# Trying to spur interest with younger folks...



## riderdan (Jan 2, 2014)

Had my first "open house" on Friday. 

I'm a student (I'm going to college for the third time--this time for a degree I'm really interested in, Auto Restoration. Essentially a degree in fixing antique cars) and we were talking about steam cars and hobbies in one of the first class sessions this semester. I mentioned that I have live steamers and someone asked if I'd bring one in. So I brought Dora and a circle of R1 that would fit on a lab bench, and ran it around. There was a good amount of interest (though some of it was likely based on the fact that we were wasting class time  ) and I mentioned that it was better to see steamers on a larger track.

One thing lead to another and I wound up with the whole class (including the professor) at my house on Friday morning. It was a really nice day and we had two runs with my Dora and a run with the Frank S. There were a lot of questions and discussion about live steam. These are all car guys (and one girl) so things mechanical like live steam have a natural appeal. They're just the sort of young guys who might be interested in live steam and might have enough money to join the hobby.

I was busy running trains, so I don't have any photos. But I'm trying to do my part to gin up interest among a younger crowd.


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## Tomahawk & Western RR (Sep 22, 2015)

i hope it works. more people that arent 60 and older is promising for the hobby.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Nate, do not be ageist. This hobby always based on 60+ aged. Sure it is a good thing to see a few younger folks getting interested. Let's hope they will remember when they are 60;-)! Best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


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## Garratt (Sep 15, 2012)

zubi said:


> ...
> This hobby always based on 60+ aged.
> ...












The 60+ aged are looking so young these days. 

Andrew


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Hahaha, Andrew, some also behave as if they are that young;-). Well, I meant live steam hobby, which is traditionally the hobby of more senior group of enthusiasts. There is a variety of reasons for this, the expense of the equipment being one of the factors. But even in the sparkie world, you do see a gap between children and seniors. Children are happy to play with trains, whatever kind, although Thomas wins hands down. They tend to switch to other activities when they become older teenagers, and forget the hobby entirely in their twenties and thirties. Some get back when their buy a train for their kids. But it is rarely a live steamer. Live steamers are preferred by those with disposable income, and passion for steam. Exceptions such as Nate and Riderdan 'prove the rule' by being 'outliers' in the age distribution of live steam enthusiasts. I guess this could easily be measured and shown graphically if someone cared to conduct age survey in Live Steam forum (one has been started for sparkies in Public Forum I believe). Best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


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## JackM (Jul 29, 2008)

That Garden Railroads skew into the upper demographics should be no surprise. The first word in Garden Railroads is "garden" and how many millennials do you know who're interested in gardening?

JackM


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## Tomahawk & Western RR (Sep 22, 2015)

zubi said:


> Nate, do not be ageist. This hobby always based on 60+ aged. Sure it is a good thing to see a few younger folks getting interested. Let's hope they will remember when they are 60;-)! Best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


 i was just using that age for an example. didnt mean anything by it.


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## Dunbar (May 5, 2016)

Actually, Nate has a point. The less 60yr olds the better. Why do yuou think HO is doing so well. It has teens-seniors in it. If you want G to do well, we need to get teen-seniors in it like HO. Perhaps " the hobby always based on 60+ aged" not really a good thing. 
Go ahead Nate, Be an ageist. Get your friends involved in G. BTW, Im 50 so stick that in your pipe.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

If the attendance at the local Worlds Greatest Hobby show this past year in Indy was any indication, there is plenty of interest from children as it was total packed with kids glued to the train layouts running. Its getting mom and dad to part with the money required for a decent starter set, which much like it was with Lionel back in the postwar era, not a cheap sum. I don't recommend to others anything less than a classic LGB starter set, either freight or passenger, for a young child. This is if they want G scale, which most are interested in since the child can play indoors or outdoors year round. I have assisted many parents locating one of the older Lehmann era sets that are usualy a tad cheaper than the newest from LGB/Marklin. Just depends on how much the parents are willing to spend. If your talking to a prospective buyer of a large scale starter set. One must explain why its important to spend a little more to get better quality. Why spending less on a set from Bman is not the best use of the funds over a set from LGB. While Euro might not be everybodys choice, the dependablity of the little Stainz engine and colorful paint job is natural for kids to like. Once educated on the choices, what the pro's and con's are, most parents are willing to put a bit more money into a train set for thier child, be it LGB, Bman or Lionel. I know from my experience that parent's like the "made in West Germany" part of older LGB. Older starter sets are as close as ebay, craigslist or even Amazon(both older and current production). I still find many parents that had, mostly Lionel or AF, as kids and didn't realize one could still buy these new. Only the mass marketing of these larger train shows that tour the nation and advertise on TV, news paper and face book got thier attention. Its then up to us modelers to do a little sales 101 with the parents instead of talking to friends, opening complaining about the state of the hobby ect. Being positive, explaining to them in plain terms and even offering to assist in finding a set for them goes a long ways toward getting that seed planted in the next generation of model railroaders. Mike


