Model Railroad Rule #1: It’s your railroad; you do you.

I'm combining my love of Dungeons and Dragons with model railroading with the ultimate goal of an On18 goblin mining micro layout. The track will be a simple loop with the train moving through some scenes within their caverns and a small surface section where they interchange with the wider world to sell their coal and giant spider silk....and import Halfling Beer.

If you're enjoying what you're doing you're doing it right.

In my humble opinion, Malcolm Furlow was one of the best things to ever happen to this Hobby. his San Juan Central was phenomenal. The day we lost Malcolm was a great loss to the hobby.

You said Model railroading should have a train and a theme. I’m into model railroading but have no layout. I just love restoring and giving new life to old trains. It’s what excites me. 🙂

Some years ago MR magazine ran an April Fools article about a club devoted to modeling a scale subway system. The joke was that it was all underground and therefore a basically non-viewable railroad. But I always thought that with cutaway stations and a cityscape on top, it would be a very cool idea.

New vocab word: "trainsplaners". LOVE IT!!! Dave, just keep being you!

My wife and I have pushed your thesis here to the limit, I have to think. When we retired we suddenly had room to assemble an odd collection of HO scale equipment from the 80s and 90s. We call it the MP&F, derived from pet names our grandchildren have for us and we have for our grandchildren. It was all DC so we kept it that way. It is completely fictional. It is overloaded in track. I use it for grandchildren to operate. I also create stories about things our family does in this imaginary world. I use photos and videos to make episodes of these stories. I’m sure most modelers would be aghast at our monstrosity. But our family enjoys it, and that’s all that matters. When I watched this video I thought, “There I am - in spades!”

I'm modeling a fictional narrow gauge railroading empire that operates in the Pacific Northwest. Its the dirty thirties and the Larson Lumber Syndicate runs the law, the liquor, and lumber on my layout. Both you and Boomer have been inspirational for my modeling.

Amen Dave! Who are these gate keepers anyway? They need to remember that they are playing with trains just like the rest of us in this HOBBY. If you enjoy it, roll with it!

What I love about model railroading is the fact that we´re all in it because our love for trains. To some, running trains on a clean sheet of plywood with nothing but loads of tracks and loud engines is what make them enjoy their trains, to me it´s the creation of landscape that makes me tick. To others again it´s about fast trains, or slow trains, some like steam trains for all their moving parts etc. etc. There´s absolutely no wrong way of doing it as long as you´re having a great time, which is all that matters.

Absolutely agree. I model a rather prototypical looking fictional short line based on an amalgamation of those found in northern California. I "steal" ideas from a variety or railroads and enjoy working to amalgamate them into real-ish theme. That's all part of the fun. Oddly enough, I watched this while painting some D&D figures - and I keep thinking about this one mine shaft I have that really needs a creepy alter and some orcs at the bottom . . . . or a giant spider.

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! I create my layouts around hidden objects for the Grandkids and guests. I now am up to four layouts one being an outdoor garden layout. The outdoor railroad has 104 hidden objects all found by rolling dice and picking unique cards for each object. We've had guests spend several hours trying to find all the objects. My first layout, The Woodtick and Deer Lodge Lake Railroad. It is a three rail switchback railroad 2' X 8'. It goes up 6 levels. It is unique for the 3 rail crowd and never really accepted by them. Thanks for this wonderful commentary on what I believe is the true reason for model railroading also.

Thank You again Dave. It’s our imagination that drives us to these worlds of our creations and no one has the right to say our imagination is off. I’m in my mid 60’s and recently had to take early retirement due to my wife falling victim to Alzheimer’s. To create my own distraction, I jumped into 3D modeling which drove me back to my childhood love for model railroading. I ran across Thunder Mesa and heard your comment, “Design is up to us, only limited by our imagination” (paraphrased). So, I decided a portion of my Railroad will be dedicated to BTTF Hill Valley 1955. I am in the process of 3D modeling in HO the famous Courthouse Square and have completed several structures. The SP line will pass by the Hill Valley, the Peabody farm on one side of the town and on the other the Drive-In Theater. Each of those points will drive the mainline to another city which will incorporate all the other aspects of a general model railroad. Thank You for all you do for the Hobby and all of us who enjoy expressing imagination through Model Railroading.

