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Jdevleejr's popular thread, "What did you do on your layout, today" plus TrainsRme's comment about installing his doorknob in one of his vignettes, "It's getting really hard to find more to do on the layout," made me think.

 

I have wondered, for some time, now, about how much building and crafting a layout can become the major focus of the hobby, for many of us. And when the layout is "finished" (if ever,) do we actually get disappointed, that the creative adventure has come to an "end"?

 

How much time do we actually spend running our trains, once the layout is completed? When was the last time you ran your trains and for how long did you do so?

 

I've included several questions to invite a variety of responses.

Looking forward to your viewpoints,

FrankM

P.S. We (my wife and I) ran trains on Christmas Day, for neighbors (at their request, happily,) who came to visit. Before that, I ran all the trains to test the whole shebang a few days previously; everything functioned like clock-work. Before that, I ran the layout for myself before leaving for the TCA Meet at York, PA, in October 2013.

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Last edited by Moonson
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Perfect timing - Just came up from the yard!

 

Reading F3 ABA #264 headed out for Pittsburgh with a full consist of 7 cars and loaded with passengers on their way home.....  Union Pacific's Heritage SD70ACe #1982 loaded up with 8 40' reefer cars, 2 TTAX top trailer loads and 4 Maersk intermodal units for deliveries.  Then the Union Pacific GP7 #105 built a consist of 4 TTAX units with a load of Cat equipment, (grader, shovel, 2 heavy dumps) plus a load of spare Cat 8' tires from the factory then added in a load of new Freightliner tractors plus a small lumber load and one car of flattened junk cars for the steel mill.  Finally the old Lionel Lines #773 Steamer worked the lover city with flat car loads of pipe, logs and cut lumber for local deliveries.

 

Between switching operations, multiple reroutes and unloading I put in a good morning in the yard.  Everything's on schedule and now it's time for lunch. 

I forgot to answer your questions. 

#1 Modeling is now my main focus.  I think the idea that it can be all done is real.  I built and perfected my track layout and ran trains frequently, like nightly.  Yes, I got a little bored.  Now I have become very involved in developing my modeling skills.  I have a lot I can do and am rather enthusiastic about accomplishing the task.

#2  I operate my trains frequently.  I have 16 grandchildren who enjoy joining me when they come over.  We run lots of hours.  Specifically, in this Christmas week I have 3 days (Christmas eve, Christmas day and today) we actually operated about 3 hours each operation.

#3  The real question - will I get bored?  No doubt.  Easily solved, just leave it alone.  It is too big, expensive and interesting to ignore for too long.  Sometimes I really think to myself - "Why am I doing this?"  All I have to do is wait a day or two and someone will say "How are the trains, can I come over...."

 

Sorry for the multiple posts.

Frank, just loved your photos. You have a sensational layout.

 

No trains running today as we left early this morning to visit Elizabeth's son and family in New Hampshire and just got back. Our dog Cody wants attention now.

 

In terms of when it is finished, We are always thinking of ways to improve the layout. Although they are minor in nature, it is still fun to think about potential improvements.

 

And just running trains is a lot of fun. We both enjoy all of the action. We find ourselves entertaining more visitors which also is a lot of fun.

100% rain all day and as the train room is in a separate cottage I only got time to

lay some rail for a "hidden" trolley line before it was time to go back and get my little buddy up for his walk and "constutional" !!

 

never made it back.....the little fellow discovered we have a gas log. 

Funny you should ask. My 10 year old daughter helped me carry some things up to the cave Thursday. I'd recently been hung up on some scale/scenery problems and had that feeling of 'this is all wrong and needs a major over haul'. Admittedly these things plague me from time to time and get me down on the build. Anyway, she said, " Dad, let's run some trains"! So we did, continuous running and plenty of highballing for over an hour. She engineered the B&O Em-1 w/10 84' passenger cars blasting away at the whistle, smoke billowing out of the stack, pushing it a little faster with each run. I ran the DM&IR Yellowstone, timing our passes on the bridges in opposite directions for effect. Operationally the layout is fun but like any layout it has its quirks, ups and downs. A good run was what I needed to get me over the hump. We had a lot of fun and that reminded me of how much I really appreciate my layout. 

Originally Posted by Wood:

By the way Moonson,  Beautiful layout.  Nice detail.  I haven't gotten any where near that far in my scenery but am working on it.  Love the asphalt in picture 1 & 4 laid over the track.  What did you use?...

