As usual Joe you have written

As usual Joe you have written a very thought provoking topic.  Correction let me state that this was a guest writer and not Joe. The layout I refer to is Joe's former layout. Let me offer some thoughts to the questions you pose.

You have built a basement empire. You have done so in a very appealing way. I have also seen some very appealing small layouts and recently operated on one at a train show. Each venue has things to recommend it. I suspect that layouts are very subjective to the modeler building them. The things that appeal to one modeler may not appeal to another very strongly.

Think of the fantastic layout that Tim Warris of fastracks fame built. I do not recall seeing another like it although there were other similar pocket terminals. I doubt many folks would consider it unappealing and many would consider it on the verge of being a work of art. So why were there not more layouts like this one? They do not create the passion for the hobby that other types do for most other folks.

For me, I like the appeal of long trains. I could not do that on a 4x8 size layout or many of the smaller layouts. Now a regular contributor to RE has come up with a one town concept that allows one to limit the scope of modeling and still have long trains run through town. For me that works and makes more sense to me than the 14 towns in 600 feet of mainline layout that is populated by hordes of 12 car trains.

Others like the mobs of 12 car trains and like the idea of getting them past each other and over the mainline. It is I think a very personal thing much like what is your favorite color or your favorite scale or any other number of favorites.

NMRA membership is also an interesting topic. I am a member because my club is a 100% membership club and requires all of us to be members. I recently in addition to my membership bought a couple of very nice hard backed books from them dealing with freight terminals and rolling stock. The books are quite beautiful in their binding and printing and I have just begun reading them. The look like they will be well worth the money spent as the content is extensive and appears to be very well written covering very important bits of history, one was first published in 1915 and has had additional printings and apparently updated information added in.

With all of that being said the membership is likely down because many people do not see much benefit to joining the organization. The easiest way for the NMRA to boost membership is to become more valuable to the potential member. Folks do not volunteer to pay money for something with no obvious benefit, with the exception of some charities.

There is the mention of magazines. Many have folded, many of those I miss. Others have changed and one you mentioned has had fewer pages. It has gotten to the point that I no longer subscribe to that one because the content was no longer of interest and was so thin that I could go quite a while with out finding a thing that interested me.

On the other hand you publish an electronic magazine, or pair of them. One is free and one is for a very reasonable fee. I believe there actually have been an issue or two that did not have any modeling topics I was interested in due to era or geographic area covered. But for the most part I was always able to find several things of interest in the magazine. You and your staff are doing a great job and have been since I have been a subscriber.

So in my mind the biggest reason magazines and the NMRA are not doing as well as they could be has to do with the product they offer.

The layout size thing is subjective and folks like what they like.

Nick nice editorial, however I am not going to fight anything Texas. Now if you were to fight some other things count me in.

...

Aha...So Be it...Batter UP!

Texas is big but it could be worse.  I have Arizona Syndrome.  Check the biomes, check the elevations, check the cultures, this seemingly small place has some of the greatest contrast in the least distance in the US.  It could be worse again.  Check the railroad density of the eastern seaboard.  You have places where three companies crossed each other at different heights at the same place.

The dream cannot be squelched.  Do not squelch it. Tame it, but do not let it die.  When it dies, this hobby effectively ends and a new pursuit fills the void.  The dream is important.

Dream layouts suit all builders.  Some of us will get our chance, many of us will not, but I dare say the most important part is not whether you get it but what you do while you keep trying to realize your dream.  It does not matter how much you buy, it does not matter if you use everything you buy, all that matters is if you enjoy what you're doing living your dream as you are able to live it.

If publishers had small layout articles to publish, by golly they would publish them!!  They can't publish what they haven't received, but then, the people making small layouts simply don't seem to be interested in publishing their work.  So be it.  If people aren't building them, you can't make people like doing something they don't want to do, even if it's the same subject as what they like doing!

The biggest issue in our modern era is this matter of competing time thieves.  There are so many things to do, and so many of those things are fun and fulfilling, that it is utterly impossible to keep up with all of them.  Each scale is an exponential increase in time allocation assignments, some of us are even involved in 1:1 modeling, which had might as well be a new hobby all unto itself.  Don't even ask about all the other hobbies that are available!

