Are Young People Starting to Get Interested in Model Trains?

maybe but most likley only if a familly member is involved, dont see a big market in this area, at the cost of the hobby most people would shy away from it.

my club just raffled off a mth ready to run train set at the great train expo in winston-salem north carolina. what our club is trying to do is get younger families involved in model railroading. what i think the problem is (in my own opinion ) is the cost of getting into model railroading. most people don't want the older trains from the 60's-70's etc. they want to purchase what they actually see on the real railroads. as you guys already know, these model trains can get expensive very fast. personally, that where i think that we are losing the younger generation is in the cost of the trains! again this is just my opinion...........rogerw.

No hobby I have ever seen could be considered "cheap". Model trains have never been inexpensive unless you consider Marx & Plasticville.

The entry price to video game controllers/computers/video games/radio control aircraft/automobiles is not inconsequential either.

People tend to gravitate to hobbies that are in the mainstream, sometimes due to the "herd" mentality, especially among youngsters. 12" to the foot trains are not as conspicuous in everyday life now than when we were a Postwar crowd - the old "out-of-sight-out-of-mind" arena.

If by young people you mean 30-40 yr olds, trying to stay out of bars, off the golf course, who are gainfully employed and willing to pay $1000+ per unit and thousands more in rail, accessory, and start-up material.... then....Yes.

   I'm repeating my Dad's feat of introducing a son to model railroading.  He'll probably lose interest just like I did and then 30yrs from now re-discover it in his late 30s or early 40s just like me.  Sadly, I think what makes models so fantastic right now .... the high price and quality, keeps a lot of new items out of reach from younger folks.   The nostagia factor and buying power of boomers/silents is what's driving the golden age of model rail we are experiencing.  They have the desire, discretionary cash, and free time.  Manufacturers have to know this, and I'm sure they're cashing in as much as they can. However, the demographics don't bode well.  I fear the hobby dies with the boomers, my generation is half their size and the larger millenial generation lacks the widespread interest in the hobby.  There will be a huge glut of product left to people who aren't interested, plenty of quality old/used early 21st century stuff will be available for any enthusiast intrested at that time.  In the process this oversupply will crush pricing to the point that manufacturers won't be able to profitably build new stuff we want.  Sorry, was that too dark?

Anyway, I couldn't be more excited about the hobby.  I've gone hog wild since the train bug bit again three years ago.  I enjoy the time spent on the detail, benchwork, building, and the fun my son and I have running the rails.  Looking at the hobby from a relative "newbie" perspective I can't believe how many fantastically detailed, wonderful tech, quality stuff is available.  I'm going to enjoy it as long as I can

I saw a group of young kids running remote controlled race cars down the street the other day. If I am not mistaken these cars cost as much if not more than a premium model train engine. The big difference is that a layout doesn't need to be put together to run them.

This subject reminds me of end of the world scenarios when the reality is, the world would survive if we became extinct but what kind of world would that be? Hopefully, I have some years ahead of me at 61 and maybe at most I have another 20 or so. I won't live to see this but I suspect model railroading and O will survive and of course it won't resemble what it is today. The Class Ones are bringing up their public profile and the freight business  ( as I see it) will continue to grow. Their heritage programs bring more attention to kids. Compare this to twenty years ago. The FEC is getting into the passenger business and I suspect over time, others will as well. The light rail movement is a huge area of growth. Who could have predicted that? So, I see a bright future albeit a more expensive one. China issues are a phase just like the three wars that nearly killed it off.  They will get sorted out. And hopefully none of this will matter to me as long as my Marx keeps running.

I doubt it, I'm pretty sure we're the last ones and the hobby's gonna die a miserable death after us. I took my son to a train show once and he said the people there frightened him, he hasn't touched a train since.

