Operators vs Collectors in HO?

All I know is I picked up a book on collecting Athearn HO, because that is my favorite brand.  It's very thorough, with manufacturing dates, photos, rarity, box covers, and so forth.  (Standard Guide to Athearn Model Trains by Blaisdell & Urmston).  I'm sure other, nore exotic  brands must be collected, as well as brass.

I was in HO, once.  Like most people, I ended up having more locomotives that I could run on a layout at one time.  But no, I never encountered anyone who considered HO "collectible."

 

Not to say that they don't exist, just that I never met any.

 

Just my opinion, but in all the years that I modeled in HO, I must admit that I never met a "collector" of HO train stuff.

It is more prevalent in N scale to be a collector for some reason. I met quite a few collectors when I was into N scale. There is even a club that promotes it. 

There's no question that HO s far more an operators scale than a collectors scale, but there certainly are HO collectors out there.  I collect some Marklin HO myself (or did in the past because I have not really added to that collection in a while), and I'm sure there are plenty of Marklin collectors scattered throughout the world.  Same goes for select other brands as well.

 

But the number of HO collectors, as seen as a percentage of those involved in the scale, is almost surely significantly smaller (percentage-wise) than the number of true collectors in O and S gauges.

Marklin collectors are sort of the odd man out in HO, since Marklin is 3-rail AC versus 2-rail DC like the rest of HO. And Marklin encourages collectors with their Marklin Club Car every year. There are also some HO folks that collect high end brass locos, but that's about the extent of it that I'm aware of.

 

There was a "Tyco Collector's Club" for a while that was started as a parody of the TCA. Unfortunately some less than scrupulous folks on e-bay ignored the parody factor, and used the fact there was a "Collector's Club" to inflate the prices of Tyco items they were listing on e-bay, so the TCC shut down, probably too late, in an attempt to curtail that issue.

 

The Athearn guide is nice, but there's so much of the old Athearn stuff out there I'm not sure I would call it 'collectable'.

 

 

I know of a guy that "collects" HO, but I don't consider it a "collection".  In other words, he doesn't attempt to get/hunt down a series of engines, passenger cars, or rolling stock, he just buys. He buys up everything he can find and stores it in his closets and under his bed.

 

Actually, the only thing I recall seeing displayed (what I would consider the purpose of collecting) was an O gauge Williams N&W Class J.

 

If I was going to do some serious collecting, I'd go for collecting some medieval armor and weapons and display it in the mansion I don't have

There are couple of HO collectors on this forum. Those who collect the more common ready to run sets of the 50s and 60s. Then there is a segment that collect HO brass. Like those here who have boxes that have never been opened, brass collectors tend to do the same. Different scale same mindset.

 

Pete

When you have time sometime try Tycoforums.com. its fun. There is a guy, I think he posts here who has a good collection of Tyco sets he comes across at train shows and eBay. I don't think they do anything with them, they just enjoy buying and having them. They are kind of unique. I sure would rather collect them that has some general value and interest,and attraction  than something like Beanie Babies.

 

Of course, such a thing would never happen in O...

 

Rusty

I would say that there are some. It is much cheaper because fewer people want them and they run not so well but yes they are out there. I collect some sets and engines that I liked when I started in the hobby as a kid. I have some Tyco Turbo trains,the original Autotrain and the Seaboard System BQ23-7 Bachman made because I will never see them in O. I think the fact that RMT made a GG1 with an AHM fantasy scheme made in only HO is a bit telling.  Keith Willis' column in RMCraftsman has been going for years and often covers HO collecting. Somebody besides me must like it too. I know at a train club I used to be in there were a few real HO train set hunters who waited for the good boxed sets. I knew one guy who had nearly all the HO Lionel and really wanted operating cars.

Hardly anyone collects HO. The resale of used HO is about a 10th of what you paid for it.

Collecting something Has to have monetary value apparently.
That perceived lack of value causes people to throw things away creating an actual scarcity. This is the area a good collector could thrive in.

So used modern era O Scale stuff brings more money? That is hard to believe.

Leave it to this guy to throw cold water on a thread he has no business even commenting on....whats your problem dude ?

 

Silver Lake...

 

Your post makes perfect sense....not that I'm a "good" collector but I do have a hard time finding collector grade stuff besides the fact that a lot of this stuff got thrown out ... it is also hard to find stuff that has survived the "rigors of play".

 

Post-war Lionel HO and Gilbert HO are collectible..

 

Bill

Anything is collectible if you collect it, beer cans, cereal boxes, butterflies, toys of all types and the list could go on forever. If one peron starts collecting something, then there is collector value. If demand outpaces supply then you have relative scarcity and increasing values.

In addition to my o scale and gauge collecting, I also collect Piko HO made in East Germany from 1949 to 1990, fairly esoteric but a lot of fun and history.

All the best,

Miketg

I agree with the thought that there are collectors of anything and everything. The item does not need to have any intrinsic value. Folks have been collecting baseball cards and matchbooks for ages.

 

While it may seem to some that the train collecting world revolves around Lionel, there are collectors who focus on other brands/gauges, and there are plenty of collectors who are interested in multiple brands / gauges.

Taycotrains, I have been collecting and buying trains ( I have an ad in the newspaper buying trains since 1977) I have been doing ebay 15 years. I get a ton of HO. and I can tell you that I get nothing for it. I just got a collection of Gilbert HO from the 1930's, and most of it is worth near nothing. Sorry you don't agree DUDE.  Ed

Eddie, Collecting is not about the money for most people. Its more about the hunt. People who buy with the expectation to make money are called investors and its a whole different mindset. Kind of takes the fun out of it.

 

Pete

It's not about the money.  It's the thrill of the hunt, the elation when you find a great item, the emotional connection.