Many of us used to have modules that we took to shows.  Many of us no longer take modules to shows because it's a heck of a lot easier to show up, see what's there, and then hit the tables hoping for a great snack.  Chances are, we hit the tables first and then see the sights later, the sights aren't for sale and they'll still be there mid day!!

There's this pervasive negative modern attitude towards potential that is sitting and not being used.  I say, So what?  Yes, there's a great big pile of wonderful things not being used, but they bring the person who owns them great joy, so why should anybody be concerned about how much use they put into those things?  Let it set, let it be.  Let it pass on to the next generation, they will appreciate it in every bit their own way when it becomes available.  There's no prizes here for who gets the most usage out of their collection!!

Many of us satiate the dream for Texas or Arizona or Everywhere East by joining a club.  Clubs offer the size and the space.  They do not offer the freedom.  Clubs also offer community, which may or may not be important to some people.  Some people go through this hobby and you never would have known they existed even if you had asked every model railroader in their area.  That's the way they like it.

In the old days there was the printed community, and it had some benefits, but it was essentially akin to keeping in touch with someone via the pony express and a telegraph.  Thus we needed clubs and swap meets to enjoy physical community, a fellowship that takes many of us beyond Just Trains and into matters of humanity that benefit all of us.  Nowadays, this may be even less important to some now that we also have the option to enjoy a virtual community. 

The NMRA is old hat developed and established in an era long past in the midst of the Greatest Generation, 1935.  Most of the organizations like it are all long gone or so changed you would no longer recognize them.  In that era, you had to be in the club to get any sort of news, and to be in the club there was no better start than this national club.  This was how we did Community in 1935.

All the heroes of the day were in it, and at heart it is our grandfather's and father's organization, and I say this knowing many of you are of father or grandfather generational status to me.  Believe it or not, there's a whole generation after me, they're all here; the next generation after them has Already Started.   So here we are 5 effective generations after the start of the NMRA (Greatest, Boomer, Gen-X, Millenial, iGen-Z, AA) trying to measure the success of first generation instruments with first generation instruments without recognizing there's this fifth generation discord that simply doesn't have an interest in grandpa's handbook. 

There's a new handbook.  And each one of these groups has their own community, with offshoots leading to the communities bookending each generation, with fewer and fewer offshoots between communities the further apart that they exist.  Every generation reinvents the wheel but then every generation starts with a void where the older generation's institutions are not able to fill the role for that new generation.  Every new generation decides to do things their way, and it's usually not well received by the previous generation unless you can somehow convince them that it was their idea first - Joe knows full well about this, Model Railroader is an institution deeply embedded and entrenched in our Grandpa's era, when he went to them with the idea for an Online magazine, they said no.  He then made his own organization and now here we are today enjoying this rather fine watering hole.  But still, people will ask how we can get more people to subscribe to MR, or the NMRA, the org doesn't matter in this instance!!!  When you tell the kids no, they go make their own club!

People aren't in the NMRA because they simply don't want to be in the NMRA.  No amount of prizes, gimmicks, bribes or handshakes are going to bring them over.  It's not their generational community.  You have this IPMS Community.  They do not want to be part of the NMRA community, even if they were model railroaders, because they already have a community.  Many of them have only the virtual community, and they do very well with that method of reaching each other.  Those people who already have a forum they call their central hub know how difficult it is to be on more than one hub, or to find the time to review more than one hub.

On our side Joe suggests only perhaps 10% of MRH subscribers purview the forums and only perhaps 1-3% actually use the MRH Forums.  Virtual community or at least virtual community here at MRH is simply not the average MRH Subscriber's preferred community format for sharing their hobby.  You can't change who people are.

What can we modelers do?  We can continue enjoying our hobby and living the dream.  That's all we can do.  That's all we really need to do.  If you're an armchair modeler, may the next layout be the most glorious armchair any of us have ever seen.  You do you, I'll do me, and we'll all reach the same terminus in our own time.  After that, to be quite frank, it will not matter how much or how little you did.  So Enjoy it while you have it!!

