Great Article About Our Forum

Arnold, I was quite impressed with the information Alan shared as well.  Having been an HO modeler up until about 10 years ago, the Forum has been instrumental in helping me learn about O gauge 3-rail and command control.  I have also made a lot of great friends, who I now even see in person at shows and meets.

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Today I received Run 321 of OGR Magazine, which is the December 2021/January 2022 issue.

It was a pleasure to read the article on page 7 entitled: The OGR Forum: Just the Facts, by Alan Arnold.

After reading Alan's article, you may have the same reaction that I did: that our Forum is, indeed, very special; that the facts, as set forth by Alan, show that the Forum is the best of it's kind and a powerful force in the world of model railroading; and that it has grown, and continues to grow, exponentially!

For those with access to this issue of OGR Magazine, take a look at Alan's article and share your thoughts about it here. Also, you can share how the Forum has enriched your life. After a few others have chimed in, I will share how it has enriched mine.

Arnold

Arnold and Mark ,

You beat me to it as respects to expressing how you felt about this article, the Forum and Alan - I felt (and feel) the same way. I never realized the size of the Forum's reach - phenomenal!

The Forum is a way that we can share and enjoy our hobby without being in the train room. It helps me remain enthusiastic about the hobby. The Forum inspires me to work on the layout and other train related projects.

The idea of sharing with the online community was also the inspiration for the content on my new (since August) website. I've been having lots of fun with it.

Ours is a great hobby and community!

Do a Google search on whatever question you have about O gauge trains, and a link to an OGR thread will be at or near the top of the list.  I am thinking that is where a lot of guest viewers come from.

@Mark Boyce posted:

“ the Forum has been instrumental in helping me learn about O gauge 3-rail and command control.  I have also made a lot of great friends”

Same for me, Mark. Couldn’t have said it better. I found this place more than 20 years ago and it is still the best place for learning about the hobby, solving problems, and connecting with fellow o gauge train enthusiasts.  In fact, over the years I’ve been able to repair a number of my engines, complete scratch building projects well beyond my perceived skill set, and obtain unique scenery/detailing ideas because of the wonderful advice, guidance, and sharing by the membership here.  In fact, the abundant content continues to grow and is evident every time you come here - just look at the side bar on the right for the numerous, variety of current and timely posts made by unique posters. You won’t find that anywhere else on the internet, where the same individuals generally post most content, over a much longer period of time (I.e far less frequently than here).  Moreover, you know this place is the center of the o gauge universe because everywhere else, they can’t stop talking about it, the threads, or the magazine.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading Alan Arnold’s article in the latest edition of the magazine and am pleased to see that this place continues to grow by leaps and bounds, further evidencing the fact that the OGR Forum is helping many others (like myself) and continuing to build our hobby.  Another great thread by Cribari.

The Forum is phenomenal, the knowledge and the willingness to share that knowledge is supremely beneficial.

Also very helpful are the searches you can preform, recent example: materials to use for roadways, a recent search that offered several ideas.

Maybe I’m reading too much into it but there seems to exist a camaraderie to help others.

After reading the article about the O Gauge Forum last night and all the above posts not sure I can add much more to what all of yinz have already stated. I was SURPRISED at all the stats in the article and every time I do a internet search for O Gauge information this forum is ALWAYS at the top of the list.  I have met some great folks on this from, Mark, GRJ, Trestleking, Pennsydave just to mention a few and I am Thankful for their friendship and this from. I feel blessed to be a small part of this wonderful hobby and this from. I want to Thank Alan(both 0f them) Rich and the entire staff at O Gauge Rail-Roading for a wonderful magazine and this furom.

Wishing Everyone a SAFE and HAPPY THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY.

@RJT posted:

After reading the article about the O Gauge Forum last night and all the above posts not sure I can add much more to what all of yinz have already stated. I was SURPRISED at all the stats in the article and every time I do a internet search for O Gauge information this forum is ALWAYS at the top of the list.  I have met some great folks on this from, Mark, GRJ, Trestleking, Pennsydave just to mention a few and I am Thankful for their friendship and this from. I feel blessed to be a small part of this wonderful hobby and this from. I want to Thank Alan(both 0f them) Rich and the entire staff at O Gauge Rail-Roading for a wonderful magazine and this furom.

Wishing Everyone a SAFE and HAPPY THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY.

Rick, you are one of the wonderful folks I was thinking of when I wrote about who I have met on the OGR forum.  Hopefully I can get up to the State College area for a visit next year!

I had been a lone wolf model railroader for many years before I joined the Forum.

If you have felt like a lone wolf model railroader, that will change if you become active on this Forum.

I realized this very soon after I called OGR Magazine in November 2017 and was fortunate enough to have an extended telephone conversation with Alan Arnold, who told me about the Forum.

When I started in this Forum, it was stunning how warmly I was greeted by fellow hobbyists, how freely they shared their knowledge about all aspects of our multi-faceted hobby, and how interesting they were to get to know.

