all.

yes, if only one showed up able to pay a small fee because that is all he or she can afford, that will be a good day for the hobby.

I have seen established clubs that have been in existance (And still is) long before I was born and also have seen Modular groups (Or even just two or thr

Yup. I’m not sure how much per week, it was just a random guess.