The dream

I whole heartedly approve of the idea to shift the focus a bit more in the direction of smaller layouts - not tiny 1x4 foot dioramas (a.k.a. micro layouts), but modest size layouts that could fit easily in a spare bedroom, maybe just a shelf around a couple walls in an office, that sort of thing.  I’d guess that there are a lot of folks like me who don’t find dioramas or micro layouts even remotely interesting, but also can’t swing a basement size dream layout.

I’ve failed at building a dream layout myself, and I’ve seen some of my friends fail at it as well.  Some people do make it work though, and the result is pretty cool, and can offer operation of a type that’s just not possible on a small layout.  But it takes a lot of time and energy and friends who are willing to help out.

Falling membership in the NMRA is an interesting topic.  In my view the single biggest benefit of the NMRA for all modelers is the standards and RP’s.  They take a lot of time and energy to create, maintain, and update.  I don’t think most modelers, even those who are NMRA members, really understand how much benefit the standards and RPs provide.  I certainly didn’t before I ended up getting involved in a standards committee some years back.  I got out because once the initial technical challenges were sorted out things got more political, and that’s not how I want to spend my hobby time.  I’ve never been more directly involved in the NMRA organization, and I don’t want to be because the gossip I hear leads me to believe that the leadership of the districts and regions is a bunch of old guys who are more interesting in keeping their “old boys club” than actually working for today’s generation of model railroaders.  I’ve kept my NMRA membership current for years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.  Hopefully they’ll eventually figure out how to serve more of the current generation of modelers.

Layouts, committment and perception

I see layout size and completion (putting aside physical space constraints) as more a function of commitment to a concept and perception of what a "railroad" is and what it does.

Commitment is the ability to stick with a concept until its "completed".  Some people can design a layout and remain happy with the choice for decades.  Some people have concept with a 30 day half life.  I know several people with decades long focus.  Not surprisingly, they are building larger layouts.  On the other hand back in the 1990's I was helping somebody design a layout and he changed a fundamental criteria of the design every 30-90 days.  That type of person won't finish a 1x4 layout.

Railroads are big complicated things.  An average crew operates over 150-200 miles of track.  An average crew is not involved in switching boxcars or spotting industries, the vast majority of real crews are handling over the road operations.  Its kinda like the story of the blind men and the elephant.  Everybody picks the piece of the elephant they can get their arms around, some people have longer arms than others and some people have had the opportunity to walk around the elephant.  In any case, there is way more elephant than the average modeler can model.  If you are modeling on a 1x4 layout, there is no disputing you are touching the elephant, but you may only be touching it with one hand.  If you have a basement sized layout you might be able to reach most of one side of the elephant.  How much of the elephant do you want to grab onto?

If you keep changing your mind about what you want or don't have a real clear vision, don't build a big layout.  If you have a really narrow focus on what a railroad is, the further that focus is away from the main track, the more stuff you are willing to omit, the smaller the layout can be.

There are lots of options.  Building a big layout is great, building a little layout is great.  Since little layouts outnumber big layouts, I am always surprised by the need to emphasize little layouts.  But building a little layout is no guarantee that a person will "finish" it or be happy with it.

The reason I am building a single deck layout is I wanted a layout I could complete in 10-15 years.  The reason I am modeling a whole 65 mile branch is I wanted more of an era appropriate train crew experience, getting power, putting it on a train, running it someplace, doing work on line, terminating a train and taking the power to the house.  Operating staging to staging on my layout felt like watching just the 2nd or 3rd quarter of a football game.  Personal choices.

Excellent editorial

Well written and right on point, for me at least. Our NMRA Division has layout tours two or three times a year. We include small layouts and they receive a appreciative audience.  We have even convinced the local OPSIG group to include smaller layouts that take only two or three operators, to be included in the biannual invitational. We need more of this thinking in our hobby, and spotlight what can be done in a smaller area. 

A sage and timely editorial.

