www.greatesthobby.com greatestThe hobby!world’s Introduction to 618214 A SUPPLEMENT TO MODEL RAILROADER MAGAZINE 2009 The creative hobby for learning, family fun, and railroad action! MAGAZINE Welcome to a great hobby By Jim Kelly Dave Frary ᮡ George Sellios’ ODEL RAILROADING is a fascinating represent the romance of flight or ship models HO scale Franklin & hobby shared by a quarter-million Ameri- invoke the adventure of seafaring. South Manchester cans and at least a million more train lovers Some model railroaders like to collect, build, can take your breath throughout the world. and run models of the trains they saw in their away. Many consider M At the heart of model railroading lies our fasci- youth. They build working layouts featuring the it today’s ultimate nation with the train models themselves. We love stations, the scenery, the vehicles, the sidings – in model railroad. those delicate miniatures that reproduce every short, everything as it was during their childhood. detail on the real thing, right down to the rivets Others have a historical bent and enjoy reaching and the bolt heads. A precision model of a rail- back into the nation’s past, to the fascinating days road locomotive is an intriguing object in its own of steam locomotives and the opening of the West. right, to be prized like a fine watch or a music box. A big attraction is simply that our models Those entering the hobby come through many move. No other hobby combines the fascination doors. For those railfans among us models are of miniatures with movement the way that model mementos of the world of real railroading, which railroading does. If we want we can make up they thoroughly enjoy observing. Railroad models trains in a yard, switch them in and out of indus- are souvenirs of railroading, just as aircraft models tries along the way, and run our trains just like 2 Welcome to Model Railroading William Zuback the real ones. Or we can simply relax and watch ᮡ Most model rail- them go around the layout in lazy loops. It’s our roaders get started railroad, run our way. on a standard-size 4 x 8-foot sheet of A Hobby All Your Own plywood. Here’s a Lots of model railroaders build layouts, but lots nice example done don’t. Many build and paint models of railroad in HO scale. The cars, many don’t. Some prefer steam engines; Rock Ridge Central some diesels. Ultimately there are so many ways to is a fictional enjoy the hobby that each model railroader invents or “free-lanced” his own. No two model railroaders could build lay- railroad. outs that were exactly alike, even if they tried. We may buy the same models and kits, but we express ᮤ Our fascination our own creativity and imagination in the ways with beautifully we use them. A. L. Schmidt detailed miniatures For some, model railroading is a casual affair the course of having fun you’ll also learn about dates to the begin- that involves buying a railroad model now and woodworking, electricity (even electronics and nings of civilization. then and reading about the hobby. These are the computers if you care to), and working with plas- This N scale diesel- armchair modelers. ter and art materials. You’ll learn about how real electric locomotive Others go a little further, perhaps building a railroads work and the role they’ve played in our is made by Kato. small model railroad complete with some build- culture and economy. ings and scenery and going to local train shows In becoming model railroaders we become and meets when the opportunity arises. more observant of the world around us – not just For others model railroading becomes a pas- trains, but industry, nature, geography – in short, sion. They dedicate years to building a basement- everything. Model railroading involves us in an or garage-sized layout. They join organizations, intriguing paradox. Working on the model railroad travel cross-country to attend model railroading is a great way to escape the pressures of our every- activities, and call on friends to help them build day lives, yet in so doing we find ourselves learning and run their model railroads like the real thing. more and more about our world. Our daily lives Model railroading isn’t hard, and there are lots are enriched and we take more pleasure in every- of magazines, books, and videotapes to help. In thing around us. Welcome to Model Railroading 3 It’s a breeze getting started ACK IN THE DARK AGES of model railroad- Model railroading has changed so much since it ing, the 1920s and ’30s, only a few hundred began. Now we’ve got the best of all possible model railroaders roamed the land. Very few worlds – we can buy a gorgeous locomotive ready Bkits and parts were available and these hardy to set on the track and run, we can build a loco- souls had to make almost everything themselves. motive from a kit, or we can build it from scratch Much as we admire their machine tool skills and just like the old-timers did. There are more fine rugged individualism, we find ourselves much bet- craftsmen in model railroading now than ever ter off today. The engines, the cars, the track, the before – the difference is that today you don’t have power pack – even the grass and the rocks – just to be one unless you want to. about everything we need to build a model rail- road we can buy. Your First Layout And we can buy it at more than a thousand well One excellent, time-proven way to get started stocked hobby shops of the sort that simply didn’t is to build your first layout on a 4 x 6 or 4 x 8-foot 1 exist until the modern era of model railroading sheet of ⁄2" plywood mounted to a simple frame began after World War II. Enter a hobby shop for made of 1 x 4 lumber. Your hobby dealer can the first time and you’ll likely be astounded by the show you some books that include track plans variety of products available. Truly it can be an for small layouts. You’ll also find good basic adult’s candy store. information in Practical Guide to HO Model Rail- And usually your hobbyshop proprietor and his roading and Beginner’s Guide to N scale Model staff are your model railroading pros. They can Railroading. These two books – and many more – advise you on which models offer the best value are published by Kalmbach Publishing Co. and answer your questions on layout building. Track is easy. Probably you’ve already seen the Many hobby shops also offer special services, such sectional track that comes with Christmas train as model building, repair, and painting. The hobby sets. Typically it takes six curve sections to make a 1 shop is a model railroading outpost where you’re half-circle, usually 36" across in HO scale or 19 ⁄2" likely to meet others who share your interests. in N. In HO scale straight sections are usually 9" A. L. Schmidt ᮡ Most hobby shops have a wide selection of model railroad products and also offer ser- vice on the lines they sell. This HO Life-Like diesel locomotive is representative of the fine models available today. It features both authentic paint and accurate details for the real Gulf, Mobile & Ohio RR. Jim Forbes 4 Welcome to Model Railroading Illustration by Steve Davis long. Your dealer has more track sections – Here’s a 4 x 8- straights, curves, and switches in a variety of sizes foot starter layout – so just about any track configuration is possible, shown as both a just by joining sections together. track plan and a There’s no better way to learn about model rail- complete system. roading than just doing it. The equipment is inex- pensive, the track can be re-used, and there are no A scene on the model railroad laws to obey. It’s a hobby, not a Alkali Central shows matter of life and death, and great layouts are built that even a small one simple step at a time. By doing you’ll learn layout can capture what parts of the hobby you like best. Who knows? the feeling of wide- Maybe one day you’ll build a fine layout like those open spaces. featured in MODEL RAILROADER Magazine. Chris Becker Chris Becker Welcome to Model Railroading 5 Your guide to scales and gauges HIS LITTLE BOOK is about scale model rail- railroads have been built for Lionel equipment. roading, that is to say, about model railroad- Scale trains aren’t better than toy trains, nor vice ing with trains that are accurate scale replicas versa. They are just two different kinds of prod- of real trains. An HO locomotive, for exam- ucts, intended for two different markets, and most 1 1 T 87 87 ple, is ⁄ th the size of a real one. It’s ⁄ th as long, important, just two different ways of having fun. 1 ⁄87th as tall, and in every dimension its proportions are 1:87. Going a step further, everything on an The Popular Scales HO layout is built to that same proportion. As the actual-size photo shows, scale model You are also likely to see trains that are not trains range from tiny to large. The most popular exact scale models and don’t purport to be. Lionel scale is HO (say aitch-oh). About 68 percent of and K-Line are examples of trains aimed at the toy MODEL RAILRAODER Magazine’s readers use this train market.