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## Darkrider (May 21, 2010)

My little road is out in plain sight of the road, and it's usually enough to get the kids that are out on walks with their families to stop and watch the train run for a little. A few families walk up to me and start asking questions.

Funny enough, these two kids are fans of the railroad, that their father will stop his truck on the side of the road so the kids can watch the train run around.


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## Dick Friedman (Aug 19, 2008)

Garret, your photo confirms what I've always believed: Garden Railroading makes you younger! LOL.


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## Dunbar (May 5, 2016)

Mike and Dark,
Thank you for the supporting comments. I totally agree. The kids are there and interested. These kids will kick open a door on this hobby because they will bring in their knowledge of computers, wi-fi, programming, videoing, etc. to the hobby. The area they will be possibly lacking is construction/building area because, lets face it, skilled trades are just not emphasized as much in school these days. But they can learn. They are the ones that will keep this hobby going and growing. Encouragement from the existing hobbyists is needed. WE just have to open our doors and minds. 
Adults too would be and are interested when they see these trains. They just need to see them to get the interest re ignited. The MGRS is proof of this. Seems like there is no promotion or advertizing of the hobby outside of the train circle to me. 
I cant wait for the day that I can get my layout up and running and open my doors to the neighborhood. Good way to meet the neighbors and establish myself in the community. Thank you Dark for saying your trains are by the road. It gave me the idea to add a spur that will go out into my front yard and loop back. This way more people will get to see G scale trains and hopefully that will get them interested as well.


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## SophieB (Nov 22, 2015)

I think that visibility and accessibility are critical to keeping the hobby going. The member layouts of the train club we belong to are all in people's backyards behind fences. Only one couple (that I know of) regularly opens up and invites people in with a Halloween display every year. My husband and I ran a Train Room at a campground for four years with N, HO & O scales inside and a G scale layout outside. It was very popular with the camping kids (and their parents) that came through.

Now that we've bought and moved in to a house our layout is going in the front yard as a garden/water/train feature. We've got two loops up and running right now and we have plenty of people slowing or stopping to look. Once it starts to look less like a construction zone, the larger pond is a hole in the ground with a big pile of dirt beside it, it'll be more attractive for people to come by and look at what's going on.


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## Tomahawk & Western RR (Sep 22, 2015)

the problem is that when it is visible and accessible to children that are interested, it is also visible and accessible to vandals. ask me how i know that. i would put my new steaming track in the front yard, but i dont think mom would like it there, and it would be trashed by vandals (just like our duck mailbox and our X-mas decorations.

nate


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Getting the trains open and visable to the public eyes has got to be one of the key componuts to keeping the hobby alive or even growing a bit. I only see trains advertised on local TV when either the WGHoT show comes every couple years or the GTE show we have every year. Those will get advertising on the local networks out of Indianapolis. Most hobby shops can barely afford the yellow pages ad, let alone what it costs for a few second TV ad. So, most have moved to Facebook(which I have no interest in joining) or have a nice website. The shop that survives has to be one that sells in every and all venues, Brick and morter shop, at the local train shows, and E retail. Mike


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## riderdan (Jan 2, 2014)

SophieB said:


> I think that visibility and accessibility are critical to keeping the hobby going. The member layouts of the train club we belong to are all in people's backyards behind fences. Only one couple (that I know of) regularly opens up and invites people in with a Halloween display every year. My husband and I ran a Train Room at a campground for four years with N, HO & O scales inside and a G scale layout outside. It was very popular with the camping kids (and their parents) that came through.
> 
> Now that we've bought and moved in to a house our layout is going in the front yard as a garden/water/train feature. We've got two loops up and running right now and we have plenty of people slowing or stopping to look. Once it starts to look less like a construction zone, the larger pond is a hole in the ground with a big pile of dirt beside it, it'll be more attractive for people to come by and look at what's going on.


