# Poor Beginners



## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

Many of "us" started as a poor beginner. 
When I started in this hobby I was still paying hospital bills for our 4th son Wil and had two others in car seats.
we had our first house and tring to fix it up cause we were out growing it.
I had a FB unit and a circle of track with an HO scale power supply.
I did not buy cars unless I worked weekends and they usually was close outs or damaged items .
No interenet to help me, no clubs only GRYs mag.
So if some of us may sound dog-matic and have higher standards its because we to was on our knees in the dirty tring to figure out what works and what does not.
Long live outdoor model railroading.

sorry, no photos.


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Yeah, I got an FA-1A&B unit, that's all I had for a year or so, then made my McKeen car, using an Aristo block. Still have them. I noticed, in a back issue of GR a guy had a great layout with buildings/lights/etc only had one train. Most of us can only run one at a time anyway, so a guy does not have to buy lots of stuff to enjoy the hobby.


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## up9018 (Jan 4, 2008)

I am currently at that point, but that doesn't bother me. One thing that we all must remember when a beginner asks a question, that they are in the same situation, and try to answer accordingly.


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## Cap'nBill (Dec 27, 2008)

Being poor is fun! When I decided I wanted to try the large scale, I began looking at a 'theme' equal to my budget.....or, lack thereof....and decided I wanted to be a logger when I grew up! I bought a book on the subject: 'Railroads in the Woods', and that was the inspiration. Talk about poor! But, that is what made America Great! Looking at the pictures, of oxen, horse drawn sleds hauling huge logs, homemade engines, cars, wooden rails, timber bridges, it was 'Get the job done, however you could do it' Skid Road, where those nasty loggers lived. Now I can buy old, worn out cars, make my disconnects with $4.00 worth of 'sticks'. Get old wheel sets others discard, and evoke a lot a smiles when I run my ramshackle, wobbly, dirty, slow-moving train around the Club track....pulled by a Shay, of course, for the public! Yep, poor is good! Love my junk! Bill


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## Steve Stockham (Jan 2, 2008)

When I started, my daughter had been given a Bachmann Red Comet starter set that her grandfather had picked up on closeout at Costco for $27.00! I actually bought some more Bachmann track because I thought that, since I already had an oval of Bachmann track, I'd be saving money(!) That was in 1999 when my daughter was two years old. The engine was a 2nd generation ATSF #49 Big Hauler (the first with track power) and was noisy as all get out in it's gearing. The sound system was rudimentary and had an annoying tendency to continue when I stopped the train on the chuff (which seemed to happen all the time!) One thing though, we were happy! It was a great experience running that little engine with my daughter wide eyed looking at it and exclaiming "Thomas!!" (gee, I wonder where she got _that_ from!)

As I decided that we should learn more about this hobby it was about the same time that I discovered the internet. Strangely enough, I never found Largescale On Line (the original version) but I did find others including George's incredible website that helped me out considerably. I found the Finescale Railroader website and it became my first experience with others who had a great deal of knowledge and experience. I lurked for about two months and then tentatively posted what I thought was a legitimate question so I wouldn't seem like a novice(!) For the most part, everyone was gracious and tried to help........right up until I asked the question, "What's this whole thing about Scale vs Gauge all about?"









This was where I first encountered the extreme faction of our hobby affectionately (or not so affectionately) referred to as "rivet counters" and the consequences of non-restraint when posting! These experiences have shaped my internet postings and over the years they have continued to evolve. Now, those of us that were "newbies" back in the 1990's are the experienced "old men" that the new people coming in are looking to. It's a new perspective for some of us and it helps to be reminded of that from time to time.

Oh yes, all that Bachmann track that I bought thinking it would save me money? I boxed it up and finally used it in my display case for putting the engines and rolling stock on as well as my train cabinets (waste not!)


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

Dear Bill - just like we do three times a year, my pal Broos and I will be up at the nearby American base next wednesday, running trains in the huge library for the kids there - to watch AND play with, when they have shown that they comprehend what is required to drive a train. 

And just like for the last few years, when the kids wrote a letter to us telling us what they liked, the trains will mainly be loggers - Shays [we have five between us] a couple of Heislers and Climaxii...most with sound. A couple oof dozen home-made skellies and disconnects, a little crane and a couple of trucks to haul them away, and the rest is all imagination, even for the kids....[wink] 

It's true to say that although the big trains - the dismals and the steamies with side-rods - are pretty interesting, most of the kids are just facinated by the logging locos that move so slowly but with great businesshoodship and commotion, at five miles an hour, thrashing and squealing around the tight bends.