I think we need to invest in the time to have kids see and run trains. I got my nephew his first train set 3 years ago when he was 8 which was the NASCAR set which I got new for short money. The set was easy to set up for him and his parents and it does have sound. I have given him other pieces since then and had him run my Legacy and DCS engines on my layout. I think the old time trains won't keep there interest long but add some sound and control like a video game and we may just have a chance it will stick with them. I think if we bring them to train museums and train events like the New jersey high railers have during  the year I think it will give them a better appreciation for the hobby.

They may drop the hobby for a while but if they have good memories of toy trains they may be back later in there life or want to have them for there own kids like many of us have.

Hey, I must be getting older then I thought, I could swear I just posted on this thread.

I think you have a doubel- header Dennis.

I believe from my experiences in Timonium as a Child and other shows there will always be some young folks who adapt to trains as a hobby in whatever scale. My Brother was first up and he took time to sort of point me in the right direction. It was not easy.

I did meet one or two others my age in the 80's that were into trains as well. And I hate to say this but also a neighbor or two who were "That guy in the basement window" at all hours. He did take the time to share the hobby.

I also know of some efforts by individuals who cared enough to present trains as a hobby in the local libraries.

And finally there is always Thomas. And yes I do like the shows too. Satellite had another cartoon for young folks based think the title was Chugga something. Pretty good show.

It will take a very special young person to hire onto a railroad and move up in the various jobs available to them.

With that said, in other trades such as Electricity I have seen a number of young adults who were properly trained and was fortunate to watch them do the task they were hired to do very well, under the supervision of a Top level contractor.

With the advancing computers and related technology, it will not be too difficult to have the Hobby survive. The issue as I see it is the loss of the knowledge related to old school DC and AC power as the old ones die off including me.

And finally but not least, the LHS's have young folks come in from time to time and they might actually buy a train something now and then.

It is a good hobby. Just more expensive and it's relative compared to what I experienced in the 70's although the days of 50 dollar brass with can motors were now a unreliable memory to me.

Indeed, that is the way most of us started out in this hobby, and most of us pretty much followed that same well-known and widely reported timeline.

It's unrealistic to think that many thousands of youngsters are going to become involved in this hobby while they are still young.  There have been too many changes in our society and in the "things" youngsters are exposed to for the server of the 1940s and 1950s to be repeated.  Simply ain't gonna happen.

Virtually ALL youngsters like trains.  They enjoy seeing them in any form or fashion, ranging from Thomas and other cartoon or filmed versions, through toy and model trains, and even on to watching the 1:1 monsters of the rails.  But few of them do see it, or will see it, as a hobby to be practiced in their youthful years.  There always will be exceptions, of course, but they will most certainly be few in number.  If every registered member of this forum was in the 16-and-under age group, that would still constitute a very small number in the grand scheme of things.

The best we can do today is to expose young people to what our hobby is and what it is all about (including the friendships and camaraderie).  Then perhaps, just perhaps, some of those young people, once they have met life's other demands--demands that are more challenging and serious today than they ever were in the past--will, later in life, seek out and find the relaxing and creative hobby that they remember seeing dad, an uncle, a neighbor, or someone else partaking of and enjoying.  Or, they will simply recall that all-important train circling the Christmas tree many years ago, and will be inspired to continue that great tradition with their own kids.  And from that spark may come another model railroader.  In my view, those affordable starter sets are the absolutely critical component in the equation.  Forget the high-end stuff...the hobby, when first seen as a potential hobby for personal enjoyment, generally starts with something far more modest.

But this is all something that has to evolve naturally.  No youngster can be "forced" to participate in the hobby, or in any other activity for that matter.  And it's rather pointless to worry about the future because that is nothing more than an exercise in futility.  The best any of us adults can do is, by example, demonstrate what a truly great hobby it is, and hope that this inspiration blossoms in others later--perhaps many years later.

