I really enjoy the building. Making things appear to be photo realistic.
If you took a picture of a small section of the layout and up close you’d have difficulty telling if it was real or a model.
As for the actual running that follows a far second. Sitting there running the train around the track is, to put it bluntly, maybe a little boring! Now I don’t want to offend anybody. Maybe I’m really off base here!
Considering that, what’s the best way to go, or do any of you fall into this catagory?
The best way to go is whatever pleases you, the owner of the model railroad.
Back in the Dark Ages, MR had an article or editorial that broke layout operators into three broad categories, based on reader response to an earlier questionnaire.
The TRAIN WATCHER wanted to see visually accurate trains running at realistic speed through virtually complete scenery (rather similar to what you described, oceanbear.)
The LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEER wanted to have a reliable piece of motive power, a train to get over the railroad, and enough railroad to make the trip worthwhile and interesting. Such a person was described as willing to amputate a steam loco lead or trailing truck if it was prone to derailments. Scenery and structures were a secondary consideration, to be added after the switch lists became properly prototypical (in those pre-car card days.)
The DISPATCHER wanted to operate the entire railroad to timetable and train order rules. The signal system would have to be fully operational before scenery would even be considered.
My own predilection is more toward dispatcher, so to me operation takes precedence over museum-quality modeling. I’m happy doing it my way. If someone else is happy doing things differently, more power to him as long as he is having fun.
I can see that once you’ve got your trains running there are at least two options to keep your MRR interesting.
The first is “detailing” and this can go on for a long, long time and give you LOTS to do. In “detailing” I’m including landscape features, structures, little people and animals and much more (RR details too.)
Then there is “operations”. This can start a soon as you have some trains running and go on 'til your tool old to care. Railroad exist for a purpose and MRR operations simulate that purpose (although the cash flow is usually the wrong way!). You can learn about operations from books, magazines and the www. “Car cards” seem to be the easiest to me (See Feb. 2005 MRR, I think.) If MRRs are just “toys” (and I think they are), then operations is just an interesting “game”.
Now operations and detailing can run parallel in this hobby and really keep it interesting. Sometimes you’ll probably just want to “run trains” but you may really enjoy operations if you give it a try.
I have an operating HO layout’ . Its 10x14 around the room with a lift out at the door. Its only 18" wide but its enough. Its about 1/2 sceniced. I agree with you about building and so I wonder if my layout were fairly completed would a series of non-operating dioramas fill the bill…Some sort of boxed and framed scenes and hung on the wall when they’re finished. They’d be a great place to display rolling stock which is currently stashed away where NO ONE can see. Sort of like 3-D pictures.
Yeah, something like that. I’m darn good at detail an might actually turn it into an art form. Maybe make small dioramas that could be “slid” into an existing layout.
I had a 500+ post topic on that and I’d say there is a modicum of disagreement.
I like the building and modeling. Plus I like just turning on trains and watching them run through the scenery. It has a comming almost meditative quality. Sometimes while modeling I turn the trains on and just listen to them run. I also like ops.
I do what I like, that’s is why I do it. I find that different days and different years I like different things. At the moment I am building a series of dioramas connected by an operating main line. I do love watching different trains run through the country side.
Ian Rice has some really good Ideas about interchangeable scenery. You can find them in his books by Kalmbach. Trouble is it takes a mess of planning and hopefully not too much track would be involved. Modular railroading in the home. HMMM
I’m really enjoying the modelling phase right now. My track is mostly down, and I feel now that I didn’t concentrate enough on making the layout fun to operate. So, we’ll have to see how that goes down the line once the scenery is more complete.
I’ve always been more of a “tinkerer” than anything else. I’ll work the details until I’m happy, and then run trains for about 10 minutes until I find another detail to work on. Some evenings, though, I’ll just power up, build up a train or two and run them around the tracks. I suppose it’s a characteristic of modellers and tinkerers that the layout features continuous running, so I don’t even have to “operate” if I don’t want to.
My layout features subways, which are underground almost all the time. For access, though, I need liftoffs. One or two of these will contain significant amounts of structures and urban scenery, so I think it’s a logical extension to consider building multiple copies of this liftoff, so I can replace a town with a smelter, or maybe a brewery. Yeah, that’s it, a brewery…
This is a great topic. I believe you can have it all. Super detail, ops, and vegging out on train watching. I am an amateur photographer and hope to take some great pics of my layout when it’s done (someday) with my Nikon. Hey MrB, how do u scenic a subway?
I tried a few things to scenic my subway walls, but when I got frustrated I looked to the skies in desparation, and there was the answer - it’s like a textured ceiling. I first built up the walls with 2-inch foam on top of a scrap of 1x2, and then I cut a 3-inch strip of sheet styrene, 18-24 inches long. Next I mixed up some thin Hydrocal, and applied it to the styrene sheet (laying flat on the floor) with a paint roller. After it dried, I sprayed it with cheap gray primer, and then spat a little cheap black spray on. An India Ink wash would have worked, too. I cut the styrene strips to the right length and glued them in place.
I also put in some “conduit” made with coffee stirrers along the walls, and a couple of electrical panels scratched from styrene. For a catwalk, I used 1/2 x 1/4 balsa strips curved appropriately, and added a railing made from floral wire my wife has lying around.
For the stations, I used hydrocal castings for the floor and walls, and scratched the rest.
I think I fall into a category that they missed that is the gadget lover. I’m not into ops, I’m not looking forward to doing scenery, all tho the little I’ve done has come out OK with less pain then I feared. I like DCC, fixing and improving locos, making turnouts, I have a rotary snowplow and rail crane that I want to put decoders in. The next big project is a turntable, can’t decide whether to do solenoids & relays or stepper motor PIC control. What ever I go with it will be DIY.
MrBeasley I’m impressed. I like it! I had thought about adding a subway below the layout I am currently planning. At one time, the New York IRT met my Putnam line in Manhattan at the 155th St terminal. I just wasn’t sure how interesting it would be but based on your pics, looks pretty cool. Perhaps I’ll plan one in my next expansion.
No Pat, you’re not alone. I LOVE gadgetry and it is a big part of model RR for lots of people I’m sure. I put us in a techie category. DCC and modern electronics makes fidgeting with gadgets even more fun nowadays.
I like building scenery and rolling stock, and prefer to to watch the trains run. Currently, prototypcial “operation” is not a concern for me. (I’m a yardmaster, and do that for a living)
Thanks, Surfstud31. I grew up out on Long Island, and I’ve loved the NY subways since I was a little kid. When I saw the LifeLike R-17’s, I just had to have a set.
And yeah, I’m a bit of a gadget type, too. Don’t forget how many of us are into building elaborate signal systems to complement our trains. My scenic subways are 100% visible, thanks to the mini video camera in the nose of the front car, looking out that round porthole in the door.