Your editorial is timely and sage. Our hobby is at a bit of a crossroad. Many if not most of us have been steeped in the Texas mentality, and the dream of an uber layout is hard to let go of, especially if all one hears is this is what every modeler should aspire to. I have presented small model railroads and even used the "Texas mentality" in my talks. Many modelers are facing downsizing, and model railroading competes with other interests and other expenditures.

I built a large layout and found that in the long run I did not enjoy it as I had hoped. I have since built two small layouts and am planning a third. I find them much more satisfying and they fit into my busy personal and professional life very well. Balance in all things is important to my health and happiness and I don't ever see myself building a large layout again. Yet I have found the intellectual challenge of designing for a small space and having to edit my options quite interesting. It is fortunate for me that I prefer switching operations which is a excellent fit with a small model railroad. The challenge of "less is more" and "think spots not switches" are maxims that drive my planning. I am not saying this is the path for everyone, but it is a path for many modelers who for many of the reasons cited above are looking for a new way.

I don't believe in being a naysayer. There are viable options for model railroaders with limited time, space, energy and/or financial resources. The trick is selecting carefully and editorially what one is going to model and designing and building well. My current Hawkins Chemical layout is a fully functional and operating HO model railroad, prototype based, featuring realistic operations and encompasses 15 by 79 inches. It is portable and has been a lot of fun to build and operate. Believe me it is more complex operationally than its small size and four turnouts would ever suggest. The Brits have been doing exactly this sort of model railroading for years.

For those who want a large layout I say go for it. I also say that for many it is not a realistic goal and showing the option, viability and potential of a small model railroad is a positive step for our hobby's future. I wish everyone who wants a model railroad will find their path to build one.

All the best

Dan Dossa

Layout distribution

In our upcoming operating weekend (OS Omaha : http://osomaha.com/) the layout sizes are distributed as follows:

We have found that small (2-3 operator) layouts tend to have shorter sessions (an hour or so), while the other layouts (4+ operators) could operate for about 3 hours or so.  In the past if we had a couple small layouts that were near to each other, we would pair them, Operate first 90 min at layout 1 and 2nd 90 min at layout 2.  That let the smaller layouts mesh with the larger layouts.

We have a smaller layout that had 3 small switching areas that were independent.  They each only supported about 40 min of operation.  The owner changed to a scheme where you switched one area, took a break, then everybody took one giant step to the right and switched the next area and then repeated that.  Over the course of the session each person switched each area.

An opportunity is if two or three people had small portable switching layouts, 1-2 operators, possibly setting them up in one person's basement or garage and then in a similar fashion, round robin the layouts.  That would mesh small layouts in with the larger ones.

One thing I haven't seen, that I think would be very advantageous, would be for a Freemo group to develop an "operating scheme", then coordinate with the local operating area for the Freemo layout to set up on an operating weekend and to be one of the layouts for the operating weekend.  There may be groups doing that, but I haven't seen it particularly promoted.

Stop categorizing them as “special”

Enjoyed your “musings” on the subject of layout size.  Yes, language is powerful and while “dream layout” should  not mean “basement empire” it has taken on that meaning over the decades.  

While the number of model railroad hobbyist has declined, not all of it can be blamed on intimidation or sense of inadequacy from large model railroad empires.  (The decline in NMRA membership is based on many factors including being out of touch with the younger generation of modelers for example) 

But having basement empires in the spotlight all these decades has had a negative affect in my opinion.  Personally I have heard the phrases “too much trouble” or “I don’t have the room” from potential modelers based on the thinking that any model railroad worth doing must be a large mega-layout.  

When I show friends my layout room more than once I have heard, “Oh, you decided to set-it up in a room” versus what they thought must be a basement which I don’t have.

The hobby including publications has gotten better showing that small and medium sized layouts are “the norm” versus the exception.   But some still choose to feature such layouts under the guise of “special issue” or “spotlight article” that makes it appear that small or medium sized layouts are not mainstream. 

So, I would say promote and feature layouts of all sizes without placing special emphasis on “size.”   

Joe

For me even a mid-size layout...

...would not satisfy what I am interested in when it concerns this hobby.  Unfortunately only a very large layout with a extra long mainline will suffice.  Otherwise, I might as well leave the hobby.

