Allowing Children to Play with The Layout

As I have posted many times, I always put postwar Lionel #91 adjustable electromagnetic circuit breakers in all my power feeds. They trip instantly, and are manual reset.
My kids are young adults now. They grew up running the trains whenever they pleased, regardless of whether close supervision was available at the moment.

I also built a little "control panel" with a 1044 and a #91 circuit breaker for use with floor layouts. The kids had a box of 027 track at their disposal (including wide radius curves, switches, and uncoupling trains).

The older one is interested in model railroading but does not have the time for them right now. He's worked in "O", "HO", and "N" gauge.

The younger one isn't that interested, but he knows how to repair trains, and may know as much about my collection as I do.

By the way, when we were kids, one of my cousins, was afraid of being shocked by his Lionel trains. The only time I ever received a shock was when I acted careless around the 110V terminals of a transformer I was checking. (It only happened once, a very long time ago) I cannot recall ever feeling a shock from the 6-20 volts that Lionel trains generally use. Perhaps I am just not sensitive enough?

 You have to let them play with the trains.

My 4 year old runs our layout under supervision. He runs the Hiawatha, Acela etc. If truth be told the reason I got those two were because they are his favourite trains.

 He will play quiet happily with the Polar Express or Thomas unsupervised on a carpet layout. Ok they have picked up some scratches but nothing major and he has had them a couple of years. 

He is quiet a careful kid for his age and I do note that he knows his Lionel/MTH trains are special and he is a very lucky lad to have them

Trains aren't meant for kids to play with....too darn expensive and they might break them....

Kids, young and older......that's what it is all about, isn't it.  Fun operating trains.  My two grand daughters run my Texas layout all the time.

TEX

Steve

My daughter's 3 and she LOVES to play on the layout while we run trains.  It's built at counter height, but she uses a step stool to carefully play with the cars & animals and drive the trains.  She's a natural with the DCS remote, and insists on doing all the driving for her pink train.  The pink caboose is a new addition this past week.

I was originally aiming for a scale (or near scale) layout, but my daughter's additions and rearrangement make it much more fun. 

When the kids play with my trains the only rules are:

1. Everyone shares and takes turns.

2. If something crashes hit this switch,(kills power to whole layout) and come and get me.

3. If you want to run something different just ask.

Always seems to work out OK except for rule #3 after they figure I have boxes and boxes of trains to choose from!

Jerry

TX SP:

How many TX SP engines do you have?  (A  2245A-C counts as ONE!)

All:

As long as you tech them to run them with respect and care, and not like G. Addams, GREAT.  (Is that not one of the morals of TOY STORY?)

Cooper (John), I like your amusement park train, your story, and your philosophy!

I love the pics the other folks posted.  And thanks for doing so.

TrainsRMe - thanks.  I kind of do what Jerry suggested.

The one thing that I have to be careful of are the PS-1s.  I have BCRs in them and I like to start them up slowly (adding voltage slowly) and of course allow for the warm up cycle.  But the kids seem to enjoy all the trains.  And each child has their own - nothing fancy, just a switcher (MTH), 1 freight car and a caboose.  They are different roads, but of course got the same thing for both - that way there are no arguments.  All conventional.  I suppose if I wanted to go DCS I could just have the kids show me how to work it! 

One thing to remember is, Every one of us was a kid at one time. (Remember?)

Having just a temporary Christmas layout, which sits on Homasote on the floor, worked out perfectly for me when it came to allowing my 2 kids to play with the trains.  For years and years I only had the cheaper Lionel engines - ones that can be pushed and the wheels turn.

I used to leave the layout unpowered for a week or so because both kids loved making up a train, usually sans an engine, and just manually pushing it around the layout - the advantage of having it on the floor allowed for them to walk all over it.  They did some creative playing too!!!

They played with it more that way than after I would wire it and throw down some buildings - no more walking on it after that.  My son continued to enjoy running them but my daughter lost interest after not being allowed to just push them around.

- walt

Dominic - My grand daughters have been taught, as I have my 2 sons, not only respect for trains and other material things, but respects for people.  I am very fortunate that they have continued with this important trait.

My Texas Special Collection:

Lionel 2245 AB (new)

Lionel 2245 AB (like new)

Lionel F-3 PWC AB (Railsounds)

Lionel F-3 PWC AB (Legacy)

K-line F-3 AB (TMCC)

Lionel Alco ABA (TMCC)

Lionel E-7 AB Legacy

Wiliams E-7 ABA

Williams F-3 ABA

MTH Premier F-3 ABA

MTH F-3 Railking ABA

MTH Alco ABA

Lionel FT ABBA (upgraded to TMCC)

RMT - ABA

Lionel Neil Young set ABBA (on order)

Lionel SD70 Ace

TEX

Steve

Two years ago, I held what I called a Train Smoker (an invited gathering for about 20 adults and their children).  Everyone who wasn't in diapers got a 20 second lesson in how to use the CAB-1 remote and was encouraged to run trains.  We ran 2 trains simultaneously on my PRR Panhandle.  Yes we had a few rear-end collisions, but by and large ALL the kids (of all ages) had a blast.