Sadly, because of safety and insurance needs, we can't run our live-steam Shays up there, a great pity, you'd agree, I'm sure.....

Besp

tac
www.ovgrs.org


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## jebouck (Jan 2, 2008)

I've got a Bachmann 2-8-0 that has been gutted and had all the weight removed.
I'm going to pull it around the layout with a string!
No track power, no battery power, nothing!

Can't get any basic than that.


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## Trains (Jan 2, 2008)

When we got started we were paying medical bills up the butt, for Craig. All the trains we collected over the years came from working extra jobs.


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## RIrail (May 5, 2008)

I started fifteen years ago (1994) with a Lionel 0-4-0 and two passenger cars (plastic, bought on close out at Toys R Us for $39.99) and ran it only at Christmas around the tree. When I thought I would like to some day have an outdoor layout I would buy a box of track once a year. I just started putting up forms for my concrete roadbed this spring (2009) for my first outdoor layout.







Some times patience, time and saving will get you your dreams.









thanks 
Steve


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## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Whadda mean "Started Poor", I'm STILL poor. 

I started with a $50 LGB Porter and a $20 circle of R1 track, and I've been cheepskating my way thru this hobby ever since. I have never paid more than $120 for an engine, averaging $75 per engine, similar for rolling stock, track and buildings, nothing over $50 each, now I am downsizing alot of things and I've realized just how much stuff I have still managed to accumulate over the years even on such a restricted budget, granted no K27s no Big Boys, no GG1s, but hey, I like my $40 Macks just as well.


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## blueregal (Jan 3, 2008)

I started rich in this hobby i guess, and now i'm to the POOOR part!!!!! and whadda ya mean John B. I got ya beat I just drag a string around with 4 wheels attached, and make train noises Hah LOL The Regal


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## SlateCreek (Jan 2, 2008)

Isn't there a video someplace of someone modeling a subway system in large scale? 

Was a manicured lawn, every 5 yards or so in an oval on the lawn was a guy with his ear to the ground next to a scale size staircase going down into the ground with a "METRO" sign .... every so often, in order, they'd jump up and yell "TRAIN!" 

Matthew (OV)


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

I still do that


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

you've got wheels? and string? Wow

I push a stick between two lines in the dirt! 

All Aboard!


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## wchasr (Jan 2, 2008)

I too started poor and used the layaway at the store I worked at to get many of the early trains I had then. Taking advantage of getting used and broken returns thru the store then too. It was many years before I found the internet and those "outlets" for my addiciton. At first my family didn't get it. Why buy and store all these trains? You never or rarely set them up. It's some thing that for now can wait but if I do not collect what I think I want later then the opportunity passes on lots of trains. I've not spent lots on most thengs and the high dollar items are more a matter of either payments or fortuitous timing when I've had windfalls of cash. I still have no layout and there are likely some trians I could sell and not miss them that I bought at the time becasue it was a good deal adn I ahd the cash. Some itmes I bought knowing they would increase in value and were not something I truly wanted to run. I was fortunate that I could do that. As i start planning my layout I'm now faced with many other decisions and some as with all are going to cost money that I need to spend on budgetted items. So the layout will continue to grow in my head and not in the yard. Not yet but I'm getting closer. 

Chas


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

I think the main problem today isn't so much the lack of MONEY itself, it's the Madison Avenue programming of "wanting it ALL, right NOW!!!" This new fellow/lady sees some gazillion dollar, 10,000 acre, superdetailed out the ying-yang layout, and he/she wants one too. No problem with that, except he/she often doesn't realize that (unless the owner had more money than brains), this choo choo utopia he/she covets was a decade or more, and a lot of other sacrifices in the making. But he/she makes his/her list of "gotta have thats!" and goes shopping, not in the 'smart' places you eventually find, usually by accident, but in the OBVIOUS ones like the LHS, big mega-advertised collector show, or the first 4 pages of Google.... And, wow man!, like sticker shock city!!! 