FWIW,

Ken L. 

a fine summery

Joe, I agree with your point of view. The Hobby isn't dying. The traditional media and it's approach to the hobby is,  I believe. So are we going to see more coverage of small diorama style layouts in your magazine?

Bob Harris 

To the degree we get submissions

To the degree that we get submissions of layouts like that.

We can't be on the road too much or there's no one back here to make magazines -- and we're also not made of money. MRH Media does okay, but it's not making anyone rich, that's for sure.

In fact, we could use more submissions and more subscribers to Running Extra. Right now, RE new subs have dropped a lot more than we were expecting.

Bottom line is this: it takes money to pay contributors or even more money to go on the road ourselves and put together layout stories. If you want more content, subscribe to RE, TrainMasters TV, and/or buy stuff from the MRH Store. Or buy more from MRH advertisers.

It's simple economics. If you buy more you fund more.

Interesting article!

I absolutely agree with Mr. Kalis on this topic.

Growing up as a reader of MR, I always loved reading about the basement-filling monster layouts.  I still have the badly-battered April '93 copy that showcased Howard Zane's Piermont Division.  It was my first model railroad magazine, and over the years I probably spent a hundred hours looking at the pictures and trackplan.  I wanted it - or a layout like it.  I certainly ended up with enough copies of MR, and all of the giant basement-filling layouts, to know that's what I wanted. 

Over the years, the exact details changed (Rio Grande or SP? Or maybe Union Pacific?  No... the future lay with KCS... actually, let's just freelance something).  Even a few years ago, when I got back into the hobby after a long hiatus, I daydreamed about filling the basement and the barn that I now currently have.  (We shall conveniently ignore my wife's plans to move her rabbits to the aforementioned basement, and the fact that my barn will probably fall down before I can build a layout there... anyway, it leaks.)

When I started getting back into the hobby, I decided out of necessity to keep things small.  The precise reasons are extremely varied.  I kept things to a 1x6 space, but mentally, I never surrendered the idea that "once I'm done with this, I'll start filling the basement".

Over the last two years, however, looking at dozens of smaller layouts built more according to the British / European design theories, I'm seriously re-evaluating what my 'dream layout' might look like.  I think I'm turning more toward a smaller layout that I can execute with a high degree of precision, rather than a basement empire which I'll certainly never finish and likely never actually start...

I presume from your comment that owners of small model railroads do not generally send layout submissions to you?

If that's the case... I'm a member (and occasional participant) on the Micro/Small Model RR Layouts facebook group.  I've seen some amazing small layouts shown there, ranging from Sébastien Georges' "Lakemont" to Robert Mountenay's Merkiomen Valley, just to name two off the top of my head.  If it's submissions you're lacking, may I advertise among that group for people willing to submit their small layout to MRH?  I'm certain that out of a group of six thousand members, you ought to get at least a few decent candidates worthy of being published...

'way back when

'way back when I was getting launched in my working life I looked eagerly for articles by people like Bill Livingston, Doug Leffler, Richard Francaviglia and others who were building moderate-sized railroads because I knew they were  basing their decisions on many of the circumstances I faced, like changeable housing, too many hours at work, competing hobby interests and so on.  A Texas-sized' layout wasn't in the cards. Peco's "Railway  Modeller" ('For the Average Enthusiast') was a good resource.

Small layout submissions

Yes, that’s exactly what happens. I’ve even been on tours and seen some fantastic smaller layouts and when I mention to the builder we’d love to see an article on their layout the typical response is, “oh, I never thought of this layout as being anything like the impressive layouts in the magazines. Nobody would be interested in something with such a small and limited scope as this ...”

So that’s just it. Modest layout builders tend to underestimate the interest level in what they’re doing. The only reason Pelle's modest layout gets so much traction is because he’s made a name for himself through Model Railroader. Otherwise his work would likely fade into the shadows because his layouts aren’t very large in scope.

But I say poppycock. You all either have or know modelers who are doing modest scope layouts. Sharpen your pencils and start writing some submissions — we want to see them!

"Model what you know"? + Why NMRA?

Interesting musings that touch on vastly different subjects.