Undoubtedly the best model railroad video ever produced! I’m a 1960 model, and have pretty much always been a model railroader. We built a new house in 2002 complete with a large “train room” in the basement. I wanted the big, prototypically perfect layout, but I absolutely overwhelmed myself stressing out over it. 22 years later, not the first stick of bench work has appeared, and my interest in model railroading totally tanked! Watching your channel the past couple years has reinvigorated my interest, but in a whole new way! Thanks for liberating me, and I’m sure hundreds of other incarcerated modelers! And no more rivet counting for me!

The only restriction is imagination. Yours seems to know no bounds. That and your innate ability to turn these ideas into a wonderful reality is what keeps me watching. I am hoping to learrn, period.

Amen Dave. This is why people like Bob Gurr of Disney visit you.

As a woman in a typically man’s hobby, I appreciate the encouragement.

Was running at a train show on the club layout once.....Amtrak Empire Builder when one of the "trainsplaners" came up and told me that my consist was wrong because Amtrak always runs the diner and lounge cars together.....it turns out that KZfaq and a Cellphone puts a lot of those guys in their place pretty easily. Thanks for the great words Dave!

Hey there Dave... In listening to your reparte´ it occured to me your advice could apply to darn near every outside the box move any of us make. When I wrote my book, cranky family members decended on me with unsolicited rude comments. I ignored all and was rewarded in the end with "Best of the West 2019" by True West Magazine. The bite of that apple certainly was sweet.🍎😊

Awesome video Dave, I’m blown away when people are critical of others work, usually coming from those that have never accomplished anything in the hobby. If anyone has ever built a layout it’s incredibly challenging and time consuming but so much fun at the same time. It’s a shame when people take themselves so seriously and none of it matters at the end of the day, just enjoy the hobby with family & friends.

Here, here Dave. So very well stated. I think Malcolm would agree.

I've been reinspired to get back into the model railroad hobby over the last year or so of watching yours and toy man TV channels. I have always had a love of trains, mostly steam era. I have been wanting to build a layout of the Frisco Silver Dollar Line at Silver Dollar City in Branson MO I have visited the park since childhood 50 now, and just love the sight, sound and smell of a steam locomotive in the Ozark Mountains where I live. Your channel has show me that my old goals of a huge layout was what I thought I needed and having OCD was just to daunting for me 25 years ago, I got torn out and put in storage. Now I can for see getting more details in a smaller area and enjoying my self without feeling overwhelmed. I am planning the layout to be HOn30 and pretty close to scale as the loop is just over 1.5 miles. The locomotive are a European so mini trains and shapeways is going to be the go to. Thank you for the inspiration Dave and God Bless.

Totally agree, Dave. My layout's a 2'x2' Gn15 (1/24 on 16.5mm track) fantasy, with a Mediterranean-town theme, with two tracks running through. As far as reality-based trains are concerned, I'm into modern high-speed rail but I don't have the money or space for that kind of layout. 2'x2' is far more affordable, & small enough for me to complete it in a reasonable time. Cheers, Kev.