I've thought about sending a loop into the front yard (here in this town of 12,000 I'm not too worried about vandalism.), but it would have to be elevated the whole way. Although this is pancake-flat Kansas, when they graded for the street and dug the basement it left the ground level at the house about two feet higher than at the street. I'm not sure I'm up to building that much trestle. 

But I 100% agree that part of it is that we need people to see the layouts and be able to enjoy them. I don't know if any of those college kids will ever join the hobby, but now they've seen one layout. They've seen the live steamers run, and I sent a sparky around so they've seen that you don't have to start with live steam. They saw the garden at it's late summer best--though there are still bare areas. So who knows... maybe when they have a place of their own they'll think about a train in their yard.

Of course, there's no local club; or if there is, they're hiding. But another idea I have is to join the local guy (just one guy) who sets up his N scale modular in the senior center each year. I'm thinking that I could grab a couple buildings and a loop of track and send the Dora around (she's a little less messy than Frank). Or maybe a sparky. I don't know if he'd be interested in that (he's the center of attention now  ) but it's a thought.

If all the stars align, next year--assuming the layout is mostly done--I'm going to sign up to be on the garden tour they have here in town. Maybe someone who already has a garden will decide to give it a go.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

I would love to be on our local garden tour, but with 3 large dogs and one that barks at everything, it just isnt in the cards yet. Maybe in a few years, still have lots to do if I want to be on that tour. We do thankfully have an active large scale club with a huge modular layout that gets taken to shows, many garden railways and they do set up at several general public events. So the exposure is there, but not sure the local G scale shop is seeing any benefit from it. My guess is most, if they are buying anything, do it online. Mike


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## Dunbar (May 5, 2016)

I just found this ad on my local craigslist. Pay close attention to the special admission deal ; what a great idea and way to promote. 


Swap Meet & Show for Toy Trains Sept. 10 - $5 (Venice FL)



Swap Meet & Show for Toy Trains Sept.10 - (Venice FL)

5th Annual Venice Area Toy Train Show and Swap Meet on Saturday September 10. 

Where: Venice Community Center, 326 South Nokomis Avenue, Venice, FL 34285. 

Time: 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

Regular Admission is $5.00. Children 12 and under are free when accompanied by an adult. There is plenty of free parking on site. Food and refreshments are available in the hall, provided by the Venice Community Center Partners.

SPECIAL FREE ADMISSION DEAL! : Free Admission for One Adult that brings along One Child 12 and under. (For example: father + son 12 or under = both free. Mom + Dad + 2 kids 12 or under = all for free.) In an effort to help introduce this wonderful hobby to children, we are making this offer. So, all of you older Train Enthusiasts, bring along a child! Let's be ambassadors to the next generation for this great hobby. (Otherwise, it will cost you $5 to get in!)

Directions coming from North of Venice FL: Take Interstate 75 southbound to Exit number 200 (Highway 681). Proceed 3.5 miles until Highway 681 ends at US 41. Go south on US 41 for 2.7 miles until the point where US 41 splits into Business 41 and Bypass 41. Follow Business 41 right, then proceed for .8 mile and then turn right at Milan Ave. Go one block, turn left onto Nokomis Ave, and you are there.

Directions coming from South of Venice FL: Take Interstate 75 northbound to Exit number 193 (Jacaranda Blvd.). At the end of the exit ramp turn left onto Jacaranda Blvd. Follow Jacaranda Blvd. south for .8 mile to Venice Avenue. Turn right onto Venice Avenue, (There is a round-about; no stop light at this intersection.) Proceed West on Venice Avenue for 3.1 miles, cross US 41 Bypass and continue West over the Bridge to Business US 41 (stoplight at the base of the bridge). Turn left onto Business US 41 (also called Tamiami Trail) and go .3 mile and then turn right at Milan Ave. Go one block, turn left onto Nokomis Ave, and you are there.

MORE FUN! You Asked For It and We Delivered! Every year this show gets larger!

Operating Toy Train Layouts:

Realrail of Sarasota will have beautiful operating O scale and N scale layouts.

Florida Rail Road Museum of Parrish will have an operating G scale layout.

A LEGO layout, a favorite of Children of all ages will be present.

How To Repair Toy Trains Clinic!

Over 150 Dealer Tables!

Are You Ready For This? : TRAIN DRAG RACES! See Toy Trains light up our actual (O scale) 1/4 mile track at over 300 Scale MPH!

And Much Much More!