If the newbie is lucky, he/she finds a sympathetic ear who is willing to sit down and mentor through all the teething pains, one that patiently tells him/her that there is nothing wrong with starting small and building over time as your budget allows. AND about the art of being patient while waiting for the 'deals' to come along. AND that trading up/selling to buy something else is perfectly acceptable AND that there usually is nothing wrong with buying used stuff, as long as you are careful AND that kitbashing/scratchbuilding really isn't as intimidating as it sounds, even if there IS a learning curve... NOT what the person WANTS to hear, but what they NEED to hear. 

-OR- 

Sometimes, sadly, the newbie gets called a whining crybaby and told to suck it up, get a third job, or go away... and they do. 

I know which of those 'old-heads' *I * would rather be. Besides, while I'm still flat-azz broke, I'm NOT 'poor'.


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## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

I don't think I was ever a 'poor beginner'. Not having money, but a very impulsive father helped a lot!! Most of my collection has come from the direct result of Christmas presents and birthdays, no real money of mine has been spent. Real money is the stuff I use to pay for things like food, mortgage, cars, student loans, etc... 

I think it is interesting we're having these conversations. Does our own background with regards to finances shape the way we reply to new users? I am sympathetic to other's situations (even when I give Mik a hard time for not spending $6 to go to the Horseshoe Curve) but don't think it is necessary to apologize for having what I do. A big part of the FUN for me is sharing what I have with other people. Having others come and bring equipment to run is a major draw for me. For the newbies, my recommendations are based on what makes life the easiest for me. What makes life easy for Marty would make my life hard! My choices have led me to track powered trains running on stainless steel using the aristo TE systems. It is easy for me and I think I've made the best choice for me that I can. My time is not free. I am 32 with a young family and a travel intense job, so what I need from my trains is easy to start running and easy to operate. If it took me an hour or even a half hour to scrub brass track to run track power, I'd be out of this hobby. Likewise, I have too many locomotives at this point to convert to battery, even in a trailing car. 

I have my wish list, but the reality of losing my job last fall has forced me to prioritize in a different way. New financial goals have been set and we are working toward those. One of the goals is to have a $1000 discretionary train fund set up, but not until after the other goals have been reached. It could be years until that fund is a reality. By then, I might be using it to buy your old trains that are not being used anymore!!


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

When _I_ started playing with trains, they were cut-outs from magazines stuck onto pieces of plywood broken off from the packing cases we lived in at that time. Sure, I heard of string, but nobody in our family could ever recall ever having seen any. I bleeve I was in my late teens before a friend showed me a faded photograph of a piece of string - boy, how we envied _him_!

tac
www.ovgrs.org


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## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

When I started all I could afford was one wheel at a time. After four years I had enough for a four wheeler. Then I had to walk five miles through three feet of snow to get the wire to wind the motor myself...

I started in this hobby sort of randomly--my ex=father in law had sent my son a couple LGB starter sets, a few extra cars, and a Bug hauler set. It mostly sat in the attic for years--my son never had the bug much. At first the prces seemed preposterous to me. Now tat my wife and I are both into it, they seem less so. Priorities. 



Really, are we now going to have a "who was/is more poor" thread? I hope not.



Speaking for myself, regardless of whether the poster is rich or poor, what I like seeing is human creativity and resourcefulnes on display. I like seeing Dennis Sirrine's layout, and I like seeing Mik or Victor's clever bashes. I love seeing the incredible modeling work some people can do. I'm constantly delighted at the clever, crafty things people come up with.


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

This thread actually might be the best place for this little gem of wisdom (or pile of BS, depending) aka 'be careful what you wish for, you might just get it'. ----- For YEARS I wanted a LGB Mogul soooo bad. But man, oh man were they PRICEY! Finally, I got decent price on a used one on ePay. It wasn't the version I really wanted, but, oh well, it was ALL MINE! It was a South Park wood fired version, and I remade it into a coal fired later rebuild.... couple hours work, nooooo problem. Then I put it on my layout and it ran flawlessly, just like I dreamed.... EXCEPT not only did it dwarf everything on the layout, it tended to knock stuff over on the curves. Great loco, just incompatible with my layout as built. So, I put it up on a bookshelf and there it sat for over a year, catching dust. Someone eventually made me an offer and I sold it. Turns out, at least for me, the wanting (dreaming?) was actually better than the having.