There's a bit of irony in the magazine layout that placed the 3rd Plan It ad on the same page featuring no less than a basement-filling 2-level layout.

How many times does Miles on TMTV or JoeF here insist on the "Model what you know" principle? And what does our current generation know except miles-long intermodal UP, BNSF or CN trains, which to be modeled properly need a bazillion cars and a 3-4 power lashup? For that, one needs a long mainline and unless one fills an entire room in HO or N scale, it's not going to cut it. And even with that, one ends up with a train which engines are in one town and the FRED is still in the previous one, as JoeF as many times decried about his own layout v1.

One solution of course is to go for the point-to-point layout, typically in the US meaning a logging railroad; or do like Jim Six and bring the clock back to 1927 for shorter trains (and he still has a fairly large room-filling layout). But then we're getting in a niche segment and far away from what "current" generations know and can see when they look outside their window.

What I really like however is the TOMA philosophy -- start simple, with the ability to expand... or not. This allows the "dream layout" to be a motivation goal, with realistic tangible milestones that can be achieved before that. It also removes any pressure from ever finishing the "whole" thing, as the whole thing is actually merely a potential direction that sets the tone.

As for the NMRA numbers, I'd ask one thing to Mr. Kalis and I hope it does not sound too critical as these are purely rhetorical questions: What does the NMRA provides, really? Why would one even become a member? No need to lecture me on what the pamphlet says, I've read it before. And yet I'm not a member, and will never be. Conventions? Not my thing. Local gatherings? Got more than enough nearby. Community? There's MRH excellent forums, and Youtube. Magazine? Got MRH and RE. The only thing that the NMRA really provides that is not anywhere else are the track specifications and the DCC specs. 

This editorial and the cover story layout

I guess it may be a matter of how you start in the hobby...

In Australia back in the late 1970s when I first got really interested in model railways (I'd been building Airfix and FROG kits for several years by then) the only interactions you had with layouts were at the local model railway exhibition. This came from the British exhibition experience in turn and showcased the layout builder's (or in the case of a club - builders') passion for a subject. All of the layouts were large, ovals, and required many operators and logistics to get to and from the venue and so on. Small layouts were not in evidence. You either were big or you stayed at home.

Fast forward to today. And not much has changed on the Australian exhibition scene. Club layouts are primarily the backbone of the events - and I think rightly so for the uninitiated public. They want to see the grand vision, the soaring splendour of the large layout and marvel in the skills of the builder(s) ability and passion and watch the trains go around and around (since it keeps the kids quiet for five minutes and give them something to so on a cold Saturday afternoon).

I don't get to go to many exhibitions these days as I'm too busy driving light rail vehicles and that takes up more weekends now. But when I do get to go out I note that in general the number of smaller layouts (be they operated by a small number of operators or families, by one person or a couple) is on the rise. This includes the Micro layouts (like a Pizza layout for example), the smaller shunting layout (think an Inglenook, or Timewaster) and many smaller layouts that include staging to allow the on-scene action to not be interrupted by the off-scene workings.

Our family spent a decade in Texas and most train shows were not what I was used to. There were few layouts of the style I grew up with on display, and few real exhibition layouts including a proscenium arch and view blocks (like a theatre stage) to direct the viewer's attention to the modelled area.

I enjoyed being able to operate on the Cat Mountain and Santa Fe of David Barrow (it was a dream come true) during the model railroad jamboree in Austin and David Barrow was a most excellent host from whom I learned much during my visit. However I found that I yearned for the layouts I grew up with, especially the smaller ones.

I came from a relatively poor family, although I had circle of track and a Hornby Dublo and Triang shunter set, each with a a small loco and a few british outline freight cars. My father disabused me of my grand plans for layout supremacy by advising me of the cost of the brass engines in use on many of the layouts (especially for Australian outline since there was no local manufacturing of Plastic RTR models back then). Being a single income family for the past 15 years has meant that I've had to keep my plans in line with my modelling budget.