What may be unique about my experience is that I had never even visited a chat room or on-line forum or group of any kind before discovering this Forum, let alone joining one, except for making a few Facebook friends and once in a blue moon going on Facebook. And, I doubt that I will ever join another on line forum of any kind in the future because I find this Forum fully satisfies my needs in that area.

I am a very active Forum member. One reason for this is that I always use my smartphone when I go on the Forum. I find the smartphone to be a very convenient vehicle for logging on to the Forum. For instance, very often when I'm relaxing and watching TV, I visit the Forum on my smartphone, read threads I find interesting, and if I think I have something relevant to contribute, I do so.

I also use the Forum as a filler for my time. An example is when I am waiting on a line or waiting for my turn. It could be when I am in the waiting room for a medical or dental appointment, waiting on line  to check out at the grocery store cashier, etc. During such times, I know I always have something interesting to read by taking my smartphone out of my pocket and visiting the Forum.

By far, the most wonderful thing about the Forum, for me, is the friends I have made.

Thanks to the Forum, I have frequent extended telephone conversations with several Forum friends on a regular basis. This particularly enhanced my life during the early days of Covid.

Thanks to the Forum, I have a stimulating weekly Zoom with 10 to 20 model railroaders, who I would have never met, but for the Forum.

And, thanks to the Forum, I now belong to an  enthusiastic, fun-loving local group of fellow model railroaders. We take turns hosting get togethers at our homes to run trains, have a little something to eat and drink, and share our passion for the hobby.

IMO, there is no better way to connect with other model railroaders and make friends with them than to be active on this Forum.

After reading Alan Arnold's article, I also believe that there is nothing better than this Forum for growing the hobby of model railroading.

Arnold

@Mark Boyce posted:

Rick, you are one of the wonderful folks I was thinking of when I wrote about who I have met on the OGR forum.  Hopefully I can get up to the State College area for a visit next year!

Mark Thank You for that like Arnold I was a bit of a lone wolf railroader. Sure I had folks I would met and talk with when ever I would frequent Catotin Model Trains in Thurmont MD. But no one to enjoy the hobby with and this forum filled that void and I want to Thank everyone on this forum for their friendship and advise over the years I have been here.

Yes, I was a loaner too.  None of my family or friends had much interest in trains.

Yes, Alan Arnold is 100 percent right, OGR in all aspects is the best focal point for all of our model railroading needs, a place for friendships, learning, sharing thoughts, seeing pictures, videos, a safe haven for us model railroaders during the pandemic, encompassing the USA, and overseas. A place with enough resources to answer almost any our our needs pertaining to toy and real trains. Thank you Alan, and all of the great OGR Team. You’re the Best. (I imagine the internet lets folks from all over the world to enjoy this wonderful hobby like us folks here in America do).
Arnold Cribari, yes, I understand the term lone wolf, this is a fun hobby, and you add a lot of interesting topics that stimulates our minds, and makes this forum a lot of fun. Mark Boyce also adds a lot of interesting thoughts on the hobby and what I’m really getting to, Everyone is important and their thoughts add so much to our fun. Trains are fun, but it’s the people in the hobby that make it what it is. Great topic. Happy Thanksgiving Everyone.

At this point there aren’t any additional accolades that I can add to the impressive statistics. Like so many other things, it took a lot effort by the staff to bring it to fruition. Thank you one and all.          
Also in this edition is an outstanding article on page 16; “A Cover Photo & a Real Santa”.  It is an uplifting real story that is very heartening.

Thank you, Larry.  Your exuberance for the hobby shows.  You also show a friendliness and encouragement all the time.  You are another of the wonderful folks here.,

This is a great place, indeed......this past weekend, the Virginia Train Collectors had their November buy/sell meet.....our layouts were open all weekend (we're in the adjacent and connected storefront). I met 3 OGR Forum members from out of town.....2 of whom introduced themselves to me by coming up to me and saying: "You're Putnam Division."......and we immediately struck up conversations.....

I believe that by sharing our knowledge and experiences, this Forum is so successful. Thank you, OGR!

Peter

@Tranquil Hollow RR posted:

At this point there aren’t any additional accolades that I can add to the impressive statistics. Like so many other things, it took a lot effort by the staff to bring it to fruition. Thank you one and all.          
Also in this edition is an outstanding article on page 16; “A Cover Photo & a Real Santa”.  It is an uplifting real story that is very heartening.

That had to be one of the best Human Nature type articles I have ever read. A Well Done for Fred Dole.

It was because of this forum that I learned about and bought my DCS system way back when.  Lucky for me I landed up joining right when DCS was just entering the market (I think).  DCS was relatively new and this forum was the go-to place to learn about it, ask questions, get help, etc.  If I didn't know that I would get support I would not have dared venture into command control after a life time of the 'old way'.

