Information is not like wine

Unlike fine wine, information often doesn't age well.  As entertaining as old threads can be, at the rate of progress model railroading is experiencing, a lot of information is out of date within a few years.  Resurrecting forums that are more than a few months old is usually not all that helpful unless it's the kind of question that gets asked 100 times a week. In those instances, it makes sense to keep everything tidy in one forum thread rather than spread out across the whole discussion board. 

Topics like safety from the 1970's are well out of date  That said, there are plenty of timeless techniques which ought to be kept alive in the age of the internet.  Thinks like metalworking, woodworking, hand laying track, scratch building, etc...

Might I add ...

... that much of what is found in the forums is also well covered in the 100+ issues of the MRH magazine. Much of that can be searched with the use of Bill Brillinger's online search facility that can be selected from the forum dropdown menus.

In the first couple of years of the MRH magazine issues I found most of the information on railroad modeling. Much beyond that was the finer points and the exposure of other's experiences. Of course the instructional DVDs offered by Model Trains Videos was also very helpful. I am not saying the later issues are not valuable, but the basics were fairly well covered in the first two or three years. Now I ought to re-read them myself for fear I may have forgotten some of the valuable information in them.

I don't know about that

I don't know about that James. Three or four years ago I pulled out a Model Railroader article from 1977 about a Milwaukee Road Coal Hopper rebuild. Still very valid still used parts available today and nobody today make the Prototype.

Some of it's still good.  Granted an unusual case but valid more often than we think.

Scenery!

One place I agree 100%. That is scenery. Remember using screen wire and plaster? Or all those crazy things we used to do. Now we have pink foam. What a difference. The only part I hate is it's still a mess. LOL

One suggestion

Janet, as someone who pulled up an old thread on cleaning  - in my case, pulling up the old thread is already the result of a lengthy search process. To that end, my one suggestion would be that if anyone feels like the old information is out-of-date, then I'm sure many would welcome it if we might point the reader to the actual latest and greatest (even by saying that this thread is out-of-date, and you should research XYZ keyword). Thereby, we can make sure folks are getting to access the latest and greatest information, and actually make those older threads more useful when they are resurrected.

Cheers

No issue but...

I don’t have an issue with a thread being re-opened except when the person reopening didn’t read the whole thread. Most current questions were answered in the full thread. We all pretty much know of the person who continuously reopens the old thread and then posts small excerpts from that thread on so many different forums he can’t remember any answers. All within his/her rights but annoying enough to me that I basically do not finish reading any threads he gets into. YMMV.

Tom

Well, it's still messy to do terrain, but...

 At least it's now the type of mess you can VACUUM up!

big sig

DRGW_488_Fan your signature is getting so big and distracting I had to hunt for a minute to find the one liner content in that post!

I don't know about that

Actually that prototype is being made in HO. Since I am not currently advertising on MRH I won't say more.

...

Just remember, there's a whole lot more people out there who don't give a S about DCC than you think and that throttle article may be their bread and butter.

Lots of great old information that is now mostly lost.

...

Having seen and done both and torn apart layouts using one or the other, I prefer the screen hard shell because it gives you so much more interior room to work with wiring and room for animation that is simply undoable with foam scenery.

It is far easier to remove rock outcroppings from the wire mesh project if you plan accordingly.

regarding building your own throttles from old magazines

Whether you care about DCC vs DC, walkaround or central control consoles, the more salient point is that trying to build your own throttles and power supplies from discrete components is likely to be more expensive than buying either a used commercial system or a currently produced system.  I know a lot of people still like DC.  I keep a DC throttle system for testing (and if I want to run) non-DCC locomotives.  I've wired what's finished so that all I have to do is connect the DC or DCC system, put the appropriate locomotives on the track, and away I go.  (I also still have my old Lionel O-27 AC transformer to drag out those trains to amuse the grandkids, but that's just for the holidays.) DC vs DCC isn't what I was talking about.  There are older build-your-own digital command control systems that were sprinkled throughout the 80s issues of Model Railroader alone.  The following applies to them as well.

Having worked in electronics for decades, and spent years on the bench as a tech full-time or as a hobbyist, I can tell you that finding an old schematic and parts list, then trying to track down all the components called for, purchasing and paying for shipping, then assembling them, testing to make sure the finished circuit actually works, troubleshooting it when it doesn't, (and gathering the proper test equipment if you don't already possess them) is far more expensive in terms of time, sweat, and money than just hunting down a commercial system - new or old.  The same thing applies to fixing old vacuum tube televisions or radios - it can be fun, but not really cost-effective.

It's a great pastime, and can be satisfying to resurrect a dead or dying piece of equipment, but it really is a niche within a niche of our hobby.

Janet N.

Retired?

In my experience, it's when you are young, in school, etc. that you have the time to do those things. And when you retire. That is the only way I see to be able to play with the fancy stuff. (Unless of course, that's in your job or during your working years.) But in my case, being 81 yrs old, I prefer RTR and simple ways of building a layout. Caulking the roadbed and track was so much easier than nails or spikes. Handlaid is for the steady hands and sharp eyes. But as stated, "to each his/her own"! And if it makes you happy or feel good, go ahead and do it the hard way! LOL

Who and where are okay

A brief who it's being made by and link to the manufacturer is fine. 

All these old forum posts from the 1970’s

I really do wish people would stop resurrecting these old internet forum posts from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s

(sorry, I couldn’t resist)

How Many Times

have you heard on forums "use the search feature dont  keep asking the same ol questions"?  I think that leads to a lot of necroing old threads instead of starting a new one where some has to throw in "use the search".

"Just remember, there's a

"Just remember, there's a whole lot more people out there who don't give a S about DCC than you think and that throttle article may be their bread and butter. Lots of great old information that is now mostly lost."

How true (both points).

First, I'm one of those "dont give an S about DCC" people. I have masters degrees in both computer science and electronics, and spent 35 years in electronic control systems and microprocessor-driven equipment. DCC is wonderfully plug-and-play, but I enjoy rolling my own control/signaling/networking - thankfully Arduinos and RasberryPi's came along to allow it.

Second, I have MANY years of old magazines around, some from 70's/80's.  I can pick just about any random issue from years back and find inspiration, construction articles, and 'forgotten how-to techniques.  The current mags are skinny shells of their former self; they are mainly short picture essays; andthey are more likely to name the  manufacturer they bought their ready-made product from than to actually describe a make-it-yourself project.

Immediate gratification usually wins against personal creativity, but I prefer the latter.

JimW

Sometimes...

I get the points and they're valid that much stuff in the hobby changes for the better and the old info is worthless, but sometimes I'll read stuff about cleaning track or locomotives and find it still works well.

Pretty much any good structure scratch building article from the past will serve you well today, too.

Also, when I got back into the hobby after a long hiatus, I picked up where I left off in my photography techniques I used back in the 80s and 90s. Long exposures worked just as well in digital as they did for film and I had people PM'ing and emailing me demanding to know what focus stacking software or photoshop-like program to get somewhat decent focal issues and effects. Some wouldn't believe me when I'd tell them those were all real-time and not altered in any way except for cropping and maybe changing color and lighting balances.

I don't think my photography is noteworthy in any way, but I find the old school techniques still work well, something many people have never considered even if they were aware of them.