Is the Hobby Dying

Is the Hobby Dying. Pt. 1 of 3

This is a new series of discussions about different topics on model railroading.

[leonarddecant]

I am 62 but only got into the hobby about 18 months ago. What drew me in is something I suspect many young modelers would really enjoy as well and that is electronics. The capabilities of DCC combined with software that will allow me to run several trains at the same time while manually performing yard work has just blown me away. It is continuing to add modern technology to the hobby that will keep it alive. BUT to really gain traction it needs to be more “plug and play” at a lower price point. I totally agree with you that the hobby is not dying it’s transforming. Manufacturers, distributors, educators, clubs and conventions need to all transform as well or fall to the wayside.

[martyn]

YTMB great show format I think this will be a hit with the right subject matter. Hobby is not dying look at some of the podcast out there their age group is far lower than clubs and the print media.

[manderschannel]

27 years old. Looking to build an empire in HO and do something awesome with the O!

[YADNUM]

I live in a railroad town Topeka Ks and do have one train store in this town. and if you find a hobbie store its all RC cars. I have to order all my stuff online. No going get some paint or little senic items that I might of forgot. It my not be dying but its slowing down. Scaletrains buying everything and ordering anything from Athearn is slow as a snall.

[cdp]

I’ve been in the hobby 40 years and definitely know it’s down 40% from its max in 1991. Layouts will be much smaller and less interest in pre Y2K trains in general. There’s very few modelers I know that are very serious about the hobby that are under 40.

[mikescudder]

Wouldn't sales figures be the ultimate indicator for the 'health' of the hobby?? Personally, and i'm generalising here, i just don't see kids interested in anything beyond their smartphones, video games, pop music and social networking.

[paullindell]

I came back to the hobby 4 years ago at the age of 60. My life has slowed down enough to have free time. I haven't been to a brick and mortar hobby shop in over 40 years. I get everything on line. I started building a layout and stopped after making the decision to move. I plan to get a You Tube channel up and running. My channel will be about doing HO on the cheep. I don't think the hobby is dying, I think its changing, for the better. I'm more a railroad modeler that a model railroader. I have enjoyed model building since the age of 8. I subscribe to over 20 You Tube channels dealing with the hobby. We are 20 years into the new millennium, so things will change. In part one you guys were saying you didn't want to spend $50.00 on a box car, I've been making some cool stuff for $10.00 to $15.00.

[derrickball]

Youtube IS killing MMR Mag BUT it is growing the hobby or at least energizing those of us in it!!! As a new model railroader today, which I consider myself, WE NEED INFORMATION by the tons and reading a mag every month was not doing it for me. I craved new information and having to wait a whole month for the next magazine didn't help. I started with MRR Mag because the place I got my starter set from told me thats what a model railroader does and the best place for information on the hobby. Side note, that place is out of business now. Many, if not most of the articles did not apply to me as a new modeler so that made it even worse. I found that much of the how to articles (which is what I bought it for) were not really hitting the mark with me. It was so much easier to get on youtube and watch others show their technics and what worked for them. Watching the videos made it seem more personal and much like what it feels like with a local club. Today's new model railroader requires more, not just a few pictures and several pages of written text. The biggest thing that drove me crazy was reading an MRR mag article and the picture they referenced was not even on those pages!!! How I hated that! If you want more NEW people in the hobby, then youtube IS working in my opinion. I started with a N Scale bachmann Empire set and it has now launched me into several scales now. If it were not for youtube (Thank you ALL for the great videos!) I would have left the hobby due to lack of participation as a group. At least now I can turn my computer on and watch a few videos of my favorite channels and then get motivated to try the next thing on my layout. Hey Manufacturers ... Did you hear that???? I got motivated by the videos..hint, hint. Just my two cents

[raymondleggs]

Pre 1978 Bachmann was decent and had can motors, and no nylon gears, from the tail end of 1979 on came the nylon gear plague, The lionel Fundimension locos were Bachmann but without the pesky Nylon gears, Life-like also used a kader designed drive also without the nylon gears.

Lima was loud because they had moulding flash on the gears however, they along with fleischmann are the most reliable affordable models ever made.

[evanhizon]

Why is the hobby dying and not many young people are getting into it? Let's see.

Lionel legacy steam locomotive = $1799

Tracks, accessories, power supply, rolling stock, etc = $1299

Or..