Lots of other stuff has come along to prevent a repeat, but I'm planning to do it again in early 2014.  The looks on the faces of the kids is absolutely priceless.  And it's the best way I can think of to be an ambassador for the hobby.

Kids need to play with the trains.  If you are worried about the expensive locomotives, get them off the layout and make some post-war or lower-end command engines available, but the kids need to play with the trains.

George

I've always let the kids play with mine as soon as they could move the handle on the CW-80.  I had a Dreyfuss Hudson come flying off of the track at a corner because one youngster (A nephew just under 2 years old.) goosed the throttle.  Luckily it was an under the bed layout so very low to the floor.  The bad news, the floor is tile.  So there is a dent and flat spot on the front where it hit and slid.  This same locomotive had it's running gear replaced when I was using it on a carpet layout and my own 4 year old son was racing it, tripped, and landed on top of it.  He also yanked the front truck off of the tender.  No replacement parts could be had, so a little drilling and a screw added and it's as good as new.  He's 9 now, and has 2 of his own Lionel sets.  My 7 month old likes to try to grab the train as it goes by him (another carpet layout).  He's pulled it off once, and fallen over on it once.  Trains are a part of life in my house, and the kids can always play with them if they are out.  Their smiles are worth more than any price I may have to pay to repair or replace rolling stock.

@ the OP, I see I'm not the only one that has thought about using their N rolling stock as a park train.  Just not sure if I can use my N Big Boy that way...

Great stories!

I personally am a two-railer at heart, and I have a few O 2-rail locos, but I knew if I wanted to introduce my kids to the "fun" aspect of our hobby, I would need to go three rail for now.

So I did this: A Family Project

I am happy to see the different approaches here to letting children have fun with your layouts; I will definitely take from your tips!

As for public shows, Jacques is the king. See: A Hero to The Hobby

Thanks for sharing,

Mark

My solution for the younger kids is my 11x7 O72 floor loop (on carpeted floor) along with engines and rolling stock they can't hurt if it derails.  If they do well with that then I let them run on the layout (if it is operational).

I really like to play on the floor with the kids though and if we want we can modify the FasTrack loop to something else to make things more interesting.

Santa Claus brought my grandchildren O-gauge trains when they were as young as 2 years old. The wonderful thing about O-gauge trains is they are easy to re-rail by the kids if the locomotives have simple wheel arrangements without pilot and trailing trucks. O-gauge trains like Rail King and Rugged Rails are durable enough to survive kids play. 

The above cannot be said for HO and N-gauge trains, so these are not appropriate for kids.

Thomas The Tank Engine and we Gray Beards and White Heads are doing wonders getting the kids to enjoy toy trains!

Guys,

I am guilty of being a helicopter parent, in that I once had a child of 5 years old (who is 23 now) I didn't want her to get shocked so after Christmas of 1995 I took the little loop of K line trains down, never in her childhood to reappear. What a huge mistake.

I admit in hindsight that had I stayed with it for longer and demonstrated more patience with her, it might have continued. My own Dad took my trains away in my childhood as well. Reminds one just a little of "Cats in the Cradle" doesn't it?

My point being, if we are to preserve our hobby for the next generation, and inspire our children to think outside the box about mechanical things the time to start is now while we still have their imigination interest.

My own daughter does not have the love of trains that I had as a kid but I have to blame myself for that one. For if I had tried beyond that first 5 year old Christmas, I know I would have succeeded.

Oh well while waiting for my daughter to have children perhaps, I can lick my wounds and remember that time waits for no one.

To the first person that posted on this topic, perhaps installing a clearly marked emergency kill switch would help.

As for the rest of you, all I can advise is DO NOT miss an opportunity to create amazement and wonderment in kids. They will only be kids for a short while create golden memories while you can!

Safety first! But there is a thing as being too safe! Regretably, this applies to toy trains as well, think of all the fun times we missed!

Mike Maurice

quote:

I am guilty of being a helicopter parent, in that I once had a child of 5 years old (who is 23 now) I didn't want her to get shocked so after Christmas of 1995 I took the little loop of K line trains down, never in her childhood to reappear. What a huge mistake.

Does anybody know of anyone, child or adult, who was shocked by a toy train?

what a cool use of the N scale as an amusement park.. never thought of that.  what is the circle thing in the background in the middle of the n scale track? 

For a kid, the answer is yes. 