Well I always try to find younger people around my age I can relate to at the shows Mid 20's early 30's) and they are far and few between it seems.  It would be great to have some friends of my own era to relate with but most of the shows I see a lot of people that are my grandparents age.  Not that they don't have a lot to share, but I feel the hobby will eventually die off.  I go to York by myself every year because no one my age I know wants to go!  I think once the Baby Boomers start disappearing the hobby may take a nosedive.  I agree my generation are runners not collectors.  I like realistic trains with lots of technology.  I am always puzzled when I see somone at a show buying some old postwar piece thats rusted and scratched and dented and paying a lot of money for what I would consider junk, haha.  I saw one guy at York last year pay 200.00 for a postwar culvert unloader that was filthy, rusted, bent and didn't work.  I wondered why when he could get one of the new ones with the can motors that actually works and looks brand new and is virtually identical!  I guess its a generational thing of how we think.

I wish very much that young people would become more involved in the hobby. The ones interested are in an uphill battle. A few years back I went to Madison Sq Garden for an event. My wife and I got there early and ate dinner in a small restaurant across the street. The table next to us sat a 12 or 13 year old boy and his 30ish parents. The kid was excitedly and overly expounding (as children sometimes do) about an MTH extra water tender and how it was the greatest thing he ever had. The parents were rolling their eyes when the kid wasn't looking. I was about to jump into the conversation to make the boy feel good, but my wife kicked me under the table. I have no idea where this kid is today in the hobby, but the odds were against him at the time.

Alan Miller, you touched on something in your post that struck a chord with me.

" Then perhaps, just perhaps, some of those young people, once they have met life's other demands--demands that are more challenging and serious today than they ever were in the past..."

Indeed. These are quite serious times. This Nation is going to write a new chapter as the young folks struggle with student loans, college work load and other issues as they are 16 going on 40 years old.

Sometimes I wonder how the Multiplayer world where the young ones work together to operate a railroad or compete online to be the last railroad standing. I am aware of quite a few in FSX myself.

And there is nothing like a real live fire breathing engine such as the UP 844, Cotton Belt 4-8-4's as well as others who really fire the young folks imaginations.

Maybe the Military still assigns young recruits after basic to transportation. That might be a good foundation for one article someday.

Not scientific, but: I have O-gauge trains on display at work and they ALWAYS evoke a response from young and old alike. Youngsters want to play with them. Older peopole reminisce about the past. Never fails.

Best, 

Mark

Yes, that bond was strongly encouraged and emphasized back then, and back then the nuclear family (mother, father, and two kids) was the central focus of just about everyone's activities.  But that, unfortunately is no longer the case, and the demands placed on parents and kids have so dramatically altered that model that it's almost nonexistent in present times, at least in our society.  Heck, recent studies have shown that most American families don't even eat a single meal together in a given day, let alone spend a significant amount of time engaged in parent-child bonding.  It's really nobody's fault; the blame goes to societal changes in general--societal "evolution" if you care to call it that--over the past 30 years or so.

After gifting the grandkids a couple of starter train sets which went into the closet after a month in favor of handheld electronic games we gave up on them developing any interest at this point in their lives.

But they will sit for hours and hours playing their handheld games ....

Allen:

I have to disagree with you on your last post.

Granted, many  parents have to have two jobs to stay affoat.  That I do not have family issues with.

Children have to go to school to get an education.  (Hopefully!)  No issues there.

But it is the "soccer parent" mentality which gets to me.  Running children from this event to the next, for supposed "enrichment".  or keeping up with the family next door.

Sometimes I wonder if the parents are living their lost dreams via their children.  (Lionel did play on that theme indirectly, but at home with the train set!)

Families would be better off it they would cut back on non-job, non educational activites.  I would bet there would be more time for family, more money in the bank, and more gas in the tank.  Plus children who would be better balanced, which out the need for mood medicine.

BTW:  I'm NOT against soccer!  I think it is a very healthy sport, whith players running most of the time!

Even Lionel thought if a person was a customer at 14, they had a customer for life.

I am 29 and have been an avid modeler for most of my life. N Scale, G Scale and later HO. I custom built and painted models to pay for college. Now I am modeling the GM&O Murphysboro Division in O scale 2 rail. 