Dear Dave, humbly think you’ve touched this very subject in a very important manner. When we’re talking passions of creating its endeavors, whatever the character of the passion is, there’s always the lurking criticaster around the corner. Especially when folks step over the threshold of publishing the fruits of their labor. So, what you said on the possible criticisms is so on point. Because when our passions are indeed about developing our creative minds, abilities and skills, another aspect comes into play, which can only be described as the bettering of ourselves. Luckily, the natural flow which will take root from this bettering, is the simple fact that such criticisms only become less and less important. To me that’s because the intrinsic value of developing that creative mind can receive well put and constructive critique, but on the other hand has become apt to distinguish those criticisms which have no purpose other than to be the non-constructive ones. The entire creative process in itself is much more important than to listen and pay attention to the voices that are remaining in the latter tone of voice. Wanna point out here that the NMRA supports programs to help veterans, people with disabilities and psychological disorders. Such programs help these people cope by creating their very own little world. If such healing endeavors lead to a train layout I call such model railroading. Simply because this hobby has indeed such powerful qualities. Whether it is about improving creativity, maintaining motor skills, rehabilitation, believe me I’ve been there. All those aspects (to me) are an integral part of model railroading, and for those who don’t ride trains, whatever their creativity leads to. On the ideas part; still am in planning phase and into the determining the ample space I’ve got available for the layout. Main subject is the New York subway, still am measuring if I can achieve at least a section of the former Penn station in this plan. Because of the ample space, I’m researching into the possibility of building the layout in such a sectional way I can reach far back into the underground layers. Want to achieve this by using drawing slides for each section. Thus I will also be able to model the depth below surface level as accurately as possible. Anyhow, the plan is slowly coming together. Be sure I’ll step over that creative threshold as soon as I’ll put the first screws in. If only for that stepping stone reason, I sincerely want to add, that watching and following your episodes regularly is a true inspiration to get this project going! Cheerio

“You can do whatever you want” that’s what this channel taught me and I’ve had it in the back of my mind to get a machine that can laser cut balsa wood so I can scratch build my own NG models

As one who has played D&D for years, as well as a lover of small, island based, industrial guano railways, a small pizza or fork layout in 0n18 ish or Gn15 ( 1/24 on HO scale track) to haul Dragon guano to the boats for the magical community to use in their garden. I might take inspiration from the short story fantasy/ western collection by Alan Dean Foster called "Mad Amos".

I’m creating a short line style winter themed layout for o gauge and a concept for on30 that uses s gauge. The whole idea of a winter themed layout came around after my mom passed away and my dad suggested using her old collection of Christmas village houses, and thus was the establishment of the Arctic Pines and Crystal Caverns Railroad, of which I have several custom painted o27 locomotives

My wife and I are jumping into On30 with a layout with each vignette representing one of our 4 children, their spouses and our grandkids. Our parents, who are no longer with us, and my wife's step dad will also have a place on the train table. Thanks for all of your inspiration, Dave. Our three years in the hobby have all been spent with you as a guide.

Well said Dave, especially your command Malcolm Furlow.

A very important subject Dave. Thankfully the society I belong to decided long ago that rules were the anathema of a friendly society, and it works. One of my favourite layouts is ‘Angst Lesspork’ which is based on the novels of Terry Pratchet. It’s supposed to be fun! Toy trains people, toy trains!

Absolutely! Gatekeeping is absolutely the word for it. Many other hobbyists and I have had many long discussions about this very thing. Thanks for reinforcing this. Verne put me in touch with you years ago because we were doing similar things and had similar interests. Enjoying what this hobby offers us and sharing it with others is the purpose of the community aspect of it.

thanks for another great video. I was the "have to do it traditional guy". Hated it, not motivated and quit for 20+ years ago...until I found Thunder Mesa. I am a professed HO to ON30 convert and absolutely love it. Cant wait for sundays to come around to spend time in my train room modeling. I am modeling my interpitation of NC in a 42x84 space from the outer banks and Wright brothers to central piedmont to Appalachian mountain mining in the late 1890s with heavy heavy heavy influence from Thunder Mesa, Bandit Canyon and the Gruesome Gulch so it is more of a Dave Meeks mashup tribute layout.

Well said Dave. Some quote rule one …… my railroad…. Do what I like. I have been in the hobby for only 4 years but by keeping at it I believe my skills are increasing. Thanks Peter from downunder.