Gaming Laptop = $1299

100+ games from Steam = $599

[michaelconnolly]

It’s never going to be 1980 again. The environment has changed and there are too many competing hobbies and ways to spend free time for model railroading to have that high of a market share again. That doesn’t mean it’s dying, only that it’s share will be smaller. It’s like baseball, the “national pastime” in the 50s, when football and basketball started to catch on. No one will say baseball is dying (hello, Bryce Harper) but also no one will say baseball is the top dog anymore either. It’s not dead, it’s just different.

And don’t count out young people and the supposed preference for video gaming. Take a look at the board game industry in the past 10 years – massive growth and creativity, most of it driven my people under 40 who want something social and tactile. If it’s marketed right, the hobby will be just fine.

[TomsTrainsandThings]

The hobby is alive and well here in Florida. Even though there are a lot of old farts here like myself there are many very talented newcomers that are spending tons of money and very knowledgeable about the industry. In the past few months I've been to 6 train shows here in Fl and one in Ga. that didn't look to me like anything was dying. There's 4 more in the next 2 months. Needless to say there's a lot of shows when the snow birds are here. It could be that some of the vendors are complaining because people aren't spending as much as they think they should. I've also heard some say they did very well.


I think most of the "Hobby Dying" dialog comes from frustrated modelers that feel they're being left behind with all the newest technology. Seeing your favorite hobby shop closing where one could go for long war stories and advice from your local expert scares many because the hobby is changing too much too quickly for them. The stores that survived these changes are the ones that also changed their business model.


I get a lot of emails from modelers that don't understand a lot of the newer electronics that's come out in the past several years. Even though DCC has been around, it seems like forever now, modelers are having trouble with understanding how to use it and what they can do with it. Many getting into the hobby from any age group are asking questions on all the Facebook groups and getting bombarded with 50 different answers, some good answers some bad. I can see the confusion one would have trying to sort out all the answers they get. If I was just starting out or getting back into the hobby after a long absence, I would be more confused after reading the comments from modelers trying to help.


The hobby is still alive and well, just changing with the times like everything else!

[davebnsfnscale]

I think with the social media aspect of the hobby today proves it will not die.Manufacturers are adjusting to this in differing ways.Some like Atlas are trying to straddle the line between extreme high quality and begginer

[cprtrain]

Excellent comments from the guys about the hobby. I've gotten back into the hobby after a 18 year absence and am having more fun today than I ever had in 60 plus years. Better quality equipment (better detail and reliability) and DCC make the hobby FUN! Model railroaders need to connect with the public. That is important because we can show the public that model railroading is FUN. I agree that print media and bricks and mortar hobby shops are in trouble but that is because the Internet and e-commerce has changed how we do things. What YouTube has done is allow model railroaders to connect in new ways. Whether it is done via a podcast or an individual video, I'm amazed at how much great stuff is appearing on line. Manufactures need to understand that they need to offer entry level train sets that are affordable and WORK. Cost can be a barrier to a new person entering the hobby. Train shows, model railroad clubs and the NMRA need to market the hobby to the public.


This is a great topic and I look forward to seeing future dialogue. Well done guys.

[BoxcarJerry]

I don't see this as true at least in the Phila PA area, the trains shows are just as busy as they were 20 years ago . The model RR clubs in my area are just as popular today as years past . With all the different premium model makers speaks to me a thriving industry . I agree you can't go by some of the sources that claim this is happening . With the internet opening up so many different avenues for information I can see where magazines and books aren't as popular . Just this youtube community speaks to me how this hobby is still alive and well . JMO

[melfackler]

I haven't picked up a new copy of Model railroader for 11 years now. I used to get it every month,

[davebnsfnscale]

with their master and trainman lines.I see other manufacturers doing the same.Entry level sets are much better quality than they where even 10 years ago and not out of reach of most consumers.Better quality entry products bring in repeat business.Back when I first tried N scale in the early 70's and the loco stopped working in just a few hours run time. I did not return to model railroading until early 90's because of that experience!

[outlawrailroad]

Hi Johnny, great topic and good group to talk about it, some very interesting stuff come up so far cant wait for the second part cheers Ron.B

[johnranson]

I like the topic I believe the hobby is doing just fine. I like the focused topic discussion show was great

[bneagleriversubdivision]

Great show, nice and fresh. Keep them coming!