I think I lean more towards the Toy Train owner for the most part but I’m not sure I like the reference.
When I say I enjoy the MTH O scale Pennsy Steam engine and I look forward to MTH releasing the Ho scale models…why would someone respond…I guess if you like “Toy trains.”
Also might surprise you I enjoy smoke coming from my steam engines on occasion. Some might say, “That’s not prototypical” And again the Toy train reference comes out again.
I realize there are people that measure the grab Irons on flat car and say nope…there too large not prototypical. I would say geez I don’t care and someone might respond. Buy a “Something model” They have the right scale grab irons.
I look at it like this. You will always find some guy willing to pay big bucks for a Sunfire amplifier for his home stereo. You will also find the guy that will buy the Audiovox at Target and say it works for me. I like to think I’m the guy in the middle buying the Panasonic and say I have the best of both.
To be honest, no matter how detailed one gets we are all just playing with toys.[:I]
The best part of this hobby is the ability to grow. The so called “rivet counters” started with a basic oval and loco. The beauty of this hobby is that they were able to expand that basic set. Good for them. [^] BUT… Shame on any of them that look down on the person who has a basic oval and a loco. [V] Not all people have the same desire, talent and money to do what they do.
Bottom line…if you enjoy this hobby then that is all that matters. How sad to have a hobby and hate it.
On a side note: This hobby tends to be more artistic than other hobbies. Art is very subjective which lends itself to debate and criticism. As a songwriter I knew once counseled me, “Blessed is the artist with a gentle heart and thick skin.”
I don’t let such comments bother me. Most of them rivet counters don’t have layouts and they have to buy it perfect because they can’t fix any inaccuracies. Next one who says such a thing, ask them to see their layout. Stay between them and the door and point out their mistakes. This is a fun hobby, why some want to turn it into a competetion is because they are empty inside. Keep the faith jflessne. I’m pulling for you. Fred
[#ditto] Some people just like the correct number of toy rivets on the toy trains so they look good in the toy world created for them to run in (which is most often called a layout).[:)]
Of course in your example you stated the company em tee ach. As soon as that name is involved there are other issues. Did you get permission to post their name? They might sue you, if you didn’t.
If someone wants to slap prototype restrictions on what I do with MY layout, oh, there is trouble indeed. First off, I enjoy running my trains as I see fit. I have a neighbor who is in to prototype operation so deep, he runs his trains on the railroads exact schedule and runs only what they run. He used to come over quite a lot but, when he started trying to get me to apply his restrictions to my operations, I showed him the door. He still comes over, when he needs advice on how to do something. I don’t miss him much.
To me no. I’ll continue to do me own thing regardless it’s the poor new people that come here to get into the hobby that might suffer.
It’s also the 30 or so people at any given time are reading the forums as guests that might not sign up and post because their collection of Tyco motive power may be criticized.
I gave up on UK TOY TRAINS because I got fed up with rivet counters fussing that a rivet should be 1.5 microns further left on a loco maintained at Swindon on the 5th October 1911… but if it had been at Wolverhampton on the…
trouble was the same people would ask me “Where do I put the signals”? and want a two second answer. [banghead]
So I moved to US practice… and… guess what… I can’t get a clear answer on the signals! Aaaargh! [%-)]
I love all the aspects of model/toy RR, all the history, design, technical… there is so much variety.
One thing I want to work out is how to fit a smoke unit into an H0 brass Alco and programme it so that it belches smoke when I wind the throttle up. I’ve seen this done in 0 Gauge in a Class 47 and it looked superb.
Apart from the stink and residue if people want sound why not smoke?
Someone here did an MPD (loco facility) using dry ice, miles of plastic tube and tripped valves so that locos appeared to smoke and “blow down” as they worked around the shed and turntable. if that wasn’t a “serious model” it was certainly a load of fun!
I learnt the “rivet counting” question years ago… short version… at a show we put a loco from the South of England together with a tender from Scotland. Both were scratch built in brass (0 Gauge) great models and unpainted. All afternoon people nit-picked details… no-one noticed that they would never have come within 300 miles of each other.
“My toy train is better than yours! So there”! [:P]
Where have you been? There’s at least one post a week on this forum that can be loosely interpreted as “Those &^)$@ rivet counting &!%@^)*# are ruining my fun.” You almost never see a similar post from prototype modelers lambasting toy-train players.
There’s a LOT of anti-prototype bias on this forum, same as there is among the bulk of the hobby. That’s why the prototype modelers have decided to mostly ignore the rest of the hobby, and do their own thing. Prototype modeling meets are some of the biggest MRR conventions in this country. Proto modelers are cranking out most of the “how to” magazine articles. Proto modelers are the ones influencing the manufacturers.
When was the last “Tyco modelers meet”?
When was the last time any HO company (besides IHC or Athearn) deliberately came out with a piece of rolling stock or engine that was of no known prototype, and catered ONLY to the toy train market?
This thread is a good example… Rivet counters this, rivet counters that… I’ve found the “toy train” types far more rude than any rivet counters I’ve encountered…
The toy train crowd is so insecure they feel the need to come here and whine how the BIG BAD rivet counter pointed something out and get sympathy from other people… BOO HOO. If you’re that insecure you need more help than anybody on an internet forum could give.
There’s room for everyone in the hobby be it historians or history re-writers and there’s no need for either side to be a jerk about it. No layout will be 100% prototypical and if someone wants to make an extra effort to get it more accurate for a specific prototype thats great – thats the essence of modeling; not just plopping any old stuff on the track.
So forget the other terms, you’re either a modeler or a out of the box runner. Freelancing is modeling (I put freelancing in the category of prototype modeling as most are on that level), opening a box and running steamers and highcubes isn’t.
There is some truth in the two posts after my last… without vthe rivet counters we probably would never have had the incredible develoments that we have been privelaged to have. The quality of “off the shelf” model RR stuff is possibly higher across the board than any other hobby.
BUT… the rivet counters do seem to have great skill at getting up a lot of peoples’ noses.
As I said: “My toy train is better than yours! So there”!
…and you should see the competative marrow world!
Just remember… Thomas the Tank Engine Rules! [bow]
You know for all the BS that goes on here, I’ve heard a lot of people complain about rivit counters looking down their nose at everyone, but I don’t believe I’ve actually read a post where it happened. My suspicion is that some people are insecure with their layouts and when they see Joe’s landscape, or one of the Bobs’ details, or one of Aggro’s steamers… well let’s say the criticism is self-directed form an outside source.
Maybe I have rose-colored glasses.
Let’s also be clear that I’m not saying this is the case with originator of this post. I don’t see this as that type of post.
Edit: I took so long to get this posted that David T. Beat me too the punch by 3 posts.
