Model Railroad Clubs

[train guy]

I am trying to bring Model trains to my community. But how? Please help with ideas and tips, all answers greatly appreciated!
ps. I think I spelled appretiated wrong.

[Doneldon]

tg-

We'll be better able to come up with some ideas if you tell us a
little more about what you want to do.
                                                                   -- D

[Nathan]

It would also help is you could tell us:

Is it a small town many miles from a big city, or a suburb of a big city?
Is it a 'young' area, mostly people under 40, or a mix of young and old?
What type of activities to people in the area get involved with now?
Do people in the are have a reasonable amount of disposable income?
Are you new to the area or an 'old timer' lived there most of your life?

[CNE Runner]

You have posed a question that has haunted many model railroaders for years: bringing new 'blood' into the hobby. Judging from my observations at numerous train shows, I would say the average model railroader is probably in their 50s and 60s+. The hobby doesn't seem to have the appeal to younger generations as it did to those of us at (or near) the Baby Boom. Competition from computers, video games, etc. has drastically reduced our 'audience'. This does not mean you have an impossible task...just a difficult one.

Just about all service organizations (Rotary, Civilians, Lions) have a speaker at their monthly meetings. Perhaps you could volunteer to speak at one of these. An ad, placed in the local newspaper, could incite interest (usually these kinds of ads are free). Manning a booth at a local event (or farmer's market - if allowed) would also be a productive move. Make sure that you are prepared - before you engage in any speaking event (nothing loses the audience faster than a speaker who is disorganized).

Regarding any misspellings: Mr. Bach-Man has provided a handy spell checker. Good luck with your quest.

Regards,
Ray

[Woody Elmore]

I have belonged to two clubs - starting one may sound like a good idea but there are a lot of pitfalls.

First you need a location. One of my clubs was housed in a room in an apartment building; another was over a bar. We had our own separate entrances. We were forced out of both locations because a new owner thought we were eccentric millionaires with bucks to burn and raised the rent.

Then there's the initial outlay for benchwork, lighting, security and the like. Security is important the trainroom needs to be as burglarproof as possible. I lost several engines in a club break in. We also had tools stolen at the same time. Each member has a locker and these were forced open.

The main consideration is having insurance. What if a member hurts him or herself using tools? How about members' belongings? Are you going to have an open house (A good source of revenue?) Getting insurance will be a big problem.

Then there are the members - they come in groups - the workers whose dues are up to date and are there on a regular basis. Then there are the operators- these are the guys who unpack and run their trains. They rarely help and are quick to complain. These guys are often behind in their dues. Then there are the guys who show up and criticize everything but do nothing.  There are some who join the club who may be unable physically to do layout work but pay their dues and help out whereever they can.

Your club needs bylaws. We used to joke that our club had one rule - "There are no rules" but, obviously, that's not the case.

We had a car inspector who used to check rolling stock. All you need is one car in a long train to derail in a hard to reach area under a tunnel! He would pull cars off the layout because of drooping couplers or other maintainence issues and often the member who owned the equipment would argue with the cara inspector. Often they would blame derailments on other members' rolling stock.

You also need to decide on benchwork, layout plan, power supplies, etc. All of these things can take time to get a common agreement.

Starting a club is a great idea but it is a huge undertaking. Good luck!

[train guy]

It is subburb on the edge of pittsburgh, the comunity is a mix of young and old, I am an old timer (been there most of my life)and the usual activitys are sports and video games.

[train guy]

I thank all for giving answers!

[ebtnut]

If you're in the Pittsburgh area, there are at least two clubs that you should visit.  The first is the McKeesport Model Railroad Club, on Walnut Street in the Christy Park neighborhood.  They meet every Friday evening in their own building.  They are in the process of totally revamping their layout, which is an opportunity to see things from the ground up.  The other is the Pittsburgh Model Railroad Museum, which is in Gibsonia, north of the city.  They too have their own building, right next to the CSX tracks.  Not sure of their hours.  Their layout represents the B&O and WM lines between Cumberland and Pittsburgh.  Last I saw it, the scenery was about 80% done. 

[Jim Banner]

The group I model with is associated with our local museum in a mutually beneficial arrangement - they supply the space, the heat, the light and the insurance.  We supply the museum with a popular exhibit that ties in with the pre-WWI theme of the museum.  There is more about us at this link:
http://members.shaw.ca/sask.rail/srm-at-wdm.html#history

If you scroll UP to the top of that page, you will also see descriptions of the talks on model railroading that we gave in early 2009.  These talks have been an important part of our encouragement of and interaction with the local model railroading community.  The attendees at these talks are about equally split between youngsters and retirees and their previous experience with model railroading varies from none to decades.  While not a club as such, our group and the people who have attended our talks are a loosely knit association that keeps in touch, even if only by seeing one another once a year or so at train shows or getting together to discuss problems and solutions over coffee.

Between our displays, talks, shows and other interactions with the public, our group has learned to deal with a disparate assortment of model railroaders by applying one rule - all model railroaders are equal.  We give as much time and attention to the three year old who wants to tell us about his wooden Thomas the Tank as we do talking to the live steam fan who is having trouble with the lead and lap of his favorite locomotive.  The hardest thing about dealing with a group of model railroaders is to get them talking, even though they all have their stories to tell.  But once you get them to open up, that is when your group, club, association etc. really gets going.

Jim

[ryeguyisme]

I drove up to "The Caboose" A brass Dealer out here in CT, and the owner Armand was standing outside my car as I got out and me being 22 he asked what are you here for? I replied brass trains, his jaw dropped a bit, then he asked steam or diesel, I replied steam only, his jaw dropped further and worked its way into a decent smile. I like when I'm able to show the older generation that there's still those of us out there in the young generation that don't like motorized boxcars or bullet trains

[train guy]

I drove up to "The Caboose" A brass Dealer out here in CT, and the owner Armand was standing outside my car as I got out and me being 22 he asked what are you here for? I replied brass trains, his jaw dropped a bit, then he asked steam or diesel, I replied steam only, his jaw dropped further and worked its way into a decent smile. I like when I'm able to show the older generation that there's still those of us out there in the young generation that don't like motorized boxcars or bullet trains

I like doing that to

[railsider]

First requirement to have a club is people. Forget about finding a location for the club's imagined giant layout. Just get a couple of people together. If you're the ONLY model railroader in town, build your layout (however small it may be) and show it to other folks.

If there's a rule one here, it's "Be a nice, likable guy -- who happens to like model trains". If you, the personable nice guy, attract friends, some of them (not all, don't expect that!)  will be train people, eiither looking, as you are, for kindred souls, or latent modelers waiting to be discovered and encouraged by you.

The "club" may be two guys visiting each other's layouts and enjoying them. Keep smiling, and you'll find some more -- or turn on those potential ones by being helpful, supportive and sharing your hobby (and your skill, maybe even a little spare rolling stock) and encouraging them.

If you have a reasonably large stock of stuff, offer to set it up at Christmas at the local bank, or a local department store, school or anyplace where other folks will see the trains and maybe fall in love with them. Share coffee with these new friends, and pretty soon the club will almost form itself.

All because you kept smiling, and showed everybody in town how happy train guys are.

Happy Rails to you!

Railsider

[railsider]

More thoughts.......................

November is "National Model Railroad Month," and clubs all over hold Open Houses as guys show off their home pikes to all comers. Contact Bachmann, other makers, Kalmbach Publicatiojns, etc. (google "World's Greatest Hobby" or "National Model Railroad Month") and start your own.

One is the minimum you need to do this, and the maximum necessary to get some attention.

Go for it, train guy.

Railsider