I would love to congratulate you on this video. I absolutely adore your "stories" held within your set ups. I myself am.a dolls house enthusiast and builder and our community seems to have the same "gods" that show disapproval of mixing either media, tools or applications in making such wonderful pieces. The snobbery of having a victorian house decorated in a modern style??? Pfft don't get them started 😂. A hobby should be enjoyed by the maker who explores through their own creativity. I'm based in the UK and have found that the US KZfaqrs, whether its model railway or 1/12th modellers are much more forgiving and accepting. Love your channel ❤

Well spoken and perfectly put. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, it’s comforting to know that we’re never really alone in this.

Thank you. You have inspired me and my own layouts with your KZfaq tutorials - long may it continue.

Excellent topic to cover Dave. There are way too many "Bean Counters" & or critics. I for one have never allowed that to influence my RR hobby. I have always freelanced because that is what I enjoy. Thank You.

Great advice Dave. I didn't learn that for a long time. I need to do what I do and not please anybody else. I mostly build car models even though I have a great interest in model railroading. When I first started building I tried to pack every detail I could in every project until I realized I was building to please others and not myself. I'd ask "what else can I do" until I realized I was trying to impress other modelers, and the hobby wasn't fun anymore. Now that I do what I do and have a good time at it, and know that others that share my interests and tastes will appreciate my builds. I don't anyone's approval anymore.

I really enjoy the fun side of narrow gauge! Your creativity inspires me!

Hello Dave, enjoyed the video. I'm from the UK and have two projects on the go at the moment. One is a reimagining of the backstreets of my hometown York, set in the sixties when I was growing up, built in my garage. The second is a British light railway, in the Victorian era that I'm constructing in a large cardboard box, the sort used when moving home. It's an exercise in how little money needs to be spent to join in with our hobby.

My favorite work of yours grew some gulch .

Thank you, Dave, for all the inspiration that you give. I have been modeling for 55 years now starting with HO for 35 years and switching to G for the past 20. I have shown in the Indianapolis area shows as well as teaching some modeling classes. I have met several people that feel if you're not modeling prototype, you're not modeling properly. I personally prefer fictitious railroads that give you the freedom to model what you feel and what you want. In the past couple of years of watching your videos, I've been inspired to start an On30 layout as well as a Gn15 mini layout. Keep up the great work, I always look forward to your videos. Boxcarmarty

I am combining my life long hobby of comic book super heroes with my O scale train hobby. A section of my layout will have a Comic Con, with tons of Marvel and DC characters around it… as if they were convention goers in costume. The models will come from gaming products.

My dream Railroad that I am still working on is set in the early 1900’s set in the Sierra Nevada between Tuolumne County and Mono County. It would be a mid range passage through the Sierra Nevada connecting the Sierra Railway to the Virginia Truckee Railroad. Founded by a mining tycoon who owned mines in both the Mother Load and Comstock.

I'm well into building my gnome-gauge railroad. The conceit that everything I build is technically 1:1, and the whole layout exists in some forgotten corner of a secret garden using a combination of stolen On30 model train parts, real world items and structures scaled down with a touch of faerie glamour (magic), and a whole lot of suspension of disbelief. It winds through a small town square situated in/around a rotten old stump, through a goblin-infested boggy "Crick" before passing through the upper level of a dwarven mining operation. All that, in only 36" x 54" !

Dave, your comments are right on point. I could not agree more. Thank you so much for sharing your modeling skills and inspiring modelers to try anything they want. I've enjoyed watching your videos for quite a while, and all are very interesting and informative. Thanks again!

Very well said. Myself I'm in my 60's and don't adhere to those principles, when people ask me what they should do, I just tell them you do you, but most importantly just have fun. Because it it's not fun, you're likely to give up and I don't want to see people give up. You had an inkling to try your hand it, go for it, have fun and you are likely to stick with it. Thanks.