I've read widely and understand how railways operate and what they do. And I've come to an understanding that you can model this aspect of the railway industry no matter the size. Sure you have to compromise as others have said, but you can still get the operations element you want, without the high cost overhead of the basement empire, and the large commitment of time required to build it, and still operate a train, on the railroad and get enjoyment from your model.

My next layout will be an HO scale (US outline - although easily changeable to Australian outline) Inglenook that can be used as the puzzle, and in operating sessions (lasting 30 - 45 minutes when I have a chance) that will remain set up in the living area of the house and is ready to go with a few minutes notice and can accomodate two operators.

The layout after that one will be a small HO scale (US outline) exhibition layout with a full proscenium arch and the one after that (sometime on 202) will be an O scale (US outline) shunting layout in 12 feet plus a switching staging for which the boards are already built and the design is complete. All of them are designed to be operated by one or two people and to allow many short operating session per month. They'll all be prototypically operated and expect to use radios for the crew members as well for the full immersive experience.

Finally I think that the US modelling experience has been flavoured by the past (big is better) and that in the longer run, that will change as people see more of what others are creating in the smaller realm once the magazines stop using the special small layout edition banner headline, and start using the large layout special edition banner headline. And that can only happen as people (myself included) write and publish our small operational layout experience.

Newbie couple’s modules.

Tell you what Joe, I’ll never have that basement empire... we don’t have basements in WestTexas.

And we are moving in the next year or two so no permanent installations are possible anyway. But what I do have is a supportive wife and the ability to bend the rules and think outside the box. 

Im building a double triple based on (and backwards compatible to) T TRAK standards roughly based on Santa Claus Beach in SoCal in the early 50s (just the beach! Loving the idea of that long sweeping curve and how the tracks hug the beach there)  , and my wife (also a first time model railroader) is about to build a TTRAK double and quad that she wants to be a freelanced 50s SoCal town and park. I bought her modules and she is determined to do it herself. 

We will gladly take pictures and write up something if you like? It May be terrible, who knows, we are both complete neophytes at this, but I’m sure it will be fun! 

And after all, these modules can be expanded with more later to get the long mainline and scenery I dream of! 

Scheduling?

Any sense of when my small layout submission will appear?  I thought it was going to be in June but it wasn't the case and it doesn't look like July either.  Just curious given all the clamor.

Peter Vassallo

No Large Layout "Bias"

My experience is that large layouts connect to NMRA in a different way. We have numerous members who are passionate about operations and layout design, and are also social people. For them, the chance to visit a large layout and share fellowship with a group of others is a key attraction of the hobby. And, large layouts tend to have a large number of detailed scenes in the same layout space or basement. Consequently, the availability of large layouts for viewing or operations, or for inspiration on building your own layout, is a major draw for conventions at all levels (national or regional) and brings modelers together to help each other (at the division level). So NMRA features large layouts in its magazine, puts them on tour and makes them available in other ways, because it's good service to some members to do so.

But this doesn't mean we have a "large layout bias." In Pacific Coast Region, with the high costs of West Coast states, small layouts are quite popular. We have held two multi-year layout construction workshops for layouts sized 3x4 feet and 2x6 feet. We have numerous active modular groups and many modelers who focus on dioramas and individual models. We do all we can to support these interests. My own layout is just 7' x 16' but I've had a great time having other NMRA members come over and do scenery, tune it up and run it. They recognize its value because it is "completable in my lifetime."

@Raphael, it sounds like your mind is closed, but those whose are not may benefit from a refresher: 100% NMRA clubs obtain access to NMRA's high-limit liability insurance at no cost; that insurance would cost the typical club thousands of dollars in premiums per year. In PCR's Coast Division, membership provides access to members-only, sales tax-free auctions on a quarterly basis. We have quarterly displays of models where you can talk to the builders about what they did. Those events also often feature in-person clinics where you can see and handle modeled items and ask the clinician questions and get answers real-time. We have popular vote contests and judged contests integrated into the Achievement Program, and for some the structure of these programs is a great way to motivate progress to build skills. Our conventions, other events and social activities enable building relationships with people that last years--people you can phone to solve problems, check out techniques and get local help on your layout. Ultimately NMRA is a social organization for those who want to see and work with others face-to-face. This is a completely different sort of community than interacting online using an anonymous screen name.

