JJ & C RailRoad
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Just what is the Largscale Hobby? Recently I've been talking with more and more people about large scale trains (I like to spell it "Largescale"). I talk with people who model other scales as well as other things, other hobbies, other interests etc. I tell them about what we do to all the engines and cars, how we make all sorts of cool things, give them tips if we can, offer to help out with stuff and the list goes on and on. Along with this increased communication I've started to wonder what the heck is wrong with me? I'm a grown-up (supposedly) right? Why am I playing with toy trains like it was some sort of Life Quest? Why do I drive my poor wife nuts with trains everywhere? To me, these are some serious questions. They aren't the only ones but you get the idea right? I work, I come home to my family (which I don't know what I would ever do without), I play with trains and once in a while I play with some other things like computers or the kids etc... After all this thought, this is what I think. First of all it is a hobby, but not like collecting baseball cards or comic books. It has no limit that I can foresee and saying that has quite a few implications. I have always loved trains as far back as I can remember. Along the road of life I've grown older and maybe even grown up a little. I've gone from a kid playing with toys to an older kid playing with older kids toys such as cars and trucks. At an early age I dove into hunting, guns, girls, computers (to the point where it's probably not healthy), eventually getting married, having incredible kids and through it all, there have been trains. I like real trains and more often than not I'm dragging my wife and kids around the state with a scanner and cameras looking for some train action. Yep, a heck of a hobby which leads me back to Largescale trains. Since I've moved into the realms of G scale, I have made some great friends all around the world who I have been able to help out from time to time (a very fulfilling thing). I have also learned more things from them than you could ever imagine. Largescale trains to me is some of the best things in life. I not only play with the trains but I modify them in ways that allow me create new ideas, come up with new designs and find ways to re-engineer the wheel so to speak. To do all this the use of tools are needed, electronics are involved, a lot of mechanical abilities are used and more importantly these things are all developed. Weathering the trains requires some artistic attributes or proficiencies which you become better at with each item you work on. Your compelled to always make things better which again makes you think and learn more. Our trains are run indoors and out. We have a couple of small layouts in our house, for example, a layout around our Christmas tree. Sounds simple but it took some keen thoughts to make it just right. It's portable, it's fairly lightweight, it's very kid proof and makes our trees very stable on carpeted floors. Our outdoor layout is much larger and has been nothing short of an engineering marvel. We surveyed our own land taking into consideration numerous variables such as underground cabling, septic fields and tanks. We've literally moved yards of earth and tons of rock. Brought in special types of fills and dirt to create a base that is just right for building but still offers rich soil for growing plants in that drains well. We have used more math than I ever thought possible. Made tools to "get the job done", built structures the size of a house, dug ponds holding thousands of gallons of water, constructed waterfalls flowing hundreds of gallons of water per hour, planted various types of plants, trees and animals (fish in the ponds). We've done a lot and learned a lot just for our trains, for our hobby. What a marvelous ongoing education. To me, this is what life is all about. It's a fun hobby that offers us an unlimited amount of education and joy. It covers much more than just toy trains. I'll even go so far as to say that our kids are even becoming better kids because of it. We spend most of our free time together having fun. Our kids can tell you anything you want to know about this hobby right down to how you survey land and level ground. They know what the difference between AC and DC power is. They understand how to equate scale and speed, how the physics of power VS weight ratios work and why... Yes a great hobby, Largescale. |
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