On display and for sale will be many Antique Toy Trains from Lionel, American Flyer, Marx, and Ives.

There will also be plenty of Modern Era trains from Lionel, MTH, Atlas, Williams, Bachmann, Weaver, and many more.

Come and join us as we display the wonders of this great hobby.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Nate, sorry to hear about the vandalism threat, that is indeed sad. Must be those 60+ers with no trains and too much time on their hands;-)... Zubi


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## Randy Stone (Jan 2, 2008)

Being this is the 21st century, if you really want to attract the younger crowd, you being the manufacturers need to bring out R/C controlled thru Aps of a smart phone ready locomotives. The locomotives not only need to be controlled movement wise, the programs need to have the ability to provide instructions for putting to gather a consist for a freight drag and also directions to drop and pickup frt cars at various spurs on the layout. Automatic couplers will need to be standard equipment. You dealing with kids who have been brought up playing video games. Watching a train go round and round is boring as all get out to them. I've been playing with G gauge trains for over 8 years now and still I can't say I know what is the best radio for my next battery powered locomotive. So for a newbie to buy a train today and have to not only pick the radio system, sound system and battery can be quite a chore. Let's face it, even if they find this site or one of the other G sites, they can ask the question as to what to buy but they will get a dozen different answers. Then when the parts come, there is not easy plug and play.


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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Randy;

Bachmann currently does offer an ap-controlled HO locomotive. Currently it is only available for the Ipad and Iphone. When someone wants to purchase one at the store where I work part time, I try to remember to ask them whether they own an Ipad or Iphone. I have saved at least one person from buying a locomotive he could not run by asking this.

Cheers,
David Meashey


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Riderdan and Nate, your efforts to encourage your peers to follow the hobby are most valuable. What surprises me in this context is that CrabFu did not get much following. His designs were truly ingenious, both technically and artistically. Plenty of scope for all ages, seemed to me at the time. Apparently, no manufacturers were interested in these ideas either. Perhaps the times of mechanical engineering are truly over. Pity. Best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi
PS link to CrabFu website http://www.crabfu.com/steamtoys/


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Actually, some of these ideas could look good in live steam;-)... http://edition.cnn.com/2016/09/06/autos/burning-mans-mutant-vehicles/index.html Zubi


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## Charles (Jan 2, 2008)

Tomahawk & Western RR said:


> i hope it works. more people that arent 60 and older is promising for the hobby.


Nate
Just keep in mind that 60 yr + involvement has kept the hobby alive!


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## Dick Friedman (Aug 19, 2008)

Over on the "Instructables" web site, I put up a short video on building a small battery powered RR around a tree. Rather than big and expensive (and out of touch to many people trying to buy an house and raise a family), this is small and inexpensive. Take a look and see if that might attract the under 60 crowd. BTW, Instructables is a great place to interact with a much younger crowd (than me). LOL.


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## Tomahawk & Western RR (Sep 22, 2015)

i said i didnt mean anything by it. please see it this way: if every steamer is older that 60, than in 50 years, how many will we have left? what i meant by that is we need more young people!


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

or more 60+ people!!!


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## Tomahawk & Western RR (Sep 22, 2015)

Greg Elmassian said:


> or more 60+ people!!!


 greg that is true!, but i am talking about the future, not the present. that in about 25-35 years the market will fllooded by collections that will be dumped for rock bottom prices, and if there are not many my age around, we(I) will end up with more that we want, and most likely accucraft (& argyle), wuhu, roundhouse, regner, aster, mamod, ect will go under. unless we QUICKLY get more people my age, what i said is unavoidable and it WILL happen. its the truth. so go outside! find a family with young children walking by! show them the trains! educate them on them! its the LEAST we can do


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## jimhoot (Mar 21, 2015)

Hear is a thought for a way to get more younger people in the G scale hobby.
I have been buying some older train sets at auction testing them and completing the set.
Then take them to the shows and sell them at a very low price to help someone else get started.
It is not about making money but making it easier for someone to get in to G scale.

I was given my first G scale locomotive and 3 passenger cars. No track or power.
Went to the only train local hobby shop and the owner was very helpful getting us started before Christmas 2014.

We now have close to 200 cars 15 locomotive's and over 400' of track on the ground.
We also belong to Ozark Garden Railway Society.
I have 1 set ready to pass on at one of the next events and have located several more.

*Show* and *Tell* does not work as well as *SHOW AND HELP* 

We all have that one item we know we will never use pt it might help get someone else started.


