After more than 25 years of collecting and arm-chair model railroading I have decided to jump back into the hobby. I first started to have interest in the hobby as a kid growing up in the late seventies. Sometime around my 10th birthday I got an HO scale train set. I was thrilled, I had been dreaming of this set for a long time, wearing out the Sears catalogue in the process. My first layout began soon after. My dad built a 4’x 8’ table with folding legs to use as the train table. I have no idea what I was going but I had a blast. This lasted for a couple of years but my interest soon died out.
Fast-forward to the early nineties and I am married with a young daughter. My interest slowly rekindled and I started reading the Model Railroader magazines again. My house didn’t really have the space for a proper layout (at least that is what I thought at the time) so I decided on a switching layout. Switching is my favorite railroad activity so it was a good fit. I modified the track plan, from one of the Atlas track planning books, for the Southside Connecting railroad. I built the bench and got the track down and even had trains running! My wife was amazed (her actual words were “you’re actually doing it?”).
Life took a turn and we moved out of state and my uncompleted railroad was abandoned, much like a real one. I continued to collect cars and locos for a few more years but things just never seemed to be right to start another layout (excuses, excuses). I now realize that if this ever going to happen I have to just do it and make the most of what I have.
“Why is this on your painting blog?” you ask. I plan to use this blog to document my progress just as I have done with my war gamming hobby. There is a lot of painting on a model railroad you know, so there will be plenty of things to share. Don’t worry; I have not given up on my war gamming and miniatures painting. In fact, we are starting a Lord of the Rings campaign next month so keep a look out for that. More on this later.
12 hours ago
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