Hi Wood, Thank you, I am glad you like the layout photos.

The "asphalt" is a product I bought many years ago - Moon Dog Streets - which, alas, does not appear to be available these days.

 

At the RR-crossing, I cut strips of the MoonDog but shaved it away, parallel to and along where it met the rails, as at full thickness it derailed some freight cars there. MoonDog was a great product, IMHO, esp. once I devised a way to disappear the seams between segments.

FrankM, Moonson.

Yesterday I was over a friends open house and we ran trains for about 6 hours while friends, family and  others came for a visit and to see the trains.  We had between 75-80 people stop by for the fun.

 

They got to see a beautiful std. Gauge layout and a very nice hi-rail layout. 

 

It was allot of fun, thanks Eric and Peg for a great day,

 

Dave 

Not much today, but I had my retired contractor friend (he did all the renovations on my home this summer) over to run trains yesterday.  He had Lionel trains when a kid.  After about 30 minutes of training on my Legacy CAB-2 I left him alone and he ran trains for about 4 hours.  He ran my Texas Special FT passenger train on the upper level and Santa Fe freight on the lower part.  I believe he is hooked.  I gave him a few catalogs and copies of OGR before he left.........

 

I am adding some larger Legacy locomotives and will modify my "Texas" layout from 060 to 072 FasTrack later this Spring.  I will add a longer siding and new Temple, Texas Yard and most likely do away with my lower section all together. 

 

Steve, Lady and Tex

Last edited by TexSpecial
Originally Posted by c.sam:

You do beautiful work Frank!

 

Can you post more photos taken down at/near  'street level' like the last one posted?

Helps add to the illusion...

Given as well-respected a voice as you are on this forum, C.Sam, I am honored by your very kind approval. Thank you. As a result, you got me fired-up to collect some "street-level" shots (well, maybe a little more like roof-top or bird's-eye-view, but close.) Let me know when you have had enough of them.

FrankM

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Last edited by Moonson

Had some friends over just now, just passing through on the way home from a more comprehensive layout visit. Tried to claim my setup wasn't presentable, but some arm-twisting ensued and a visit took place.

 

Found a broken transition joint in the test track (only the second one since its construction), as it groaned to life after two years of inactivity due to the Auto-Train project.

 

I think I got one or two laps out of the A-T without any derailments, but being out-of-service for so long, my test track needs some track realignment and "clutter management" of the room it occupies. Nothing like having four heavyweights (and I don't mean passenger cars ) in a crowded 11x17 room to drive home the necessity of some straightening-out.

 

Suffice to say that since the LED upgrade on the nine Superliners, the single WBB Genesis will actually pull the 21-car train (hadn't tested it until just now), albeit with about a 4-amp-and-change power draw. Needless to say, I'm still putting that power kit in the dummy Genesis.

 

---PCJ

Last edited by RailRide

I did some switching today for about an hour.  I had a 7-car freight that I had been just running around and decided to spot the cars at their respective locations, but forgot to put them in any kind of order before arriving at the sidings.  Needless to say I had a lot of maneuvering to do to get them in place.  Also picked up 8 cars for the return trip...all in a days work!!!

 

I did find a misaligned piece of track and had to take a shim out from under it to get things back smooth.

Frank,

Nice thread and really nice pictures of what you have accomplished. Based on the level of detail that I see on this forum; I don't think I will ever get to the point of being bored for lack of things to do. I pushed hard to get the two upper mains functional before Christmas and then laid in a temporary curve from one side of the swing bridge so that the lower was fully operational. It paid off because I was able to run trains for the family on Thursday for about an hour. Even my teen grand daughters were amazed! I ran the Atlas Alp with NJT passenger cars and an MTH GG1 with scale heavyweights on the upper. My Grandson's PW freight set ran on the lower level. His dad acquired the set in questionable condition and my friends and I completely serviced it. It's now VG+  and an excellent runner.

 

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  • DSC03390: 7' trestle supported in part by recyled 394 towers
  • DSC03392: North end of trestle supported by home made girders
Originally Posted by david1:

Yesterday I was over a friends open house and we ran trains for about 6 hours while friends, family and  others came for a visit and to see the trains.  We had between 75-80 people stop by for the fun.... 