The only limit for me in model railroading is modeling nude figures. I personally find it distasteful but that's just me. I've come across many model railroaders who do this but I keep my comments to myself and remain respectful. You're correct Dave, what is for one individual isn't for another.

This was a great workbench Wednesday!!! I confess, In the past I have made comments on various videos, observations or opinion etc, honestly never with the intention of hurtful critical criticism or intention to insult degrade anyone's efforts... Awhile back someone had responded, and it occurred to me ..as you said...I sound like a jerk. Having also been on the receiving end of such like comments needless to say I had a maturing moment. Theres a ton of beautiful inspiring efforts and art in model Railroading out there. Its always better to give a little love than to give no love at all. "the golden rule" Your work and wisdom is inspiring. Happy Trax!!

Excellent video! Good form sir, thank you. And yes, I do scale modeling and are starting to get back into model railroading and you inspire me on many levels. Thanks again.

Dave's work brings a sense of stylization and art direction to modeling that is extremely fresh and inviting every time I see it. Really, really fantastic stuff that both enhances its roots in theme park design and reaps the same effectiveness in creating an immersive environment.

I love this topic with my whole heart. Thank you! I plan on making a railroad layout for a wild west/horror/supernatural tabletop game, and I know some folks would say that "isn't model railroad". But I WANT a train to go through those haunted swamps and ghost-cursed badlands, so I'm doing it!

Thanks Dave, so encouraging and liberating!

Well said Dave.

You've read my mind! I have considered making a video very similar to this... You speak no lies Dave, no lies! Thank you for all you bring to the hobby. From now on I may post a link to this video when ever I get one of those self appointed experts pop in to my channel!

Great critique, Dave, thanks for what you do, my friend. I love the Old West also, however, my railroad and the miners it serves have discovered an ancient abandoned mining area that has a bunch of megalithic mining structures in the district. Why, because I like it!

Great video! The current layout I'm running is Z scale and is a snow-covered Midwestern village. I made it well before I saw your Santa Fe & St. Nick. My hope is to build another small Z scale layout (or two) set in warmer weather to place my 3D designed & printed buildings on. Oh, and I also run my 3D printed rolling stock. Watching your channel has made me wonder if I might want to be a bit more creative with my ideas on rolling stock and buildings. 🙂

I love your work because I love the idea that you are actually a prototype modeler modeling the real railroad that inspired Disney’s freelanced park railroads and rides. Does that make sense? I also love your work because I believe it is a true to life recreation of a world we wish existed. As for my own, I have always worked to model my own memories of the railroads of my early life. In most cases, people will look and say, “Yeah, I know that place and, yeah, that is what it looked like,” but if compared to photos it will become clear I use a lot of “modeler’s license.” For me, I guess I look at others work as, “Could it exist?” I believe the seasoned skilled modeler can make us believe what we see could be real and in that respect, the freelancer that can achieve this is a true master. Model railroads like the freelance V&O may be that pinnacle.

Very very well said, I have a small railroad in mind that is On18, with a mix of mining, and electric interurban

Excellent sentiments! Alright, here are the first two that come to mind: A narrow gauge gem mining layout in the theme of either the Seven Dwarfs or the dwarves of Middle Earth (Mountains, Forest, dragons, orcs, maybe a castle, etc). And the second is a railroad in the arctic that moves harvested ice (polar bears, wolves, yeti, dog sleds, igloos, maybe even... Santa 🤣).

I know I'm a few days late, but you know what I'll abide by your end-of-video request. For 4 years now I've been working on a plan for a freelance model railroad set in Eastern Oregon, a part of the country that I truly consider home. The idea for it started out from a short story I was writing at the time (which has now evolved into a 40,000-word novel) where I accidentally stated that the Southern Pacific ran through Baker City. Rather than go back and rewrite the story to correct this small oversight, I instead decided to see if I could come up with a reasonable explanation for it that could exist within the universe the story was written in. What I came up with was the Baker Valley & Eastern, a railroad confined mostly to the Eastern Oregon & Western Idaho region of the country. An overworked, underappreciated class 2 that ran through Baker City and got bought out by the SP in the mid 1950s. It would have an interchange with the Sumpter Valley narrow gauge line, and a fleet of about 8-10 locomotives. I've been working on building parts of it bit by bit. Passenger cars, locomotives, little scenery bits etc. Before starting this project, I never really had a "prototype" to model and that meant that the things I bought were a bit... all over the place. They still are, but to a much lesser degree.

