Good twin EdL:
i think you may have hit the head of the nail, with the next to last
paragraph, parents take their kids to train shows,
for what ever reason, but after the initial exposure, the novelty
wears off, because there is no further experience,
i think that if a club set up a small layout, for kids, to play with,
(non connecting loops, built in restricted speed,
but with all the bell and whistles, that they could operate, that
experience might re-enforce their desire, of course
not too many scalers would consider this, especially with the cost of
their equipment involved, but it might serve
both flyers and scalers, if the flyers could provide the initial
exposure, less overhead, and then gradually expose
the kids to scale, and over time let them make their own decision,
after all we are talking "s"
mel perry
On Mar 23, 2013, at 3:50 PM, Ed wrote:
> I was thinking about the piece in the new NASG Dispatch about
getting young people into the hobby. I don't feel the complexity
built into this locomotive is going to help much, but I would like
to hope I'm wrong.
I think you have hit upon a new explanation for the demise of model
railroading. At least new to me since I have not heard or thought
of the complexity factor before. Speaking as a former 7-year-old, I
could understand two wires to the track and two wires to the motor
and two wires to the headlight. I never did figure out how the
whistle worked until a year or two later. It eventually came to me.
I was a 3-rail Lionel kid. Didn't have to worry about reverse loops
and figure eights or insulating pins at all.
> much of the hobby press today, in that it appears to be, not
intentionally, I believe, to get new modelers in "over their heads"
with DCC and other advanced model railroad features,
May I disagree somewhat. I think the scale model railroading hobby
today (NOT the RTR tinplate hobby) is an adult hobby with very
little to offer children. The objective of the major magazines is
to make a profit from lots of advertising promoting expensive adult
toys. Not much in MODEL RAILROADER for kids who are 7 or 8 years old.
As a former 9-year-old, I remember a magazine called MODEL TRAINS
which featured RTR tinplate trains from Lionel and maybe AF/Marx/
others. I could relate to that magazine and devoured every issue.
Sadly, it has gone down a branch line and run off a spur into a
weed-infested field never to be seen again.
> study the display layouts and see where the most attention is
focused.
I agree the kids really like running the trains, blowing the
whistle and watching the grade crossing signals. But are they
getting hooked on trains? Or merely watching a visual magic show?
Soon to be replaced with another visual magic show on TV? Or on the
computer? Life becomes one visual magic show after another without
meaning for some children. Is this a reasonable way to attract new
folks to the hobby?
I'd rather take junior on a train ride -- even if it is a lowly
commuter train -- and walk around the station and yards a bit to
show him things. And explain how a coupler works, what spikes are,
feel the ground vibrate, smell the oil (diesel oil), etc. Of
course, these days I will probably get arrested for doing that, but
still that is where my heart beats faster. Call me strange and
you'd be correct.
Cheers....Ed Loizeaux