Dave 

I wish I had been able to see your layout with the forestry logging-block before it had to be dismantled, David. I imagine that with the whole layout operating, it must have really been a treat. You should share some photos here, esp. w/ the RRcars pulled in on their spurs and sidings, integrated with the whole panorama.

FrankM

Originally Posted by Passenger Train Collector:

Frank, just loved your photos. You have a sensational layout....

 

In terms of when it is finished, We are always thinking of ways to improve the layout. Although they are minor in nature, it is still fun to think about potential improvements.

 

And just running trains is a lot of fun. We both enjoy all of the action. We find ourselves entertaining more visitors which also is a lot of fun.

Loving photographs and "sensational" are exactly the words (and plenty more superlatives) I would use when seeing your layout, too! It is so obvious you folks are having fun and know to create a dazling layout. Continued congratulations!

 

And when you say you enjoy making and thinking about potential improvements, the expression "more perfect union" comes to mind when seeing your masterpiece. Surely, a large part of the joy is that the accomplishment is due to the "we" in the effort. Congratulations, again!

 

I can imagine the happy symphony of your trainroom full of the action of trains and the joy of visitors - a little slice-of-heaven, right there. Bravo and brava!

 

Thank you, very much, for your enthusiastic approval of my layout.

FrankM.

Last edited by Moonson
Originally Posted by pennsyfan:

Frank,

Nice thread and really nice pictures of what you have accomplished. Based on the level of detail that I see on this forum; I don't think I will ever get to the point of being bored for lack of things to do. I pushed hard to get the two upper mains functional before Christmas and then laid in a temporary curve from one side of the swing bridge so that the lower was fully operational. It paid off because I was able to run trains for the family on Thursday for about an hour. Even my teen grand daughters were amazed! I ran the Atlas Alp with NJT passenger cars and an MTH GG1 with scale heavyweights on the upper. My Grandson's PW freight set ran on the lower level. His dad acquired the set in questionable condition and my friends and I completely serviced it. It's now VG+  and an excellent runner.

 

DSC03390

DSC03392

From your photos and what you said, it loooks like you are having ahechofa good time. I'll bet you ran trains some more, since your reply, here, too, huh. Sharing by running them with others makes a huge difference, to me at least, and the Christmas season and New Years seem ideal times to play trains, esp.

 

Thanks for your approval.

FrankM

Attached below are some trains running at the spot right at the bottom of the stairs into the trainroom, which is what folks see and hear first upon coming down stairs to experience the layout.

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Originally Posted by bluelinec4:

Lets see  None since I got home from work but I did run three R68's from Stillwell yard to Brighton Beach and an R160 from Brighton to Coney Island yard    So about 8 hours of playing with trains and getting paid for it

Yeah, and I'll bet the scenery was realistic, too, with just the right amount of weathering, esp.

Have a good ol' tme of it, Ben, and be safe, always.

FrankM

Originally Posted by Lee Willis:

Zilch.  Nadda.    I'm doing nothing but get up, go to work, come home, go to bed, get up, go to work.  ...

Yes, Lee, but you have to admit, sometimes it is nice just to take pleasure in looking at it all, at what we have created, own, and have shared with others.

 

I was down in the basement, this morning, storing away Christmas decorations under the layout, and I stopped to take-in the whole of Moon Township. It all felt good - really good - just seeing it all, not running anything, but having a very enjoyable journey around the miniature landscape, being happy.

 

I'll bet there are plenty of us who do that, taking simple moments to enjoy looking at it all, not running a thing, just seeing and feeling good at our accomplishments.

FrankM.

That's what do most often these days, Murph, just look...

 

For a few weeks now, I've had two Union Pacific locomotives(coupled, back-to-back) parked on a siding; and, besides them, just sitting on my layout deck, is a CP MP15DC.

 

Throughout the day, when I enter that room(bedroom/train room) for other purposes, I often admire - what's sitting on the little bit of layout, I still have. It's like looking at 3 dimensional art.

 

 

Rick

Last edited by Rick B.

I gave extended runs to three engines I recently obtained on the bay.  A Lionel 746 Norfolk and Western J Class Northern in superb shape, a smoking 333 Marx 4-6-2 Pacific and a Marx Tinplate 21 Santa Fe F3.  All three ran smoothly and I had a lot of fun.  The smoke units in both the 746 and 333 produced prodigious amounts of smoke.  I expected that from the 333 but not the 746.  A pleasant surprise.

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