Baffled as I may be at the 3 rail modelers, they probably keep the scale alive and many models for me to strip, weather and re truck!

I hear a lot of generalizations above. If you see someone younger than you, do your best to listen and kindle their interest rather than pass judgement.

Adam 

I'm in the 'missing demographic' of those in their 20's and 30's. Very few of my friends are into the hobby. While I am a little more optimistic, I hear what Sean said a few posts ago. I was thinking of going to York, and if I went, I would also be going there alone - I don't know of any other TCA members near me that are my age.

I used to go to York with my father, but he passed away ten years ago. However, even without him I continued to enjoy and evolve my interest in the hobby. With my young kids, I feel that they respond to running the trains with me as much as I did as a child with my father. Most of my fondest memories of my father are of running trains, going to York, and, for a short while, working together on the LIRR.

To me, and now to my kids, a Christmas Tree is not a Christmas Tree until there are trains running under it. We have gone to the local club layouts and I just bought tickets to the "Day Out With Thomas." Soon enough, I will take the kids to York (when their legs can make it though the Blue Hall without needing me to carry them.

I feel and hope that it is this type of exposure that leads to the continuation of the hobby. When you are exposed to trains at a young age and make lasting memories with your family, you will continue to enjoy the pleasure of pushing that whistle button until mom yells "stop!"

Trains will always be accessible to my kids, and to my friend's children whenever they want to play with them. I hope the exposure is what is needed to ignite their interest in this great hobby.

One of the most expensive aspects of the hobby for younger people and young families is not just the cost of the train equipment to get started, but the cost of the space required to build a layout. With housing costs being what they are, many people and families just don't have a lot of extra floorspace for hobby use. And families usually have to move periodically. Our traditional train layouts are usually difficult or impossible to move to a new location. And of course the larger the scale, the higher the cost in terms of space required.

Perhaps this is the exception, but I know six high school students in my area who are very interested in trains - although their involvement in model railroading varies.  I have to admit, when I was in high school I didn't know a single person my age who was very interested in trains, so it seems odd to me to find six in the same area. 

One thing I can say about these young model railroaders: they have little interest in traditional o gauge.  The models they want are realistic representations of what they see in real life.  So, they may be invisible to people like us who haunt train shows and event centered around traditional o gauge and toy trains.

I have been around for awhile and I grew up in mostly in 60s, our dad worked for the RR and I'm the oldest of 4 brothers. Of the 4 of us, I'm the only one that played with our dad's trains why just me I really don't know why. Some of it could be just timing I never really thought about it much. To this day I'm the only one who still plays with trains. One of my brothers had 2 girls, one has 1 son, one with no children and I have 3 daughters of which 1 is grown by my 1st marriage and and my 2 are in middle & high school.

Both of them and my wife have helped me build train displays over the years and they even help me out at York. They also enjoy operating the trains, at York Lionel was showing the Vision Pennsy CC2 and my youngest asked if I wound get it for her, now how could I say no. But their exposure to trains with me is why they like model trains. In 1981 I started one of the best Christmas train displays in Maryland at the Wise Ave. V.F.C. which put a end to my basement train layout, since I supplied all of the trains and accessories for the layout. The fire company did pay for all of the wood and materials to build the 10' x 30' platform. I just enjoy designing and building train displays which I have doing since the age of 12.  But the main point on all of this is that by being involved with in project like this, was being able to see the eyes and faces of all the young & old people light up by seeing this display and being able to talk to them about model trains just brings a special joy to my heart.

But it is up to each of us to try and promote our hobby and our love for model trains. We need to find different avenues to reach out to both young and old. Then just maybe we can help lite a spark in some of these people we meet. We can make a difference if we want. I see the clubs with the modular displays as a great way to expose yourselves to future model railroaders. We need to find ways to expose our hobby in some other ways. Years ago I remember that some retail stores had operating trains in them around the holidays. How many now? How many hobby stores are in your area, but more important how many people go into these stores.