Your thoughts on this over all as, for the enjoyment of the hobby, or any hobby for that matter, is greatly appreciated Sir! We are here for the enjoyment that it brings to Us! How We perceive the world We are creating. What We like, what We want to see, What We want to create! Sharing what We have learned and learning to share with one another without being hurtful. Our chosen hobby is to be enjoyed and shared with others of a like mind. As a child my Father had my brother an dI set up with an HO train. Great fun. I chose model cars other the trains in my elder years, as cost and space was limited. But I still enjoy watching and seeing the work of others in this hobby, I Thank You Dave for sharing that with myself and others. I do so much appreciate Your time and effort with the videos You do. Take Care, Be Safe, God Bless, Later

I have seen many of the gatekeepers who will run rolling stock that is out of era as they like the prototype and will quote rule 1. Many of the layouts that are similarly based in the imagination (like yours) seem to attract more interest at exhibitions than ones based upon a real location. My layout is a shunting puzzle where I run whatever.

Thank you, love this, as I am a train modeler and lover of all trains, great and small, real and fictional.

Malcom Furlow is who taught me that model railroads could be fun. I didn’t have to slavishly copy scenes from actual locations. I could be as creative as I wanted to be.

Thanks for this. I think it goes for any hobby. I like to build tamiya kits and play D and D with my family. We have a brick and mortar hobby shop in town and a few comic stores (I get the family D and D stuff at the comic shop) I see a lot of push back from the historical builders to young people just starting out especially with paints. The “gatekeepers” tell the oils are the way to go etc. I started with oils when I was young and it was hard to not only take care of my brushes and my airbrush back the (mid 80’s) until I met a kid through the D and D groups that talked me into water based paints and I couldn’t be happier since then, my experience grew and I recommend acrylic paints to young people and always receive a side eye from the guys in the club.

I totally agree with you. Tat is why, in the future< if I ever do any videos on making things for this hobby they will not be a "How to" video but a "How I did it" video. For every right way of doing things there are many other "right ways"...

Hello Dave! You made several valid points in this video and they were all spot-on. I'm going to be restarting an N-scale project modeled after old downtown Kingman with Clack Canyon as the backdrop. Love your show and all your tips and tricks. Bob in Golden Valley.

Another amazing video Dave! Thank you for your kind voice and tenor.

Hear Hear Dave, very well said

Amen brother!

Great content Dave! We should all strive to be good modelers, but we should be good humans first! I started planning a layout over a year ago after visiting the Roswell Alien Museum. While creating the backstory for it, I had gotten so in depth about what it was that I started writing a book. I’m now over 30,000 words into my novel and am so absorbed with the story, I haven’t even begun the layout 😂 Thanks for everything Dave, you are a true inspiration!

Thanks Dave - Awesome advice.

Awesome video Dave! Your work has been a major inspiration in the building of my new model railroad which is based on the Maine two-foot railroads, particularly the Sandy River & Rangely Lakes Railroad. Even though our locals are drastically different, there is always something I take-away or learn from your videos. Thanks for all you do for our hobby!

I want to model the Copper Range Railroad, but I lack time for such a large project. However, I recently learned that a 10' seam of calcite near where I live was mined to make lime for use in making mortar. It was a simple operation, but I'm stepping it up a bit in my imagined incarnation and it'll be served by an 18" gauge railway (will be On 18). I've got a 12x39 inch shelf that I'm planning to use for the baseboard. I feel like I can afford about 15 to 20 minutes every couple of days to work on it so the size seems about right for the time I have available.