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

i started n scale in 1968 so i was used to $1.50 for a nice box car and $3.00 for a heavy weight pullman-always been sorta frugal-and initially outraged at what nice g scale things cost-stuck with n scale and still have it 


BUT


after i got married in 1986, and had oggled lGB-my wife gave me my first red and cream euro coach and a single piece of straight track for it-and permission to enjoy a scale where each car was about $50.00 or more-and for 23 years no one in my family has ever wondered what i might like for holidays, or gifts 


and slowly i bit the bullet-adding a car or two each year, some points and track, a nice power pack, an engine at xmas, maybe a big expensive engine if i won a trial, 


but i learned that sometimes what you REALLY want is worth the wait and sometimes even the price-and i still have all of my rolling stock and engines and they all work and are in great shape


slowly over the years, (more agressively in the past 6 or so)(and ther are still good deals to be found with patience and knowledge-it does take money, but not always a lot) 


-i have amassed a fun hodge podge of LGB trains and g scale stuff that please me or simply fascinates me (no strict RR modeling spirit more free lance-im fussier with my n scale in terms of prototype),


usually I bought the reasonable close out stuff from the east coast guys-which is the ONLY REASON i could continue with g scale-had i paid my local full retail-it would have been over


-and i have slowly accumulated more than i can ever actually put on my indoor and outdoor trackage-the details and buildings, the whole disaster, -but it all gets run and it is all enjoyed-


its been fun and each piece carries memories 


what i have learned is that it takes very little to really operate -a couple of engines and half a dozen or more cars-minimal structures-most of its in the running-more of us tho are into the easier part-which is buying that piece for the fantasy it brings 


its also fun to model and build and paint-but im my experience-thats never cheap 


what im glad i learned as a poor beginner is to buy things that last


but frankly if you're truly short of money, 


and you love trains


g scale is probably the worst possible choice


if its outdoors-its inherently more costly -so you give this aspect up


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## sang_route (Sep 24, 2008)

Poor is a full time college student with three jobs, a wife and a kid on the way and you have yet to find a reliable vehicle to use. Incase you are woundering i don't sleep, no rest for the wicked till we close our eyes for good. But ya i still manage to rummage up some equipment to run around. Praise be to evilbay and garage sales.


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

That's the N&D part of my railroad name


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

I stated this in another post...but....
I was lucky enough to get started in "G" scale after I raised my family, and having a great job, demanding but great..enough to be able to buy trains I wanted even though they cost as much as they do....I have to, still rob Peter to pay Paul, that hasn't changed from when I first started out with a wife and 4 kids, working three jobs to get a little of what I wanted....after I satisfied my family duties which meant working like a dog, at times to do so.... even now, still I cannot afford to travel buy fancy cars and such and still buy trains. It's still trains or the other stuff.
Lucky for me my current wife is a simple person, needing very little except a good book, and she understands me and my afflection.
Many of the people I work with have new shiny cars take trips to die for, but for me I like my trains and working on them, so I cut corners in other areas, like the trips, cars, and other toys to have my trains.
I look at it this way a trip is great, a memory, a memory is great if you don't loose your memory, and the memory of the trip dulls with time, but if you buy a train, or a "THING", you have a tangable item, memory of that purchase and what you had to do to get it, and...wait...heres' the great part...you can get some money back on the "thing" if you so desire to sell it.,...try that with a trip memory......pictures..Ok how many of you, who take a lot of pics get to show them off to people without boring them to tears, let alone look at them often?....how many of you have them saved on a HD or a memory card, cd or what ever? How often doyou look at them? 

So for me I will cut any corner I have to to play with my trains the way I need to play with them....I never liked the idea of keeping up with the Jones', theres' always someone who can buy better and have more then you so why try to compete...believe me in the medical field the doctors rule with oppulence.....

I do what I do and if someone likes what I do with my trains then that day is truly special day indeed...otherwise there will always be trains running in my backyard, untill it's time to move into the light.....which may be an oncomming train!









Marty rules!!!

Again, as always IMHO

Bubba


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Bubba, depends on the trip pic... Some I look at ALL the time. Kim mounted about 20 of my really good photos on little wood plaques and made a collage of sorts on the wall by the kitchen.  Actually there are about 40 that get rotated. 

Then there are the ones I look at for inspiration when building stuff. And the ones on the slide show screen saver. 

Then there is THE one. Kim liked it so much she's copying it as a painting. 