- walt

@walt rapp posted:

It was because of this forum that I learned about and bought my DCS system way back when.  Lucky for me I landed up joining right when DCS was just entering the market (I think).  DCS was relatively new and this forum was the go-to place to learn about it, ask questions, get help, etc.  If I didn't know that I would get support I would not have dared venture into command control after a life time of the 'old way'.

- walt

Plus we wouldn't get to see your, and other's, layouts Walt!

Alan thanks so much for the informative article. OGR is the top publication and forum in the hobby.  It is interesting to see how your numbers have continued to increase at a time when some have said that the hobby is in decline. Congratulations.

Your search feature has been a tremendous benefit to us as we build our layout. An hour ago, LEDs arrived from a Forum sponsor that will be used to covert a floodlight tower. Complete plans for the job were available using the search feature.

If we have a question, OGR search is where we go first. If we don’t find the answer, we post a question. We have always received a reply, often many.

Hands down, OGR is the place to go to obtain help. Nothing else is close.

From prewar tinplate to modern and everything in between, this forum is a great resource. I can't think of a time when I couldn't find an answer to a question.

I read the article with great interest in the numbers.  I think it was mentioned above, Google O Gauge Trains and 99% of the time the OGR forum comes up on top.  There is no where else on the web where you can get an answer you are looking for especially of a technical nature.  We have participants from the major importers / manufacturers and a group of folks that are eager to help, share, and participate.  The numbers Alan quoted in the article show that.

I belong or read to a number of O Gauge forums and they each have something that keeps me going back but none of them have everything.  The OGR is probably the closest 1 stop, get it all in one place on the web.

All the above is great but the most important thing I've gotten from the forum are the many friendships I made.  Through the forum I have met folks, spoken to them, and helped and received help all from "my friends" on OGR.  Numbers don't lie.  There is a reason OGR has these numbers.  While Alan and the OGR staff, the sponsors are a small part of that, it's the membership that is the reason IMO.  That's why it's important to always put our best foot forward!  We represent the OGR forum as much, if not more than Alan and the gang.

Good thread ArnoldC and nice and informative editorial Adman!

I enjoyed the article. I already feel the o scale hobby is not on life support like so many seem to think and the article further confirmed that. I just think the hobby is splintered into many smaller factions.

But I gave my dad a year and a half worth of OGR magazines that I was going to throw away because I read them multiple times. He told me just the other day, "I was shocked at how many dealers there are for products! We only have one hobby shop locally and he barely stocks anything model railroading. I'm impressed." My dad isn't deep into model railroading but his comment makes me wonder how much the public perception of the hobby affects how many people pursue the hobby.

Alan thanks for the article and the stats! Arnold thanks as always for the post.

I always use the sponsor links from within the forum to get to the sponsor's site  If Alan has all this data on who, what, where, and when, be sure the sponsors are getting feed back as to how customers are getting to their sites.

Having worked in Direct Marketing for 25 years, source is important for business and repeat buyers. Helps Alan promote our forum and shows sponsors the importance us the O Gauge base.

It is good to see there are younger people into the hobby, that is a nice thing to see. I would love to see more women represented , given that they are a little more than half the population and generally are nicer to be around then many of the grumpy old men *ducking*.

The forum has been a great place for me because I can share my love of trains on here, even all the years when I couldn't build a layout due to other priorities and even now when it is a very slow process. Just reading the threads and seeing what other people were/are doing helped keep me going and continues to.

Speaking of young model railroaders, thanks to the Forum, I have become good friends with Bryce (Oscale Trains Lover), a brilliant 21 year old electrical engineering student whose beautiful winter theme layout was featured in the December 2020 issue of OGR Magazine.

I jokingly tell Bryce that eventually he will end up with all of the trains of us old timers.

Forum members like Bryce are the best ambassadors we have to bring more young adults into the hobby. Arnold

I haven't had a chance to get my eyes in the magazine yet, but I do know that my searches before joining led me here. Before joining the forum, I hung around on YouTube more then than I do now. Yeah, I still get my eyes in there, but not much on trains, I come here for that.

I know that two searches, that is the two I was looking up had both led here with several different topics covering what I had searched. One was dealing with a particular layout I had seen on YouTube, the other was an engine I was having great interest in. I was surprised to say the least that I had not stumbled upon the forum earlier, but I guess it is all a matter of timing.

Right now, out there are the great number of folks that still have not joined the forum. I don't remember what topic it was last year or maybe mid 2019 that both Alan and Rich had said something about the number of members and non members viewing or something like that. Regardless, the forum is always getting eyeballs on it.

@leapinlarry you covered it all and I thank Alan for the Fun Facts as well.  I’m enthusiastic about what the numbers are showing and I understand why York is such a wonderful event with the OGR involved.

There’s very few in my friends an family interested in my hobby.

I see myself as like the distance runner who practice and runs. They have the mindset to go the distance all alone…

So, I too plan to go the distance and enjoy my trains 🚂

And a great Thanksgiving to all