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## trainwreck (Jun 16, 2016)

*Bachmann EZ-App now available for Apple and Android*



Dave Meashey said:


> Randy;
> 
> Bachmann currently does offer an ap-controlled HO locomotive. Currently it is only available for the Ipad and Iphone. When someone wants to purchase one at the store where I work part time, I try to remember to ask them whether they own an Ipad or Iphone. I have saved at least one person from buying a locomotive he could not run by asking this.
> 
> ...


Hi Dave,

No need to steer customers away if they don't have Apple phones, the EZ-App for Android phones was released several months ago. All you need to do is download the correct app for your phone either from the Apple "App Store" or the "Google Play Store" and you are good to go, as long as the phone will support BlueTooth 4.0 or later. Phones more than a couple years old may not work, but you can use the customer's phone to try the app while they are in your store. If the phone is too old, you'll get a message saying so.

I also work part-time in a hobby store, and I own two EZ-App HO locos, I think the system is great! The only draw back I can see is that it can be hard to see the screen when you are outside in the bright sunshine, but if it's that bright outside, it's probably also too hot to be playing with trains in the garden, anyway!

Bill in FtL


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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks Bill;

That is good to know. We don't always get the latest information on new applications. I knew one was in the works for other phones, but had no word that it was now available.

Regards,
David Meashey


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## trainwreck (Jun 16, 2016)

Hi Dave,
Actually, there are two apps now for Android, one from Bachmann EZ-App and the other from BlueRail Trains. At this point, they seem to be pretty much the same except for different graphics, and either one works well with the Bachmann EZ-App RTR locos. Personally, I hope Bachmann comes out with EZ-App RTR locos in O 3-rail, On30, and G scale soon, particularly in their Thomas the Tank engine products, because it is great for use on modules at train shows.
Bill in FtL


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## attaboy (Oct 26, 2016)

My first post here, I just wanted to clarify my associated website URL, mendorailhistory.org. I just recently joined this outfit a few months ago as a supporting member .. I was not a participant in the incredible efforts to make their layout a reality.

Now, here in the States, there are reportedly 115 legacy/heritage railroads operating*, and many have scale model railroads associated with them, such as the layout in Fort Bragg associated with the "Skunk Train". So as to generating interest in Large Scale model railroading to the younger generations, these layouts are indeed a conduit for recruitment, as they are Open more than a couple days a year to the general public .. as is most typical for privately owned and maintained Large Scale layouts.

Nowadays, a 10 year old gets a "smartphone", while when I was ten, it was an "Erector Set" .. yeah, the one with the square nuts amigos .. hands on engineering  At 12 I got a Paco VTVM kit for Christmas .. again, hands on stuff. Engaging younger folks into Large Scale model railroading is a hard nut to crack .. competing with the "social media" endeavors that seem to dominate free time amongst the young'ns.

So for the time being, I guess it's up to us Grampa's to foster interest the best way we can. My Grandson was four in April .. oh man oh man .. he's gotta have a train set  Well his Gramama nixed that .. but when I saw my first Bachmann 3 truck Shay on YouTube .. OMG OMG .. Deja Vu (all over again) .. I saw my first steam engine in Lincoln California in 1951. That spark .. for hands on and STEM and a career in manufacturing engineering has served me well. Some little 8 year old boy or girl will visit a Large Scale layout and .. Get It! Cheers!

Jon in the woods
mendorailhistory.org

*from the Net, not verified/vetted (sounds high)


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## up9018 (Jan 4, 2008)

I hope you guys are able to encourage more youth in this hobby. You should be congratulated on your efforts.

Chris


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## attaboy (Oct 26, 2016)

up9018 said:


> I hope you guys are able to encourage more youth in this hobby. You should be congratulated on your efforts.
> 
> Chris


Well Chris, I won't have a layout till after Spring (outdoor) but I'm kinda toying with the idea to donate a new "Big Hauler" starter set to our annual Christmas Bazaar that they could "Door Prize" ("Raffle" is basically illegal here in California). So they could get more "donations" to buy more toys, while at the same time, it could be set up at the event inside, and be seen by a few hundred people.

Every little bit helps I guess, even with our sparse population density (maybe 1,900 people in over 400 sq.mi.). I know the mendorailhistory.org layout over in For Bragg does indeed invite and encourage school field trips to the layout. For kids that have never seen, let alone even heard of "G" scale, it's pretty impressive. We do what we can. Cheers!