Great topic Dave,That the best advice you could give to anyone, We could use more people like you in this hobby.

Great video and great advice. Do what you like and what makes you happy.

This is a fantastic video Dave, thank you!

Great Video and I highly agree with your message. I always love a blend of history and imagination, which is why I am building a layout inspired by a lost real world railroad (Boston, Revere Beach, and Lynn), but putting my own spin on it. It is a great way to model New England Seaside towns and beaches, but also re-create the landscape to fit this dream of the lost route. I call it the Happy Harbor and Rockport Railroad.

Something subtle, like Barlowe's Siding from Blood and Dust? Or the Bayou Vermillion from Deadlands? Less subtle, like Malifaux or Shatterpoint? Perhaps a shunting layout where the freight serves all the guild facilities of Guildball, or the jack and zombie factory shortlines on the islands of the Cryxian empire?

This is a very encouraging video to watch and listen through. Thank you very much for your insightful words Dave. I myself hope to one day own a land big enough to run a garden railroad on. I plan for it to be Fn3, with ties to the Sierra Valley and Mohawk railroad that ran near the Feather River route of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The idea is that it was a branch line of the SV&M that survived the takeover and standardization of the Western Pacific, and is intended to take the idea of "magic railroad" literally. I was planning for the magic side of the railroad to be subtle, like how the original Thomas the Tank Engine series felt like working on a real railroad, just with talking trains and everything still relatively normal. But it ended up growing to be more obvious with magical creatures that sit in the firebox of the engines to power them, as well as elves, dwaves, and halfings in early 20th century clothing, and other magical creatures like giants and fairies roaming the countryside. Hopefully I can find a way to nail down what I want out of my layout's theme. But I think it's safe to say it's going to be well beyond the typical "rivet counting" one would expect from a layout.^^;

Thank you for saying this, Dave. There's a lot of folks out there, on both sides of the argument, who need to hear this. As for ideas, my current dream layout is wavering between two: 1. The Aspin, Sycamore, and Magnolia Railway (ASMR). An amalgamation of shortlines surrounding the St. Louis area in the 1950's, particularly designed to act as a bridge line to let the big Class 1 railroads from all over the nation bypass the St. Louis bottleneck. The best excuse I could think of to run stock from almost every American railroad out there all at once; Be it Santa Fe, Union Pacific, Pennsylvania, B&O, New York Central, even Southern, they all met at St. Louis. 2. The Longhorn Central. Also set in the '50's, I was inspired by a combination of Model Railroader's "Cripple Creek Central" project layout (I'm trying to learn from Jim Kelly's "HO Railroad From Start to Finish") and springtime in my native Central Texas. While the ASMR has more lore to it, more of a reason it could exist, I can't deny the visual appeal of rolling past a field of bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes into the yard of a small Texas town. Seeing as the majority of my current rolling stock, especially motive power, is Santa Fe, it makes sense to align this route with that parent company. But if you want to get really out there, there's another idea that's been circling my brain: Concordia United Transportation: A Sci-fi Western Railroad. The thought struck me awhile ago, imagining the classic planetary colonization scenario: A mothership lands with the early round of colonists, some starting supplies, perhaps even limited refining and manufacturing facilities to help establish a colony. But what happens next, after the population outgrows what the mothership can sustain, both in numbers and territory? Well, people will have to start developing industry of their own. And what's the most basic form of power and therefore the easiest to get up and running the fastest, one that requires little to no advanced tech like electronics or computers? Steam power! So on outer frontier lands as seen in shows like Firefly, I could easily see even futuristic extraplanetary settlers reverting back to something akin to the Wild West, with wooden buildings, wagons drawn by the local fauna, and steam engines dominating the new world. Plus, who doesn't like the idea of gunfights with lasers, or spaceship train robberies?