I'm really glad to see Lionel putting these informative new video clips on You Tube, what a Great way for model trains to be exposed to people all over the world. It's one thing to look at a catalog and see all of these trains on the pages but it is even greater to see these trains in the hands of someone.

Also just look back a few years ago, when The Polar Express movie came out and along came Lionel's Polar Express train set. What a great time for model trains to be reborn with Christmas. 

One of my close friends was telling me that his grandson does not like model trains and was telling me that he would rather play video games. And I questioned him if he lets his grandson operate his trains and he told me no. I told him that he needs to let him operate the trains, as I said to him would you like to just sit there and just watch the trains go around, No.

Oh, by the way the train display at Wise Ave. we had over 4000 people that very first year. And that was surprising since there were weekend days & nights that we had to close the display down because the hall was being rented out for affairs. In a few years time we did not have to close it down and since then there were times that we had over 40,000 visitors a year for the 4 weeks that we were open. My last year that I did that display was in 2005 and it is still going on and the fire company now owns their own equipment.  

Paul

I have at least two friends whose young children have recieved model train sets for Christmas, in their cases the MTH starter sets.  Both friends have come to me as the "train doctor" to help them set up small layouts and/or build permanent layouts.  I think that the train hobby may not be as abundant as it is with the baby boomers but there are still new children coming into the hobby. 

I think it is likely that the mix of products will change and the $1000 + trains will make way for less expensive less collectable trains as the next generation rolls around and wants something that works.  When I got into the hobby in the 80s, Kline trains and Lionel trains and models were affordable for teenage kids.  There are plenty of models out there still affordable, like the ready to run kits, so I think the product mix is out there to get young families into the hobby.

OK, Here is my take on the subject.

Trains are not as mainstream as they were in the past. Most kids never notice them.

Kids play with what they are familiar with. Thus Cars, Computers and video games.

To overcome this it is on us - The Train Enthusiasts, to show kids the fun of model trains.

Dad gave us Trains at Christmas over a number of years and while the interest was there it got overshadowed by other things in life as we grew into teenagers.

All 4 of us have trains now but I'm the only one with a full time Layout (such as it is).

The others mostly put them out at Christmas.

And as for the younger ones enjoying the trains, They do like them, but the prices are reducing involvement.

BUT !  Model Trains have always been on the expensive toy list. Look back, What did a Post war engine cost in terms of hours worked to pay for it?

Not a lot different than today for most product. Premier / Vision lines are more, but do not target the younger crowd. They target those who want the detail and extra features.

While it may have been mentioned it bears repeating:

Lionel is missing the boat by not selling an intro level Command system.

MTH now has one and it is included in many of the starter sets.

I believe this will grab the interest of the handheld game / remote control kid crowd.

This can be the start of a new generation of Train Lovers.

My granddaughter is 18 months old and calls me Papa Choo Choo. When she visits the first thing she does is run for the trains. She has the G scale Polar Express for around her Christmas tree and she has an O gauge Christmas train in their storage shed for when she gets older. My daughter will see that Lilly will always have her trains at Christmas time because my daughter grew up with them. You can't start them too young. Things with wheels are not a truck or a car to her. They are choo choo's and that is all that matters to me. If you plant that seed early enough it will grow. Will Lilly play with trains when she is older? Who knows but I would be willing to bet that unless the tradition of a Christmas tree fads away her children will have choo choo's in their childhood as well.

I don't think I would have trains had I not grown up in a family with the Christmas and train connection sentiment.  For me, the first year that I was married , the Christmas tree didn't look right because there was no train under it.  Somehow my now ex-wife knew that a tree and a train go together in our family and she got me a cheap Lionel set as a Christmas gift for that year.

I was never really into real trains so my interest did not originate like many here.

I think making the sentimental attachment more than anything can and will sustain an interest the hobby. 