Chris Palermo - President, Pacific Coast Region of NMRA

A hobby of loners?

One thing I’ve noticed about this hobby is it has a lot of introverts and what I would call loners. Believe it or not, I lean that way myself, but many years ago I decided if I was going to do any hobby, I was going to force myself to be social with it and to seek out ways to both invite others into my hobby here at home and to go out and rub shoulders with other model railroaders in the outside world.

I sympathize with the loner mentality and the way being online lets you keep others at arms length, I really do. I also get the modern millennial mentality that belonging to a group is first about “what can you do for me” rather than “how can we be more powerful than just me?” ... which seems to be more how the older generations thought. Times have changed.

But I have to say, while forcing myself to be more social has been at times a personal struggle, ultimately I’ve grown because of it and I’m more satisfied at being a model railroader because of learning to be more social. And yes, MRH has been a part of that being more social aspect for me, and it’s been very rewarding to have so many people around the world now I can call my friends, even if we’ve never met face to face (yet).

Small Layouts & RPM's

I would say that I'm building a smaller layout if we compare scale to the overall size of the layout. Yes, I'm modeling in 1/29 outdoors, so by nature that is already 3x bigger than HO, but my layout will consist of a whole 9 turnouts. I think of a small layout as one that has a limited number of turnouts. As I build out the layout, I'm using the TOMA approach because of the cost and the time it takes to build. I once thought I wanted a mega layout in HO scale but slowly moved away from the smaller scales as I got more involved in scratchbuilding and kitbashing. While not the best metric for small layouts, I think that using the number of turnouts would be a easy comparison. More turnouts equals more complexity and often more problems. 

I wouldn't mind writing an article on my small layout outdoor, but that isn't really the focus of MRH. Personally, I think small layout owners are put off by the mainstream magazines that encourage mega layouts. This happens on social media as well. Bigger doesn't always mean better, but as a hobby of loners, I think we tend to downplay our own accomplishments. 

I will say the best thing that I've done socially in this hobby is attending RPM meets. It was kind of weird the first time or two attending a RPM, but over the years I've seen the same group of people over and over. The RPM meets are all about learning new ideas, and sharing failures and successes. When I started attending the RPM's years ago, I had no idea that a photo of one of my models would make it into a national magazine (RMC, May 2019). Does publishing of a photo make me a better modeler? No. Is it a slight ego boost? Yes. Did I get anything out of the magazine other than bragging rights to my wife and family? No. But what I did get was a conversation with fellow modelers about the model and ideas on how to fix and move forward with finishing it.

Craig

NMRA MEMBERSHIP

IN July is the NMRA show in Salt Lake City.

To visit the show is Base Registration ($139.00) ... wife is $69 ... Lunch $65.

Clinics from $23 to $51

+Air Fair+Hotel+Food

So maybe this is why no new blood in the Hobby?

If HO was my only hobby but it is not and I like fishing , amature radio (emergency use too) boating, etc etc etc.

Kids and adults gotta have the latest gadgets. Electronics, computers, games downloads etc etc etc.

MRH note: 99% of the clinics are free once you get in the door. The clinics that charge are for the materials you use in the clinics and there's just a handful of those. Most NMRA local events are free or minimal cost. Only the larger events that use a 5 star hotel cost more -- but think of those big events as a vacation, the costs are similar.

To answer raphael

What I have gotten out of the NMRA has been comradery (made quite a few friends over the decades); great national conventions - have only attended a few but they were great; and the chance to visit many local open houses put on by our Potomac Division.

I sort of laughed at the thought of being considered as a big champion of the NMRA - I am just like many - I see both the strengths and weaknesses of the NMRA but always come down on the side of sticking with it.

By the way, my editorial that Fugate so graciously published was refused by the NMRA Magazine - it ruffled some feathers - will not say whose. I don't mind ruffling feathers when I believe I am being constructive. Thanks for writing. The rejection of my letter by the NMRA Magazine came as a disappointment to me - when an organization cannot accept some tough love, it faces a troubled future.