Best video ever! Restarted during COVID in HO after decades away. Doing coastal Orange County, CA during the oil boom, including PE, SP, and SF, mining gypsum, citrus, local agriculture. BUT time frame shifts as we move away from the beach. Your videos are my favorites on YT.

Love your clouds. Hon30 Lost Coast RR of Cali with circling buzzards and lighter-than-air craft with a T.Yorke influence.

100% d accord avec vous 😊 nous aussi en Europe avons les mêmes discussions entre amateurs de train miniatures ! notre passion doit être un plaisir 😊

Such cool ideals!!!! If I ever build something, it is going to be based on a railway museum in a town that transfer cars/freight from the main line and delivers it to customers. So I could use any equipment from the 1800's to modern times. Do excursion trains etc. I saw a video of someone not long ago delivering freight with an early 1900's steam engine to several business. It was so cool to watch and listen to the little engine that could. Have a great day!!!!

When I discovered narrow gauge, especially industrial, it totally liberated my mind, no issue at all with freelancing. But I never understood the debate about freelancing and prototypical, as everybody is freelancing, it is impossible to recreate a whole railroad. Even Jack Burgess is using selective compression, and he has the most prototypical layout I ever saw.

Thanks again Dave, you hit the nail on the head. It’s hard to mention them all but Furlow, Olson, they inspired many. I really like your work and hope to make it to Jerome to see the new revised layout. Great work

it only has to make one person happy you

Great discussion, Dave! I got to exchange a few emails with Malcolm shortly before he passed. I let him know what an influence he's had on my own HOn3 RGS layout and on my approach to the hobby in general. I shared photos of my own San Juan Central equipment too. He was a really great guy to talk to... He's be sorely missed. While my RGS tries very hard to be an accurate depiction of the real thing (1938-1947), I really try to use Malcolm's philosophy of what he called "vignette scenes," where there are specific parts of the layout designed to be viewed in a specific way for maximum artistic effect.

Hi Dave, Great video as always! I think your analysis of the hobby is spot on, and needs to be reiterated on occasion to remind us all that model railroading is fun. You mentioned Malcolm Furlow and showed some photos of his Rio Chama layout. His ability to tell a story and set the scene through modeling was what made me a narrow gauge modeler. I’d love to see your layout someday, and if you’re interested, I happen to have Malcolm’s Rio Chama. Cheers

Different strokes for different folks, 'nuff said.

My outdoor train layout is built around shops/industries that repair/restore high-end race cars. Set in the 1950s. I also have three slot car tracks, same era. In other news, I'd love to try a Wild, Wild West-themed layout complete with crazy steampunk gadgets and inventions.

I wish I could start building my layout, but right now I don't have the room, my wife and I live in a one bedroom apartment. I just hope I get to build one before I'm to old to enjoy building it and running it.

I'm here watching, home from the Mississippi Rive cruise.

I really like this video, I don’t model railroad at all or have any interest in doing it. I love your channel and watch all your videos. I’m not sure what it makes me but I’m a big fan of folks that model railroad.

Well said. Rule 1 all day long 👍🏻💪🏻

I have a strong interest in turn of the century narrow gauge and I’ve seen a lot of people turned away by the ‘gauge keepers’ from that subject because of the extra challenges that are presented. They have valid points, and probably most of the time they are speaking from a position of experience and wanting to give helpful advice, but are rarely encouraging. Generally speaking I think a lot of hobbyists and potential new comers hold really high standards for their own modeling and are scared to fall short of that standard, and instead of trying and enjoying the process and honing the skills needed to achieve those standards, they rely on what they can buy and encourage others to do the same.

Lol ive just started my n scale 5m × 700mm , only have one passenger train , Rio grande, ABA and 8 carriages, love it , scenery, Rocky Mountain, with European buildings and a. Castle, now i had to justify my madnes , Canada has over a thousand castles , and there's a few towns in tudor era , so my madnes isn't so mad Lol