- walt

My 15 year old grandson has been around my trains all his life. He runs TMCC and DCS systems on my layout which is 22 x 22. I asked him if I gave him $1,000 to buy some new trains or some new electronic gizmos and video games what would he choose. The video gizmos and games won out, he said it was a no brainer.

When it comes to cash:

I will spend money for accuracy/details, i wont spend money for gadgets. Perhaps that is the difference between a Lionel Collector and a Brass 2 railer.

As cool as the vision line Challenger may be, my cash will go towards scale/weathered locos that perfectly reflect my prototype.

Adam

Maybe one way to assist this decline is to show the trains in a different light.  In particular, the steampunk genre would be a great place to draw interest, particularly from the high-school and college age groups.  There are a lot of trains out there--steam, diesel, and electric; American and European--that would look right in a highly fictionalized 1930's setting with an alternate history.  This is partly why I would like to build a layout with this theme (the other part is that I just like to be different ).

I think the model train companies should consider creating lines of fictional, steampunk-themed trains.  They just might help rekindle public interest in trains--past, present or future.

Aaron

I think trains as a hobby is and will continue to dwindle. It's hobby from a different time just like Ham radio. An average age of 52 years old should tell you something.

It's just like other things not considered mainstream anymore.
When I was a kid there were a lot of young Bluegrass musicians I myself play the Banjo.
My son who's 25 is a very accomplished fiddle player and all around musician but it's very apparent when we play with others in and around the Roanoke Valley that Adam is one of the few musicians under 60 playing this kind of music anymore.

Model trains are the same way . Your still going to have some kids getting into it but nothing like it used to be and with each generation that number will get a little smaller.

Whoopty do me I'm not going to worry about later. I like the command control trains with lights, smoke and sound . I'm glad I'm living in a time when I can enjoy them.
If kids later have to go to the Smithsonian to see them  it'll be a shame and I do hope if they see mine it's completely worn out.

David

I am one of the younger guys on the forum (21) and I can honestly say that I do not know what happened to me as a young kid that drove me to this hobby.  No ONE in my family is a model RRer and no family friends ever had layouts.  My father never played with trains and barely has time (or interest perhaps) to look at what I am building in his own basement right now.  I did have a lot of family that worked for N&W but they had passed before I was born so they weren't any sort of influence on me and honestly I just recently found out that they existed.  I just remember whenever there was a model RR display at COSI or the library I had to literally be carried away from it. My parents did see this and it resulted in a meager 1990s Lionel Chessie Flyer set. That is all I ever had but I dreamed of expansion and longed at the catalogs hoping my parents would see that it wasnt just a fad but a passion of mine.  I begged for a new engine thats all I ever wanted but I never got past that 2-4-2 Chessie with just smoke not even a whistle.  A kid can only run around that loop of track using the same engine with 4 cars in tow for so long and alas the bug went into remission.  

I have always been obsessed with technical things my whole life I have always just looked at machinery wondering what all of those pipes levers switches and knobs do wishing that I could just touch them and bring the machine to life.  I can just stare at a steamer in amazement that STEAM - boiling water! can move such massive amounts of steel.  I think that most model RRs and train fans are all the same way just enamored by this kind of stuff. Now this obsession as come full circle as I have just begun model RRing in a full on furry as my college education in Civil Engineering and Rail Transportation continue.

Maybe there is some truth when people say that railroading is in your blood and we are born with that passion.  Or perhaps there is a gene that triggers the technical part of someones brain and I have discovered that for me, maybe the best outlet for it is with trains, model RRing, and Engineering. 

After all "A Passion with no outlet = Chaos"

Will

My two grandkids, both 2.5 YO love them....but with me around how much choice do they have. But it proves exsposure is key....