Or maybe all that depends on whether you can actually TAKE pictures? Most of mine get taken with an old 4mp Olympus, and come out better than my sister's with a fancier rig, hehehe


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## nkelsey (Jan 4, 2008)

I was not poor when I started......now, however....


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## White Deer RR (May 15, 2009)

I appreciate "lownotes" thoughts about human resourcefulness and creativity. As a rank newbie, even though I've had a small oval on the ground for three years, the amount of knowledge and ingenuity most folks here display is quite wonderful. I would like to expand my layout but I'm thinking it through. Money is of course something to consider, although I figure if you use something and enjoy it (within reason) then expenditures can be warranted. What I hate is spending money and then not using something.


I think I'm slowly gaining some experience and ability to work with the track, do some basic painting of pre-built models, figure out how to push the stupid spring back in the coupler, etc. It's kind of embarrassing to admit, but three years ago I could scarcely get the track put together. In the house. The other night I had a track screw come loose and I managed to pull off the joiner, clean the grit out and replace it without disturbing all too much ballast.


I know, that must seem sad to folks with skill, but for me (Mr. All Thumbs) here it's a major step forward. So thanks for the inspiration everyone!


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By White Deer RR on 06/11/2009 9:46 PM



I know, that must seem sad to folks with skill, but for me (Mr. All Thumbs) here it's a major step forward. So thanks for the inspiration everyone! 






We all started somewhere. Every new skill learned is a victory in itself. Please post pixxies, we love 'em. And don't be shy about asking questions, we won't bite (even though some of us may occasionally bark too much).


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

When I started out The only new things I had was a NW-2 cow and calf, REA box car, and a Caboose. Everything else was used. Track, some big hauler tank cars, couple of flat cars, and a cattle car.
I ran on a HO/G Scale Power supply. ( Had a switch limiting the max voltage) Didn't know any body to ask questions. Had some Aristo Switchs that played Heck with my cars till I found out about wheel guage. I thought the factory set them. I did not know they were adjustable. At the time there was one Hobby shop that sold nothing by G scale trains. Arizona Train Depot. I got al my info from him. I think he was the one who told me about MLS.

Since then the store has been sold and is now a all scale store.









Then I found BTS. I did the show in one day. Dirve over early in the morning and leave about 3 pm 

I just got my 12th USA banquet car. My how things have changed over the years.


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## on30gn15 (May 23, 2009)

Hey Guys;

As it happens, I am poor and I am just beginning in Large Scale. Sort of. Have been modeling a scale/gauge combination of Gn15, that is, G scale 15 to 20 inch gauge industrial and estate trams; which, as it happens, use HO gauge track. See, http://gn15.info

Only a couple weeks ago took some money that came in and got Bachmann's "Silverado" Virginia and Truckee train set. A bit more $ involved there than what some of y'all started with, but oh well, it's how I'm beginning with the "large trains" of large scale.


Not sure how much of a garden railway one can build in this second floor apartment, but it is fun to work on the train improving, and changing, some detailing. Whoever assembled it at factory wasn't expecting someone like me to come along and want the coach windows out to make it easier to paint window frames - that was an event.



Track pretty much fills living room floor! And it is fun to watch the cat sort out his relationship with the train ;-D

Got, on clearance after football season, a flannel backed vinyl tablecloth with a grass pattern on it for unknown reasons at the time.
Now it has a purpose - goes on floor under track to keep the carpet fuzzies (and cat hair) out of the wheels and gears.


There's supposed to some more $ come in and it would be nice to get some more things; and parts to build a few cars.


A few weeks ago a fellow invited me out to run at his place.

May have to take him up on that. 

Anyway, back to the Gn15, when building for indoors, it's amazing the buildings and such one can make out of inexpensive cardboard boxes, poster paper, and balsa wood. Plus about ten pounds of ingenuity.


later,
FSW


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## Biblegrove RR (Jan 4, 2008)

I had a 4X8 HO layout in my bedroom at age 13, inspired by my dad, born 1913. He had trains when he was young and I always remembered him pointing out live trains throughout my youth. Now the 11 year old is converting the HO layout to N scale in the basement of our new home. G scale was always of interest, ever since I saw my 1st GR mag YEARS ago! Now it is slowly coming to be and I am starting outdoors with 200+ ft track. Thanks to GGRRC club for helping me and all of you MAINLY! Just sold my musclecars for 9k and only purchased $300 in LGB cars! RRRRRRRRR


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