Jon in the woods
mendorailhistory.org


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

I would love an RC app on my smart phone, they do this for DCC in the smaller scales. One huge problem, I have yet to find a smartphone that is easily seen in bright sunlight. That being the typical operating enviroment for a live steamer. When someone comes up with a screen that can be easily seen in bright sunlight, then we can move forward. Till then I will stick with my stick radio or RCS for live steam remote control. But its the younger generation that will drive inovation and move the hobby forward. Just not going to be on as large a scale overall as the baby boomer years. Till then all we can do is promote and expose in a positive manor and keep the negative comments to ourselves and not let the public see our dislike of how the hobby has shrunk. Mike


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## attaboy (Oct 26, 2016)

*Super AMOLED Display*

FWIW, I suggest you consider a smart-phone with a Super AMOLED Display screen. Actually, it's really a smart tablet that I use. Now, I use this for flying .. which of course Is outdoors, a Phantom P3P. There's no way on God's green earth I could navigate on an itty bitty smart phone screen, given the considerable amount of information displayed.

Also I fit the typical profile here approaching 7 decades, so larger is better visually, and touch screens are a lot easier to navigate with hands and fingers that were normal sized, until I got my first smart phone .. if ya know what I mean .. Vern 

In any event, I'd recommend you get a Super AMOLED Display screen for outdoor use in sunlight, and just get a dedicated tablet that is viewable in all conditions, without a sunscreen/hood. Now mine are Samsungs .. the 8.5" and a 10.4" and have probably have been superseded with newer products .. as usual. When I bought mine, Samsung was the only manufacturer that offered this technology, but other's may have copied by now.

Perhaps go explore RcGroups and see what the guys are using now, as for sure ..They are on top of this display stuff .. gotta be And On Thread Topic, it can only help easing the younger gen's into having interest if you can say .. "Hey lookie here .. and you can run it from your smart phone"

Jon in the woods
mendorailhistory.org

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2384430
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KHA2DQM


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## 2poor4Gscale (Oct 29, 2016)

My two cents in all this is...

When I was a kid, it started out with a Lionel Set my grandfather gave me at Christmas at the age of around 4. Ever since then I got a trainset every year at Christmas, although it wasn't lionel and then in teen years, it ended up being a Tyco HO or Bachmann HO set. Once I hit my 20's it all stopped, and it was left for me to buy the trains myself. It was easy at first because I lived at home and had no bills, I could afford the occasional LGB engine. 

Now I'm pushing 50 have more bills then I did when I was 20 and will have a lot more later on in life, the thing is. Where I live, I make pretty good money, area is small not much here. When I say good money, it means I'll be borrowing from the bank later to pay off stuff. LOL. I don't know how long I'll be able to afford G scale, but may not even have to worry about it, since most companies are folding. It's a sad state. 

I priced some of the sets I got as a kid.. $20.00 bucks.. 30 bucks. I mean holy cow. 30 bucks for a starter set. (HO scale mind you). Now try to find an HO Scale set below 300.00. To me.. it's all about pricing. Stuff is going up in price to where the Average to Below Average pay can't afford it. Someone needs to figure out a way of producing something and making it the least expensive, but yet still profit from it. lol

I'm actually hocking some of my HO scale stuff, so I can get a few more Piko items for my B&O Digital starter set. So far other then the set, I ordered 2 pieces of straight track and a PRR baggage car. Total for that was $127.00. 

But I think that is where the problem is. It's people not being able to buy what's produced due to pricing and having the average to below average job.

My 2 cents.

Steve


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

2poor4Gscale said:


> My two cents in all this is...
> 
> When I was a kid, it started out with a Lionel Set my grandfather gave me at Christmas at the age of around 4. Ever since then I got a trainset every year at Christmas, although it wasn't lionel and then in teen years, it ended up being a Tyco HO or Bachmann HO set. Once I hit my 20's it all stopped, and it was left for me to buy the trains myself. It was easy at first because I lived at home and had no bills, I could afford the occasional LGB engine.
> 
> ...


I am in a different financial situation, and am ........comfortable.
However, i couldnt agree more.

Trains have gone from toys , with a standard stock offering year sfter year (to build a collection) , ie items available, not limited runs, special editions, etc. to an expensive and sophisticated hobby. A tactic to change the buyer's urgency to buy while they can.