Examples: a short out of the tracks caused by the metal on metal - can be a mis-railed car or engine placed on the track when the power was still on (yes, a no-no), or the inadvertent touch of some metal part of an engine frame at the wrong angle that casues a spark, etc.  For a child that would be interpreted as 'the train shocked me'. 

I know that is what I meant by that terminology in my original posting.  I presume that is what others have meant in their similar comments.  Regardless of whether it is a correct and accurate EE description, it is a shock for a kid and that may mean curtains for awhile on their interest in the little gizmos on the tracks or the parents' continued permission to play with it (or both).

More of an ouch factor than a hospitalization need. 

Touching a train and seeing a spark counts as a shock?

If so, my favorite #91 circuit breaker would take care of that.

I've never been shocked, as a kid or adult, or known anyone that has been shocked.  On the other hand I have been buzzed by O, HO, and N when I've put my hand on the track while it's powered and my skin was moist enough to complete a circuit.  Kind of a tingly feeling, but no shock.

The only reason I lost my trains as a kid was not because of the fear of shock, but that the sparks from my MARX locomotive's flat shoe would set the carpet on fire.  It also didn't help I ran that thing into the ground.  Bent paper clips going from axle to axle was the only think keeping the plastic cars attached to the locomotive...

I keep some scout type cars you can get at a train show for $10 a car great for kids.  They are tanks, and you are not out of much if one crashes.

TEX:  I consider any model of UP 1988 a "TEXAS SPECIAL"!

quote:

To a kid:  yes 

The parent knows what's best for their own child.

For my kids, I thought the child would be better served by being told that it was just a spark.

Getting shocked is no small matter, if a child thinks that a "shock" is nothing more than seeing a spark, they may not keep the proper respect for electricity.

Originally I was going to create a hi-rail layout.  Then 6 grandkids in 5 years came along.  All live very close and are at our house a lot.  One is really into trains--period.  The others like to see them run for a while and then move on to other things.  I decided to put as many operating structures as I could on the layout.  Why--I want the kids to have fun with the layout.  I let them run the cheaper trains (Thomas the Tank and lower end TMCC engines) but they also get a chance to run the higher end stuff.  Eventually I hope they can be more independent of me being there all the time.

Well, had our 1st accident with my 7 month old.  I got my Lionel 0-6-0 Dockside out since it's a little more robust then my other locomotives, and he likes to reach out and try to grab.  Well, as it was headed to loop around where he was sitting, he leaned over and head landed on the track as the locomotive ran into him.

I picked him up, "dusted" him off, and he was fine.  Will have a little bruse on his cheek, but none the worse for wear.

You can build a kid sized layout, in addition to your larger adult sized layout.

Andrew

And who amongst us hasn't done that?!?! 

Jerry

I let my children watch me run my trains and built my oldest son his own HO layout.  Tonight I was running my new MTH 4-4-0 Texas and my 20 month old takes a dummy HO locomotive that I let her play with and places it on the O track in front of the 4-4-0 just as it gets to her and derails it big time.  no damage though, I will build an O scale layout for my 4 year old maybe by Christmas.  I already bought him a MTH starter set. 

I taught my Grandson how to handle the trains when he was very young, let him handle them to satisfy his curiosity and he has never broken anything.  My Grandson has operated my trains since he was 3.  Never a problem, if you tell them do not touch all the time don't expect them to want to have anything to do with them when they get older. 

I built my layout for the Grandkids to run/enjoy.  Up to four trains at once with two reverse loops.  All accessory controls are placed along the 16 foot sides.

Sometimes they'll play with the accessories.  Other times it's the big engines, Centipede, SD70Ace, 6100 S1.  Then it's Thomas, Diesel or the Disney General.  Aways with a remote, Cab1, Cab2 or Lionchief.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

My children were grown by the time I got back into trains. Sadly they are totally uninterested.

But I have several great nieces and nephews that love to see the trains. One family of 5 of them were living with me this past Christmas.

Even the 2 year old Loved the Train coming from under the tree and disappearing around the TV table. The older ones would stand over the track to be a "tunnel" for the train, they all enjoyed it and no damage was done. Sure, several times I found the train derailed or the track separated. No Big Deal. Hook it back up and run it.

I also found the little presents scattered about from kids picking them off the train. Load them back up and run it.

After Christmas when the tree and loop came down they would occasionally want to go down to the Basement layout and play. I supervise and they have fun.

To this date the worst damage is some broken steering wheels and a windshield out of a car from the layout, they were trying to add drivers for me. A can on the street needs a driver and passenger, they know it too !

And my people and animals move all over the layout. If they are missing I look inside train cars, they always show up loaded somewhere. But the Deer never go in the train, look for trees, the deer will be there.

And it makes my heart swell when the little ones point and and say "choo choo" for me to blow the whistle. Seeing the eyes light up and the big grins makes my day.

Yesh, I have also had a "head on" accident or two myself.