Wow. What an awesome topic!  I'm like probably most in the hobby, 61 with a grandson, who returned to the hobby after my last kid graduated college.  Cost is an issue for young people, no doubt, but the point that other hobbies cost as much or more and appeal to the younger crowd cannot be ignored.  My son, 32, got into the hobby this year - working on MY LAYOUT.  He has neither the money nor the space for a layout of his own, but boy does he love to come over to work on mine.  He lives on the other side of the country from me, but I'll fly him in when he has time to work on the layout together...  Father-Son time (hint, hint).

This is a hobby that requires, no demands, that the hobbyist be an artist, a collector, an electrician, a landscape architect, and a historian, just to name just the obvious.  The appeal of this hobby may begin with running trains, which I love, but it goes deeper than that.  My son built a mountain on my table.  He loves the artistic side of the hobby.  There's the clue - appeal to all the sides of the hobby!  And recognize that cost and space are big issues for young adults.  I for one cannot fathom N scale unless it's a train at the model carnival on my O scale layout, but that may be the future.  Young people are cash and space challenged, and the hobby needs to respond to that in order to thrive.

There are two times in your life when O gauge trains make a lot of sense.  When you're a kid, and when you're kids graduate from college.  I think MTH has this figured out.  If you get them as kids, they're likely to be in the hobby later.  For the kids, you need cool, wireless-controlled RTR sets, and MTH seems to get it.  Lionel has Polar Express and Thomas so they have the corner on the kid's market.  No surprise since that's what they've been doing since I was a kid in the '50's.  But given today's environment, this is a big responsibility to the Hobby... I hope they understand that and do the right thing.  If not, it's up to the others.  It's not about MTH getting Lionel's tinplate line, or Williams coming up with Golden Memories. That just plays to us old dudes.  MTH/Williams/Atlas need a rocket launcher, NASCAR, Army, cheap crane, helicopter launcher RTR sets to get in this game...  not copying Lionel, but taking it to the next level.  They need to be cool... RTR sets that capture the imagination of today's kids - yes, vs. video games.  Original ideas, anyone?

Call me one of the set that has their interest in trains rekindled in their mid 40’s.  As a kid and teenager, I had HO sets and would always find an excuse to take the subway to Trainworld in Brooklyn just to look at model trains. For no apparent reason that I can remember, my interest just disappeared during high school.  Even though I maintained an interest in trains (subways in particular) since, that never translated over to model trains.   Interestingly enough, as a youth, I had a distaste for O Gauge, with its stupid third rail, and the unrealistic looking track and ties.  It was HO or nothing at all.

Even when my boys where in their toddler years and I seemingly purchased every Thomas item mankind has ever known for them (and played along with them), trains that weren’t 1:1 just didn’t grab a hold. 

Fast forward to Christmas 2010 and I redevelop an interest in model trains and something to do with my boys (then 10 and 8).  Started off with HO and then went to N scale, even dabbled with G Gauge for the backyard (that got the wife’s interest) but something was missing.  Just watching the trains run around got boring (especially for the boys who lost interest) after a while and I thought to myself, wouldn’t it be nice if there could be a way that the gondola car could have coal dumped into it.  Something that would make the train more interactive, like with Thomas. Enter O Gauge by accident when I was talking to the LHS to make the trains more interesting, to which he asked me, “Have I ever tried O Gauge?”  The rest, they say, is history, and I’ve been wondering where was O Gauge all my life!

To date, both boys are more interested in video games, but the younger one is still caught up with me and wishes that I would come up with a permanent layout and stop pulling up the tracks, so that he can play with them.  With me switching over to Realtrax the train table is once a mess again. One of his friends likes to come over so that he can play with the trains also.  I think that even though O Gauge is very expensive overall (rolling stock and real estate) compared to HO and N, the hands on interactivity I think will take a hold on the younger set of given a chance. 

To end on a flip note, we gave all of our Thomas stuff to my nephew for his 2^nd Birthday and followed up with more at Christmas plus a NYC Subway wooden set, because that’s all he talked about.  We just visited them for Easter for his 3rd Birthday and the trains have taken a back seat to Buzz Lightyear and Woody.  Oh well…

Kevin