Coming from n scale to lgb in 1986, newly married, young and with little disposable money, i was horrified at the idea that instead of five to eight bucks for top of the line kadee car, i was looking at fifty dollars plus in lgb. A single, short train could easily run $500-800 , depending on the loco. One has to really feel comfortable with the commitment to the interest. But for my wife giving me a single two axel lgb red and cream euro coach and piece of track, i never would have considered g scale.

It is an expensive hobby. I agree, relatively more than in days of yor. Otoh, it gives me joy and always has. Otoh, having recently becoming intersted in marklin z, g scale isnt too bad.

It is a luxury. Otoh, after decades of hoarding, i realize one can have a mindful railroad with only limited locos ,stock, and accessories.


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## Willbeck (Sep 4, 2017)

As a 29, almost 30 year old, I can say that most people my age look at large scale railroads, and model railroading in general as an old people's hobby. 

Steam locomotives are what you see at Disneyland. Nobody in my demographic has ridden one, or seen one in person. They don't have any nostalgia connected to it.

I also agree 100% on the cost. Something with the detail level of LGB, but with locomotives costing $150-200 might make it a more attractive hobby. 

The track is expensive, the locomotives are expensive, the rolling stock is expensive. It takes time to plan, build, and maintain an outdoor railroad. It also generally requires a mortgage and at least a small yard. Most people under the age of 40 don't have any of that. 

Disposable income is in shorter supply, housing is more expensive, and the younger crowd just doesn't have time for it.

Myself, I only have two Bachmann locos and will likely use them for display, and maybe occasionally running if/when I can afford to buy a house in Southern CA. I'm looking at LGB now to have something I can run under the Christmas tree and outdoors if I manage to get a small space to do so.


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## ThinkerT (Jan 2, 2008)

Like many here, I had a train set as a kid (Lionel 0-27). Had a 'L' shaped layout in my room for a long while. 

Then I grew up and moved out. After years of living in near poverty, I built a house and paid it off. Later, I tacked on a garaged, and because it was only a few hundred extra bucks, tucked a large loft in above that. At the time, I half expected certain...near destitute family members...would be moving in with me. Great big extra room for them. Didn't happen...then.

So, I'd walk into this big space on occasion and scratch my head, trying to figure what to do with it. Then, two things happened - first, I went and saw the 'Polar Express.' The train set scene took me right back to my youth, and I thought the helix was fantastic. Second, I came into a minor fluke windfall. I looked through the catalogs. HO was too dang small. Didn't care for the three rail 'O' stuff. Then I noticed some 'G' stuff way in the back pages. Some of it was 'ye-freaking-ouch!' cost wise. But other parts seemed reasonable. 

So I went with it. Bought a 'North Pole and Southern' Bachmann set brand new and a couple dirt cheap Lionel sets off EBAY. Bought way, way too much of the tinplate Bachmann track before wising up and getting the Aristocraft and LGB stuff. Built and rebuilt the layout several times. Then...

I became frustrated with 'reach' and electrical issues. Ran the trains maybe once a month. A lot of other things were eating big chunks of my time. Then, a year ago...

My lovely young daughter told me I was not allowed to die until the grandson could see and appreciate the model railroad in all its glory. I have been working on it when I can ever since. Because keeping the toddler engaged is key, I have gone a different route than many posters here. Been ordering scads of dirt cheap cartoon and game characters: Simpsons, Scooby Doo, Mario, Waldo, and more. Likewise, no few of the buildings I put together are gags based around these characters (Scooby and Shaggy outside a diner for example, or Homer Simpson at a backyard BBQ.)

But yes, it costs. Upgrading the switches, getting the loco's converted from track to battery power, other stuff...yes the tab for this rebuild shot right into the four digit range. 

Yet...I also picked up a dirt cheap RC set - a old Lionel Crayola set - for $80 just to screw around with early this year. I was impressed. So, choose wisely, shop around a bit, and maybe you can do this hobby without going broke.


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

Dunbar said:


> Actually, Nate has a point. The less 60yr olds the better. Why do yuou think HO is doing so well. It has teens-seniors in it. If you want G to do well, we need to get teen-seniors in it like HO. Perhaps " the hobby always based on 60+ aged" not really a good thing.
> Go ahead Nate, Be an ageist. Get your friends involved in G. BTW, Im 50 so stick that in your pipe.



It's back assward to suggest less of anybody, try; adding more of you youngsters to the group. We'll die out fast enough without your shade.

John


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