Time to thin the collection

@GG1 4877 posted:

.......my father is slowly transferring his train collection to me which is mostly vintage HO and S.  It is larger than my collection, but due to scale it at least has less volume.  However at 78 he still plans on building a layout so what I'm getting is mostly what he wants to clear out to make space for that!

Good for him!!!

@breezinup posted:

Good for him!!!

I agree! As I mentioned previously, I'm putting a safety net under me in the form of traditional 3-rail for if/when the day comes that HO is too small to be fun. Why? Because I can't even bring myself to think in terms of no model trains in my life. (I can't imagine that. Ever since I can remember, I've loved trains and they've been a part of my life, both model and 1:1.) 

SO, for me (and I see others here feel the same, too) I'll do my best for there to be SOME way to enjoy model trains as long as I'm physically able and mentally cognizant* enough to do so! Even if I'm well into my 70s  if/when the day arrive when I can't deal with HO... I have a plan for the continuance of model trains in my life! (I'm a "life planner", remember?)

(* The "DnD" stage: Drool n' Diapers.)

Besides, it's the dreams and goals that add the needed "oomph" in one's life to give us pause from the pressures of life, and the challenge of aging. I must have goals and dreams to plan for, shoot for, and reach if possible... or life can become a mind-numbing routine with few things to look forward to. (i.e. How long until the next meal? When did I have my last BM.? Etc, etc. IF that's all I have to look forward to, then just shoot me! )

Andre

Maybe I love being a Contrarian, but reading this thread is inspiring me, now 68 years old, to not only not sell anything, but to purchase even more as I get older. LOL.

There is logic to my thinking. IMO, compared to many other extracurricular activities like sports (which I also love such as baseball, golf and tennis) model railroading is more suitable for an older person. For instance, it not athletic.  Athletic activities are going to be harder to do as we get older. I remember Arnold Palmer saying as a senior golfer: "there's nothing like youth." Now that I am in the autumn years of my life, there is no way that I am going to hit 300 yard plus drives like my 31 year old son who is as flexible as Gumby. 

Model railroading is mentally very stimulating and engrossing, which will help us ward off Alzheimers as we get older.

Also, there is a physicality to model railroading, which is good for us seniors. There are times when we need to do a little bending and stretching, maybe to get a derailed train car back on track, and times when we need to crawl under the train table. When I do this, I think of it as my model railroad Yoga. Also, many of us have layouts in our basements, which involves going up and down a stair case. 

Most importantly, model railroading provides many of us with child-like joy. I believe that is a very good thing for us seniors to experience, for as long as possible.

In closing, I acknowledge that a model railroader can experience all of the above positive things with a thinned out collection of trains, and without continuing to make expensive purchases as one gets older.

Arnold

Johnathan, I went through the same thing. Especially after having to dismantle my large layout, pack up all the trains, dispose of tons of lumber and move it all coast to coast. Then unpack it all without the benefit of having a basement. 

Half of Our garage is housing all the locomotives, and two 16’ Pods filled with rolling stock, buildings and scenery. And no prospect of having a large layout anytime soon. On a rare down day I read through my inventory and thought about doing a liquidation. 

Then I removed the thought completely from my mind!

 The construction of the Train Palace will be happening, and in the meantime I got a head start with some Mianne Benchwork to build a 17’X14’ layout in our rarely used living room. Until I can get the Train Palace built, I will use the living room layout to service and run my locomotives and some rolling stock to get them all ready. 

Ahhhhh, what a rush!!!!

I started downloading stuff (high end brass and rtr plastic) on eBay and private sales around 3 years ago when I realised that I no longer wanted to collect stuff for the sake of it but to concentrate on completing realistic train formations.

I also knew there was a recession overdue, didn't realise it was going to be accompanied by a depression and pandemic when it arrived. Fortunately broke even on most stuff, on some I even made a profit. Only one more loco and freight car to go, going to take a very big hit on both. We all over consume, me- I've given up on the consumerism. 

Every time I visit the US I am amazed at how much you all have.

Opinion.

n.

I’ve been doing my own thinning.

My pruning was inspired by space limitations and a shift in eras prompted by my interest in narrow gauge: I’d been collecting for the 1955-1969 period.  I’ve shifted backwards to roughly 1938 to 1949. A lot of colorful McGinnis-era locos, passenger cars, and cabooses left my roster, as has my entire TOFC fleet, replaced by more somber late steam era freight cars.

I did not enjoy making the change, but it was necessary.

Not thinning, but also not buying.  My plan is to never have more than I can display all at once.  Two aircraft hangars helps that goal.

I'm in the same boat as many of you, my wife bought a home here in the Lewisville, TX area and I'm in the  "we have no space" shock.   We've gone from a 3500 Sq Ft home down to a 2300 Sq Ft home and my wife was kind enough to give me a room that is roughly 10 X 12 or so, last train room was roughly 12' X 16,' plus I had a 10 X 11 room with an around the walls Sn3 layout in it too.  The last of 6 PODS which was actually the 1st one loaded,  97% of my trains (HO, Sn3, OGauge, G-Scale and Fn3 Scale (1:20.3) with some RR Lanterns also with a bunch of boxes of track of all kinds plus all of HO, S scale and O scale structure kits, the other 3% went into the 2nd.  Our living room and my train room are completely full of boxes and a small portion of my garage.  In our old house, I had stuff stored in 3 rooms plus 2 large 4 section steel shelves plus containers that were stacked up next to the shelving units.  I have trouble sleeping at night trying to figure out what I'm going to do with most of this stuff and what I will keep and what will go.  My sweet wife tells me that we (as in ME) need to figure out where we're going to put all this stuff so she can get the living room straightened up and order the new furniture that she wants to put in it, I just look at her and laugh and tell her "me and what fairy" is going to move all this stuff and where am I'm going to find a place to put it.  I tried to tell here that you can't put 3500 Sq Ft into a 2300 Sq Ft home, it is physically impossible, especially if she wants to be able to live in it.

So like some of you, I'll probably start going thru the boxes and taking inventory and start figuring out what I want to keep and what I want to get rid of, oh yeah, did I mention that I also have about 350 model airplane kits to figure out what to do with also plus my garage was full of wood working equipment.   I'm not even going to mention all of my wife's hobbies but we did get her quilting room up and running, sigh......maybe things will calm down one of these days.

Very interesting topic, one that i can fully relate to as I'm sure many others on this list can too.  Thanks for posting it.

@Mike CT posted:

Matt Irvin's collection, (Pittsburgh area), filled a garage, and several rooms of his home.  The Fort Pitt High-railers, and one of the local auction houses, dispersed the collection.  Sad note, was net, 10% to 15% of purchase value.   My suggestion would be, to at least, leave your sweetheart/and family a plan, or connection to someone who could handle the project.  Bigger picture, family property/estates, as we all age, requires some thought/planning.  IMO, Mike CT.  

Everyone MUST have a will, medical power of attorney, other medical and legal documents. Don't trust your loved ones to Do The Right Thing. Put it in writing, get it notarized.

This has long been a major topic in science fiction fandom. People have collections of books, artwork, other material. Unless you spell out exactly what is to happen, anything can happen. I know one person who died without a will, and their fundamentalist relatives took their entire collection, including a Chesley Bonestell painting worth $50,000, and threw it away. To them, it was all non-Christian trash.